We’re only a few weeks into the school year, but I already realize we won the lottery with our son’s teacher this year. There are so many lovely anecdotes my son has brought home that illustrate what a gem she is. But there’s one in particular that I noticed from the first day I dropped […]
Potty Talk: Lessons from Toilet Training
The other day, an acquaintance asked me how I was doing. I found myself unloading (no pun intended) about the trials and tribulations of potty training for several minutes. I could hear myself rattle on and on about potty training…like I was floating above myself watching this unfold but couldn’t. manage. to. stop. This poor […]
Traveling Light
We’ve been traveling the last few weeks – spending time with family, exploring lakes and trails, barbecuing fish and corn, playing tag at sunset, roasting marshmallows. Enjoying the beauty of summer and the embrace of family. It’s been absolutely lovely. All except for all the packing and unpacking of our STUFF. And yes. I realize […]
Kuplink, Kuplank, Kuplunk
Maybe it’s heading to Oregon in a few days that’s got me thinking about berries. Or maybe it was the amazing berry and nectarine dessert my sister made for a family birthday from her new Four & Twenty Blackbirds Pie Book. It could be because it’s the umpteenth time in a week I’ve read Blueberries […]
Anniversary
A lovely, unexpected consequence of marrying my husband was that I gained another grandma. In fact, I used to joke with him that I married him for his grandma. I felt an instant connection with Lucile the moment we met, early on in my dating history with my husband. I was captivated by her Southern […]
Belated Mother’s Day Thank You to My Mom
Baking cupcakes for my son’s birthday the other weekend makes me think of my mom. As I show him how to use a hand mixer, I remember how I learned this from her years ago – the same familiar whir of the beaters against the bowl, learning how to move the bowl around slowly and […]
Mommy Got a Timeout
Recently, I got pulled over for driving while using my cell phone. To be clear, I was completely stopped at a stop light. Going 0 miles an hour. Glancing at my phone to double-check the address for my kid’s dentist. And yes, both kids were in the car. But yes, I was looking at my […]
Stop editing. Start dreaming.
Several months ago, during our evening ride home, I asked my four-year-old son what career he wanted when he grew up. As soon as I was home, I had to capture what he told me. Here’s his list (and I may have missed a few!): -Discovering new dinosaur bones -Teaching kids how to read and […]
Imagining the Splits
I’ve been doing some form of yoga or pilates to varying levels of intensity and regularity for the past 20 years, but one thing has remained constant: I’ve never been able to do the splits. I’ve never been close. In fact, it makes me laugh to even imagine myself doing the splits. Sometime I […]
Creating Happy Meals (the kind that don’t come with a plastic toy)
Being a mom had caught up with me. My kids and a demanding job were consuming every ounce of energy I had. And while weaning my daughter, I had developed what I thought was a sensitivity to gluten (but I didn’t actually have time to figure out.) I knew I was consuming more refined sugar […]
Alphabet Scramble 