*This post was written by me on behalf of Culture Mom Media LLC. I received complimentary tickets to review the show. All opinions are 100% mine. My love affair with Broadway began years ago when I took my class on a trip to see Les Miserables. Everything about seeing a show live on stage absolutely enchanted me, from the bright lights to the beautiful costumes and beyond. Since then, anytime I have the opportunity to go see a play, it excites me. However, when I received news that I would have the chance to see Soul Doctor on Broadway, I wondered if I would be able to connect to the subject matter since I am not an overly religious person and I assumed that the show would be laden with boring religious overtones and connotations that I would not be able to relate to. Nothing could have been further from the truth... Soul Doctor tells the story of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach who is credited with being the father of popular Jewish music. His ascent to this title … [Read more...]
I Just Might Like Being A Sister Wife!
A while back, I wrote a blog post about polygamy and I had some pretty strong feelings about the whole phenomenon. My biggest issue with it was the fact that, in the documentary that I watched, very young women seemed to be forced into situations that they had no control over. Additionally, I was very upset by the subservient role that the wives seemed to play within the confines of the polygamist family. This past week, I happened upon a show called Sister Wives on Netflix and I was immediately drawn to watching it. The show revolves around a polygamist family with a husband that has four wives and sixteen children between the four women. I wanted to see how these people lived in real life and not through the perspective of a generic documentary like the one that I had seen years before. Now, before you start emailing all of your friends and telling them that Tough Cookie Mommy is converting and becoming a Sister Wife, I thought I should write a blog post outlining … [Read more...]
The Mother In Law Chronicles-Letting Go!
Many of you who have been loyal readers of Tough Cookie Mommy know that I have always had a tumultuous relationship with my Mother In Law. Although I feel that I have tried to connect with her over the years, she has always pushed me away due to what I feel are her extreme conservative religious views. As time has passed, I have learned to accept that she is never going to like me or even respect me and I have resigned myself to the boundaries of our relationship. What I have not been able to accept, however, is her continued absence from my sons' lives as their grandmother. She has never worked to establish a relationship with either one of my sons and this has always been a sore spot for me. Most recently, she failed to call my oldest son for this ninth birthday and it was really the straw that broke the camel's back. You see, she never calls either one of my sons for any holiday. As a matter of fact, the extent of her contact over the years with them has … [Read more...]
The MIL Strikes Again…
Those of you who are regular readers of this blog know that I do not have the best relationship with my Mother In Law. Actually, to say that we have a bad relationship is an understatement, the woman hates me. To fully understand the history between us, you would have to perform a search of this blog and go back in the archives to read about all the wonderful things that she has done to me over the years. My problem is that I am a glutton for punishment because, when it comes to family, I always let them get away with a lot more than I normally would with non-relatives. This is probably what caused our most recent run-in with one another, the fact that I am a sucker for family and that she is determined to get at me in any way shape or form that she possibly could. After the fact, I am still at a loss over whether I asked for it or whether she is just a truly disturbed individual. You decide... Let me go back, if I may to about six months ago when I received a friend … [Read more...]
Be Nice…
I'm sure that I have mentioned in previous posts that I haven't always had the closest relationship with my sister. There are many reasons for that which I could go on for days talking about. Perhaps the reason that stands out the most in my mind is the fact that we are extremely different individuals. We have always been very different people from as far back as I can remember. I've always been the one who consistently kept it all together and my sister has always been the one who was repeatedly in trouble with my parents growing up and who always got involved in everything that she wasn't supposed to. Obviously, some things have changed now that we are both adults. Now that we are mothers, our priorities have changed. However, some things never change and we continue to be different and to have different priorities with regards to parenting, relationships, and life in general. Despite this, I am committed to forging a better relationship with her and I … [Read more...]
Do Unto Others…
This week, my wonderful Mother In Law pulled another one of her fast ones. Those of you who have been following this blog for awhile know all too well about my MIL's shenanigans. In case you just recently started following, you can read about the wonderful Thanksgiving visit that she bestowed upon us last year. You see, she has a way of turning any joyous occasion into sheer torture. Just to give you a little background, my MIL does not like me at all. As far as she is concerned, I am not worthy to be married to her son because I am not strict Born Again Christian like she is. Now, let me be crystal clear, I have nothing against Born Again Christians whatsoever. As a matter of fact, that is the religion that my husband was raised in and, although he is non-practicing, he still lists this as his religion on all legal documents. My MIL, on the other hand, looks down upon anyone who does not adhere word for word to everything that is written in the … [Read more...]
Amen!
Last Thursday, I attended a mandatory meeting at my son's school for the parents of all second grade students who will be making their First Communion in the Spring. It was a lengthy meeting where we were provided with a packet outlining all of the events leading up to the Communion and a calendar to help us organize our schedules around all of these events. I can definitely say that it was overwhelming, to say the least, and I don't remember this much preparation being involved when I made my First Communion over 25 years ago. For those of you who are not Catholic, the First Communion is considered one of the holiest days in the life of a Roman Catholic. It is the day when they receive the Eucharist, or the body and blood of Jesus Christ. Children around age 7 receive this Sacrament because it is considered that this is the age when they have the ability to reason. Now, I don't want to get into a lengthy debate about religion because that is not the purpose of … [Read more...]
