Surviving Summer Sport Spectators: Smoking, Screaming and Storytelling
It’s funny how we conveniently forget some details of the past. On a recent “relax-cation” up north to our camp in the Hiawatha National Forest - where the trees interfere with cell reception and we actually have face-to-face family conversations -- I shared a tale from my own childhood. My dad sat next to me and filled in the details I forgot. As it turns out, I was just as surprised to hear these particulars as the kids. I recalled a vivid memory of my mom tensely smoking
College Campus Tours Conjure Concern: Will I Still get that Call?
Last week I had an awesome trip with Number 3 . We visited some universities and went on the first of several college tours to see where he will want to go after his senior year. He and I have enjoyed our alone time, and over the years found ways to have it just be the two of us to run errands or, dinner together while the rest of the family was away. We are very compatible travel partners. We don’t have to talk a lot. We both enjoy getting caught up in our own music or,
Dad Night Nurse Gets Time Off, but Mom Not Sure Why?
As a ZagZig Parent, I thought I had trained the kids early on that for midnight tummy aches and ailments they went to dad. While I realize this breaks all the stereotypes and societal expectations, there are a few reasons why this became part of dad’s duty as the stay-at-home parent. Mike: Let me be clear how this actually works. She hears the kids retching or moaning in the bed well before I do, but I get the nudge. She wakes me from a deep sleep and says kid Number X need
Parenting Teens: Number 4 and Still Feel Like a Novice
After going through an experience for the fourth time, I would have thought we had this thing figured out, or atleast there would be no surprises. Boy, was I mistaken, and this miscalculation threw us for a loop that lingers today. After two decades of parenting four children, we have learned a thing or two. We are not experts, but can draw from a number of experiences – good and bad – to share with others, as we have benefited from those who have shared stories with us. At t
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