Raising Sarah, Maya, and Leo taught me that a bored toddler is a creative demolition expert. I remember a Tuesday afternoon when Leo, then barely two, decided that the texture of mashed peas was better suited for the living room wallpaper than his stomach. I was exhausted, nursing a cold cup of coffee, and realized … Read more
When Sarah, Maya, and Leo were little, my living room looked less like a home and more like a plastic graveyard. I remember one rainy Tuesday afternoon, tripping over a neon-purple block while balancing a colander of spaghetti. In that moment of sheer frustration, I realized that while their toy chests were overflowing, they were … Read more
The summer my oldest, Sarah, turned twelve, I realized we were losing the battle to the “blue light glow.” Every time I turned around, my three kids were hunched over like little question marks, thumbs scrolling through nothingness. I felt like a failure. I was the “gentle parent,” yet I found myself wanting to hurl … Read more
I still remember a road trip we took when my youngest was three. We had snacks, juice boxes, a carefully packed bag of toys… and still, somewhere around the 45-minute mark, he looked at me and said, “Are we there yet?” on repeat like a broken record. If I could go back and tell my … Read more
I remember a Tuesday morning about twenty years ago. My son, who was just hitting that “I do it!” phase, decided that my morning coffee prep was a team sport. At the time, I had two older daughters already swirling around the kitchen, and the sheer volume of “help” I was receiving felt less like … Read more
I remember a specific Tuesday afternoon about twenty years ago. My middle daughter—who is now a brilliant, composed attorney, mind you—was exactly four years old. She wanted the blue cup. Not the teal one, not the navy one, and certainly not the “baby” cup with the plastic straw. The blue one. The problem? The blue … Read more