Category Archives: Young Kids

Our Longest-Running Family Tradition (a.k.a. How to Halt the Co-Sleeping Thing)

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When our kids were small, we used to go through what lots of parents do: Being drudged out of sleep by that tiny, middle-of-the-night voice … the one that whispers “Mommy? …. Mommy? … Mommy?”

You open one eye. Peer upward. And there’s a 3-foot-tall human standing at the side of your bed, breathing heavily into your bangs. …

As you rub the sleep out of your eyes, you remember what all the parenting books say. They all tell you you’ll create a monster if you keep inviting your children into your bed. But … well … you’re just so tired. … and … gosh, maybe just this one more time … and man, is it 3 a.m.?

And you sleepily throw the covers wide and welcome your little human in.

We did this for our first child for three years. I kept reading in the parenting books that I should not do it, and I’d scan through all the bulleted reasons why not, and I’d basically agree. In theory. But – honestly – at 3 in the morning, I never cared. I just wanted to get back to sleep. And the path of least resistance seemed the best path to take. Continue reading →

Dennis the Menace

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We sit at the dining table, passing potatoes and vegetables, and my 10-year-old son suddenly announces that Bryan and Maya* are having a baby. …

We all stare at him across the table.

“Who’re Brian and Maya?” my husband finally asks into the silence.

“Our neighbors,” my son says, exasperated. “The ones at the end, facing that way.” He makes a fluttering motion with his hand. He looks from one of us to another, waiting for a light of recognition, but when we all continue to stare blankly, he shakes his head and goes back to his potatoes. …

My son has become like the cruise director of our neighborhood. He knows who lives in each house, how many kids they have, what their dogs’ names are, and even when and where they go on vacation. He knows what all the adults do for a living, when they’re home, what kind of car they drive, and, in some cases, what they have for dinner on any given night. Continue reading →

Celebrate!

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Yay! School’s finally out! We’ve had a crazy-busy June.

We’ve had late-night school projects and open houses:

 

Art awards shows:

 

Violin concerts:

 

Dances and galas:

 

Graduation ceremonies:

And that’s only after all the shoe-shopping, dress-shopping, corsage-ordering, tux-fitting, project-finishing, violin-tuning, tie-tying, shoe-shining and more that preceded each event in the last few weeks! Whew! It’s been a crazy, busy June.

But it’s been very celebratory. And very happy.

It’s just that I’m pretty sure we’re all going to be sleeping in this weekend. …

Role Models and Women

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I’ve been thinking a lot about role models lately, specifically when it comes to women. And how it’s good for women to have them.

I remember looking around myself for a perfect role model (for life) when I was about 26 or so.

My own mom — who is a wonderful, smart, funny and positive person — still didn’t work as a role model for me. Why? Well, mostly because her generation had followed a different path than mine — their expectations were different, their definitions of success were different, and their financial obligations were different. 

My generation (and what “my generation” is, is sort of hard to define, because I’m actually on the exact cusp of Gen X and the Baby Boomers. So I’m an “older Gen X” or a “younger Baby Boomer.”) Anyway, my generation had moms who mostly stayed home and took care of us. Or maybe it was just my neighborhood, I don’t know. But most of the kids I knew had stay-home moms. The moms all knew each other, and came to all our school functions, and all taught CCD (catechism) in a rotation around the neighborhood. My mom didn’t even drive — and she wasn’t the only mom who didn’t. Continue reading →

Hollywood Tour (Part 2)

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Okay, if you already went on the first part of our Hollywood tour, here’s the second:

Chris and Nate went to Barney’s Beanery, where Doors singer Jim Morrison used to hang out, and where Janis Joplin spent her last night alive. Nate doesn’t really know who Jim Morrison or Janis Joplin are, but Chris was awed. Nate was more interested in the delicious burgers and chili-cheese fries:

They drove through the Hollywood Hills and looked at the cliffside houses; then of course went to the Hollywood sign. Chris found a secret drive that led them rather close to it – the closest he thought you could get:

The diner in their hotel was the diner where the last scene of Swingers was filmed with Vince Vaughn. They ate at the counter, ‘cause that’s what guys do (I’ve been informed):

They went to the Guinness Book of World Records museum and checked out the tallest man, the smallest woman and other strange facts. Nate loved that. He loves weird facts:

They drove by L.A. Ink, where Kat Von D and her group are inking up new customers daily (luckily my guys didn’t stop for tattoos! In fact, I tried to upload Nathan’s picture that he took out the car window as they were flying by, but it wouldn’t upload. So just imagine that one!)

They ended the trip with a visit to LAX, where they found a cool little spot on a grassy island where they could watch the planes fly overhead. Nate LOVED this. Chris said he was laughing the whole time because the planes fly very LOW and it’s kind of a weird feeling to be lying underneath them:

They had a great time! Chris said he felt like HE was 10 years old again – which (in his words) isn’t a long trip:

Have you ever been to Hollywood? I realize your experiences may be quite different than a 10-year-old’s! 🙂 — So what’s your favorite thing to visit there?

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