The last few days, my nine-year-old, Peter, has been doing such a good job of driving me crazy that I swore he was trying to actually bug me to death. His barrage of questions and requests for everything from going to the beach in the pouring rain, to begging me for a magic wand to turn him into a teenager like his older brother, had me scraping the bottom of the barrel for … [Read more...]
This Average Family
This piece originally ran on the Dishwasher, August 5, 2012, under the title, A Day in the Life. It has been slightly edited.Thank you for allowing me to revisit it today. I’m the mother of three amazing children. I married my best friend, and we live in the suburban neighborhood I grew up in. I even drive a minivan. On paper, we sound like a very ordinary family. Even … [Read more...]
It’s All Good
The other day my daughter LIzzy and I were out to lunch with my parents. I was having so much fun watching her tell our favorite waitress what she wanted to order. “That one” Lizzy proudly says as she points to the macaroni and cheese with hot dogs. This is the whole reason we’re having lunch at Friendly’s instead of someplace my parents and I would find a bit more … [Read more...]
The Moments That Matter
I’ve been playing around with the notion of how a mom knows whether she’s doing a good job. It’s not like we get a performance review each year with a list of what we accomplished and a raise from the boss. Motherhood isn’t that type of job. Three years ago, I was toying with the same idea and wound up publishing this piece under the title, A Great Gift. It has been edited … [Read more...]
Down the Rabbit Hole Again
Each year as April and Autism Awareness month rolls around, I find myself in a strange position of wanting to write something about my family’s experience of dealing with a range of developmental and learning disorders. At the same time, I feel that I don’t really have the right. All three of our children have received special education services for a range of developmental … [Read more...]
