Real Life

I was used to being away from my 2.5 year old daughter 40+ hours a week. She was accustomed to socializing with kids her own age. Throw us together 24/7 in a new state, uprooted from friends, family and...

When my daughter was 3 years old and had spent about two months at Montessori School of Iowa City, she said to me, “Mom, I think school is the wonderfulest place ever!” I happen to think Montessori School of Iowa...

For fourteen years now, I’ve been “Mom.” Rachel’s mom, Sammi’s mom, Piper’s mom, soccer mom, cookie mom…you know the drill. And since 2011, I’ve had the privilege; well, I’ve PAID for the privilege, of calling myself “dance mom.” You may...

A friend who is a few years ahead of me as a mom told me, “Write everything down now. My kids ask me all the time about when they were younger and at this point, I just make stuff...

For as long as I can remember, I pictured myself as a wife and mother. I never thought my life would be any different than that. Like my own mother, my older sister, and my friends, I just assumed...

I love my husband and the life he has made possible for us.  However, there is a side to our marriage kept hidden–a side almost no one is privy to.  My husband is a lot of things to me: a...

"Is that . . your playroom?" I realized with horror that an epic amount of disarray was visible over my shoulder on FaceTime. "Um, yeah..." I switched locations and changed the subject. "Playroom" was a generous and undeserved title. The room,...

I looked up and realized the little girl in the red shirt I had been watching was not MY little girl. Another toddler with a red shirt, dark hair, and of similar height had taken the place where Gwen...

Raise your hand if you have ever felt like you don’t belong or aren’t good enough. Yup, that’s what I thought. There are a lot of hands up in the air.  I have spent a good portion of my...

I have small children in my house.  I also have big children in my house.  Their ages range from seven months to twelve years of age.  Unfortunately, that means that there are many different toys for different ages in...