My kid sounds like she’s got a 2 pack a day habit. She doesn’t, of course… but thanks to daycare it sure sounds that way.
How do I know it’s daycare? Because Spicy Girl isn’t the only one with the cough … or the runny nose … or the smile.
Eight months ago, when we began the daycare routine, I wasn’t sure there’d ever be smiles. Morning drop-off and evening pick-up were my job. But after a week of crying jags (mine and hers), screams of “don’t go mommy!” and all sorts of hysteria, I made a tearful demand: “I cannot do this alone.”
The hubby came through and adjusted his schedule, and drop-off got a little easier each week. These days, it’s a piece of cake. Spicy Girl is the queen of the Ball. She has bunches of friends. I know this because, when she introduces them to me, she says, “Maya, Friend.” “Jeremy, Friend.” “Amy, Friend.” (Read more…)
You know how it is when you’re home with the kids. And much of the time they’re delightful and funny and dancing hilariously and saying smart, amazing things.
And the rest of the time? They’re driving you crazy with their needs and whining and nostrils full of playdoh. There are stretches when they severely test your patience, to the point where you fear you may sprint out to the nearest major byway and flip up your thumb for a ride far, far away.
If this sounds familiar, then you, my friend, need an escape plan. (Read more…)
I have a recurring nightmare. I’ve had an accident and find myself in a hospital room with no memories of my life. I have no identification and the only clues to who I am are the contents of my pockets—two paper clips, half a starlight mint, a travel size bottle of hand-sanitizer, a used kleenex, a rubber bouncy ball and a ripped piece of paper with the mysterious message “PTO brownies no nuts”.
Case closed. Somebody, somewere is missing a mom.
I accepted early on in my parenting that aspects of our lives – careers, hobbies, waistlines – might have to take a back burner to our children. I don’t think I was prepared, however, for how the landscape of our world, the items we surround ourselves with and that surround us, would alter. (Read more…)
