One Day In September

Published in The Ferndale Record-Journal, September 9, 2009
It might have been sunny that Saturday morning in September of 1980 but I don’t remember for sure.
All I know is that I wanted to get to the hospital so the baby wouldn’t be born on the bathroom floor, like the last one almost was.
This was my third [...]

Childhood Lost

Oh.. that face I love. It still gets me—every time. All those years locked behind the blue eyes and long lashes. Years I can see and remember. Years that he wishes I would forget. But I can’t. I can’t. And that’s why it hurts.. because I have to let [...]

Wednesday Gravy: Olympic Passion

When my first born was a wee pup, crawling all over me as I watched Nadia Comaneci score perfect 10s in the Montreal Summer Olympics.. the onscreen drama must have seeped over into my psyche which I promptly conveyed to my baby via osmosis. Or something like that.  He’s been an Olympics lover ever since.  [...]

Monday Gravy: AA Comes Home

My first Alcoholics Anonymous meeting was Saturday night.
Beloved daughter was celebrating two years of sobriety and asked Mommy to come to the party.  I was thrilled.
Whoa. It was a room full of tangible love. I’ve never experienced anything quite like it. Hugs all around.. genuine support.. people of varied backgrounds. I saw quickly there was [...]

13 Random Things I Know About Mothers

It’s been awhile.
I’m back to unload on whoever’s out there.. and might want to read what I write.
One of the notes going around Facebook lately is “25 Random Things About Me..”  a feast for the voyeur and tattler in all of us.
How about the same for mothers?  I say “mothers” rather than “parents” because, let’s [...]

Mama Bear

The hackles.. oye, the hackles. Just when I think I’m beyond this, it happens all over again.. and it’s never pleasant. However, tonight, the justification for my pointed and intense conversation with a teen aged son was too much to put aside. It had to be done–and it was.
A friend of his [...]

Mama Love

This week I said goodbye to my son who is going to teach English in Austria for a year. It’s a dream job in a place he loves and in his world, things are pretty great right now.
I am thrilled he gets this opportunity.. I really am. It’s just that… um.. (insert [...]

Razed Expectations

This is a tough one.
Handling five young children and all their activities? A cakewalk. Having a husband who traveled and was busy whenever he was home? A day at the beach. Having a baby at age 39? No sweat. Living through a divorce? Bad, but not as bad as this.
I read once that whenever your [...]

Guitar Hero Goddess

My 14-year-old is a patient soul. His penchant for video games knows no limits.. and occasionally he requests my presence.. if not to watch, then to play. I should know better, but I don’t seem to.
Guitar Hero (both 1 and 2) holds special interest for me so it’s not hard to wrangle ole mom [...]

Here’s the deal…

It’s all about looking back.. well, and forward, too. Oh.. and let’s not forget about what’s happening now.
To me, it’s all relative. I keep asking how my past, present and future lives intersect. Sometimes I come up with answers.. sometimes not.
I call this time in life my ‘gravy days.’ [...]