I can still remember where I sat on the floor in the room, the Southern California light pouring in that way it does, diagonally through the plate glass windows and bending through the blinds. There were about twelve of us sitting in a circle, leaning back against folding cushions, our knees popped up in…
I am feeling my age. Age is a loaded word and concept, but in my case, what I mean is that I feel this year of 39 completely: this is not just another year in the life. When I was younger, the milestone birthdays seemed to be 13, 16, 18, and 21. I remember announcing…
One of the biggest lessons I have learned as a parent is that I cannot plan everything. Before I became a parent, I thought I would have two, maybe three, children, and I would space them out exactly three years apart and be done giving birth by age 33 — an age I deemed “right.” That decided, I…
I have four children. I have been a parent for over eleven years. That’s why I know that, like death and taxes, some things are certain in a parent’s life. Here are just five slightly harrowing but ultimately inevitable truths of parenting, from my experience — and if you have managed to escape these thus…
This month, I’m participating in the 28 Days of Play project over at Rachel Cedar’s You Plus Two Parenting & Beyond the Basics site. Rachel asked 30+ writers to explore the idea of playing with our children –the honest truth. Do you do play with your children? Do you like to? How do you play…
“Have a good day,” I said as my firstborn stumbled out of the minivan door, significantly encumbered by a giant Jansport backpack loaded with textbooks and a lunchbox packed with my own hands. “I love you.” “I don’t love you,” he answered confidently, each word measured and punctuated by his eyes piercing mine. He slammed…
They started appearing about a month or two ago by the handful. Every day, after school, my youngest son would show me when he hopped into the minivan and dropped his backpack into the backseat. “Mom, you will never guess what I found today!” They are all alike, the rocks he finds on a public…
It’s December 22, and I am over it. All of it. I know how I am supposed to be feeling: jingle bells, peace love joy, white lights and warm fuzzies. I’m supposed to be counting my blessings instead of sheep and humming tunes about roasted chestnuts and getting excited about my annual chance to play…
I drove down the familiar street near my house, trying not to think about where I was going, yet searching the side of the road for the familiar sign. Funeral homes are those places that we pass by and see every day, but we try hard not to know exactly where they are. We try…
Confession: I really didn’t want to cook Thanksgiving dinner this year. I have managed to get out of cooking the meal the past two years. Two years ago, I was pregnant and barfing and just really didn’t feel like taking on the job. Somehow, I persuaded my brother and sister-in-law (who was, for real, nine…
