November 2009

Sarah writes

November 30, 2009

And the winners are…

Thanksgiving was perfecto! However, it did kinda sorta skew my focus for a few days. It’s taken me longer than I expected to get to this post. It seems I was more concerned about eating pie and keeping toddlers out of trouble than I was about the blog. Phew! That was hard to admit. Especially after Five for Ten. Especially after the influx of comments and blogs we so happily devoured. I will shamelessly say that I spent much more time with my computer than I did with my kids for those ten days. That this blog space was more [...]

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Jen writes

November 29, 2009

High Hopes

Dear Cuisinart Food Processor, I love you. I really do. Without you there would be no hummus. Without you, making macaroni and cheese (uh, I mean Cheesy Noodle Casserole) would be so much more difficult. Without you roasted potatoes would not be as evenly sliced. But, most importantly, without you my holiday mustard would be impossible to make. Impossible. So, please. Don’t die on me. Not now. I know you’re feeling old. And cracked. And worn out. Maybe even unappreciated. Let me assure you that I love you. I count on you. And I need you. Do not die on [...]

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Sarah writes

November 28, 2009

The banter of family

We talk about sleep. Wine-induced sleep. What a blessing. What a curse. We talk about age. Sixty and six months and everything in between. What it means to grow old. What it takes to stay young. We talk about the kids. How active they are. How much energy they have. How much energy they take. From us. All day. We banter. About the little things. Happily. Because we are family. And this is what we do. And it is comfortable. To talk about nothing in particular. When you are with family. There is no agenda. No point. No expectation. But [...]

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Jen writes

November 27, 2009

Out of the closet and into the heart

I spent much of the day cleaning out and organizing closets. Going through bins. Throwing out dried up Play-Doh and tempera paint. Sweeping up mouse poop. Putting all of the unused batteries into one box. And uncovering TREASURES. TREASURES, people. Treasures. I found 12-year-old e-mails between me and Sarah. I found letters Sarah wrote to me while I was at camp—in 1984. Also, handwritten letters she sent to me at college, when Sarah was not yet a teenager, with the return address of “Barftown, USA.” Oh, how I wish I had a scanner. There is a drawing of a sad [...]

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Sarah writes

November 26, 2009

Thanksgiving

Yeah. The day will probably end up like this for my husband. On MomalomsMom’s couch. Feet up. Children running circles around him. Tugging at his feet. Crawling on his chest. While he sleeps through it all. In fact, he’s taking a nap as I write this. As my oldest son animates the Military Channel. As my grandmother inquires about our latest good reads. As my best friend calls me to wish a Happy Thanksgiving. The bird cooks. The stuffing is stuffed. The beans are greening up. And I am happy as can be. I might, however, have to borrow some [...]

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Jen writes

November 25, 2009

Loose ends and a few thoughts

Oh MY! Where is that lovely graphic to begin the post? What? Five for Ten is over? (Boo boo lip.) I think it’s going to take some time to recover. Right now we are in the process of basking in your lovely comments and figuring out T-shirt details. Bear with us, ladies. We’ll be in touch. (We also are baking pies and figuring out if the kids have any decent clean clothes to wear for Thanksgiving tomorrow, ya know?) In the meantime, here’s something for you (ladies and gentlemen, both) to think about: A thread that seemed to recur during [...]

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Sarah writes

November 24, 2009

Lasting Impressions

I can’t quite believe it is the final day here at Five for Ten. Excuse me if I run long today, my heart is full. Very full. My heart runneth over with worry and fear and joy and expression and memory on most days, but today it is filled with lasting amounts of honesty and love. Honest love. The draft of the very first Five for Ten post – the introduction to our adventure – sat on my laptop waiting for a little bit of bravery. I finished typing it up and went to the couch for a Friday night [...]

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Jen writes

November 23, 2009

What I Learned on My Weekend Away

I still love J lots and lots. He still loves me. We still like to take long walks and people watch. I can still do a pretty decent job on the Sunday New York Times crossword puzzle. Great friends and great food make for a great time and great memories. I miss my kids when we aren’t together. It’s nice to have a new shirt to wear every once in a while. I can recognize and name all Celtics starters, even without the benefit of close-up television and Tommy Heinsohn’s commentary. I may have completely lost the ability to sleep [...]

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GG writes

November 22, 2009

Sunday thoughts from Momalom’s Mom

I never had a nickname growing up, unless you’d count the one strange summer I answered to the name of Rabbit by my preteen campers. Perhaps it was in honor of the two high ponytails I wore. What was I thinking – only someone as little and cute as Sarah can get away with that. My counselor friends all had these great nicknames like The Binker (!) and Sukey and Mikey – well, I thought they were cute at the time, and I WANTED one. Was I un-nickname-able? Not cute, funny, athletic, smart, fill-in-the-blank enough? But then I became a [...]

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Jen writes

November 21, 2009

Vacation Day

As you read this, my sweetie and I are on our weekend getaway. I’ve been planning for this for months. Since about the time Sarah surprised Dan with his weekend getaway, and I spent the weekend at Sarah’s with all six kids. Which is where the six kids are now. With Sarah. At Sarah’s. And I have no doubt that everyone is fine. As for me and my sweetie, we do not get away together often. This trip is a birthday present to him. And all I told him was that he needed to be packed by 3:00 Friday afternoon. [...]

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Read More in Jen Writes, three kids

Stress. The devil. Do they indeed mean the same thing? My husband is stressed. Has started a new company and is just so, well, STRESSED. On top of the demands for his time from both clients and family that he cannot fulfill, and the financial deadlines he must meet so as to keep the house in our name AND the heat turned on, he’s got the fucking flu. Whoops, I cursed. Hoping I don’t offend any of too many of you. Because he is stressed, I am stressed, and the kids get stressed because our patience is fickle – waffling [...]

104 comments

Read More in Sarah Writes, three kids (six kids)

Last night a local news station ran a story about mommy bloggers, featuring us. Me. and Sarah. Momalom. She was shown unloading the (my!) dishwasher. I was shown painting with my daughter. We were shown together leaning over a computer. It was strange to see us on TV. And to see the clips chosen for the piece, the few seconds selected from among the hour the reporter spent in my home two Wednesdays ago. It was strange that what we saw on screen was not anything like the conversations that Sarah and I have daily. I mean, we each were [...]

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Sarah writes

November 18, 2009

The Threads of Sisterhood

Pigtails. Aren’t I cute? This is me, age 5, Kindergarten. I adored that sweater in every way that a little girl can adore an article of clothing. The buttons were white hearts hand-painted with some pinky, girly, swirly somethings. And I was as cute as those buttons for a day or two—until my mom was fed up with finding two eyelet ribbons in my back pack at the end of every day instead wrapped around my rubberbands. She threatened to cut off my hair if I didn’t stop pulling out my pigtails. Or my braids. Or my Mindys. Remember Mindys? [...]

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Read More in Sarah Writes, sisters

On Sunday one of my neighbors entered my house. She had borrowed a portable crib and a high chair to accommodate a houseguest in the form of a toddler. And she was returning the equipment. I heard her come in. I was upstairs with the baby, searching the girls’ room for two matching shoes. B, downstairs, yelled, “Mom. Like, Lisa’s here.” (He watches a lot of, like, Scooby Doo.) I went down the stairs more carefully than usual, because just that morning J had ripped them open to expose the original stairs–circa 1870ish–and they’re a little uneven and splintery and [...]

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Sarah writes

November 16, 2009

When you aren’t sure what to write, just ask

Reminders. If you are just joining us here and wondering what that big, bold Five for Ten sign is up there, well, be daring and click on it! It is not too late to jump in. Hell, I’m late for everything. We’ll love you just the same if you commit today and join in the connections. If you have the time to click over to any of the other readers leaving us the most fabulous comments, please do. It is not a requirement of the game, but how about making another blogger’s day just a little bit happier? Oh, I [...]

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Jen writes

November 15, 2009

On your mark, get set, go!

Or, as they say in the rowing world, Ready All, Row! Yesterday I received a medal in the mail. A bronze medal. Remember this? Well, our boat won a medal. (OK, OK, so there were only three boats in the race. I’m still proud of the medal.) It was kind of nice opening the mailbox and finding a bulky envelope with my name on it. And it was kind of nice to have to wait for the medal. The race was several weeks ago, true, but receiving the medal through the mail just helped me relive the great experience. It [...]

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Sarah writes

November 14, 2009

Come on. You know you want to!

Listen Here. We all spend a heck of a lot of time thinking about our lives, breaking things down into posts, and piecing the words together. We deserve a little more from it all, and Jen and I really want to make that happen. So we have decided to start Five for Ten. If you are just landing here, please take a moment to read yesterday’s post and then come on back. Rules of the Game. Eek. I have a great aversion to the word “rules” – except when it comes to my kids, of course – but I suppose [...]

18 comments

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Sarah writes

November 13, 2009

Five for Ten

How do you ask people to stop and take a look at your blog for five minutes a day, ten days in a row, so that you can have a chance at proving yourself? Wait, no. It’s not proof you need. It’s connection. To give and to get. To form. It’s helping people understand that you want is to create a space that is so full of connections that they feel compelled to touch base. It is building this place where we speak to each other. Where the writer reaches out and the reader reaches back. Where the conversations flourish [...]

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Jen writes

November 12, 2009

Motherhood has made me braver

Play Me [Audio clip: view full post to listen] I’ve been listening to this song over and over and over in the car during my drive to work. I started because it’s the only CD I had in the car for some reason. And I have a long commute. And I tire of NPR after 30 minutes or so. And I love this song. I’ve been singing out loud, marveling at the lyrics, at the romanticism in a song that doesn’t have the raw sound of romance until you do focus on the lyrics. To the line, “And she’ll know [...]

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Sarah writes

November 11, 2009

Fathers and sons

Many years ago I made a shallow attempt to start writing again. I was a new mom spending my days at home with a new babe. Something about all that time on my hands encouraged me to find my words again. It had been too long. A part of me remained void without a notebook filled by scrawls and scratches tucked under my arm. I was empowered by the thought of reconnecting with that piece of myself and took small steps to get there. When I finally turned on the faucet a black slop gooped out. After a few days [...]

23 comments

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Jen writes

November 10, 2009

In the moments after bedtime

I am sitting here, waiting for the words to come. I have started a half dozen posts, but none is coming out the way I want it to. They don’t meet my expectations. I don’t meet my expectations. But it’s NaBloPoMo time. I HAVE to post. It’s my night. The pressure’s on. The kids are asleep. The house is quiet. I’m feeling a little better–not SO exhausted that I can’t sit still and type. But the IDEAS. Where are the ideas? I can’t just post another poem. A tribute to someone else. A wish for a makeover. I need some [...]

5 comments

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Sarah writes

November 9, 2009

Drunken rambling about my optimistic clitoris

I’m three-quarters drunk so why not talk about my boobs for a minute. And the overall state of my body. And beacons of light. Wait, I have to digress for one moment. My husband just got a friend request on Facebook. Ah, yes, the friend request. A coveted thing in some circles. This one came from an old friend from middle school with a name that got chosen by his parents upon throwing a single dart at a dartboard full of names. While navigating Facebook on his iPhone to accept the request he passes through a few status updates. “That’s [...]

22 comments

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Jen writes

November 8, 2009

A poem on Sunday

Pardon me while I take the easy way out of my NaBloPoMo responsibilities today. It’s just that I’m tired. And everyone in my family is sick. And I tried to write a post, I really did, but I kept looking over to the wall beside my desk, where I have this poem tacked up. It’s one of my favorites. And I think you should read it.

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Read More in Jen Writes, three kids, writing

Let’s pick up where we left off, shall we? I went back to work much too early after Ethan was born. I don’t know if it was guilt over my absence, or an honest need to get out of the house, but I found myself once again cooped up in an office with a baby carrier tucked away at my feet. In the eighteen months that I held this position of employment I had delivered two babies. On most days I’m pretty sure it was more than my boss could handle and I’m sure he never quite realized it was [...]

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Jen writes

November 6, 2009

A few words for Mary Ann and Sydna

I bake. I bake yummy things. Often. And one of the things I bake two or three times each week is muffins. I love muffins. And for a while—before kids and then when I had only one and we’d walk into town on a whim—I was in the habit of buying a muffin whenever the opportunity presented itself. But I was never satisfied. They always were too cakey or too oily or too crumbly or had too many blueberries or or or. I tried recipes. Many many recipes. But none was THE ONE. At some point along the way I [...]

4 comments

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Sarah writes

November 5, 2009

The moment I decided an IUD was for me

Ethan is my third child. My third boy (yes, I have to remind you of my boy parade every chance I get because I am CLEARLY KEEPING THE DREAM ALIVE THAT I WILL ONE DAY HAVE A DAUGHTER). My post-delivery, six week OB check up went exactly the same as it had 15 months prior when second-boy Max was the little penis in the sling: Everything looks good. Everything checks out. Uterus is contracted. All your parts are in tact. Let’s talk about birth control. These are your options. I recommend an IUD. Here’s what it looks like. Here’s how [...]

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Jen writes

November 4, 2009

me (n) an undefinable entity

What defines you? How do you describe yourself to other moms? To other women who aren’t moms? Are you a mother? Blogger? Partner? Are you a daughter? Artist? Financial planner? Are you a toilet scrubber, grocery shopper, diaper changer, chauffeur? What are you? What am I? What AM I? I am a mother first. Well, I am a woman first. I was a partner first. And then the kids came and took over. I am a meal planner, a cook, a nurturer. I am a toy-picker-upper. I am an editor. And a bedtime-story reader. I am a hugger and a [...]

35 comments

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Sarah writes

November 3, 2009

When life gets in the way of motherhood

My boy is sick. He lays beside me in bed right now telling me over and over it’s time for him to go to sleep. Finally admitting that he feels horrible. He isn’t just “fine.” Telling me that he loves me and that he wants me to be right next to him. Right now and all night long. In my big comfortable cloud of a bed. So here we are. Dan will sleep on the couch. I will sleep next to my boy. His fever will drift up and down. I will be here to medicate him and mother him. [...]

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Jen writes

November 2, 2009

Confession: I want a mommy makeover

Did you ever see one of those mom makeover segments on a show like Live with Regis and Kelly and wonder What is wrong with that woman? I mean, do the moms that they find for these shows REALLY look SO tragic in real life? Dull, stringy hair and a general overall look that just DEFINES frumpy? A few years ago this didn’t seem possible to me. It seemed to me like they must have given the woman of the day an unmakeover prior to her “before” picture. But, now I’m a mother. A tragic mother. My teeth aren’t yellow [...]

12 comments

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Sarah writes

November 1, 2009

Many the Miles

Play Me [Audio clip: view full post to listen] I pulled on my running tights yesterday and laced up my new sneakers. I snaked through the streets in my neighborhood, up the hill past a golf course, along tree-lined avenues painted with picturesque houses, through a lonely college campus. It was Halloween and the weather couldn’t have been more elegantly creepy and magical. There was a forceful wind. It pushed me and I pushed right back. Leaves danced across the streets, bathed the sidewalks, and breezed with me as I broke free. From that world indoors. The one that I [...]

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