Road Sarcasm
You can't have road rage with kids in the back of the car.  You can't curse at other drivers.  You can't even say less than polite things because kids are observant enough already.  (The last thing you need is someone imitating you at school or daycare.)So instead when I do something like I did this week when I was trying to get Karenna to ballet in a time crunch and no one wanted to let me in to make a right turn:Me (in my sugary sweet mommy voice): Nice of you guys to let me in...Me (after a few more cars): Yeah, um does it really hurt to let someone in front of you two blocks before the light?Me (aft

Future Stay-at-Home Dad, Future Accountant
Jude must be having a growth spurt because he's been waking in the middle of the night and carrying his "pilly" and stuffed animals over to our room.  After several days of disturbed sleep, he was getting pretty cranky.On the way to daycare Monday morning, Jude was crying over every little thing: the seatbelt that wouldn't click, the shoes that were alternately too tight and too loose, the pants that no matter how many times we readjusted them still didn't fit since his pre-growth spurt tummy disappeared.Finally after a drawn long about growth spurts and missing sleep fr

At Which Point I Know Another Child Has Been Geekified...
When Chris comes home, he plays his podcasts while he cooks; I take Karenna to ballet/tap, apprentice ballet, or modern--depending upon what night it is; and Jude hangs out doing whatever it is Jude does.Recently, Jude has been ding any of the following:dressing in costume,playing with his stuffed animals,playing DS,playing action figures,playing lightsabers,drawing,writing his letters,usign fridge magnets to try to make words (which often requires our help--"How do you spell 'Spiderman'?"), or

Preschool: The Inside Scoop
We were on our way home from daycare/pre-K yesterday when Jude asked us about his old preschool.Jude: Mom, Dad, home come you never take me to visit my old school?Me (always teasing): Because it's filled with fishes.Jude: No it isn't.Me: Okay, I'm just kidding. It's filled with ice cream and hot fudge.Jude (getting upset): No, Mom, it is not. It is filled with cereal and lunch and learning!

Who Parents the Parent?
Karenna does. I was knee-deep in laundry.  Karenna had to eat a late dinner after ballet, so I kept her company.  Chris said he was going to put away some laundry.  There was a basket of his clothes and a basket of kids' laundry At this point I must admit to being a recovering control-freak.  Or I'd like to think of myself as one, anyway.  There are still some things I can't let go.  And when I try to tell Chris he needs let go, he can zero in exactly which things of which I haven't been able to relinquish my control.  Like picking home decor.  Or putting away the kids' laundry (I have a system; I need to be able to find things.)