Every year at this point in time, I’m just trying to survive the end of the school year. Intellectually, I know the big bang of stress and crushing… Read More
Mom Chronicles: Celebrations & Mishaps
My most profound memories stand out as moments of extreme joy or pain. Many of the most joyous ones happened during celebrations when I embraced my family’s love, received gifts, ate favorite foods, dressed in new clothes, and felt perfectly carefree without school or other obligations. Read More
Mom Chronicles: A Mom’s Nice Jar
By the end of each day, my nice jar is empty. I’m a married, working mom with four kids and two dogs. I start each day optimistically and swear I won’t get angry or yell. Read More
Mom Chronicles: The Best Part of Waking Up
Getting four kids up and out every day is a reckless endeavor my younger self never imagined and I’ll never master it. Read More
The Puppy Trap
One moment of weakness and now I have a dog for twelve to fifteen years. I forgot how much work puppies are. We already have one dog, a Tibetan spaniel named Buster Brown… Read More
A Mom’s Trip to the DMV: Disney Training for the DMV
Yesterday I took my son to get his driving permit at the DMV. There was no school for him due to a teacher development day. The other three still had school so I was up by 6:00 to make breakfast and drive them. My kids are never… Read More
Humans are Lucky
Today like every day, I wake up and think, “I’m lucky. I’m happy. I’m not going to get mad at my husband, my four kids or our two dogs Buster Brown and Chewbacca (“Chewie”). But usually I’m fighting the urge to yell before breakfast is over. Read More
5 Things I Wish Someone Had Said to Me as a Child
Most nights, the four kids and I arrive home, exhausted from another busy day. October seems like a long month. Sports, activities, and homework have kicked in and there are no major holiday breaks. I want to use everyone’s time wisely. I really don’t want to yell or berate any of my kids although I could easily come up with a thousand reasons to do so. Food left in the car, forgotten homework, late for a pick-up that made all the other pick-ups late, bickering, and a hundred more. So many things do not go as planned every day that it’s unproductive to dwell on them and instead push through. Read More