A Mom's Life

When I was a little kid I was very girly, stereotypically speaking. I had long hair and wore pink ballerina dresses. I liked princesses and playing with Barbie and baby dolls. As a child, I don't think I ever questioned or doubted that I was a "girl." Yet, as a teen and self-identified feminist, I started realizing that gender stereotypes and gender boxes suck. The more I read about the past, and the more I looked around at the present, the more frustrated I became about how society assumes girls are girls because of x, y, and z, and boys will be boys because of a, b, and c. I decided, then and there, that I was not going to do what girls do because that's what girls do. Hold up. I'm not going to get all raging angry feminist on my soap box with you. I'm not going to give you an academic paper stating the injustices around gender. If you are reading this and you didn't know that there are injustices, go to the library and start reading, or open your ey...

Goody, goody, goody. My summer vacation started today. This is the most wonderful day of the year. I am not a teacher and I get 8 weeks off during the only months of the year that there is a hope for warm weather in UpState. Plus, I get to spend 24/7 with my little princesses. My job allows me to be a working professional and a stay-at-home mom. Thank you, tight budgets! This means that I really can say "I understand" when I talk to a working mom and a SAHM. When a mom says to me, "I always feel like the worst mom ever when I can never volunteer to chaperone field trips!" I respond, "I hear ya!". When a mom says to me, "Nothing is worse than leaving an important work meeting because your kid puked at daycare." I respond, "I hear ya!" When a mom says, "AH! The days are so long with the kids that I feel relieved when they go to bed!" I shout, "I hear ya!" When a mom says, "I want to smack the hubster when he co...

I'm going to be 35 soon. And by soon, I could mean tomorrow, next week, later this month, or later this year. It doesn't really matter to me. If it does to you, just look it up on facebook and wish me well on my wall. Some people seem upset to be in their mid-thirties, but not me. I'm really happy about it. I think that, besides the decade of 0-9 years, I'm the happiest I've ever been, even if the skin on my neck and elbows is starting to get loose. We all know that wisdom comes with age, thank heavens, because I was pretty dumb in my younger days. Through trial and error, and a lot of hard lessons, I'm very wise now and I look forward to how much wiser I'll become as my skin continues to lose its elasticity and droop toward the ground. This is what I know about life, particularly my life, as I see it from 35 years of age. It is bad to drive your car when it has a flat tire. Don't do that. P.S. AAA is awesome. You have to cook eggs for a certain amo...

Some people may think that Andy and I are "lax" parents. Our house isn't a free range farm by any means, although just throwing food on the ground, and letting the kids wander around and pick it up when they are hungry, sounds pretty enticing. It's true that we aren't the strictest parents and that, regularly, there is mutiny on the bounty and we are held hostage by little pirate people. The drill sergeant in our house is 3 feet tall and belts outs commands like, "Get me a drink!", "Turn on Netflix!", or "You will not wash my hair!" while wearing only a pullup, squinting her eyes, and pointing an accusatory finger in our direction. Our kids are often in charge. I'm not going to lie to you. The dog may also be in charge from time to time. That's just the way it goes. As more and more of our peers have a third child, we are, unfortunately, asked if we, too, plan to expand. Are these people insane in the membrane? Have they been...

I know this much to be true: 1. The kids will get sick, often. 2. The kids will get sick when I have a multi-day span of time when I must be at work, no ifs, ands or buts. 3. I will get the call first. Apparently, all schools/child care centers forget that Andy is also on the emergency contact list. 4. The call will come within ten minutes of arriving at work. 5. If Andy is not traveling, I will successfully coerce him into taking time off to watch the kids. He will do his due diligence and will make sure to make me feel bad about it. Though I have talked about the important work event taking place on this day, he will not hesitate to ask, "What? You can't take the day off? Is work busy?" 6. If Andy is not available, I will pick up the sick child who will either a)smile and seem totally fine and spend the rest of the day laughing, singing, and watching TV while I attempt to "telecommute" during the rest of the sick day. Or b) spend the car ride home...

I have always enjoyed writing but never felt like I had something worth writing about until I had Caroline. The intensity of motherhood, the insanity of co-parenting, and the deep love I had for her compelled me to write it all down. Looking back at my blog posts is like reading my journal. It makes me laugh and it makes me cry. Blogging, however, is not journaling because I am posting my thoughts and feelings in cyberspace. I'm sharing my opinion with the whole world, or at least my friends and family and facebook-land. It's a very vulnerable place to be but it is also empowering. I'm often validated by the positive feedback I receive from a post. I just love to hear that someone else relates to what I've written or has found it touching or humorous. I'm delighted when I learn that someone has read it aloud (I always try to read each post aloud to Andy but he refuses and insists on reading it to himself.)even if it is to her annoyed husband who is sick of my bitc...

Andy and I are having a marital dispute. A lover's spat, if you will. No, it's not about money (we don't have any), sex (see previous), or religion. (see a pattern here?) We're add odds about parenting. We know that all other parents never argue about their kids and how to raise them so this may be really hard for all you perfect people to understand, but please, bear( looked this up, BTW, bare with me would be an invitation to undress) with me. You see, Andy thinks that it is A-OK to let our children a) eat McDonald's and candy regularly at each meal b) watch TV for as many hours as their little eyes and minds can handle c)go outside unattended (Caro), well with the dog. I think that is is A-Not-OK to a),b) or, c). Andy and I are yin and yang, life opposites, and I get that this is what makes two people a perfect pair, as apparently do thousands of years of philosophers and Paula Abdul. Yet, when you are trying to mold two little beings into role model citizens...