Tag: kids
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Laughing When Life Is Stinky
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…
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A Happy State of ’Fairs
This review is a bit long in coming. Oddly, I seem to be struggling with getting everything done lately. You would expect more of a working mom of three, right? Just kidding. So I got to go to the California State Fair, and I brought Selah, my friend Danielle, and her daughter Victoria. I will…
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Nobody Has It All
I hear a lot about these alleged “mommy wars” in the media. Working mothers and stay-at-home mothers* are pitted against one another, and are made to seem like enemies decrying one another’s life choices.** We all know this is crap, right? I mean, sure, we all encounter individual people full of opinions about what we…
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She Needs Groceries: Written Version
I remember those days clearly. There I’d be, shopping in Target with all of my disposable income, buying something frivolous, like a CD or a new toothbrush when my current one was two and a half months old. And then, bam! My peace would be shattered by a shopping cart full of wailing toddlers. Or…
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The Fairy Princess Surprise
Dear Noah, I am going to tell you about a certain incident that happened in your babyhood. I want to tell you now, so that we can get proper mileage out of it in years to come. I don’t want your high school graduation or your wedding to be the first time you hear about…
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Sweeter than I Expected
I think I was looking forward to the wrong things. When I found out Selah was going to be a girl, I was thrilled. I know, I’m a terrible feminist, but I couldn’t wait to dress her up in pretty clothes. It was going to be like having my very own living doll! People gave…
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She Needs Groceries: Live Reading
At long last, they have posted the videos from the 2013 Listen to Your Mother show. Here’s my reading. Enjoy! If you’d rather read the essay yourself or don’t have time for a video, here’s the written version. Thankfully, though the video did not come out in very good quality, Sarah Maren Photographers came through…
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Crossing Invisible Finish Lines
Recently, I found our old copy of Sandra Boynton’s Snuggle Puppy. Though Noah was not keen on sitting still and letting anyone actually make it all the way through a book without seizing it and possibly throwing it, I thought that book had a chance. It’s mostly a song, so I thought that would capture…
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I’m Not Cut Out for This
I’m not cut out for this. I turn around in my seat, having just finished hollering something ineffective and useless like, “I mean it!” And the children don’t care, and they aren’t listening, and I am filled with rage. I’m not cut out for this parenting thing. We are on our way back from Lake…
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The Waters Weren’t the Only Ones Raging: Bringing Children to the Water Slide Park
I have lived in Sacramento for four years, and never been to Raging Waters Sacramento (or any local theme park, really). There is a reason for this: I hadn’t felt up to dragging a bunch of baby children there. Since my kids are 7, almost 4, and 1, I have had some sort of baby…