Call me crazy, but for me, buying a new pair of running shoes is like buying a new lease on life. The squishy, bouncy, brand-newness of new sneakers seems to defy gravity and seep upward into my body with energy and vigor. Today I am experiencing such wonder. The box arrived the other day and sat with a sparkle on our front porch. I was giddy like a child at Christmas as I ran out to fetch it and tore off the packaging. New shoes!! And for a good deal, even better!! As I put them on today, … [Read more...]
Recipe Ideas?
July 30, 2010 By
I have my fall school plans all set and they involve very busy days -- which is a good thing -- we will be doing school in the morning four days a week and have extracurricular activities in the early afternoon four days a week. This means that we will be back home for dinner and our family story and bedtime routine and I will have my evenings free to wind down or be with my husband. My only fear is that walking in the door at 5 pm with hungry kids could slide quickly into a TV and frozen … [Read more...]
Babysitting Co-Op: Has it Worked for You?
July 29, 2010 By
Several times over the past couple of years, I have almost started a babysitting co-op in my neighborhood moms' group. The idea behind a babysitting co-op is that mothers take turns watching each others' children, which is appealing on many levels. First, IT'S FREE, so the only payment involved is, of course, watching someone else's children for an equal period of time. Second, because mothers are the "babysitters," moms can generally feel comfortable with the person who will be watching their … [Read more...]
My Roving Band of Barbarians
July 28, 2010 By
We have been having a blast traveling around Europe and England since March for my husband's dissertation research. It's academic tourism at it's finest; the kids and I have been enjoying ourselves immensely, taking on Europe by triple stroller. The drawback is, amid this foot-loose and fancy free adventure, we've been quite antisocial and apparently have forgotten our manners. And the English are not especially charmed by children who have forgotten their manners. Cute barbarians in London … [Read more...]
A Relevant Pictograph
July 26, 2010 By
Today we graphed family shoe preference on our living room floor as our Kindergarten math lesson. Examine blue row: "crocs." Ha! Take that, MA. and you are the one who recommended the Saxon math home school curriculum! We love it, but we love plastic Swiss Cheese shoes more. … [Read more...]
Crocs: Because Form Follows Function
July 22, 2010 By
When I first saw a pair of Crocs back in 2005, I was certain I had never, ever, ever seen a more hilariously and hopelessly ugly pair of shoes than these gaudy Swiss-cheese clown-shoes. My New Years resolutions for 2006 were to lose my first-time pregnancy weight and to wait out the Crocs trend come hell or high water. Our generation has seen a memorable progression of waterproof footwear. Before I was born, if I’m not mistaken, summertime footwear options were either flip flops or old tennis … [Read more...]
Potty Talk
July 21, 2010 By
Having trouble reigning in the potty talk in your home? What is it with the potty (and what goes in it) that makes it so fun for kids to talk about?? I heard a great solution/natural consequence from a friend the other day--when potty talk gets out of control, have the kids sit in the bathroom and talk to the potty. I thought the whole idea was rather brilliant! We have only had to employ this consequence once, but I assure you, potty talk hasn't been problem since. Because, really, how fun … [Read more...]
Parenting the kids I don’t parent
July 20, 2010 By
My daughter was up several times during the night with a fever and bad dreams, so I was exhausted this morning when my husband left bright and early for work. Hoping to sneak in a few more minutes of shut eye, I asked my oldest to get some breakfast for everyone. We usually have cheerios for breakfast, but when he innocently asked if they could have toast instead, I said yes. When they asked if they could watch Cyberchase, I also said yes. When I rolled out of my room, bleary eyed, at … [Read more...]
Progress
July 19, 2010 By
Last night, our toddler had a melt-down of epic proportions. The cause: She wanted to go to Mass with Daddy, but Daddy was only taking her big brother - he likes to sit in the front row when Daddy is the lector, and can be trusted to do so...whereas she cannot, at least not yet :) In any case, evening Masses don't usually go splendidly with our younger children, so we split up for Mass yesterday. Lesson learned: Never split up for Mass again! Back to the tantrum. There was uncontrollable … [Read more...]
The Better Part
July 18, 2010 By
Today we heard the gospel of Martha and Mary. It is a story we all know well. We know that Mary sits at the feet of our Lord and listens while Martha works to prepare the dinner, and that Martha complains to Jesus that Mary is not helping her. We know that Martha is chastised by the Lord. I think that priests must get a little nervous when it is time to preach on this gospel. So many well intentioned, hard working mothers are offended at the notion that Jesus prefers the contemplative … [Read more...]
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