Short-Winded Blog

Tag: childhood

  • Whodunnit?

    Whodunnit?

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    by

    Laura
    in , ,

    This morning, like most mornings, I woke up. I looked at my phone, turned off my alarm, answered some texts from a friend about how he likes to cook cabbage and brussels sprouts, and rolled over–into something. Oh no, I thought. When you have pets, rolling over into mystery substances or objects is usually not…

  • Selah’s Moment of Fame

    Selah’s Moment of Fame

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    by

    Laura
    in , ,

    My daughter Selah knows her classics. OK, so she knows a kid version of one classic: Beowulf.* When I worked for Ink&Paper Group, a publishing company in Portland, Oregon, Ink’s comics/graphic novels imprint published the first Kid Beowulf graphic novel. Selah was only about one year old at the time. I had a copy of the…

  • This Is Just to Say: A Halloween Poem

    This Is Just to Say: A Halloween Poem

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    by

    Laura
    in , ,

    This Is Just to Say I have eaten the Halloween candy that was in your bag and which you are probably old enough to remember exists now Forgive me it was delicious so sweet and so chocolatey I composed this high-quality poem last year after Halloween, in the style of William Carlos Williams. It first…

  • The Many Faces of Meltdown, Part II

    The Many Faces of Meltdown, Part II

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    by

    Laura
    in ,

    Practically as soon as I posted my last collection of tantrum photos, I received a number of lovely new pieces. I hope you enjoy these and they help you feel more normal if you or your children sometimes look and feel like this.   Aren’t walks supposed to calm babies? Sometimes they don’t.    …

  • The Many Faces of Meltdown

    The Many Faces of Meltdown

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    by

    Laura
    in

    Inspired by this photo of my friend’s son at the grocery store I asked for courageous people to share photos of their kids having meltdowns for a short-winded collection. I am hoping that you will see beyond the fact that I am kind of laughing at childish rage, and feel comfort in the shared experience.…

  • Herding Cats

    Herding Cats

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    by

    Laura
    in , ,

    The other night, I had my three kids post in mind. I asked the children if they would like to eat dinner outdoors. I partly did this because the evening weather was beautiful. I mostly did this because it seemed way too hard to convince the three of them to come indoors and clean up…

  • I Am Still Here

    I Am Still Here

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    by

    Laura
    in ,

    It has been weighing on me that I have not been writing much lately. I have been unsure what I could possibly respectfully and sanely share during a weird, transitional sort of time in my life. But not writing does not do much for me either, so I am just kind of…writing. This change from…

  • Calculating My Weighted Parenting GPA

    Calculating My Weighted Parenting GPA

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    by

    Laura
    in ,

    There are times, as a parent, when I feel like I’m doing a good job, and I happily give myself an A. Child spills milk all over the table when I am about to finally sit down. “It’s OK. Here is a rag.” Mind says: You stayed calm. No big deal. Good. See, you are…

  • Laughing When Life Is Stinky

    Laughing When Life Is Stinky

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    by

    Laura
    in ,

    There are many unknowns in this life. It is reassuring that you can always make a seven year old crack up when you use “toilet” or “stinky” in Mad Libs. I learned several years ago that once you become a parent, you don’t get to grieve, not really. When my grandmother passed away, I wanted…

  • Perfect [Bleep] Storm

    Perfect [Bleep] Storm

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    by

    Laura
    in , ,

    I grew up camping. Many of my favorite early memories involve sleeping in tents by some lake or river somewhere, with my parents, two siblings, and dog (see Go Home Lassie, You Are Drunk). In my mind, these trips were relaxing, easy peasy, simple. We’d eat sandwiches in the dust and swim in the [insert…