Burn all the toys

I don’t like stuff. Also, I’m a mom. Continue reading →

To my toddler, who won’t remember any of this

Your papa and I comprise your whole world. Yet, if we were to disappear, you wouldn’t, within a year or so, even remember us. Continue reading →

Making cupcakes with my kids in 8 steps

A throw-back to the period of relative calm between when our infant son’s colic stage ended and his walking/climbing stage really took off. Back when I baked. Continue reading →

The blessing of living near Brussels now

It’s more real than 9/11, a friend said, and that it is when the screen you idly log onto reads: L. has marked herself safe in the Brussels Explosions. T. has marked himself safe in the Brussels Explosions. P. has marked himself safe. M., A., S…. safe, safe, safe… and the names keep coming. “There … Continue reading →

Is THIS Democratic Socialism? Can we get some of this?

As my husband’s Ph.D. work and our last year in Belgium both wind down, people ask if I’m excited to go home to the U.S. And while my stomach flutters when I think of it, “excitement” might not be the most precise word. Excitement I can locate for some aspects, mostly seeing family and friends … Continue reading →

My Four Stages of Culture Shock

As if becoming parents wasn’t going to be enough of a culture shock, we up and moved to Belgium while awaiting our first child. Although ostensibly for my husband’s Ph.D. studies,in retrospect, this seemed mainly my idea. At least, I was sure excited about it. Based on some university study-abroad experiences, I knew I loved … Continue reading →

Honey, I’m (still) HOME!

I got confused before Christmas when working-mom friends talked about how they were looking forward to “the break”. You know, from work. For CHRISTMAS. I would just cock my head and blink at them. The “break”? You mean, when school and daycare don’t accept children, and we are meanwhile charged with directing (and largely performing) … Continue reading →