Tag: family
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The Wrongest Mommy
I recently had the pleasure of seeing my story, “The Wrongest Mommy,” published on Mamalode.com. Here it is! The Wrongest Mommy Eight-year-old Selah loves it when I retell stories of ridiculous things she did—or when I retell stories of ridiculous things I did. Perhaps her second-favorite story is about the day that I stormed…
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No-No
I call my youngest son No-no. His name is Noah, so it’s short for Noah. But at this age, not quite three, it’s also no coincidence, really. No-no (also goes by No-ee) is really a very sweet baby. I say this about him at an age in which I would already have been calling my…
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But When Will She Dance?
My friend just had a baby. When I spotted them across the courtyard at church, I did what I tend to do when I see babies I know: I swooped in and asked if I could hold her. My friend was nice and indulged me in my desire for baby hugs. We were at the church’s…
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Scientific Chart of Literacy Stages
An exciting thing is happening: my nearly five year old is learning to write! This is the second time I’ve had the privilege of watching the process unfold, and so you might call me a bit of a literacy “expert.” Thus I have developed standards to determine what stage of literacy your child is currently…
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Oh Nooooo!
So, let’s say you have this red punching bag, the balloon kind. It originally belonged to your brother, but now it’s the only surviving one of three, so your mom said you have to share it. It has lost a lot of air over the course of the weekend, but it still remains somewhat balloony–it just has…
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In Defense of Mother’s Day
This morning, I was thinking about Mother’s Day. This is unsurprising, because today is Mother’s Day. This year I think I have encountered more counter-culture reactions to Mother’s Day than I have in past years. It seems like a few crept in each year, but this year I encountered more of them than usual. I…
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Let It Go
I did not name this post “Let It Go” after that song in Frozen. That freaking song that started out fine, but which has started to feel like it’s growing on me like a fungus I cannot get rid of. We listen to that song approximately 8 times a day, and I think the singer’s soprano gets…
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It’s Broken
Every now and then I am struck by stupid grief. This morning, I went out into my sunny garden to stretch a bit. I found a plastic container out there, one that my ex had written “baby oatmeal” on. And it broke my heart. It’s been years since this container held baby oatmeal but I…
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In Response to Slate.com
A few weeks ago, I enjoyed reading “My Life Is a Waking Nightmare,” by Ruth Graham on Slate.com. She wrote from the perspective of a childless person who is encountering what feels like a new wave of parenting articles, spoofs, and blogs–including my post, “So You Would Like to Have Three Children.” In short, Ms.…
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Badge of Beauty
Among the many tasks in my home that should be done daily (maybe several times a day) and yet are done…Weekly? I hope? When did I last do that?…is cleaning off my dining room table. Tonight, I have a moment. Rolling up my sleeves, I wipe off the crumbs and then spray the table down.…