At our house, summer boredom, screaming fights, messy everything, and me somehow acting as mediator/maid/short order cook has caused me to reevaluate how I wanted to spend the summer with my three kids. First of all, let me be clear. I’m NOT a Pinterest mom. Far from it, actually. I love and admire those organized, super-creative, […]
Yurt So Good: Camping for Families Who Don’t Usually Camp
Last weekend, my family and I had the opportunity to camp for two nights in an Arkansas state park, in a yurt. Don’t know what a yurt is? I’ll explain. A yurt is a circular domed tent. Portable yurts do exist, but the yurt where we stayed was a permanent structure. The yurt has a […]
How SAHMotherhood Is Like Being Cinderella
Yesterday, as Cinderella was dancing across our TV screen and I was fishing a toy out from under the couch and cleaning whatever I could get while I was at it, I realized something. I’m Cinderella. I work for no pay. I’m expected to cook, clean, do laundry, and be pleasant while all that’s going on. […]
Breaking Mommish
Only a few months after I married my husband back in 2006, I peed on a stick, there was a plus sign, another plus sign, and two lines a couple of times (this was kind of a shock, so I needed lots of confirmation), and I became a mom. I had always wanted to be a […]
Bartending for Moms Everywhere…You’re Welcome
One of my favorite movies from childhood was the 1991 blockbuster hit City Slickers. You’ve probably seen it, so I won’t bore you with the plot summary, but the screenplay’s writers were definitely onto something with the Barry and Ira Shalowitz characters, a pair of adventure-seeking brothers who owned an ice cream empire and one of whom, […]
T-Ball Practice Is Cancelled, and Other Ballpark Drama
Every time a t-ball practice is cancelled, the coach gets his wings. Yesterday afternoon, I received the BEST group text ever. No practice tonight and NO GAME on Saturday morning? This is my kinda team! Can I tell you how happy things like this make me? Just…giddy, if we’re being completely honest about it. I […]
Carrie On Parenting: The (New) “Would You Rather” Game
Our friends laugh out loud when they see my husband Jeff and me play Rock-Paper-Scissors in parenting situations. The rules are time-honored: we play the best of three rounds, the winner may not gloat, and the loser must do the assigned task without too much griping. After all, he/she lost it fair and square. We have […]
Growing Up on Social Media…The Hard Way
Facebook.Twitter.Instagram.Pinterest.Flickr.Google+. This morning, another TimeHop update popped into my phone, and I realized that my kids are growing up online. Not because they made that choice, but because I am posting their pictures (both adorable and unruly), their cute sayings, the messes they make, my good-bad-ugly parenting moments, their good-bad-ugly kid moments, and our lives in […]
A Dose of Sweetness, Reality, Humor, and Murder on Mother’s Day
You know the Mother’s Day when you get the sleeping late, the spa pedicure, the cut flowers, the showering of gifts, gift cards, and the afternoon nap? I got some (not all) of it. But I totally loved my Mother’s Day, complete with its dose of sweetness, reality, humor, and murder. Yes, MURDER. Sweetness: Breakfast in bed! […]
To My Mama
Carrie, age 6: Mom, why can’t you throw the ball like I do? You aren’t a very good water skier, are you? That’s okay. You’re a pretty good singer. I still love you. What’s for dinner? Carrie, age 12: Ugh, Mom. You are SO embarrassing! Why won’t you let me do what all the other 7th graders […]