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

Knowing what to do in a crisis is something that you hope you never have to know how to do. Yes of course it’s crucial to be prepared but it’s like one of those things in high school that you learn but unless you encounter a situation where you’ll need it, it’s likely to slip right back out of your brain….like algebra. As a mom I was most concerned about safety protocol when my children were infants and young toddlers because all of the new things they are learn at a rapid fa

I'm sure there are plenty of people out there who cannot possibly even see it as a family trip if 25% of the family is getting the shaft. The way I see it though, is that 2 months ago when I booked the trip I thought that 75% of the family would get the shaft if he came so basically it was just a numbers game. Having a spirited high needs toddler means that the attention that everyone else in the house is looking for ends up taking a back seat...the squeaky wheel gets the gre

This contraption, credit: my inventive husband. The contraption is two milk jugs set up outside pocket doors, straws taped to the inside of the doors and beer cans sitting on top - so that when the doors open they knock the cans off and make a loud noise - you dig? This little no-cost invention saved our nights on vacation. Let me explain. You know that milestone when babies grow out of their beds, climb out of them, and then you have to get them a big boy/big girl bed? Well,

I recently read an article that talked about a book called "The Danish Way" in which it describes how the Danes approach the toddler years differently. Apparently, the Danes don't use the phrase "the terrible twos". Instead, they call it The Boundary Stage. While I applaud the Danes for being so politically correct in their use of descriptive words, and I do admit that "The Boundary Stage" is a much nicer sounding and more productive way to describe the HELL that is the te

Recently, my hubby and I decided to do something super fun (and a bit crazy). We love to travel, with and without kids, and so we decided to take the month of November, rent a house in Southern California, and hang out with our two boys, almost 2 and almost 4. The plan? No plan, really. Just go and focus inward, on the four of us. We have a super busy life at home and the opportunity arose, so we took it. Let me tell you though, there's one thing we know better than anything,

"First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes a baby in a baby carriage." Next come toddlers who act like c&*%s and then comes mom rage that makes us drink wine. ....has a nice ring to it, non? Ok well it's my life right now. 'Terrible twos' as we've all heard it a million times, are challenging but at this particular moment in time, the Three's are just killing me. Please tell me I'm not alone?? I cannot even comprehend how someone can be so contrary, argumentative, de

I'm sure I'm not the only one seeing the graphic and horrifying images of the devastating effects of Hurricane Harvey. As soon as I saw the first image of a child clinging to the arms of their mom my heart was pounding with pain, panic and empathy. I cannot even imagine the fear any parent would have in seeing not only their dearest possessions washed away but the the uncertainty of how their family is going to get out of it. I watch the news lately and am left with a n accut

It’s a common refrain in my house, after coming home from a solo grocery, shopping or basically anything trip involving me being out of the house and Dad parenting solo: ‘Seriously, he’s been amazing until this very moment.' What is that moment? It’s about 5 minutes after I get in the door. It’s also not long after we get home from daycare either. It’s the moment when if anyone saw the behaviour my 3 year old was exhibiting, they would think ‘that kid needs a kick in the ass.

As I’ve recently documented, we’ve gone through a difficult milestone with our son at daycare. Quick recap is an unscheduled fire drill took place at his daycare and the startle factor of it traumatized him. So much so that for almost 2 weeks he wouldn’t leave the safety he felt at the front corner of the room at daycare, not even to eat or sleep. So for all that time he was spending his days watching all of the fun happen around him at daycare but was too anxious to particip