When the speaker announced my name as the winner of the Huffington Post essay competition, the feeling of elation may have eclipsed that which I felt at the birth of my children. Hell, it may have eclipsed the joy I feel when thinking of my own birth. Coming from a blogger, that is saying a lot. At some point my essay will appear on HP, but I wanted to share it here first as ...
The Seven Stages of Dinner
The majority of my day centers around feeding something. If I am not actively preparing food I am thinking about what I'm going to make, shopping for what I'm going to make, or cleaning up what I just made. And yet despite three meals and one healthy (relatively) snack every single day, my children are non-stop ravenous, insatiable beasts. Until dinner, that is. That's ...
We Got Crabs.
From the moment my kids could speak they have begged me for a dog. Which is unfortunate for them because: A. My husband is deathly allergic to fur, and B. I am at maximum capacity for cleaning poop. A shell bearing sea creature was not exactly on my list of 'things I need in my life right now', but I do appreciate the value of learned responsibility via keeping things ...
Tidings of Comfort and Joy
Last week Nick's Great Uncle died. He was the Grandfather figure in Nick's life, but he was 97, a widower, and had recently moved into a nursing home so there was an overarching sense of comfort and joy in his peaceful passing. The visitation was last Friday night. Because babysitters on a weekend in December book out about two years in advance, we decided to take the ...
Raising Girls: A Beginner’s Guide
Contrary to popular belief, I was ecstatic when my doctor announced in the delivery room that a third little girl would be joining our family. I grew up with two sisters, and couldn't wait for my three daughters to experience the same excitement and volatility of being trapped in an emotionally unstable, explosively melodramatic, all-female shitshow. Plus we already had all ...