Apr 9, 2023  •  In Aerin, Claire, Food, Personal, Travel

Spring Break in New Orleans

We just returned from five glorious days in New Orleans! I have always wanted to visit the city and finally decided to go for it by combining the girls’ spring break and J and my anniversary trip. J and I are too old to participate in the raucous activities that one usually associates with NOLA, […]

Feb 1, 2023  •  In Aerin, Blogging, Claire, Personal

It’s Been a Minute

So it’s been more than five years since I’ve last written here. I debated even keeping this blog up every time I got a bill for web hosting or a received a renewal notice for the domain name. But I had written here since 2006 and there are 2,156 posts on this blog (2,157 now). I […]

Apr 5, 2017  •  In Aerin, Apple, Blogging, Gadgets, Geek, Personal

Power Issues

It’s been three days since I promised to blog regularly again. But have I written anything? No. You probably thought I disappeared again, didn’t you? I actually have a good reason for not writing… My laptop’s battery life has been less than stellar lately, so I took it into the local Apple Store. It’s never […]

Apr 2, 2017  •  In Aerin, Blogging, Claire, Depression, Personal, Relationships

Chirp, Chirp

It’s been a whooping 1 year and 2 months since I last wrote in this blog. …Is anyone still around? During my hiatus, I seriously contemplated shutting down the site. I was feeling uninspired and unmotivated. There were a lot of things going on in my life I did not feel comfortable sharing with the world […]

Aug 13, 2015  •  In Aerin, Claire, Personal

Lazy Days of Summer

Aerin is still at an age where the things she says can sometimes be difficult to understand. “Umma, can yoo be the peejun and I be the pellekrin falkon?” “Huh? Can you say that again?” Luckily, Claire can understand her little sister better than anyone else. “Umma, I know what she said! She said, ‘Can […]

Jul 13, 2015  •  In Aerin, Art/Design, Claire, Personal

5-Minute Pencil Studies

Once upon a time, I considered myself an artist. I attended studio art classes twice weekly. I even considered attending an art college — and in preparation, I devoted the summer vacation before my senior year in high school with 5-hour portfolio classes every weekday. I was accepted to some of the best art schools in the […]

May 12, 2015  •  In Aerin, Motherhood, Parenting, Personal

My 3.5 Year Old Still Isn’t Potty-Trained

I know that she’s ready, both mentally and physically. She meets all the requirements for potty-training, and more. But at 3 years and 6 months old, my Aerin is still in diapers. It is not for lack of trying. Books and videos. Pretty underwear she chose herself. Setting schedules. Going without diapers or underwear. Going full-on […]

Nov 1, 2014  •  In Aerin, Personal

Happy Birthday, Aerin!

Dearest Aerin, Three years ago today, a nice lady placed a red-faced, screaming baby in my arms for the very first time. I looked down to see your face and whispered, “Hi baby, I’m your mommy. You were in my belly for almost ten months. I’m so happy to meet you…” Even at such a young age, you’re already […]

Oct 10, 2014  •  In Aerin, Cute, Funny, Motherhood, Personal, Toys

Doll Play

I never played with dolls as a kid. I have memories of painstakingly cutting out elaborate paper dolls and their clothes and accessories….only to discard them once I finished. I also recall constructing Barbie houses out of cardboard boxes, books, and other items we found around the house, but lost interest once the domiciles were completed. […]

Sep 22, 2014  •  In Aerin, Parenting, Personal

Chalazion

A couple of months ago, we noticed a small lump under Aerin’s left lower eyelid. (You can kinda see it in the first picture from this post about summer camp.) It wasn’t painful and it didn’t seem to bother her, so we took the “wait and see” approach. But over the weeks, the lump grew larger […]