9-1-1 Shenanigans (or why you should really LISTEN to your kids)
This is an essay from my collection HONEY, I’M SORRY I KILLED YOUR AQUASAURS. Have you ever seen the cell phone commercial with the little girl braiding her father’s hair and chattering like a squirrel on drugs? He has this bored look on his face, watching the clock, and is very patiently trying to listen to his daughter. I know how he feels—and so does my husband. Both of our girls are extremely verbal and sometimes they even argue over who gets to talk—given that they often want...
Read MoreA Mysterious Pee-er
I’m currently compiling my old newspaper columns, which I plan to sell in an e-book format. For those of you who don’t know, I wrote a slice-of-life parenting column for the Daily News Leader in Staunton for years. I’m enjoying going through them and reliving some of these moments. Thought I’d give you a sample today. We have a mysterious pee-er in our house. I am hoping that it is Tess, but I can’t be sure. She is just 22-months-old and many of the manuals on...
Read MoreFive things I thought about during my morning run:
1. My house filled with golden light this morning and how it gave way to the gray. 2. Marbled-gray skies. Spitting rain. 3. My Emma–up and at it this morning. I think we’ve given her a good work ethic, if nothing else. She’s off to the museum for the day to work on the farms. 4. We’ve been hearing about what a good worker she is–but also about how “entertaining” she is. heh. 5. If you haven’t heard, I’m doing a pre-sale special on...
Read MoreFive things I thought about during my morning run:
1. Hearing from my editor yesterday. Now I know more about when to expect the copy edits on SCRAPBOOK OF SECRETS. That’s a good thing. I was a bit concerned because my daughter is having her tonsils out the end of his month and I didn’t want to be distracted from her. 2. Thinking a lot about my fictional town of Cumberland Creek. And the next book. 3. The Yoga class last night left me a bit sore this morning and I can feel my muscles screaming with each stride. 4. Emma is off to the...
Read MoreP R O C E S S
One of our first poses in last Yoga class was plow. Imagine the old “bicycle” exercise except that your feet are not in the air, but on the floor behind your head. Yep. You have to be careful in this pose or you can seriously hurt a number of places on your body—your neck, most particularly. As I was reaching to get my toes to the floor and realizing it wasn’t going to happen last night, my Yoga teacher said, “It doesn’t matter if you get there tonight or in your...
Read MoreFive things I thought about during my morning run:
1. My sweet Emma, pouring her heart into the Mulan audition yesterday and not getting a part. 2. Recently, I was paid for a memoir that I edited. I bought a new printer. My last one was just about dead. The new one is a scanner, printer, and copier. Very sleek looking. And it’s inspired me to clean and organize my office. 3. With all the drama around my family in Pa. these days, I was really down yesterday. I’m so grateful for the friends I have in Va. Brightens my life. 4. I was...
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