I became a parent by straightening a bathroom towel
Does my stepdaughter ever even notice that the towel gets magically straightened? I have no idea, but the chances of her thanking me for it are slim, and my mother was right. It’s not the point. Is it important that the towel be straightened? Well, it certainly increases the chances that she actually gets a dry towel next time, but who knows if she even notices whether or not her towel is dry? It makes me feel better about the state of the bathroom and in the grand scheme of parenting, that is not something to be taken lightly.
A diaphragm powered by an ocean wave: how singing through labor made me epic
I’ve always hoped that I would one day discover that I am an epic warrior with hidden powers. If it was ever up to me to save the world, I know I’d be righteous, clever, brave and able to endure suffering and immense challenges so that Good can triumph. Thing is, my life has been sadly lacking wise old wizards with world-saving quests, so I’ve rarely had a chance to put my epic-ness to the test. Even before I got pregnant, I thought to myself: “I bet I can make it through without an epidural. Yeah, I’m definitely going to try that.”
SPOILERS: there’s an awesome Doctor Who-themed family session headed your way
I realize that if you’re not a fan of Doctor Who then this post doesn’t mean much to you, which is why I made the subject line as blatantly obvious as I could — feel free to skip on over it. But FYI Whovians in the house: we have a treat for you today!
My husband and I are divorcing and sharing custody of the kids, fruiting plants, and the chickens
So on our division of assets list when we thought we were nearly done last night, he asked me if we should list the plants. I said, “Just list fruiting plants and chickens — joint custody.” He looked at me for a moment. We just argued over folding chairs and now I say this? He burst out laughing, and so did his family when we told them.
Book you might wanna read: Four Homeless Millionaires
In 2009 my wife and I sold our house in Winnipeg, Manitoba so we could spend a year traveling around the world with our kids. When we returned to Canada, we relocated to Vancouver Island and moved into a community house with another family and a few university students. (12 in total) We’re currently in our third year.
My brother-in-law is having a baby: how do I nominate myself for Offbeat Auntie of the Year?
My husband’s brother and his wife are having a baby! We are very excited as kids are great and we haven’t had any in the family for about, oh, 15 years now. Unfortunately we’re not super close, but we want to be — how do I initiate becoming an awesome offbeat auntie?
My partner and I stopped sharing a bed after having kids: why I love sleeping alone
Honestly, bed-sharing with my snoring, hard-to-wake husband might inspire more resentment between us, more sleep-deprived fantasies of pillow smothering. I don’t think sharing a bed would save a failing marriage, nor do I think separate beds would destroy a good one. But what do I know? I’ve only been married for 9 years.
How do I support a friend who says she wishes she didn’t have kids?
While the topics we discuss are different now than before kids, most of the time I think we’re getting along alright. Occasionally one of the new parents will make comments about wishing they were childless again, and I don’t know how to respond to these comments. I get blowing off some steam, but at what point is it more than just frustration and something I should be concerned with?