Mom's Timeout

A few years ago we painted one of our pumpkins teal as a part of the Teal Pumpkin Project, a project aimed at keeping Halloween inclusive for kids with food allergies.  As an allergy mom, I was excited to see a few more teal pumpkins lining porches in our city this year. What does it […]

My husband and I are counting down.  We’ve marked it on the calendar. In less than two weeks, we’ve got the green light to restart the engine on our sex life. I’m pretty excited about it, in case you can’t tell. I had our second child 4 1/2 weeks ago. She’s beautiful and she was so […]

Yesterday, my sister-in-law and I were talking about weaning. What was the main take away from our conversation? Nobody talks about weaning! We realized that there was tons of information about how to breastfeed available to us during pregnancy. There were free classes, books at the library, support groups, and blogs galore. As we struggled […]

Who’s the better parent? Is it you or your husband? I’d like to say that I’m totally the better parent, but then there are times… like tonight when both kids wanted my husband to put them to bed instead of me. I wish I could be the one spending an hour wrestling with my son […]

Growing up, I was a big fan of mud pies! My sister and I once attempted to get my brother to eat them on the grounds that he must sample our cooking to play with us. Yes, I know we were awful. There was something therapeutic and creative about making mud pies though. We had […]

Have you seen the meme that depicts adults missing out on big moments with their kids because they’re too busy staring at their phones? It made me feel guilty. There are moments like that in my life. There’s a lot of pressure on moms to do it all.  We’re supposed to be present with our […]

After you have kids, you are gifted with this special kind of radar. Suddenly, you can spot a mom even when she’s not with her kids. It’s in the way she behaves, the things she says… you just know she’s a mom too and she gets it. So how did it become so obvious that […]

When you’re a new mom, people talk a lot about sleep. They give you advice like “sleep when the baby sleeps” or ask questions like “how does she sleep?” Before long, it starts to feel like sleep is a sort of measuring stick for your success as a mom. It’s like you’re somehow dropping the […]

I remember the first moment I held my son, my first born. In an instant a weight of emotions came crashing down on me like a giant wave.  All the love I felt in that moment is an emotion I still can’t put into words.  The only word I can think of to describe it […]

There’s a secret all parents are looking for. We all want to know how to end the bad behaviors. We’re all looking for a way to get our kids to behave and be the little angels we see when they are sleeping. I know I’m tired of reminding my son not to throw toys, hit […]

I can definitely relate to people who identify themselves as introverts. I, more or less, keep to myself. I actually prefer it that way. Work gives me more than enough social interaction on a day-to-day basis. Let’s face it, we’re not all wired quite the same way. Some of us crave being around other people. […]

Don’t you just love Halloween? It’s always been a favorite in my family.  My grandmother filled the month of October with crafts, stories, and magic! Now that I’m a mom, I’m always looking for fun ways to continue the magic with my own children. Crafts are a great way to have fun and make memories […]

I remember some of the crazy stuff I said and did as a kid. I’ll bet you do too. Sometimes, I can’t even believe how much of a brat I was. I mean, the things I said to my poor mother. In hindsight, I feel so bad for all the craziness I put her through. […]

How did you let people know you were pregnant? Did you do the same old or something more original? I think my pregnancy was “Facebook official” long before it was anything else. We told our parents and closest friends and everyone else found out via the Baby Gaga app on Facebook. That silly little app […]

Sometimes, it’s hilarious to hear the stereotypes. People can seriously be oblivious. I mean, let’s face it. If my husband didn’t cook, we’d probably all starve to death around here. Okay, so maybe that’s a little bit of an exaggeration, but you get the idea. Sure, I can cook. Sort of. He’s the one who’s […]

Psst… Hey you! Yea, you! Do you have any idea what you’re getting yourself into? I remember all the times well-meaning strangers told me all kinds of things I really didn’t want to know. Funny things. Sad things. Terrible things that scared the ever-loving crap out of me. My entire pregnancy was like one big […]

I’m totally in favor of postponing formal education. What I mean is that during what’s typically considered the Preschool and Kindergarten years, we should be encouraging a love of learning and reading to our kids, not shoving Math and Phonics down their throats. Science experiments. Nature walks. Building things. That’s all great. My issue comes when […]

Have you ever been to the movie theater when another patron is just horribly obnoxious? Maybe they yell at the screen. Maybe they’re talking to their friends the whole time. Maybe they’re even on the phone. Or maybe, that “obnoxious kid” who can’t shut up is a boy with brain cancer. Well, that’s the case […]

You know all the cliches about messy homes being happy ones and making memories being more important than perfection… Oh, and the kids won’t remember whether or not everything was immaculate? Yep, that basically sums it up. Here’s the thing, though. A clean house doesn’t necessarily mean a boring mom. I’m somewhere in the middle […]

How many times have you been asked the inevitable question? What do you do all day? You know, because taking care of kids is basically the same thing as doing nothing. Who would’ve thought, right? I’m not even going to get into how many stupid people have asked me why in the world I would […]