Archive for December, 2009

Ringing in Change for the New Year — by Cara


Change. It is just a simple, six letter word. But for some, it can bring on anxiety, while for others, it can evoke excitement and promise of good things to come!I am hoping for the latter in the New Year. Not only a new year, a new decade! Ripe with ...

Mixed Blessings (ie: Be Careful What You Wish For!) — by Jamie


I think every mother wishes for the day when she can stop buying diapers; I certainly did. And I’m so relieved that after months of potty training, Jayda now wears underwear all the time. Thus, the other day, when I picked Jayda up from daycare, knowing we weren’t heading directly ...

GUEST BLOG POST: Stepfamily Sanity this Holiday Season — by Wednesday Martin, PH.D., Author, Stepmonster


When you think of holidays, you probably think of family.And that's what makes holidays so tough for stepfamilies. At this time of year, couples in a remarriage with children might be feeling . . . imperfect. For example, they might be polarized -- he misses his kids, while she hopes ...

Pig Purging — by Robin


It's been a pig-filled week at my house.My son is thankfully now over the swine flu.....and I'm doing further purging.For regular readers of this blog, you know that we gutted and rebuilt my entire basement, and I've been spending considerable time both before and now organizing the house. Thankfully, I've ...

White Christmas — by Cara


There is something about having a young child in the home that brings a little extra excitement to a holiday. Especially Christmas. Especially when it snows.We had a blizzard run through the East Coast, where we live, this past weekend, which prompted my son to insist that Santa and his ...

Too Sweet for Our Own Good — by Jamie


I don’t have many vices: I’ve never smoked. I rarely drink. And I certainly don’t take drugs. I also eat very healthfully, and exercise 5-6 days a week. However, I do adore candy. Not chocolate, and nothing fancy—just crappy, commercial, sugar-infused treats! Show me a package of Swedish Fish, and ...

GUEST BLOG POST: Reading as a Relationship-Building Tool — by Cathy Puett Miller, The Literacy Ambassador


In today’s whirlwind of life, it is easy for families to get caught up in “doing stuff”. Our use of cell phones, texting, MP3 players, grocery carts that have a kiddy vehicle as far away from mom or dad as possible, and the DVDs that appear in more and more ...

Letting Go & Slowing Down — by Robin


I've been practicing a lot of letting go of late.The older I get, the more I realize that so much is out of our hands. And, for those of us, like me, who thrive on a certain level of control, it gets tiring to be in relentless pursuit of that.So, ...

Interfaith Traditions — by Cara


This is always an interesting time of year for our family. And a lot of work for me! See, my husband is Jewish, I am not, but we are raising our son to be Jewish. All of this is fine except for one major thing. My son is in love ...

Happy Christmakkah! by Jamie


As a Jew, I’ve always embraced the traditions of Judaism, but not necessarily its religious aspects. For instance, I don’t go to temple, was never Bat Mizvahed, and must admit that most of my Yom Kippur fasts have been solely weight loss-driven. However, I do know (and often use) a ...