Sitting in my car this morning with my little guy as we’ve done thousands of times in the past and on this particular day, he is NOT (that’s him yelling not me) interested in BEING QUIET!!!! My son is excited about going back to school to play with his friends, annoyed that it’s taking me a long time to get my shit together and start the car, and sad because we’re not going to get Timbits right this minute. My guy is a lot of things, all at the same time. And aren’t we all so

The other day, I was picking out clothes for my oldest daughter to wear to school, and as I reached for a pair of tights she quickly said to me, “No Mommy, I can’t wear tights, my thighs are too big and they don’t look good on me.” ……… WTF????? My mind was blown! How is it that my beautiful, strong, healthy, smart, funny, and vibrant little girl could possibly feel this way? How can she not look in the mirror and see just how perfect she is? How on earth does an 8 year ol

“Time flies when you’re having fun.” It does, but it also flies no matter what you're doing. It flies when you’re having a horrible time, when you’re just in the daily grind, and when you’re looking forward to the next big thing! With the countdown to my firstborn going to J/K happening, I’m realizing just how fast time has indeed flown. I’m sad, and happy, all at the same time. These last two years have sped by, since my second baby was born, and I had several major life eve

Is it just me, or have weekends gotten shorter?? I’ve been feeling pretty down in the dumps lately and I’m having trouble shaking it. I’ve been back to work for two weeks and my life has reached a new level of crazy town. It’s not bad. It’s not like we’ve had any major catastrophes. The kids all seem to be happy and adjusting well and, to be honest, barely even notice that I’m not around as often as I used to be. I, on the other hand, feel like I’m not doing a very good job,

“Watch out!” “Don’t touch that!” “You’re too high up!” “Be careful!” I have been knee-deep lately in articles and studies on risk in childhood. It’s because my 3.5-year old is obsessed with climbing, and while my first instinct used to be “get off that!” I’ve realized that by telling him no, I’m forced to deal with the fall-out of him doing it anyway, when my back is turned, and then he ends up really risking his own safety. I follow a website and FB called Wilder Child, and

To spank or not to spank, that is the question. I’ve had many discussions with other mamas about this over the years, and have heard many different views on the subject. In general, I don’t use spanking as a form of punishment. For the most part I try to talk things through calmly after everyone has had a chance to settle down. Children are human beings, and human beings are not perfect; we make mistakes, we have bad days, and we make bad choices, but it’s all part of the

The other day, we emptied a big box of Costco diapers, and my two kids, 1 and 3, gravitated to it immediately – so naturally, I threw some washable markers at my 3-year-old, and told him he could go to town. While he drew all over the box, my 1-year-old played with blocks by himself in the other room. When the box was sufficiently decorated, I let them have at it together, and it was great to watch. I sometimes have to keep them separate in their play time because the older o