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Mommy Talk
July 2007
Monday July 2, 2007
Posted by: Scott Anderson at 12:14PM CST on July 2, 2007
Seems like you can't flip through a magazine in a waiting room or
channel surf from your couch without catching a "Mom Makeover." You know the drill: Tired, harried, overworked mom of 1, 2 or 6 kids, has husband/friend/loving sister who is sick of seeing her in sweatpants and a ponytail. So husband/friend/loving sister signs her up for makeover, and VOILA! ... (more) Sharing Racine with our children: New moments, old memories
Posted by: Scott Anderson at 12:13PM CST on July 2, 2007
A reader-submitted Mommy Talk post: This morning I was mulling over how much Racine has changed in the 28 years since my parents moved here. As a child of the '80s (born in the tail end of 1979), I have many fond memories of places that either no longer exist or have drastically changed since I was a child that I want to share with my daughter. The most magical place in Racine had to be the Golden Rondelle. The name just sounds like something out of a fairy tale. We only ever got to walk up to the theater and then down out the doors, but I was sure there were some dwarfs or pixies that they were keeping behind some of the other doors! ... (more) Letting go, one ride at a time
Posted by: Scott Anderson at 12:11PM CST on July 2, 2007
It starts at a carnival, somewhere between age 2 and 3. You’re standing
on the merry-go-round between a unicorn and a giant kitty, your arm
around her little waist as she clutches the carousel pole. Your feet
are planted so you don’t lose your balance as you spin and spin and
spin. “There’s Daddy!” you shout through your dizziness. And you both
wave. By the fourth or fifth time ’round, she yells to you, “Don’t hold
me, Mommy!” And you have to let go. Then she wants to ride the little boats all by herself, so you buckle her in and walk away. And you stand outside the gate, watching her go round and round and round. You’re smiling and waving, all the time willing her to stay seated: Don’t climb out, don’t climb out, don’t climb out. ... (more) "I will NEVER use bribery," and other pre-parenthood pledges
Posted by: Scott Anderson at 12:10PM CST on July 2, 2007
A reader-submitted Mommy Talk post: I remember being a young single woman with no children. I would get annoyed with the crying kids in the stores. I would get furious with the screaming ones. I would never understand why the parents didn’t seem to even hear their children as their piercing screams stabbed through my eardrums. Or see them bolt down the aisle like the Road Runner for that matter. I remember before having children I would say things like, “I will never do that when I am a mom.” Or “My child will never…” just fill in the blank. I didn’t say these things often, as I was aware of my own obvious ignorance. I mean, you really don’t know until you are a parent — right? Well, for the most part. I was lucky and helped raise my stepdaughter since she was 14 months old. So I did have some experience by the time my daughter was born. But I had no idea what mothering an infant would be like. There are some promises I made to myself that I have completely abandoned. And then there are some things in which I have been unwavering. What have I relinquished? here. ... (more) Extending the Family
Posted by: Scott Anderson at 12:08PM CST on July 2, 2007
I was a lucky kid. I knew five of my great-grandparents. I have
wonderful memories of things I did with all of them – walking on the
beach in Massachusetts with Nana and Grandpa, playing in the garden at
Granddad and Great-Grandma Jones’ place, visiting my great-grandma
Dudick when I was 5. I also knew all four of my grandparents. My mom’s parents lived on the east coast. We usually saw them a few times a year, either when they would take a trip to Wisconsin to see us, or when we would pile in the car and drive east for a summer visit. My dad’s parents lived in Illinois, only 30 minutes from where I grew up. We saw them at least once a month when I was young, and after my grandma died, we had dinner with Grandpa every Sunday night. ... (more) "I don't want to grow!"
Posted by: Scott Anderson at 12:07PM CST on July 2, 2007
I have long felt that my younger daughter, Isabel, was sent to me by
some magical gods of wisdom with the sole purpose of teaching me a
thing or two about life. My older daughter, 5, may have had this mission originally, but she arrived in such a noisy, miserable mood that our first few months together were tarnished by her colic and my panic. She’s sensitive, stubborn and so, so smart. And I can already tell you that our future relationship will be difficult, that our moods will frequently clash, and that we’re so much alike, we will never make it through her teenage years without therapy — for me, at least. Where my older daughter is a force to be reckoned with, my younger daughter is a force that grounds me. Most of the time, she is pure joy. She wakes up smiling and dances through her days. When she’s mad about something, I know exactly what has upset her and how to fix it. She says stuff so simply and observes so completely. And she’s so dang wise — in this simple, all-knowing, little guru way. You know those people who can say in one sentence what most of us can’t say in an entire conversation? That’s my Isabel. And she just turned 3 in March. Her latest decision: No more milk. "I don’t want to grow.” ... (more) Baby Withdrawal
Posted by: Scott Anderson at 12:05PM CST on July 2, 2007
A reader-submitted Mommy Talk post: It seems as though lately everyone I know is having a baby, or has a baby. My 3-year-old is hardly a baby now. She puts her hands on her hips, taps her toe, then throws her hands in the air and lets out an “ugh” when she’s upset about something. She rolls her eyes and lets out a HUGE sigh if I repeat myself because she “HEARD (me) the FIRST time” — even though she didn’t do it the first time, but that was because she was “busy finishing (this), Mom, and (she’ll) get right on it when (she’s) done!”. ... (more) |
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