Salty like hot dogs (and tears). Sweet like marmalade (and life).
I vaguely remember several months ago Mary telling me about this thing. It was some YouTube people or something. But it was in Schenectady. “Go ahead and get some tickets,” I told her, “and we’ll figure it out when it gets closer.” It got… Continue Reading “Dan and Phil (or is it Phil and Dan?)”
Yesterday I ran into someone at the pool that I hadn’t seen in years — Bridget‘s father. Bridget was on the first team that I coached and I still think back on her fondly. In fact, I had just been telling Laurel about Bridget… Continue Reading “A Privilege”
Parenting tip #243 — Little boys have lots of energy. Make them run. Running boy from Time for Bed, Ned by Pam Zinnemann-Hope, illustrated by Kady MacDonald Denton Man on a bench from The Old Man and the Afternoon Cat by Michaela Muntean, illustrated by Bari… Continue Reading “R is for Running”
“I ran away once and you didn’t even notice,” one of my children told me accusingly. It brought back a flood of memories. I ran away once. Slighted once too often by my siblings, unappreciated by my parents — I knew it was the only… Continue Reading “J is for Journey”
Whenever I go to a pool, my eyes are drawn to the record board. It’s kind of funny, because I haven’t always been a fan of the record board. Helen still holds over 20 age-group records at the pool in Cooperstown — the earliest from when… Continue Reading “The Record Board”
8 & Under swimmers swarm around the pool deck like ants on a sidewalk. Some are aimless, while others seem to know where they are going. Clueless. That’s often the word I use to describe 8-and-unders. Mama can’t hover on the deck. Only those… Continue Reading “The Role of Timers”
She was waiting for me when I came out of the bathroom this morning. No, no — not one of my children, although, as you can imagine that has happened to me more times than I care to remember. Every mother quickly learns that… Continue Reading “The Bathroom”
In the selfishness of my heart, I could picture it — somebody taking care of me. Fixing all my meals. Bringing me the foods I like. Tending to my needs. Like a cruise ship — without the cruise or all the people. Being a mom and… Continue Reading “Taking Care of Me”
I remember when Sam learned that he had arthritis. He had been struggling with shoulder pain and gone for treatment for tendonitis, a common problem for swimmers. He couldn’t lift his arms over his head and the physical therapist commented that he was like… Continue Reading “Pursuing Dreams”
A few weeks ago I babysat my grandson and got to change his diaper. When I first became the mother to a little boy, my mother had warned me to not leave a boy uncovered too long. Beware the fountain of youth. You know. Even… Continue Reading “Yuck”
