August 8, 2010
- Honoring their instincts
By Gretchen
"Mom?' my child said in a small voice, 'I don't think you should eat the pie."
I was caught by surprise and asked why. (…)
December 27, 2009
- We had mice on Christmas
By Gretchen
I heard the first stirrings downstairs around 4 am.
My 3 oldest boys were up, pawing through the gifts placed under the tree after they went to bed. (…)
November 29, 2009
- Smelly tree, smelly tree, it's not your fault
By Gretchen
I’ve often complained about our 2007 Christmas Tree. It smelled like teenaged badgers held a little but raucous kegger in the branches. (…)
November 1, 2009
- The Call of the Mild
By Gretchen
I had just told my seventh grader something slightly outrageous (to her) and disagreeable (to her). (…)
October 4, 2009
- Mind's Eye
By Gretchen
I've thought about him all morning, dressed like a Jolly Green Giant, but not jolly nor giant.
Sam is the Frog Prince in a class play this morning. (…)
September 6, 2009
- We See, We Saw
By Gretchen
"Mommy! There are numbers on that clock!" My son pointed to the clock mounted on the kitchen wall. It was the morning after he got glasses. Suddenly? He could see. (…)
August 9, 2009
- I am potty trained and so are you
By Gretchen
"Don't worry. I won't pee on you," my nearly 3-year-old daughter assured me as she climbed onto my lap.
"Thanks. I'm glad."
Was she worried she might? (…)
June 14, 2009
- Yes, I noticed your passive-aggressive jab, perfect stranger
By Gretchen
The zoo is the Roman Coliseum of mothering, where strollers are skillfully jockeyed for prime penguin viewing spots and picnic lunches are compared.
We go a lot. (…)
March 22, 2009
- It's better to have Love's Baby Soft lost than never had it at all
By Gretchen
"Mom, can you smell this?"
Aidan offered her wrist, not knowing I could smell this before she entered the room. (…)
February 15, 2009
- My vanity, my child
By Gretchen
My five-year-old son has a very small cosmetic flaw. One of his upper center baby teeth is coffee brown. He'd prefer to call it chocolate or even dirt. (…)
November 2, 2008
- I landed on the Bad Mom space
By Gretchen
My children do not know how to play Monopoly.
I never thought of this as a mothering failure until yesterday. (…)
September 28, 2008
- He's No Babysitter, He's Their Father
By Gretchen
My husband travels for work occasionally. Usually, these trips take him 2,000 miles away from home, for about a week. He attends meetings, training sessions, and social gatherings. (…)
August 24, 2008
- Smoke Gets In Your Social-Pariah Eyes
By Gretchen
Smokers are an ash-flick away from serial killers.
When friends, aquaintances, and readers find out I am an ex-smoker, they usually say things like, "But you are so nice!" Yes. (…)
July 20, 2008
- Nothing Good Happens After Midnight
By Gretchen
"Mom? Mom?"
A twelve-year-old boy gently shook his sleeping mother's shoulder.
After twisting in the sheets and mumbling protests, she turned to look at the bedside clock. (…)
