Two hands

Two hands. Sometimes, having two hands feels sufficient. With two hands I can tickle my son until he squeals. With two hands I can give my daughter a relaxing face massage. I can open most jars, clean up most messes, do most TikTok dances. Often, two hands feel like they cannot do enough. They feel futile; laughable; ...

Baby Ever After

"I know words, and I love words, but I simply do not have the words to express my gratitude for this book and for all of the people who made it possible." When I wrote this in the acknowledgments of Baby Ever After, it was my way of trying to convey the deep and profound appreciation I feel in ...

Sometimes, the story just writes itself.

“Mom?” Belle asked, licking the last bit of chocolate icing from the back of her hand. “Mommy? Do you still blog?” We were sitting in the hard, plastic bucket seats in the single terminal at the Cyril E. King Airport in St. Thomas, and she’d just eaten an individual Sarah Lee chocolate cake square, after I veered her ...

Dear babies

Dear babies, First off, I know that you are not babies.  But, I also know that when I feel one of you reach for me in the middle of the night, or smile as you greet me with sleepy, almond-eyes first thing in the morning, or kiss your eyelids as you slumber, it's just like you are my little babies all over again. It ...

Babysitting

originally published on this here site, over four years ago, and I still feel the very same way! Photo circa April, 2014 -- Beau's former signature move. Today, he is still just as crafty, he is just a lot taller.  Or, as I like to call it, “Why everyone who wants to be a parent someday should babysit ...

Being a parent is hard.

"Did you feel the house sway?" I asked, trepidatiously. The people around me all nodded, as we peered outside the sunroom windows, staring at a blowing blanket of white snow. "I know that we all felt the house move when that cyclone passed over us, but our house is over 100 years old, so it must be ...

What I want, now.

Last year, right around this very time, I published a post called, What I Want, which was both a Holiday Wish List and a nod to The Spice Girls. Last November, I wrote, "There are so many meaningful things that I want this holiday season, and none of them can be held in my hands. I want for my family and ...

#honestmotherhood

"I am calling this post #honestmotherhood, brought to you by this thing I try to do called honest motherhood. It is when I share things about my life -- motherhood in particular -- that are honest and raw and occasionally unflattering and sometimes comical. To get off on the right (honest) foot, I have to admit that I ...

It’s Not Just For Moms

A moment of calm. Not pictured, the gathering storm clouds.  In this piece, originally published via Thrive Global, I am honored to welcome a guest author to this site. I am in awe of his strength; I am moved, deeply, by his words; I am married to him. Here, I treat you to: I am a 36 Year ...

lists of five.

Hello, there. Nice to see you again so soon. Look. I am going to be straight up with you. This just happened: That's right. I wrote a post, the program stopped responding, quit and did not save my work. This is now a test for me; a test in brevity. In my original version of this post I went into the whole ...