Dan and I drove away in a thunderstorm. I was so nervous that I actually pulled out of the driveway and headed in the wrong direction. After a few minutes of listening to Dan begin the recap of his work day I realized my error and turned us around. 10 minutes later on the highway he took a call and muttered to me on the side, “Where are we going?” I shooed him off and kept on going. 30 minutes later he took another call and offered to assist the restaurant with tech support the next morning, as it appeared [...]
Read More in relationship, Sarah WritesJune 2009
June 29, 2009
A lifetime away from it all
June 28, 2009
Kelsey’s Night
So I woke up in our absolutely beautiful hotel room this morning, found the coffee, managed to make the coffee, sat on the couch and lovingly opened the lid of my little black Mac. I know, I know, what am I doing on the computer, you ask. I should be having a goooood time. I am having a good time. Fabulous, in fact. But sipping coffee, checking my email, catching up on Twitter and dipping a toe or two into the blog world is my morning routine. And it is THAT MUCH sweeter to do without three kids glomming on [...]
Read More in Sarah WritesJune 27, 2009
Update
In no particular order: One popcorn kernel up nose–and retrieved (my kid) One fall off of a lawn chair (Sarah’s kid) Many, many small plastic toy parts fished out of the cheeks (of the babies) Eight popsicles (four kids) Three boxes of Annies mac n cheese (all of us) Three bathing suits and two diaper butts (b/c I couldn’t find the bathing suits for Sarah’s two youngest) Several water “shooters” (for the four “big kids”) Too many pushes on the swing to count (my kid) Just about the whole day wearing the Ergo (my kid and OUCH my BACK) Phone [...]
Read More in Jen Writes, three kids (six kids)June 26, 2009
Mama or Aunt Jennie?—It’s all the same this weekend
Well, I’m off. My part of the secret weekend is about to begin. Tomorrow morning, I’ll be loading the three kids—and the pillows—into the car for the hourlong ride south. Where we’ll meet up with Kelsey, who will no doubt have everything completely under control at Sarah’s. And then, after Kels gives me the rundown of nap schedules and bottle needs, she will leave, and I will be left alone. That is, not at all alone. It will be me and six kids. Shall we review the ages? Indulge me, OK? 6, 5, 3, 2, 1, 9 months. Alright, alright, [...]
Read More in GG, Jen Writes, motherhood, three kids (six kids)June 26, 2009
What it takes to make a secret weekend
So I’m taking Dan away for a secret weekend. (So this better not be the day he starts reading the blog, or I’m a-gonna just ruin the surprise right now.) My five running lists are upstairs and I have more motivation to retype them all from memory (ha!) than walk up the 12 steps to get them. So here goes…what it takes to plan and execute a super secret surprise weekend for your sweetie… Cash in all your good karma so you can… Secure child care for three boys for 2 days and 2 nights Cheer wildly by silently dancing [...]
Read More in relationship, Sarah WritesJune 23, 2009
Mothering Three: Do you see yourself out there anywhere?
Magazines. I love them. I used to subscribe to many, but when the necessary budgeting axe hit our home, the periodicals were the first to go. I watched as they dwindled. And now they are gone. And I don’t miss them so much. Who has the time? But a few days ago I had a few moments to browse the magazines in the pediatrician’s office and then at the library. I came home with Vegetarian Times, The New Yorker, Natural Living, Mothering and Parents. I also have a People that my dear friend Liz, who appreciates my need for the [...]
Read More in Favorites, Jen Writes, Jen's Favorites, sleep, three kidsJune 23, 2009
Just another day
Every day is a new day, and yet the same in some way. Some often truly annoying way. Max wakes up at 6:00 or 6:30 or, these days, 5:30. He comes to our room, his arms full with his fuzzy blue blanket and his doggie. He crawls in our bed. He says “Wake UP!” a whole bunch of times. One of us struggles to put Noggin on – something, anything to keep the beast tame just a little bit longer. We went to bed too late. Sometimes by choice, sometimes not. Me: by choice. Dan: fifty/fifty. The little shit can’t [...]
Read More in Sarah Writes, three kidsJune 20, 2009
Father’s Day, 1999
My mother woke me up and told me to get dressed, get ready right away, and come downstairs. There was something wrong with Dad at the hospital. The night before, my parents had gone to the driving range to hit some balls. I didn’t recall the last time they ever did that because my father’s back problems prevented him from enjoying golf ever since I could remember. But he loved to coach mom in all things athletic, once quite an athlete himself, and so they went. I declined an invitation to join them, even if it meant the summertime treat [...]
Read More in Dad, Sarah WritesJune 20, 2009
We Miss You, Dad
These are the only digital images I have of Dad. I meant to spend some time with the scanner and the boxes of pictures I have of him—hundreds. Family shots. “Artistic” shots. But life got in the way, and this is all I have. A silly montage that Sarah put together several years ago of John, shaving off his beard in stages. And changing hats, for whatever reason. His brother—our uncle Tom—is a professional photographer, and dad loved photography. He loved to attend our sporting events and stand at the sidelines with his impressive lens hanging around his neck. Making [...]
Read More in Dad, fatherhood, Jen WritesJune 19, 2009
Should you judge a book (or your sister) by its cover?
I received an e-mail from a friend a few nights ago that brought me back to summer vacation, almost five years ago. Not to the beaches or sitting in a hammock reading, or to introducing B to his extended family for the first time. But to a time when I was in judgment of my sister’s behavior. Toward a book. The e-mail: “Do you save the dust jackets that come with your children’s books? I take them off because I know they’re going to just get ripped. But then I have no idea what to do with them…” Around the [...]
Read More in Jen Writes, motherhood, oldest child, sistersJune 18, 2009
A secret weekend
Ooh I am so excited I can hardly contain myself. And I’ve never been very good at keeping a secret. Not this kind of secret anyway. I was better at the naughty girl secrets I had to keep from parents, siblings, and friends. I keep saying that’s another story, and it is. Note: there’s not much I do half-assed, it’s full-ass or no-ass, and I’m slowly learning how to step into the middle and move around a little. Sometimes I think “the middle” is just for wussies, sometimes I think it’s boring but responsible, and sometimes I’m on top of [...]
Read More in relationship, Sarah Writes, sexJune 17, 2009
Those Days That Never Go According to Plan
Is there any other kind of day? They happen at work, and they happen at home. And today is one of them. I was going to get up early and post. Start the day with something for me. I got up at 8 o’clock. EIGHT. Radical. I threw a load of laundry in shortly after waking, because Wednesday I am not at the office and so I do laundry. Then I realized there were sleeping bags in the tent, which J pitched about 10 days ago, just before it started to rain for eight days. What I found: two very [...]
Read More in Jen WritesJune 16, 2009
Another reason I love my sister…
…because she sends me notes like this in the mail. The real mail. The post-man-or-woman-walks-up-to-your-house mail. Not the virtual mail. Those count too. But these are extra special. Oh, and if you can’t read the handwriting, too bad. Mine is virtually the same, so I have no trouble making it out. And, this was truly meant for my eyes, not yours. So consider yourself extra special, too! If you can read it, all the better! Jen: I hope this is okay to share. I’m assuming you’d tell me otherwise. [smiles]
Read More in Best of 2009, Jen Writes, Sarah Writes, Sarah's FavoritesJune 16, 2009
No is a complete sentence
I heard this in the car the other day. No is a complete sentence. Ahh, brilliant. So I don’t have to say “No, you can’t have that and these are the fifteen reasons why and why not” ? Oh, good. I’ll have to remember this. It is so much easier to say no, and walk away. But the little people, they follow you asking questions over and over again. “Why Mama?” And the littler people, they just scream at you and throw themselves to the ground and against the walls, and pound relentlessly until you’ve both got a headache. It’s [...]
Read More in Sarah WritesJune 12, 2009
Bad Mothers, Good Mothers, Really?
Today’s post started as a comment to the article Just Sayin’ – Is “bad” parenting in? I heard it in the car on the way to work and immediately called Jen, who should have been in the car, on the way to work, and she was, but she didn’t answer the phone because she was in the dead zone (topic for an entirely different post). I hate it when she’s in the dead zone and so I left a message. And here we are now, hours later and thinking about this article and all that it means, how it can [...]
Read More in Jen Writes, motherhood, Sarah WritesJune 10, 2009
Haves and Have Nots
I have three sleeping children. I have not read the local newspaper, which we have delivered daily, in at least two weeks. I have a knot in my upper back/neck region that is making it painful to type. I have not cleaned the bathrooms in a week. (They could easily benefit from a sponge daily.) I have a wonderful friend who has agreed to take care of my three children (and her own daughter) so that I can go out to lunch with another adult on Saturday. I have not called back my roommate from college who called me on [...]
Read More in Jen WritesJune 9, 2009
Summer, here we come
I’m happy for the sun-soaked, sunscreen-soaked days that lay ahead. I welcome them. And I’ll even deal with whiney toddlers who yell at me to “Stop!” Because summer breathes on me calm and slow and patient thoughts. And I can always use more of those. So summer, here we come. The boys are a year older, and life is even louder, and there’s sure to be more of this…
Read More in boys, Sarah Writes, three kidsJune 8, 2009
Sleeping Boys
Exhaustion. Me. No words. Just thoughts. Of little boys. Sweet. and Quiet. When they sleep. Ahh, me. My boys. And sleep.
Read More in Sarah Writes, sleep, UncategorizedReally. How do I? Any suggestions out there? Here’s how it went tonight: B struggles into shower. Emphasis on struggles. Loud struggles. S into jammies. Em into jammies. Me into jammies. Estimated elapsed time: 20 minutes. Not bad! B washed and removed from shower. B in jammies. Books selected by children. Bedtime water retrieved by me. Stuffed friends found by me. Estimated elapsed time: 20 more minutes. Are we really on track here? Reading of four stories (two each) B to bathroom S to turn on lullabyes Story told by me with Em trying to nurse lying beside me on [...]
Read More in Jen Writes, siblings, sleep, UncategorizedJune 5, 2009
Mother to three boys – Just thinking out loud again
I started an email response to Shawna, who commented on my last post, Thinking Out Loud. The email got so long and so intense that even though I continued writing, I had decided to post it on the blog as a direct reply to Shawna’s comment – because sometimes it’s just strange to privately respond to people we don’t know with so much information and so much honesty (even though that’s what we do in a blog post – weird) and I didn’t want to freak Shawna out. And because I was sharing such a significant expansion of the previous [...]
Read More in boys, Sarah WritesJune 4, 2009
Thinking out loud
I have some dirty history. Some scary, dirty history. Years of my life that I’m sure I will eventually reveal. And I’m sure that it would make a lot more sense to write this after an autobiographical bit is posted, but I don’t tend to work like that – make sense and all. In short, I’ve come full circle and I stand here wondering how much we tell our kids of our past. What they need to know, what can and should be left out, what’s beneficial, what’s detrimental, what will teach a wise lesson that they’ll forever carry with [...]
Read More in Best of 2009, boys, history aka before kids, Sarah Writes, Sarah's FavoritesJune 3, 2009
Behind the Scenes: Brilliant Minds
sarah (11:48:24 AM): r u there god, it’s me Margaret? jen (11:48:37 AM): just call me sheila the great. sarah (11:48:56 AM): well, we made it to nearly noon before gettin the IM bug jen (11:49:02 AM): not bad! sarah (11:49:11 AM): does that make all THREE of my boys Fudge? jen (11:49:15 AM): Em asleep. i need to print stuff out, but the printer wakes her up. jen (11:49:17 AM): FUDGE. jen (11:49:19 AM): yep. jen (11:49:27 AM): i hope S and Em aren’t blubber. sarah (11:49:30 AM): and S is Ramona Quimby, B is who? ralph s mouse? sarah (11:49:41 AM): riding his motorcycle sarah (11:49:52 AM): not to make [...]
Read More in Sarah WritesJune 2, 2009
Why It Shouldn’t Have Worked
When J and I started dating: We worked together He was (I thought) unavailable I had never been in a serious relationship with a man Within weeks I moved two hours away (to enroll in one of my unfinished graduate programs) We were (still are!) 13 years apart in age But here we are, almost 11 years later. I’ve known him for nearly 13 years, and I can’t imagine my life without him. Cliched? Yes. But true, I’m happy to say. Tonight, as we walked along the bike path, with our three children—two on their bikes and one in a [...]
Read More in Jen Writes, UncategorizedJune 1, 2009
I think some kegels are in order
I’m absolutely exhausted right now and there is no sane reason why I should even be attempting to post right now. (Lots of run-on sentences to follow). I have a compelling urge to give out a bit TOO MUCH INFORMATION: the Jumping Jacks required by Jillian Michaels in the 30-day Shred I attempted tonite have alerted me to the fact that I better start doing those Kegels, else I be stuck riding around on a Segway for the rest of my days chanting, Low-impact, Low-impact. That caption is priceless. I’m thinking that if the Segway could help me clear my [...]
Read More in body image, exercise, Sarah Writes