• I am back! Well, I never left, but I have been slacking in the blogging department. It could have something to do with being a working mother of three children ages 7, 9 and 17.  I am not good at family planning. The funny thing about children is they insist on eating everyday. The author of “What to Expect When You Are Expecting” left out that chapter. Children also create messes and laundry. So, to avoid ending up on a TLC Reality Show I spend free time cleaning. However,  I am working on new blog posts and will upload soon for your reading pleasure. Writing about life is cheaper than therapy.  In…

  • Purpose

    I walked away from Justin Bieber’s concert last night with mixed feelings. I purchased tickets one hour before the show at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo. My 6-year-old daughter and 9-year-old son were smiling the second the pop star took the stage. Bieber was not. He had a blank look on his face. In fact, he showed little emotion during the show. I don’t think he cracked a smile through the first four songs. He seemed to put little effort into the dance routines. It didn’t seem intentional. He looked exhausted. He sat on a couch and sang a few songs with an acoustic guitar, but much of the…

  • Prom, Minus The

    We hit two major milestones last weekend in my family. My youngest graduated from elementary school and my oldest went to prom.  Apparently, it is no longer cool to say “the.”  It’s just prom.  I also recently discovered ‘kids these days’ no longer say “cool beans” either.  I got a lot of eye rolls when I talked about elementary school graduation. I’m not sure why people get angry over graduations outside of high school and college. Heaven forbid we praise children and allow them to celebrate their achievements. Why on earth would we want to encourage them to value an education?  It didn’t hurt anyone when my daughter walked across the stage…

  • Sons & Mudders

    I took my 9-year-old son on a date several months ago.  He is the middle child who, I feel, is often lost in the shuffle. My 6-year-old daughter demands constant attention. I love spending time with her.  She always wants to play with Barbie Dolls.  Of course, she is always the cool Barbie with the nicer house and clothes.  I have to follow her lead.  It’s like high school all over again.   I am my 16-year-old son’s chauffeur.  Quite frankly, I would like to keep it that way. I am a control freak. Unfortunately, much like the my hips, children grow whether you want them to or not.  My…

  • When you gotta go…..

    When you gotta go, you gotta go. Jonathan Lowe, a reporter for KPHO, was arrested on Monday afternoon for defecating on a front lawn. The 33-year-old was seen by a neighbor leaning against a wall and relieving himself. Investigators said Lowe admitted going to the bathroom on the lawn. “I know what you want to talk to me about. I’ve been feeling very sick and I’ve been stuck in this van all day,” he said, according to the report. Lowe was charged with public defecation. He faces a fine of $2,500 or six months in jail for the misdemeanor. I feel bad for this reporter. I had a similar incident…

  • It’s all relative?

    Tom Brady has a hectic schedule. I will give you time to get out your tiny violin. Tom Brady’s schedule is so hectic there is a news article about it.  It’s titled, “Tom Brady Details a Day in His Hectic Life.”  I laughed out loud before I even began reading.  The pictures accompanying the article show Giselle and his daughter on a private jet.  (Talk to me after you have waited in a long line at the airport, taken three kids through security and flying coach on a flight where there are no seat assignments) In another shot the family is horseback riding.                …

  • Jackpot!

    When I was a kid this would have been a dream come true.  As an adult it was hell.  My 6-year-old daughter hit the jackpot at a kid’s casino.  We were at a birthday party at a local arcade. It was a smaller version of Chuck E Cheese with the same lousy prizes.  Each game released tickets.  Usually you spend $20 and get 50 cents worth of toys and candy. This time my daughter won 1,000 tickets.  Many of the items “cost” between 25 to 50 tickets each.  Some are even less.  There are a few prizes that cost more. Children aren’t the best decision makers. (After the presidential primaries…

  • We gather here today….

    The day Elvis Presley died is etched in my memory.  I wasn’t old enough to understand the significance of his passing.  I just recall my mother crying as she stood staring out the window of our second floor apartment. Through the years she spoke fondly of “The King.” I was a typical teenager and often responded with an eyeroll.  He was just a musician.   Now, I get it. First there was the untimely death of Michael Jackson and now Prince.  I grew up listening to his music.  We went from whispering in the backseat to shrieking when “1999” came on the car radio.  Prince was playing on a cassette…

  • All I want for Christmas is….

    I am out twenty-five bucks.  I had to hide it under my daughter’s pillow in exchange for a baby tooth.  I know that is a lot.  I made a rookie mistake that cost me.   Being the tooth fairy isn’t easy.  My brain is mush by the time I put my children to bed at night.  Now, I have to low crawl into a room and put cash under a pillow without waking my kid up? I will tackle anyone who makes too much noise after bedtime.   This time I forgot to make the drop before I fell asleep.  I woke up in a panic.  I creeped into my…

  • Memorable vacation

    I was foolish to think this story wouldn’t get out.  My children spilled the beans the minute they saw their grandparents.  My son told the neighbor moments after we pulled in the driveway.  So, here goes…. I planned a wonderful vacation for my children.  We were traveling to sunny Florida for spring break.   I would take a second mortgage out on my house to get tickets to a theme park, swim in the pool and spend a day at the beach.   I knew, traveling with three children, it wouldn’t be perfect.  This wasn’t my first rodeo.  They would bicker and whine on occasion, but we would still have…