I have been going to a mom's group at church lately. I'm pretty good at leading groups. I'm good atwatchinggroups. I'm even pretty good at planning groups. I'm not really good, however, at being a part of a group, especially one thatinvolves people that I don't know well. Unless, of course,there's tequila. In which case, I love groups. But I soon realized that this group is made up of moms who area lot like me. Most ofus are in a similar place inour lives, and can relate to each other in the way t...
We gather them before we have a baby. The things of childhood. The crib. The stroller. The onesies with the matching socks. We wonder how we went through them so fast. These things of childhood. How did they outgrow that snowsuit so quickly? And the shoes. Those adorable, sweet baby shoes. Impractical as they may be. There are other things, of course. Other things of childhood. A baby's cry. A sleepless night. Followed by one hundred more sleepless nights that cause us to wonder how time could pass so ...
As Ash Wednesday approached, I was thinking a lot about what I would give up for Lent. Typically I give up sweets, or alcohol, or sweets and alcohol. It's selfish, really. I figure Lent is as good a time as any to lose a few pounds. But maybe that's too easy. Maybe there's something else--something more meaningful--that I should be giving up. N had it all figured out this year. She was giving up playing on the computer. Butnot the Kindle Fire. We had a little chat about that one. Obviously she can c...
This morning, IdroppedNoff atCCD and got to spend an hourall bymyself. Well, I guess I wasn't exactly all by myself. In fact,There were actuallyabout 200 other people there. And a priest. And a choir. But there wereno screaming two and four year old boys. At least, none who belonged to me. So it kind of felt like I was all by myself. I stopped taking them to church when they started offering people beer. That was over a year ago. I know they need to be there. I know the holy waterwould probably begoo...
I've been feeling kind of....something lately. I couldn't put my finger on exactly what it was. It seemed to be a combination of things, really. Winter means too many cold days inside. Which means lots of time for the kids to trash the house, and little time for me to clean it. Which means I start to go a little batty. And then I start to look around. At the mess. The one I just cleaned. At least, I thought I did. And the socks. The ones I just matched. At least, I think I did. And the toilet. The one...
Today we were fortunate to have one of those unseasonably warm January days that seem to come along at justthe right time. You know the time...when the weather has been cold, or snowy, or wet for at least six months--or maybe it just feels that way--andyouwake upone day and realizethat if you have to spend one.more.moment in this house with these children you might just lose the teeny tiny little pieces of your sanity that remain. In fact, you are so sure that this is going to happen, that you wake up ...
I'vehad afew revelationslately, and I thought I'd share them with you. The first isthat I am married to a cave man. If you know Jimmy, youmight take that any number of ways, but in this particular case,I am referring to his ability to make fire. Or, FIRE. It's his mission in life...to keep us warm. He works hard so we'll have a roof over our heads, and clothes to wear, and food to eat. And then, when it's winter, and he's done working for the day, he comes home and makes a fire in our wood stove. A r...
I don't need a lot to be happy.I think I'm pretty easy to please, really. But lately, it's dawned on methat there are a few things that could stand to change. Things that would makelife justa little bit easier. A little less stressful. A little more enjoyable. Here are some of the more important ones: 1) Forget the grocery delivery service. I don't want my groceries delivered. In fact, the only thing worse than going to the store with my kids is staying home all day with my kids while we wait for the gr...
I recently came across a blog that asked moms who stayed at homewhat their daily routine was like. Several moms responded, and some of them were apparently quite eager to share how they had their days organized. Each hour was accounted for by a specific task or activity relating to their home or children. Some moms even had their days organized intothirty minute increments, and most seemed pretty proud of their routine. I had a routine once. It was when I had my first child. Even then, I didn't have ti...
Some things are just good together. Peanut butter and jelly. Wine and cheese. Children and benedryl. Other things, though, might seem to be good together, but come to find out, they just aren't. Some things, in fact, are quite disgusting together. And sometimes, a rushed mother of three trying to fix dinner before she runs out the door to work isn't really the best judge of what thingsmight begood together, and what things are, in fact, horrendous. But now I know: Just because the sweet potatoes and...
