It is a dangerous business, as a parent, to try to recreate perfection. Invariably it leads to disappointment, because any moment is really the sum of its parts: how well everyone slept (or didn't), how hungry they are, how much they really just wanted to stay home and chill quietly with that new book, who has a tummy trouble or a hangnail...I mean, these are little things but when you travel as a pack -- as families and friends so often do -- you may be dealing with all, or nothing. It's a delicate balance. I almost went back and deleted that word, perfection, because obviously nothing ... [READ MORE]
Tiny Dancer
February 17, 2016 by Leave a Comment
I dream of his n' hers sinks (and his n' hers closets, as long as we're dreaming). I mean, what I really dream of is a third bedroom and a second bathroom and a home office and hardwood floors, but in this remodeled hypothetical home I'd definitely install some his n' hers spaces. Dreams aside, we have made do with our standard, one-sink-for-all situation for some time now, and one of the funny little rituals that has evolved is that my husband and I brush our teeth at the same time every night. It's like an unwritten date. For two minutes, armed with dueling Sonicares, we stare at our ... [READ MORE]
Growing Pains
February 8, 2016 by 1 Comment
Occasionally, in my ample free time, I like ponder Life's Great Mysteries. Lately I've been stuck on this: How is possible that two people who essentially follow the same routine EVERY SINGLE DAY after school have such trouble remembering it? I mean, these are not complicated steps. Remove shoes, deposit shoes in shoe drawer. Use potty. Wash hands thoroughly with soap. After that, the world is your oyster. Play, build, read, beg mommy for video game time. OM MY GOD WHY MUST THIS BE SO COMPLICATED AND TAKE SO LONG??? And, I'm sorry, but TEARS? Really? Every. ... [READ MORE]
The Explorers
January 26, 2016 by Leave a Comment
A few days before the Airport Fiasco we had pretty much the best day ever. Parenting high-fives all over the place. It wasn't perfect -- there were tantrums, and certain parties were bored and starving and exhausted at various points throughout the day -- but on the balance? Whoa, it was a winner. First off, we did something that we have NEVER DONE BEFORE. This is a rare occurrence. We know what we like and we have our routines...but sometimes, and long weekends in particular, just beg for a break from the norm. Also, it stopped raining for ten minutes which meant we absolutely had ... [READ MORE]
The Tiara and the Baptism Bonnet
January 14, 2016 by Leave a Comment
When I was growing up I had a science teacher whose true calling was outdoor education; he was a good teacher, of course, but he was a beautiful outdoor educator. He led every outdoor education trip I took in Middle School, one per year for four years. None of these were particularly arduous (though we felt like they were at the time, because, ugh, Middle School girls), and it's safe to say that I didn't exactly emerge an outdoorswoman (ahem, in these shoes?). Still, if I had to drill down to one takeaway from those journeys, it is that he taught me how to experience solitude in a brand new ... [READ MORE]
Tahoe, Yo!
January 11, 2016 by Leave a Comment
The truth is, although I was a bona fide world traveler in my twenties, my thirties have seen me sticking rather closer to home. As in, we pretty much go to Tahoe and that's about it. I sometimes look at friends who bundle their tots off to Italian ski resorts and Japanese food capitals and Spanish beaches and think, Huh. So that's a possibility. But Tahoe is so close, and, with kids, so fabulously fun and so incredibly easy in that there is so much to do and so little formality. My parents bought a condo there about ten years ago, and thanks to their generosity we have a little mountain ... [READ MORE]
Aftermath
December 29, 2015 by Leave a Comment
I realized this year that the only day that makes me as happy as the day we decorate for Christmas -- and I LOVE that day: love buying the tree, love the everything-old-is-new-again wonder of pulling 3.5 decades' worth of ornaments out of the storage bin, love the way my kids dance around my husband who just wants to get the lights on before we start hanging things please and for heavens sake you guys, love the way the Manhattans taste just a little bit toastier in the glow of the lights, love it all -- is the day we take it all down and reclaim our living space. Much more than New Years ... [READ MORE]
