Photos of a sunshine-filled pregnant-belly-decorating paintfest
So, let’s do the following: get pregnant? Check. Grow the baby? Check. Go out in a field armed with paint and fun and ready to paint each all over? DOUBLE TRIPLE QUADRUPLE CHECK.
How can I politely tell people that my reproductive goals are none of their business?
As my husband and I decided that this pack of birth control pills would be the last (for a while), I found myself confronted with an awkward situation. Random people (co-workers, clients, etc.) asking me in one form or another if I was thinking about having a baby yet.
The importance of discussing WHY you’re homeschooling your kids with them
Yesterday while I was tending to a plumbing problem my kids were doing their homeschooling. My older son was in my line of sight quietly reading in his bedroom. He looked up from Lord of the Flies to ask me when I read the book (he knew from a prior conversation that I’d read it). I said it was about three years ago, or maybe four. He asked why I didn’t read it in school. I called my eleven-year-old upstairs and said I had something to explain they should know. My kids have never been to school and they don’t really know how it all works, ranging from the daily goings on of the students and the big picture issues.
How grown-ups make new friends: handing out coupons
Making friends as adults is WEIRD. I actually had a conversation with Megan about it a few weeks back.
What can we call ourselves besides aunt and uncle?
What do you call yourself if you are an “Aunt” or an “Uncle,” or what do you call your relatives who fit this role, but not this name?
How you can hack a TV console and make a play kitchen
Back in the very recent past, TVs were big bulky things that played cassettes (also very bulky) via large awkward contraptions. This whole set-up took up a lot of space, and consoles like these were pretty ubiquitous. Chances are, you know someone who one that’s not being used — or you could cruise a thrift store and find plenty. In fact, I scored this one for $18 at a local shop.
They might just be one of the hottest families in the universe
I was going through the photos in the Flickr pool for next week’s Montage when BOOM: my eyes landed on this delightful little mini-feast of beauty and love. There are so many things to discuss: how the mom is so lively and has amazing dreads, how the three kidlets are so stylin’ I can’t handle it, and how the dad definitely has a mild Johnny Depp thing going on.
Embracing toddlerhood in all of its bedazzled, pop-star-inspired incarnations
My foster son Noah dances like a bedazzled, hormone-charged pop star. His foray into mock super-stardom is very likely the result of being babysat all summer along with his hyper-girlie cousin who is six years old going on 16, and his four-year-old sister who emulates everything said older cousin does. Noah is regularly subjected to marathon sessions of trying to nail down the choreography in Miley Cyrus’s “Hoedown Throwdown” and other tween delights.