“Pick something from Disney,” Chris said. “It’ll be a safe choice.” I was desperately thumbing through NetFlix, looking for something, anything to entertain our children for the last hour before bedtime on the worst parenting day of our lives. Chris and I had both woken up with the stomach virus Saturday morning. We were incapacitated, […]
How to End a Plague of Bats.
November is a costly month for our family. In 2012, on the fifth day of the ill-fated eleventh month, Ali had a slight bathroom flood. That created 184 days of construction, renovations, and water damage mitigation. In 2013, on the seventeenth day of the eleventh month, a mutantly giant bat invaded my son’s room, alerting […]
iPhone 5s Slo-Mo: Changing Kid Vid Forever.
TERMS AND CONDITIONS: Before reading this post, please ensure that you are in a place where you can and will watch short videos with your volume on. I understand that watching someone’s kid videos is a huge virtual commitment nearly to the level of seriousness of friending someone on Facebook, and I promise to make […]
Big Bang Theory MBTI Chart.
I can’t stop. Making and discussing the Downton Abbey MBTI Chart was so much fun that I decided to give my other favorite television show a try, The Big Bang Theory. (Despite my fears that there wouldn’t be enough introverted types to go around for such a geekfest of a show.) (But in fact, there […]
Dinner Placemats of the Thankful Variety.
I have a confession to make: I am a cynical Thankgivingist. Not about the family or the food or internal giving of thanks, but mainly about public thanksgiving. I shy away from posting what I’m thankful for or doing Thanksgiving crafts with my kids because I fear it will be contrived rather than genuine. Not […]
Christmas Shopping: Ten Ways to be a Double Blessing.
Starting at the end of this week, the Christmas madness begins. We all feverishly make our lists, attack the stores, and desperately seek out unique and thoughtful gifts. I gave up on the stores a few years ago – I discovered that Amazon was easier, and often less expensive. Plus, having all of my Christmas […]
Birmingham Bucket List: Autumn Walks.
Despite the fact that I would prefer for it to stay out of my house, I do love nature – especially in the fall. And although it seemed to start later than usual, Autumn has been lovely here. The weather has been mild and sunny, and the extraordinarily bright leaf colors seem to have come […]
Goose-Chasing Dysautonomia.
Since I first got sick in June, I’ve been convinced that if Dr. House were real, he would totally take my case. Not because my illness is that much more interesting than anyone else’s, but because I’ve written 1,730 blog posts in the past six years – posts that surely have clues to help him […]
Writing Prompts for Children.
One of the most entertaining school tasks that Ali and I attempt is what we call writing prompts. The idea is to encourage her to think outside of hard facts, which can be challenging. This exercise isn’t about correct spelling, proper penmanship, writing paragraphs or even proper sentences – its purpose is to practice creativity […]
On Bed-Making: A Scientific Study.
Last week, I confessed yet another sad truth about my lacking in human decency. This time, it was with regards to bed-making: I don’t do it, my kids don’t do it, and I don’t do it for my kids. I asked for your input – the situation needed to be brought to light, once and […]