I thought it would be a quiet weekend. It was. A little too quiet. My son seemed off. I couldn’t put my finger on it. Though he had friends over one evening, there were two nights in a row when he was up at strange hours, walking around. Not his usual behavior. But with adolescents, […]
Numbers Do Not Lie
We’d been at it for several hours, side by side, each of us on our laptops. Spread on the small ottoman pressing against my knees were stacks of old tax forms. On the chair beside me, two more folders with notes and figures. We actually began the process days ago, but I couldn’t continue, and […]
Put Your Kids to Work!
Kids? Organizing? Can the two ever mix?
Parenting Teens: Tips from a Professional Post Party Parent
Are you parenting partying teens? Care to hear my ten tips for surviving party chaos? For surviving normal chaos? The planned, the unplanned, the assumed stuff of parenting pandemonium? Yes, it’s Sunday morning. (Insert *sigh* of relief.) Yes, for the moment it’s quiet. (Sigh number two.) No teenagers as yet stirring in the kitchen, after […]
Sink or Swim
Fond of clichés? Don’t they breeze into our minds and tumble out of our mouths faster than a speeding bullet? Catchy little phrases stick, don’t they? Good for what ails you? A quick fix? Oh yeah – tidy gems to sum up the world’s wisdom, like life isn’t fair, you get what you pay for, […]
“The best thing I’ve ever done”
There’s nothing quite like it. Having family around, especially when you’ve been apart for some time. It doesn’t matter what your family looks like – nuclear, extended, blended – large or small. Those you love – happy and well – that’s as good as it gets. Dinner for three “I know it was hard,” I […]
Hand wash
Teens, travel, laundry. Metaphors abound.
I love you, have fun, be safe. CALL me.
I find myself stranded again. The car zipped down the street at noon yesterday, with my elder son behind the wheel. There was a brief exchange over a hastily planned camping trip in the mountains with friends. It’s a considerable drive, I’m sans vehicle for the weekend, but I said yes. My kid ran errands […]
The Kids Are Alright (Mine, That Is)
He’s taken the car. Already. He’s been traveling in France, Belgium and Holland for two months, home for eight hours, and he’s leaving already. Yup. That’s about right. But he asked politely, as usual. And first he hauled out bags of trash, asked what else he could do to help, and gave me a hug. […]
Headaches: Teen Travel, Kid Conundrums
Parenting panacea? If there’s an effective panacea for parenting, I’ve yet to discover it – even after 18 years on the job. The mother job that is. And I’ve been hitting the Excedrin Migraine pretty hard these past hours. Good thing there’s plenty in the medicine cabinet, along with half a bottle of Pepto Bismol. […]