I took my children to school today. It felt gloriously normal, like muscles that have ached to be stretched. It's hard to be isolated in eighth and ninth grade. As a friend of mine said, "Once I started ninth grade, my social life was so busy that I pretty much never really came back home." […]
"Mom, I asked her to be my girlfriend. But don't worry - I talked to her dad already." "You asked her dad?" Peter and I exchanged silent glances, since "asking the dad" isn't something we had coached this young man to do. There are a few gifts born from my sons watching my own love […]
Maybe you've seen this story that's circulating on social media: "Years ago, anthropologist Margaret Mead was asked by a student what she considered to be the first sign of civilization in a culture. The student expected Mead to talk about fishhooks or clay pots or grinding stones. But no. Mead said that the first sign […]
"Mom, did you know they make ranch dressing seasoning?" one son says. "I feel like she bought that already," says the other son. "No, not the dressing mix. It's in a shaker. Like parmesan cheese," says one son. "I had a bad experience with ranch dressing," says the other son. "What was it?" "Uncle Rob […]
It's been more than a decade since this Good Friday situation, the day Baby Tyler locked Toddler Tucker and me in a second story bedroom for an hour and a half, and our rescue involved three strangers, three firemen, a fire truck, three police officers, several calls to 9-1-1, and a very brave neighbor. An […]
A few years ago, I kept things lively with a special treat for the boys each day of spring break. One day, we visited the arcade with a handful of quarters for their glorious spending pleasure. Tuck spent his coins on experiences: virtual motorcycle rides and shooting galleries. Tyler spent his coins and best efforts […]
My son witnessed an assault against a young woman in his P.E. Class. A situation of a young man wielding a hockey stick where it should never, ever go. The school administration handled it well, which is why I feel okay writing about it here. It doesn't need to be rehashed or revisited, but my […]
There are rules to this gig of Stage Mom. I'm a babe in the woods, learning as I go. For starters, Actors rehearse. Athletes practice. Ne'er shall the two be confused nor interchanged, except when I get it wrong. The only thing worse than when I accidentally call Tyler's rehearsal a "practice" is when I […]
Timehop is a lovely invention of an app. I love how it gently knocks on the door of my mind and says, "Would you like to know what you were doing on this very day for the last few years? Thanks to your contributions to the interwebs and social medias, we've documented it for you." […]
Tyler came over to the fence during his third baseball game of the afternoon. He motioned to me. "Mom, after this game, I'm calling a family meeting." "You are?" "Yes." "What is it about?" "I'll tell you at the meeting. I'm just letting you know: it's happening." He wasn't kidding. At the end of the […]
Just when I thought I knew my role as Baseball Mom, my boys changed their position on the field. They're umpires now. Baseball officials. They make the calls for Little League Games - the littlest of the leagues. Little tiny doll-size players who are eye level with Tucker's belt buckle. A catcher so small and so […]
Scrolling through the photos on my iPhone, Tyler saw a candid picture of him and me at my 40th birthday party. He was shocked. "Mom, look this picture. What happened? I look so grown up." Yes, my love. So grown up. The line of your jaw. The crack in your voice. The breadth of your […]
Creature of wonder, man-child of mine. You look like a puzzling and impossible blend of genetics, of his eyebrows and her nose, a mix of the boy who you have always been and the man you are becoming. You look like the preschooler who lined up his blueberries around the rim of the breakfast plate, […]
"Mom, I wish you had some kind of record of the things I said when I was little." The incredulous look on my face may have been apparent to him, and I didn't mind. I wasn't hiding it. "Tyler, are you kidding me right now?" "Yeah, I just wish there was some way to know […]
Last year at this time, all I really wanted in the world was to turn Forty. You guys, I am here to tell you: dreams do come true. Forty is my new favorite thing. And I just knew it would be. I've given this some thought, and here's the thing. Your twenties are about exploration, […]
We gave the boys new Bibles for Easter, because it was time. They needed to graduate to a version that doesn’t say “Little Boy’s Bible” on the cover or entice them with animated drawings of someone who may or may not look like Jesus or Moses or Daniel or Joshua. The new editions are leather […]
So, let me set the stage. We had just finished a two-day baseball tournament, and we were - all of us - more than a little sun-speckled and exhausted from hours at the baseball park. Seven, to be exact, and I'm usually counting. Tuck was of course the most tired of all, given the constant […]
Parenting is filled with finality. I mean, they say your role as a parent never ends, and I get that, but there are little milestones and tasks and roles that come to an end without any warning. The last time you scoop him up and hold him on your hip, that built-in shelf God made […]
"Mom, I have nothing to read." "Sure you do. There's a whole bookshelf in the hallway. And three in the living room." "Nope. Nothing to read." "In this house? You have nothing to read in this house?" "Nothing." "Dude. How about Let's Pretend We're Normal?" It's my second book. We lovingly call her "Peggy." For […]
It was a February day When your dad came by, before going away A U-Haul truck in the driveway The day it was suddenly real I told you not to come outside But you saw that truck And you smiled so wide A real live truck in your driveway We let you sit behind the […]
