2014 | PulseonParenting

“Family” Vacations

May 06 2014

I need some feedback. And a serious dose of reality. Because I think when it comes to planning a trip that includes our kids, my husband and I are misguided. I would love to hear from you, my readers, your opinions on traveling with kids and how to work the tough yet inevitable situations where one of the children is super-unhappy. Or if all of them are double super-unhappy. Because we just returned from a weekend away in Moab, Utah. Hearing about the spectacular beauty of Arches National Park and the less-heard-of Dead Horse Canyon and that kids love the…

The Book Selection for May 2014

May 01 2014

I am looking forward to reading this next book. Based on reviews I’ve read and the cover flap description, Masterminds and Wingmen by Roselind Wiseman sounds like the male counterpart to her previous book about “Girl World,” Queen Bees and Wannabes. We all hear “boys will be boys!” and “boys are easier (to raise) than girls”. Hmmm. I wonder what Ms. Wiseman thinks about these ubiquitous phrases?

Apr 29 2014

It takes at least a day to plan. Sometimes a list is made. Then there is the packing. Lastly the time comes to pop open the trunk of the “family bus” and load ‘er up. No, this event is not vacation or even a long weekend away with the “fam.” It is either “Terrific Tuesday” or “Freaky Thursday.” These two days are the busiest of the week for our household. And both require some mostly-routine planning. But every so often, just to shake things up a bit, another event gets scheduled or rescheduled, and I start to think that minimizing…

Moms Don’t Make Martinis

Apr 24 2014

Allow me to clarify: moms don’t make martinis (at least none that I know of) but they sure do need one every once in awhile. Dads do, too, but nowadays they make their own. Moms don’t wear pearls and smart little aprons to greet their partners at the door after a long day’s work (and I refer to the work done by both partners, not just the primary breadwinner), as June Cleaver did on the iconic Leave it to Beaver tv show in the late 1950’s. But admittedly, I have found myself wishing I could channel some of that which Barbara Billingsley…

Consistency Out The Window

Apr 22 2014

We ask our kids to use “inside voices” then we holler at them to clean their rooms or get ready for school. We instruct our kids to not write on the walls and then find pen marks in our child’s bedroom marking how tall their stuffed animals are. So endearing is that discovery, we let it go. We warn our kids about not talking to strangers but we ourselves greet new faces on the street with a friendly “hello.” We remind our kids to stay seated while eating but we are up and down several times during a meal (to…

Not So “Ah-mazing.” Duh, Mom.

Apr 17 2014

(Note: The ending of this month’s book is revealed, so don’t read the final paragraph of this post if you want to be surprised!) I should have known. Call it a gut feeling, having “been there” as a teenage girl and remembering the type of books I read during those years (about mean girls you love to hate) but I really, really wanted to be wrong about The Clique Summer Collection: Massie by Lisi Harrison. This novel is an installment in “The #1 New York Times Bestselling Series.” I wanted there to be a profound, socially-responsible message to tween- and teen-age girls, grounded…

The Book Selection for April…Will it be “Ah-mazing?”

Apr 08 2014

April’s addition to “Twelve Books in 2014” fell into my lap…straight out of my daughter’s backpack. The timing couldn’t have been better, arriving on the heels of March’s book, Queen Bees and Wannabes by Rosalind Wiseman. When I saw the sassy-appearing teen girl on the cover of The Clique Summer Collection: Massie by Lisi Harrison, my eyebrows went up. When I read the back cover, with its references to “The Pretty Committee” and “The Clique…the only thing harder than getting in is staying in.” I thought how Ms. Wiseman would eat Ms. Harrison (and her book) for breakfast. However, upon further inspection of…

The Brandishing of Butt Bows…a Foray into Girl World

Apr 03 2014

If your only tool is a hammer, everything becomes a nail. So my husband would say. I am finishing Roselind Wiseman’s book Queen Bees and Wannabes (hammer) and finding myself looking critically at the dynamics of “Girl World”, especially that sector involving my first grade daughter. In my last post, “Should Schools Require Uniforms?” I mentioned my daughter dressed up for school in order to play “princess” (nail) at recess. [Or should I say “Queen,” as my daughter was apparently anointed in her and her friends modern day game of royal life. Mentally hearing “Bee” after “Queen” (another nail) in my daughter’s…

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