Mom With A Pen » Kids (5 & Older)

Putting On Kindness

Maniacal Mommy — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 22:24:14 +0000

I would like to welcome Alicia as my guest today. I have been a fan of hers for years, way back to when MySpace was popular (ha ha!). I especially loved this piece on kindness. Too often the people I live with are wearing their “grumpy pants” rather than their “kindness boots.” It reminded me that setting a good example of treating others the way I want to be treated, well, it is a constant lesson. Demonstrating patience and kindness for those we cherish most is important, but it easily falls to the wayside with sibling rivalry and the antics of the witching hour. I am seldom the picture of patience or kindness when the boys decide that quiet reading before bedtime means “run through the house screaming and winding the toddler up”.

Crossing the Line

Mom With A Pen — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 04:19:34 +0000

There’s a line that every woman crosses at one point or another. And, not in the right way. Is there a right way to cross a line? Only if you’re running a marathon. And, even then, you shouldn’t be scowling and giving people dirty looks. Just sayin’.

Little Readers

Maniacal Mommy — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 17:04:47 +0000

JD has really taken a shine to reading lately. Not just paging through his board books, but actually bringing me books and telling me “wead!” True to his age, he really enjoys the same book over and over and over. I have read “Where Is Baby’s Pumpkin?” so many times in the past two days it has gone from cute to “good grief, let me dig out our old flap books for a change of pace”.

Eventful Sporting

Maniacal Mommy — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 00:53:14 +0000

I really do not like to leave the house in the evening, particularly when it is just the kids and me. Even if we managed to have a dinner where everything went rather well, and only a small portion of food landed on the floor, that in no way means venturing out into the world is a good idea.

The Hungry Game

Maniacal Mommy — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 20:32:47 +0000

There should be a support group for mothers of picky eaters. Heck, maybe there is. They probably meet at a fast food joint with a play area and bemoan how their child will eat that processed dreck and turn up their nose at food that actually contains something besides fat and sodium. I just avoid those play areas because it means my kids will ooze green mucus for six weeks straight.

Let’s Play Poor

B-Sting — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 03:44:49 +0000

HRH is an aspiring movie director, these days. My dad (aka Bapa the Sucker) bought her a Hello Kitty video camera. She’s been shooting movies for weeks, now. Mostly of Moose the Dog… or of herself. Today, she killed a few hours with a couple of her friends. The first part of her day was spent at their house and entailed shooting a few scenes from her latest blockbuster, “My Dog is a Vampire”. I haven’t seen the final cut, but I understand there was lots of screaming.

Errors Large and Small: Shopping

Maniacal Mommy — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 23:12:19 +0000

Sometimes we make mistakes as parents. It happens. We get tired, frustrated, suffer from poor judgement or sleep loss, or just get plain delusional. Sometimes circumstances just work against us.

Which is how I ended up taking three kids grocery shopping. It doesn’t happen that often. Between school and the mixed blessing of my husband’s odd ball work schedule, I can usually find a way to gather the food without their presence. But at least once during the summer, I find myself needing to shop when he is gone, and I haul my brood with me.

It’s Green!

Maniacal Mommy — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 23:49:10 +0000

The school system sent home an end of the year present to my family: green funk. My kids have been alternating oozing green funk out of various facial orifices. It wasn’t quite the blueberry streusel muffins and homemade jam I gave them, but hey. I would have been happy enough with the quality education my kids got!

Boredom, Crafts, and Borderline Insanity

Maniacal Mommy — Fri, 27 May 2011 22:18:42 +0000

Summer vacation has arrived. Sadly, summer weather has not. The squabbling had reached that level where I was going to either lose my mind, or put their snow suits on them in May and send them outside to play in the gale force northerly wind.

Give Till It Hurts

B-Sting — Tue, 24 May 2011 03:37:43 +0000

I am a gift card-girl. I like gift cards. I give gift cards. I don’t care if you’re a newborn baby or celebrating your 100^th birthday. Gift cards for everyone! I don’t know what you already own. I don’t know if your tastes have changed. Honestly, if I start shopping for you… I really just end up shopping for myself. So here’s a $25 gift card. Go knock yourself out.