"One forgets about parenthood — the on and on-ness of it." - Downton Abbey As ever, the Dowager is given the best line. Our darling daughter has reached a "stage in her development" where her only purpose in life is to interrupt (at best) or totally disrupt (at worst) any activity her brother is engaged in, leaving me in a constant state of vigilance to maintain a tenuous peace. Got a check to write? A lunchbox to pack? Too bad. In the two seconds it takes to uncap a ballpoint pen, Babygirl has parkoured across the livingroom and onto the couch, the better to pull out giant chunks ... [READ MORE]
Not a Top-Ten List
May 12, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Because it's Mother's Day and I'm drinking champagne, a short list of things that I say out loud now that I'm a mom, and they make me chuckle. (Who body-snatched me, again?) 1. "I've found his feet...Now, where, in God's name, is the rest of R2D2?" 2. "Guido rolled under the fridge again? Okay, just let me get the long-handled spatula and a flashlight." 3. "But seriously, babe, what do you think the audience reaction was in 1980? Because Empire Strikes Back is honestly SUCH a middle-child kind of movie. I bet people were sort of pissed." 4. "All right, you can have another ... [READ MORE]
Why Do We Do This Again? (Again, In Which I Brave Pinterest)
May 1, 2013 by 1 Comment
"Wait. You went to PRINCETON?" the woman exclaimed. Then she shook her head. "I can't believe you only work part-time. Shouldn't you be off, like, conquering the world or something?" We had covered a fair bit of territory at this point, this rather more, shall we say, Sandbergian mother and I, on the sunny green where our children played: work habits (primarily), bedtime routines, daycare experiences. After educational pedigree we moved on to hobbies and I mentioned I maintain a blog. "How many readers do you have?" Not too many. About 600 hits a month. "Do you monetize at all?" I ... [READ MORE]
That Owen Wilson, He’s Everywhere
April 17, 2013 by Leave a Comment
"The sun is out, the coals are hot, and the pool is luke." These memorable words were first uttered by Owen Wilson, whose voice is indelibly seared into my brain thanks to the Cars saga (of course thanks to Star Wars, I now refer to all movie series as sagas -- and by the way, did any of you notice that OW is now the voice of Hertz Car Rental? I thought so, you film buffs). My husband and I repeat them often, as the pool where we swim most weekends is maintained at lukewarm-degrees all year round. Of course, while I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to take the kids swimming, ... [READ MORE]
My Kingdom, and a Half-Bath
April 9, 2013 by Leave a Comment
"I saw a slug on my walk this morning, LittleMan. Do you think he knows Jabba the Hutt?" "Don't be silly, Mommy! There are no big slugs like Jabba the Hutt in this neighborhood. Jabba lives on Tatooine. We live on a planet called San Francisco." Oh, LittleMan, you have no idea: Long long ago, in a far away galaxy, there was a tiny, shiny planet called San Francisco. Known throughout space as the last refuge of liberals, vegans, hippies, gays, and tech junkies, for the first decades of the new Millennium, the Planet San Francisco had been encased in a shimmering housing ... [READ MORE]
Hot Town, Summer in the City
April 3, 2013 by 1 Comment
Life is one big learning process, and one thing I am learning this month is that random school holidays are often the enemy of the working parent. It's funny, actually, because as an educator myself I have always loved school holidays and considered them a terrific perk of the profession. But now that I have a son in "real school" I am realizing that: 1) there are an inordinate number of school holidays; 2) all schools have different holiday calendars; and, of course, 3) the rest of the world keeps on turnin' -- meaning deadlines still need to be met, phone calls answered, dollars raised, ... [READ MORE]
Lean On Me
March 19, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Boy, she's pretty much inescapable these days, that Sheryl Sandberg. Lately I feel like she done leaned right on into my livingroom. The other day at the gym I was reading Time's cover article on Sandberg while watching a CNN piece on Sandberg that referenced a Vanity Fair article on Sandberg (in an issue which perhaps ironically has Taylor Swift on the cover...contrasts). The woman's gone meta. I have no real quarrel with Sandberg. The Mommy Wars aren't really my thing, and anyway, she's obviously talented, smart, and ambitious and her career savvy has paid off handsomely, and why ... [READ MORE]
