PregnancyFamilyEducation Blogs
March 31, 2009
The incredible (liable) egg
Easter in only two weeks away, and I've been thinking a lot about eggs. I hadn't been thinking about them much before Friday, but while I was waiting in the walk-up line at L.'s school I overheard two of the moms from third grade talking about an upcoming art project, and wondering how they could incorporate a spring theme using eggs, without making it an Easter one (celebrating specific holidays is, of course, taboo in the public school system). L.'s school, alas, doesn't have a dedicated art room, or a dedicated art teacher, so art is always run by parents. [more]
March 30, 2009
Kite
Do you see that?
There in that blue, blue sky--that teeny, tiny thing? Of course you can't see it. That's L.'s kite. There's a reason you can't really see it. This isn't, as L. keeps reminding me, a happy tale.
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March 27, 2009
Bookworm
Sometimes I get bogged down by the realization that this past school year for L. feels like such a wash. Really, a big wash. I suppose not every year in a child's school life can be profitable or good, or rewarding (or all three), even for parents who homeschool--sometimes you just get an "off" year. I was talking not long ago with a homeschooling mom and she told me the first 8 months of their foray into it were pretty rough. [more]
March 26, 2009
The dream
Yesterday I was standing in the hallway at work, fumbling as usual for the keys to my office and a young woman rounded the corner, a chubby-cheeked baby in her arms. I recognized her immediately as one of the students I taught about a year ago--one of the students from this class. She'd been pregnant then--clearly with the little guy she held in her arms.
"Student S.!" I said in surprise. "So good to see you!" [more]
March 25, 2009
Roots
When I picked T. up from Scott on Monday afternoon the first words out of his mouth were that they had cut the tree down. I didn't know what he was talking about.
"What tree?" I asked, confused.
"The tree on the playground at her school," he said. [more]
- Tags: Unbearable Lightness, School Daze, Preschoolers, Parenting, Moms, Dads, Children
March 24, 2009
Potato gnocchi redemption
A few weeks ago I was in our local Trader Joe's and I saw a display of potato gnocchi. I have to say I gave an involuntary shudder at the sight. You see, years ago, when Scott and I were living in Silver Spring, Maryland, I bought some packaged potato gnocchi at the Safeway and cooked them for a special meal for the two of us. What can I say? They made us gag. They were heavy, like wads of dimpled raw dough, and they tasted pasty, like the white rubber cement we used in elementary school.
Blech. [more]
March 23, 2009
Spring fling
It doesn't seem fair somehow that the first official day of spring should have come on the last official day of my Spring Break. I spent most of Friday in a funk, mourning all the things that I wanted to get done over break (sleep was on the list, and even THAT didn't get done). But it's hard to stay droopy for long when you're given the gift of a spectacular spring weekend; when you stand outside on the front porch to breathe in a little crisp fresh air on a Saturday morning, sip your hot coffee, and discover your favorite azalea plant peppered in little tight pink buds. [more]
March 20, 2009
Flying lessons
Now that we're back, my two feet safely on the ground, I have a confession to make: I'm terrified of flying. I know we all have anxieties about flying, but I'm afraid in that stomach-churning, I-can't-breathe, heart-pounding, claustrophobic, walls-closing-in way that only people who are really afraid of flying can understand. I've managed to stay grounded for almost three years, thanks to Amtrak, but also thanks to rail repair and limited train availability I had to take the plunge and find three internet fares for the return home on Wednesday. [more]
March 18, 2009
Reading history
Whenever we travel anywhere I always like to seek out relevant books in advance for my kids to read—it’s the teacher in me. Or the book-lover in me, who knows. I do know that when you read about a place in the context of a book or picture book and then visit the place, it becomes all that more real to you. For years and years I've wanted to visit Maine because of my love for the Robert McCloskey books. [more]
March 17, 2009
Directionally challenged
I’m terrible with directions, and I can’t read maps. I tend to navigate by landmarks, and my sense of direction can be completely thrown by something as simple as rain, or fog, or descending dusk. One time, when I was in college, I got so lost trying to come home that I exited desperately off the highway, found myself I-don’t-know-where, and called my dad for help. He had to get on the phone with the gas station attendant in order to find out where I was—I was THAT clueless. [more]
