I was talking to our neighbor/lawn maintenance guy this morning about whether or not our flowers need more water when Caveman came outside in his socks with his toothbrush and something white in his hair.  I assumed it was toothpaste.  About 3 seconds later Princess arrived on the scene (also in her socks—I suspect this is cosmic payback for the 12 billion times my mother told me not to go outside in my socks) and revealed that it was not (...Read More)

My kids have a bad case of PGSD:  Post-Grandparent Spoiled Disorder.  For those of you unfamiliar with PGSD, it is characterized by a dramatic increase in whining, pouting, and tantrums, a loss of ability to use words like “please” and “thank you” and ask nicely, and the expectation that every whim will be entertained instantly. If your children are suffering from PGSD, you may notice that they express unusual dietary requests, like fruit snacks for breakfast or popcorn for dinner.  (...Read More)

I knew when we decided to have a second child that we’d one day deal with sibling rivalry. I knew the day would come when I’d have to be sure to cut things EXACTLY in half and make sure each child got an even number of marshmallows in their hot cocoa. I just didn’t expect that day to come so soon. This morning Princess and Caveman got in a fight over who could sit beside me on the sofa. Flattering (...Read More)

This year, Princess is taking a dance class through an actual dance studio for the first time. In the past, all of her classes have been through Parks and Rec, and they ended the session with a casual performance for parents. Once she showed a sustained interest, though, I thought it was time to move on to a real dance studio. I was hoping to expose her to the arts, develop her sense of rhythm and movement, and entertain her (...Read More)