The stars finally have aligned. Baby is taking a much-needed nap, the house is empty and the keys on my computer miraculously are working- for now- although I looked up the problem on the Internet and apparently losing the use of the “h”, “g” and “delete” keys is a common HP laptop problem that requires […]

Now that soccer season has (finally, finally) come to a close, my 15-year-old stepdaughter is widening her circle of sporty girl friends to include a new group of teenagers. She has earned the frankly forgettable role of The Teacher in her school’s fall play, joining a cast comprising several other fresh-scrubbed freshmen along with the […]

Each year, my husband and I host a Christmas dessert party. We invite every single person we know and like within a 75-mile radius. Our guests are asked to bring a dessert to share. We provide the drinks and the ambience. And it is one big debauched hootenanny. Because it has all the elements of […]

I’ve never been fired. But I have feared being fired all my life. It began when I was seventeen and got my first job at a dry cleaners. I was one of three teenagers who worked the afternoon shift, after all the actual dry cleaners had gone home. We took in dirty clothes and put […]

For most stay-at-home moms, naptime is the most anticipated time of the day. During this hopefully-fingers-crossed-pray-to-God-at-least-two-hour time period, a mother is free to do whatever she wants, so long as she’s quiet. She can read In Touch magazine, for example, or indulge in some long division. She can knit or blog or revise her treatise […]

I’ve been looking for some motivation to go on a diet. And I find that the best weight-loss catalyst for me generally is provided, unintentionally, by others. In the past, an offhand remark has been known to send me from pushing chubby to pushing anorexic. And while I will never go that far again, I […]

I grew up on the water. We lived in a small town cradled by an immense, man-made lake and, like every other newly-divorced father in town, my dad eventually bought a dilapidated pontoon boat, with a flat, carpeted roof that was perfect for sunbathing and high diving. Generally, the kids would go up top while […]

When I heard her conditions, I couldn’t resist. Available any time, day or night. Will accept room and board in lieu of payment. Promises to assist you in any and every matter. I hired her on the spot. My personal assistant is so very dedicated, she literally has become my shadow. People even say she […]

I think my 14-year-old stepdaughter secretly considers herself to be a suburban Madonna. And forget about Big M’s Sex book, her decidedly un-virginal rolling around on a bed in concert, and her recent weird morph into a Maeve Binchey character. I’m talking about Madge’s uncanny, historically-documented ability to find and wear a trend a full […]

At the tender age of 1 1/2, I can already tell that Baby is gonna be a Talker. She spends all of her waking hours jabbering away, whether she’s “reading” to herself in her room or playing with her toys or having long imaginary conversations on the telephone (but put an actual person on the […]