My Oldest Turns 14 (and He’s Doing Just Fine)
My oldest boy turns 14 today and he’s not a total shit.* This tells you so much. Like the fact that we sort of curse openly here. I never would … Continue reading
He Turns Eleven
He is the best of us and the worst of us and so many things I no longer get to write about because while he is still mine, his stories for the most part are not. But it’s all right there now on his own little world stage, the field, classroom or couch, or stretched across his bed.
I Want More, Impossible to Ignore: On Dolores O’Riordan and Growing Up
It followed me around today as I drove my minivan to school, to the grocery store and CVS, back to school and so on, humming out of every radio and … Continue reading
An Ode to the Second Day of School
The first day of school is a shitstorm of pain. Is it sunny and hot with a chance of cold rain? Why is it so damn early, every year such … Continue reading
The Playground Disappeared
The playground suddenly disappeared. This both is and is not a metaphor. We were heading to the library, the place I would take the kids for story hours and sing … Continue reading
Labor Day Weekend, Where Did it Go?
Today was the last day of summer, Labor Day weekend, two days away from the start of school. In the morning I headed out alone to the beach with … Continue reading
The Weightlessness of Water
I could sit underwater and watch my children swim for hours. Well, not hours. I’m no David Blaine. I can only hold my breath for about four times as long … Continue reading
Swooping Like Birds
Sunday morning started slowly. We were in recovery. Recovery from the first full week of school and a Saturday where the kids played four different soccer games on four different fields … Continue reading
I Don’t Like Eight-Year-Old Boys, the Never Ending Sequel
I don’t like eight-year-old boys.You might remember that I didn’t like seven-year-old boys much either. It’s hard to describe what the actual thing is that he does that drives me … Continue reading
Leaving the Nest, an Ode to Pre-School
My youngest child is finishing her time at the most amazing school ever. She is graduating from pre-school. I know everyone thinks that their kids go to the most amazing schools. … Continue reading
Two-Wheelers, Piano Recitals and Lost Teeth
I went for a run today. Just a week ago on my run there was still snow on the ground deep in the woods, tucked in the valleys, with a gray fog … Continue reading
Hand-Me-Downs, What We Choose to Keep
The day before school started I dug through the kids’ closet where I’ve been (haphazardly) stocking shoes and clothing to fit my children for the next ten years of their lives. … Continue reading
Graduation-ing (It’s Not Gradual)
This week is graduation week and there is nothing gradual about it. It comes in like a lion and goes out like a lion, all roaring emotion and event after … Continue reading
I Am Afraid
Mica lost his first tooth today. It’s been wiggling in his mouth, nestled in his tiny deep-ocean gums like a pearl, since mid-winter. Today, in honor of Roald Dahl, it … Continue reading
A Blanket of Children
These days seem to be more and more filled with distancing moments. Moments when I try to manage my five-year-old daughter’s Mean Girl moments and she rolls her eyes and … Continue reading
The Librarian, the Library and the Words
Part I. My Mother It always begins here. My mother was a librarian. Let me clarify. My mother was a librarian for about as long as I bagged raw chicken … Continue reading
The Big Girl Crib
My baby is still in a crib. I don’t mean like phat cribs on MTV with diamond bedazzles and an indoor treehouse. That would be Lindsey-Lo-tastic, but it’s not us. … Continue reading
The Best Worst Gift Ever
I got it. The absolute best worst gift one could ever hope for on her birthday. When I opened the box I immediately burst into tears, no pre-game chokey voice … Continue reading
jen groeber: mama art 