Humor | PulseonParenting

8 (non-political) Signs to Make You Smile

Nov 05 2020

This has been a tough week for everyone. And we know that after the election results are finally in, waiting in the wings for its (third now?) encore is COVID. And who knows for sure what else. So let’s escape for a few minutes and have a chuckle. Nothing to outright make you pee a little but a little bit of something to turn those frowns upside down. Smiling actually does wonders for mental state. So I’ve curated several signs, etc., over the last few years that our family has seen during past travels, and put them together here for…

Oct 08 2020

“I don’t WANT someone to marry me!!!” That was the climactic point in a tearful exchange with my 14-year-old daughter. Shamefully, I smiled a little to myself despite her distress, because my husband and I often joke to each other how some poor (but INCREDIBLY lucky) shmuck will get to marry our headstrong, determined daughter. He better be ready for space travel because, as our older son says, “D is gonna colonize the moon.” This is a girl who could out run her older brothers through the back acre behind her grandparents house, who once wore a set of laboratory…

May 21 2020

Let’s change the subject. COVID-19 is still very much a part of our lives, but there comes a time when some lighter fare is just what we need, something a bit more digestible. So let’s talk food obsessions. We’re cooking at home and baking now more than ever, so food is a distraction and even the main attraction during our time stuck at home. Comfort foods rule. So does humor. And comfort-food humor is good for the soul. It brings us together, like cookies and hot pockets. Nutella is the great uniter of sorts in our household. It sparks a…

May 07 2020

John Oliver gets it. On March 16th he invited us to join him in a primal scream of sorts. In front of a white screen, during the first taping of his show Last Week Tonight while in isolation, he gives us permission to vent (it happens at about minute 18:00): Get it out. Really get. it. out. We all have had to give up something, and been disappointed or frustrated, by the new reality thrust upon us by the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s totally ok to feel this way. But we can’t let these feelings consume us. Or our fear. It’s…

May 04 2020

News flash: I sometimes post my opinions on social media. I even post my frustrations. Recently a friend from high school messaged me how angry she was at one of my Facebook posts. Her ire spread from that particular opinion, to one of my “likes” and from there to how much she despised my exercise regiment and shoe choice and everything in between. It was a stunning tirade that soon revealed the fuel behind it: Fear. Fear of COVID-19. Fear of being unprepared. Fear that she wouldn’t be able to get toilet paper. Pure fear drove her anger, and it…

Socks ARE Wicked Awesome. And so are your kids. Help them out with a 529.

Apr 16 2020

Last fall made it official: My husband and I have three teenagers living under our roof. And given the current situation, they are living under our roof all the time, 24/7. But even though we’ve gone critical mass in teen town, my husband and I have been gradually inoculated with teen attitude since our daughter was five. Kind of like allergy shots, the steady exposure to strong opinions and determined independence have helped prepare us for the actual teen years. Not that we are fully immune and completely prepared for this phase of parenting, but we have made many observations,…

Apr 03 2020

This morning I woke up, wondering what to write about today. Should I ignore the elephant lurking in every corner of every room? That gray, wrinkled stalker that even follows us outside and causes us to jump to the other side of the road? Do we need to escape this pachydermal pest, even for a few minutes? But then again, it’s an elephant. In. da. house. It’s pretty darn hard to ignore. Especially when it casts its long shadow over every aspect of our lives, even over the mundane task of food procurement. And the elephant’s gotta eat, too. So…

Mar 12 2020

I know. Yet another terrible joke linking terrible beer with a terrible pandemic. But, like so many families on the brink of spring break, you are probably trying to decide exactly where to drink your ale, on a beach or on your couch. In my last post I mentioned the irony of human nature: how humans ignore what we know and then go off the deep end and wipe the shelves clean of toilet paper (but not canned food?) in fear of what we don’t. Not that we shouldn’t be worried about the coronavirus (COVID-19). We should. But we need…

Let That Sh–t Go: Finding Time and Happiness

Feb 27 2020

“…But that’s when we’re happiest, and that’s when we’re at our best. When we have time to do those…things that we like to do.” ~Megan Mullally, in her book with husband Nick Offerman, The Greatest Love Story Ever Told. Before I get into it, I’m gonna give a shout-out to my husband. He did a TED talk on rethinking happiness: instead of basing happiness on attaining success, my husband lays out the path to happiness by living our values. In short, do what you love and the rest will follow…whether what you love is a new job or if doing…

Feb 20 2020

I recently failed at something. And I failed BIG. As in, I lost not only valuable time and plenty of money but when I threw in the towel I lost some new friends as well. Talk about a learning experience. So you could say I have some regrets. But one thing I don’t regret is trying something new. And I don’t regret attempting an endeavor that was totally out of my character. Over time I have used products sold by MLM-structured businesses and been very happy. But never, EVER, did I think I’d want to start up my own biz…

Category - Humor

8 (non-political) Signs to Make You Smile

Teens Need Control, Independence, and Straight Teeth

Jim Gaffigan: Hot Pockets. Cookie Monster: Cookies. Our Family: Nutella.

Gratitude: a Stone’s Throw From Disappointment

Fear: How to Cope and Help Our Kids Do the Same

Teenagers: Can’t Live With ‘Em…But We Have To

Change is in the Air: Breathe it Deeply

Spring Break on Corona(virus): Party or Stay Home?

Let That Sh–t Go: Finding Time and Happiness

Failure as a Blessing