“Kid-free” I describe part of my every week as “kid-free.” It first appeared when I started dating again. Browsing the profiles of divorced men with kids, and then writing my own, it was important to specify that one was occasionally, hopefully regularly and consistently kid-free. “Wednesday through Friday I’m always kid-free.” It’s my shortcut for… Continue reading Single-parent household glossary
Imagine this: You are a seven-and-a-half year old girl who is coming out of her shell in a major way, individuating, finding her voice and her body, calling out for interaction, learning about the world like a sponge, excelling at so many things—but forced to compete for attention with two twin brothers who are six,… Continue reading Pondering sibling metamorphosis
Almost two years ago today, a 14-year-old boy named Dajae Coleman was shot dead on Church Street in Evanston, just a few blocks from where I lived. I remember at the time thinking that I probably heard the shots, without knowing it, from my own home. He was a model citizen and star athlete and… Continue reading This is about race, tolerance, family, and fearlessness
Several years ago I was sitting at lunch with a very good friend at a suburban restaurant. I had taken a break from my stay-at-home-mom day to visit her on her turf as she had to break away from her intense, full-time work-from-home job with one of the Big Four. We had worked together in the dot-com… Continue reading Full circle
That is how my daughter described how she felt the day she got to help pick our summer nanny. It was the first time that my kids were very involved in the nanny selection process. They always got to meet their nannies in the past, but it was more about observing the nanny candidates and… Continue reading “The best day a girl can have”
I am outnumbered 3:1 by children. In my shared custody situation I either have the kids to myself, or I don’t have them. This creates an interesting dynamic that I don’t think I ever consciously envisioned, and just recently recognized: it takes greater effort and unique steering skills to maintain control of the bus. I… Continue reading My children—my conscience?
This blog has been hibernating for one year, nine months, and three days. And just like that, after tucking my kids into bed, after eating a leftover banana pancake for dinner, before emptying out the dishwasher, and while drinking ginger tea, I felt like reviving it. I left off folding my twin boys’ Batman underwear,… Continue reading Revived
My 3-year-old sons wear Batman underwear. I was just folding them in silence a few moments ago. I didn’t want to watch TV while I folded the laundry, or listen to music, or the news. I needed to think a bit. As I was folding, I thought about my kids’ goofiness and smiling faces, and… Continue reading Random thoughts on Batman, and how ignorance is bliss
Reentering the professional workforce has been on my mind for a long time. And it’s never seemed so difficult. I remember thinking, before we had our first child, that I would simply have to wait until she was born to see how I felt about returning to work. I just didn’t know how I’d feel… Continue reading Mother of reinvention. And again. And again.
It’s a funny thing, this blogging. One of my very early posts was just featured on Mamapedia Voices, and I can’t tell you how excited and flattered I am. It’s my first non-self-published writing. I am so honored. I’m also feeling the pressure. As you can see, I haven’t posted since July 1st. But now… Continue reading Blogging is like the relationship between toddlers and food
