Recipe for Disaster Fun 50 excitable boys, ages 8-11, 50 anxious fathers 25 tired mothers Generous sprinkling of reluctant, squirmy siblings 1 medium size church multi-purpose room 50 homemade cars of various design and capability Soda, Skittles, M&M’s, Pizza, Soft Pretzels Mix together all at once on Saturday evening at 6:30 p.m. Serve room temperature, [...]
The #1 TV news station in Philadelphia is Action News, which begins its newscast with a list of some of the big events of the day. After reeling those off, the anchor finishes with “But the BIG STORY on Action News tonight is…” It’s almost always a murder, a fire, or a crash. I imagine that [...]
About a month ago, we passed the 100,000 mile mark on our 2002 Honda Odyssey which, if you were Dave, meant that it was IMMEDIATELY time to change the timing belt, an expensive but “must-do” piece of maintenance. If you were me, it meant that we can push the timing belt thing out a little [...]
Regular readers of this blog know how I feel about books and libraries and bookstores. I love them all. Weekly trips to the library were a big part of my childhood. I’d stock up on picture books, then Dr. Seuss books, then chapter books, dragging home armloads or totebags full of hour upon hour of [...]
Earlier this week, I received my Oprah Magazine in the mail. I used to get jazzed about these arrivals but lately they have left me feeling cold. Maybe it’s because every issue is the same? Be the Best You Can Be! Look Amazing! Eat Healthy! Overcome the Odds! Do More – Much Better! Yeah, I [...]
On Sunday, I drove Ian and a fellow student named Hunter back to MICA. We took Route 1, the old pre-I-95 road that ran from Maine to Florida, which was much more charming and much cheaper than the toll-filled alternative. And it’s almost a direct shot from our home to the campus – literally just one [...]
Dave and I often use the long weekend opportunity to road trip with the kiddos – most often to Rhode Island to see his folks. And while we chose to stay home this MLK weekend, I could not forget about those mothers who decided to brave the highways with their families. This post is for [...]
Part of being an artist is being a nonconformist. This explains why Ian, in recent years, has taken to: Wearing a wristwatch instead of checking his phone for the time Writing in cursive, in ink, on paper Sending letters, in envelopes, through the mail Wearing bowties Watching movies, in video format, on our old VCR [...]
About this time every year my children begin to suffer from a seasonal disorder I will affectionately refer to as Video Game Overload – or VGO. VGO lies in the center of the perfect storm of ennui, between holiday gifts, cold weather, and Y chromosomes. Tween and teen boys are especially at risk for infection. [...]
When your baby turns 14, it’s time to: Get rid of the pre-school books you’ve saved all these years Ditto the smocked rompers and duckling-appliqued Easter outfits Box up the Legos Send off the outgrown hoodies and ski jackets which fit before Christmas, but don’t anymore. All this was done over the last few weeks, [...]
