When our son Nicholas was just beginning to talk and simultaneously expanding his interests in climbing on things and stacking things in tall piles, his father Daniel taught him an important word. This word summed up a major reason to be cautious about climbing that thing or stacking that way, in one word instead of … Continue reading Important Word to Teach a Toddler
It's Lent, which means that a lot of omnivores are keeping meatless Fridays, and some have given up meat for the whole six weeks. Daniel and I used to eat a lot more meat than we do now, and giving up meat for Lent in 2002 was one of the biggest steps in our journey. … Continue reading Two Weeks of Meatless Menus for Late Winter
Sometimes a fact that's been right in front of me all my life nonetheless fails to penetrate my consciousness. This particular fact may be one of which all my readers are already aware. In fact, you may think it's quite unremarkable. But it just now came to my attention, and I am flabbergasted, so I … Continue reading An Eagle Landing on the MOON!!!
I'm an Episcopalian now, but my parents joined a Unitarian Universalist church when I was seven years old, so I was raised in that denomination. There were many things about it that weren't compatible with my spirituality, but I did learn at least one valuable lesson there: Some secular books contain wisdom and moral dilemmas … Continue reading Religious Education with Ramona Quimby
No, no, I don't mean those tawdry movies--I mean the musical theater productions put on by many real-life high schools every spring. My family sees at least one every year, and we always have a great time, for just $3 to $10 per person with all the profits going to a good cause. The amazing … Continue reading It’s high school musical season!
For years now, I've been meaning to write something about how The Continuum Concept by Jean Liedloff relates to our parenting style and a lot of my life experiences. It's a big idea, and I have a lot of scattered notes stashed in a draft post, but so far I haven't even gotten around to … Continue reading 7 Continuum Concept Experiences
It's Works-for-Me Wednesday! It's also Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, so you might want to check out last year's suggestions for Lenten fasts that help the environment or my musings on vanity and seeking help. I've been a member of Costco for some time, and the money we save by buying some things … Continue reading Costco vs. Gordon Food Service
About 14 years ago, when I was new to the church where I'm now a well-established member and new to living with my boyfriend, I walked into church on the first Sunday of Lent with the dry mouth and raw eyes and heavy heart of a person whose Saturday night had involved too many tears … Continue reading Vain is the Deep of Man
This is a common game of babies: Drop an object on the floor. Wait for adult to pick it up and give it back. Drop it again. Repeat until adult begins tearing hair, turning purple, or otherwise doing something entertaining. We didn't play that game when Nicholas was a baby. I had been noticing since … Continue reading What to do when a baby repeatedly drops something
The obvious solution was to have Nicholas work with me on the menu plan. A side benefit is that he's more likely to eat meals he planned. I know that it usually works better to get him involved in what I want to do than to try to keep him occupied somehow so I can do it, yet sometimes assumptions like, "Children don't like to do that sort of thing," creep in and talk me out of even trying!
There is a piece of advice missing from my article on credit card sanity. That's because, at the time I wrote it, I had never allowed myself to be talked into applying for a store's credit card at the cash register. I have now had this experience and learned why it is a Thing Not … Continue reading Things Not To Do: Credit Card Edition
Don't start a To Be Filed pile. I mean, you can make such a pile temporarily, when you're opening the mail and paying bills and such, and then get up and file everything in that pile as soon as you're done--that's a fine strategy. What you must avoid is making a pile of things you … Continue reading Things Not To Do: Home Organizing Edition
