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Let’s Judge a Little Less*
I just read an article about a coyote attack at a park in a city not far from me. It was the second incident in under a week–two different parks, but in both instances a child had been bitten. The headline and story were upsetting, but the comments below it were what truly bothered me. “These children need to be taught better.’ “Where were the parents?” “What kind of parent would allow a child to approach a coyote / wild animal? I would NEVER do that.” “So sad when parents don’t watch their kids at the park.” “I bet the mom was on her phone. I see it every day.”…
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Today I had a little reminder to check my privilege.
After seeing a comment and message about some of the options I had on my “no screens activity list”, I wanted to explain something. Well, a couple of things, actually. The options on that list weren’t meant to be me showing off. My kids came up with 90% of what was there. It’s a big list, and we are definitely privileged to have so many options available to us. But here’s the thing: we have so many options for two big reasons. First, I live very frugally. I save, shop sales, thrift shop and watch community sites where people near me are passing things on for a reasonable price. Second,…
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Operation “Mean Mom”
Operation “Mean Mom” starts today. I’ve noticed that my kids have been gravitating more and more to their screens. After we had the baby we definitely relaxed our rules about their Nintendo or iPad time, but lately I’ve noticed it’s ALL they want to do. They’re great when they are outside with their friends, but as soon as they come in or their friends aren’t available, it’s like they’ve forgotten how to entertain themselves without a screen in their hand. It came to a head on Saturday when they asked about 1937282 times if it was time to play Nintendo yet… and moped around every time I said no. So,…
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I am so grateful for vaccines.
Ontario is finally opening back up again, and I was able to see my family. I haven’t seen most of my siblings since December of 2019. I haven’t seen my sister K since my Aunt Della’s funeral, which was November 9th, 2019. That’s 600 days. Six. Hundred. Days. I finally saw them this week. I cried when I saw L and she was able to meet and hold W. I got to meet my beautiful new niece and see my brother J. I got to have an outdoor visit with my brother D and my sister (in law) T twice. K and I just screamed and hugged for a long…
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Real is Better than Perfect*
This was a good reminder for me. I have moles. And scars. And cellulite. And stretch marks. Ohhhh the stretch marks. I have a stomach that is still soft and wiggly from birth. I still have a lot of “baby weight” to lose. …or do I? My body is real. It’s not perfect, and it probably never will be. …but it’s done some pretty incredible things. I have five babies worth of stretch marks across my body. I can choose to see them as imperfections and feel ashamed of marks they have made on my body… or I can choose differently. I can choose to see them as a mosaic,…
