As I mentioned yesterday, there are things I love and things I don’t in children’s books. Here are a few of these: Don’t like: Counting books (usually too didactic & repetitive) Books that try to teach (colours, numbers, pretty much anything), particularly the authorless “educational” ones like Baby Einstein … shudder Sarcasm and adult humour …
Those of you who are really lovely loyal friends may have noticed that I’ve been blogging every day so far in 2014. That’s because I am determined to write every day, and blogging is a great way to do that. However, those of you who are so very nice may also have noticed that some …
(with thanks to Annie for the idea). As I am in full make-over mode, today I set out to follow through on the shopping list I created yesterday. You know how sometimes, you make a list of things you need and you never really buy them because you can’t figure out exactly what to buy, …
I’m in the middle of a mid-winter, life-is-changing, condo-is-a-mess, I’ve-been-unemployed-for-over-6-months revitalization binge. One thing that absolutely must happen as part of this process is a personal makeover. Fear not: this does not mean that I will start wearing make-up! Or even heels. However, it’s time for a clean-out, clean-up and freshen-up. For the past week, …
I recently happened on a long document (185 pp.) consisting of emails I wrote when I was in grad school in Virginia. It’s quite a trip going back and remembering the people, experiences and emotions of my youth. Some reflections as I look back on late 20s/ early 30s: in other ways I’m relieved to …
Today we celebrated my dad’s birthday (yay dad!) with a dinner at my parents’ home. We made an attempt to go around the table and share what our expectations or hopes were for the year. We talked about prosperity and environmental destruction, flying cars and change. Our daughter announced that the year is going to …
It doesn’t happen often, but once in a while, things just go right. I had a meeting today in someone’s home and decided to bring our girl. It was my first attempt to work with her there (and no back-up!). I knew things could get kind of wild. She was dressed in her ballet outfit …
I made two new year’s resolutions. The first: to write. I know that I need to flesh these out a bit, so here I go with writing: I remember when I was younger – probably a teenager – and an adult I knew asked me if, given all the reading I did, I wanted to …
This year, I read a lot and loved it. Reading gave me insights into health, finances, parenting and children’s education. It exposed me to different ways of looking at the world. It expanded my empathy and understanding of what life might be like for those who grew up in different circumstances than I did. And …
I wanted to write about being a stay at home mom, but today I don’t think I can. Why? Because I’m not sure if I am one. The summer months, while I was on salary continuance, I was supposed to be looking for work and developing business ideas. Because I’m obsessive like that (to do …