“Lean in” (usually appearing as #leanin, and only sometimes ironically) has become a kind of shorthand among my female friends, an expression of encouragement, pride, or solidarity that can range in meaning from a collective, been-there groan at some workplace unfairness or a you-got-this-you-go-girl rallying cry. It started a little over a year ago, when I […]
Parents Need to Eat Too, by Debbie Koenig
October 26, 2012 by
When I was preparing for our first baby, I froze a couple of meals, stocked up the pantry, and crossed that item off the list. There — I was ready, right? I had no idea what I was in for — the meals prepared and eaten one-handed, the desire for the fastest, easiest meal possible, […]
Little farm in the city
August 1, 2012 by
How many times did you read the Little House on the Prairie series? Ten, twenty? I don’t remember my total times through the nine books, but so many scenes are perfectly vivid in my head: Ma making cheese, Jack turning around three times in his bed and then dying, finding baby pickles and saltines in […]
My first library card
July 13, 2012 by
You are forgiven if you think the title refers to my four-year-old son’s first library card, which he indeed got Tuesday at the Merriam Park Branch Library in Saint Paul, and of which he is extremely proud (see self-satisfied smile, above). He signed his card himself (so cute it hurts a little) and showed it […]
Summer Reading List 2012
June 20, 2012 by
It’s summertime and the living is easy . . . or so they say. Our family is actually very busy with camps, lessons, training, traveling, and oh, that seasonal business we own (more on that later). Nonetheless, I can’t help but make a summer reading list, in the same way I want to buy school […]
A book that makes you feel good about parenting
May 23, 2012 by
How Eskimos Keep Their Babies Warm: And Other Adventures in Parenting (from Argentina to Tanzania and everywhere in between) by Mei-Ling Hopgood This book is my new favorite book for expectant or new parents, because it makes you feel awesome about yourself as a parent. Reading about a dozen different cultures and how they approach […]
I can relate: Tiger Mothers and Les Bebes
April 17, 2012 by
When I go on vacation I typically read one or more books per day. I ignore my family and stay up all night and just consume them — some literature, some Oprah picks, some beach fluff — but always all fiction. It’s really out of hand. So this year I decided to actually interact with […]
Doing it all: Glass Ceilings & 100-Hour Couples book review
February 11, 2012 by
Like most women my age (early 30s), I was raised with the belief I could do anything. I did well in school, did well in college, graduated and got a job, and climbed the ladder to upper-middle management (picking up a graduate degree on the way). Then I paused before my fertile years washed away […]