The Ketchup Packet
Posted by Ward
Driving 4 hours back from a two-day business trip, I tell myself that if my oldest son completed his homework, I would take both boys to Chick-fil-a (our favorite place to dine). I go into the school to pick them up from after-school care to find out that homework was not totally completed (“because I like to do spelling with you, dad,” my son says if he knows that my blood pressure rises when I hear that homework wasn’t done). I tell myself that he will get it done at home after dinner and before mom gets home, so it will be OK. What was I thinking?!?!?
We go in, order our food, and take it to our table. I lay out the chicken nuggets, the fruit cup (yes, I make my kids eat the fruit cup instead of fries), the milk, and condiments and head off to the bathroom. Gone [...]
Kids Spell the Darnest Things
Posted by Clair
I know that “virgin” is not a bad word…the billboards all around town say so – literally. But, it is still not a word that my husband or I want to have to explain to my 7 year old…not yet. So, last weekend when my husband and daughter were driving through the city and came upon the “VIRGIN – it’s not a bad word” billboard the panic set in as he prayed she wouldn’t see/read it.
Let me tell you a few things about my daughter. She is 7. She is VERY DRAMATIC. She is a wordsmith/linguistic genius. Any word she learns becomes immediately a part of her vocabulary. She will find a way to weave these new vocabulary words into all of her conversations. Virgin is not necessarily one that we need to have dropped in to a conversation she has with my mother over a long-distance phone call – [...]
The “Go Bag”
Posted by G.I. Jane
The “go” bag, which is my husband’s term for the bag we’re taking to the hospital, has been the topic of constant discussion in my house for the last two months. At first it was which bag do we take? Then it became what do I need to pack? And now it’s when are you going to pack it?
With only 15 days to go, I’m pretty much ready…except for the go bag. It is sitting empty in a corner of the nursery, taunting me. The fact that this bag is the biggest duffle bag we own and could be used on a week-long trip to Holland instead of a two-day trip to the hospital where all I plan on wearing is a tank top and sweat pants doesn’t help my motivation; however, it has wheels and a handle, so I’ll suck it up. But, my question becomes: do I really [...]
Children without Borders
Posted by Martha
Ten days of vacation has transformed me from Joan Crawford to a hybrid of Martha Stewart and MacGyver with hair that is not as lustrous. My two children and I spent long days together playing games, taking field trips and generally being agreeable with each other. So much so that they commented on how much fun I am when I don’t worry about being late all the time. My prized project for the week was an HGTV-style makeover of the basement playroom into a fantasy land (and kids’ safe haven for mommy’s cocktail hour) for school-aged children.
All the neighborhood moms would smugly roll their eyes as they described my playroom to each other. In one corner, a complete classroom including a wall of chalkboard, maps of the world and a how-to-write-proper-cursive alphabet border. [...]
