Am I the only one who is at a loss when other people share too much of their personal business that you didn't want to know? That is precisely what happened to me last year with someone whom I used to work with. A co-worker of mine, whom I am not particularly close to or even friends with, proceeded to tell me all about the problems that she was having with her significant other. I am not a big fan of spreading all of your personal life all over the place. Additionally, I am very selective about the people that I share any information with that has to do with my personal business. As far as my relationship is concerned, that is definitely something that I only discuss with a select group of friends that I have known for years and that I actually trust. That said, there are still aspects of my relationship that I do not even discuss with my closest confidantes. It's not that I do not trust them but, there are certain things that should just be kept between you … [Read more...]
Beep Beep!
This morning, I was driving to work when some moron guy jumped into my lane without signaling, made me veer my car off the road, and practically killed me. It was the proverbial "David versus Goliath" situation since he was driving a Suburban and I drive a Toyota Rav4. Those of you who know a little something about cars know that his car was about three times the size of my car. One moment we are driving parallel to each other on the parkway and the next moment he barrels into me and almost causes me to have a heart attack. Now, his car did not hit mine thanks to my cat-like reflexes. However, it did shake me up pretty badly since it happened so quickly. Now, normally, I would have stopped my car, gotten out, and cursed him out so badly that his mother felt it as I have been known to engage in the occassional road rage melee. This time was different, though, because I … [Read more...]
My Brother’s Keeper
How many more bad things have to happen before parents start taking responsibility for raising productive members of society? It seems like everywhere I look lately, there are heinous acts being perpetuated by young people that absolutely horrify me. Reports in the media, recently, have really made me reflect on the fact that we, as a society, need to play a more active role in the upbringing and molding of our young people. It is not a coincidence that so many youth today are straying into areas that are roads to nowhere and society is just standing by while this is taking place. Take for instance, the anti-gay attack that just recently took place in New York City. Allegedly, a group of teenage boys brutally beat and sodomized another teenage boy when they found out that he was gay and was pursuing entry into their gang. Where do I even begin with all the things that are wrong with this picture? First of … [Read more...]
Family Drama
I would like to begin this post by saying that family has always been, and continues to be, very important to me. My children receive a lot of love from my immediate family and they are involved in each others' lives. My husband's family, on the other hand, has not really been a constant presence in my sons' life, specifically his mother's side of the family. They are not really close to each other and, when they do get together, it is usually to argue or to fuel some family drama that has been going on for years. My husband and I decided early on that we would not expose our boys to that kind of dysfunctional behavior. My husband has been fine with this decision because he is very much the kind of person that can cut you off and never give it a second thought. I, unfortunately, do not possess the ability to just let things like that go and, as a result, it has been something that has weighed heavily … [Read more...]
10 Things They Failed To Tell You Before You Had Kids:
This evening, we were sitting in the livingroom watching the Yankee game together before my husband left for work. The boys were playing on the floor and my husband and I were sitting on the couch together and we would turn to talk to each other during the commercials. During one of these commercial interruptions, my husband and I turned to each other and made some frisky comments back and forth and used code so the little people would not catch on to anything we were talking about. It was during this moment that I realized the lengths that we go to in order to continue being romantic and spicy despite the constant presence of the little ones. You see, we love our children more than anything in the whole world, as I'm sure all of you do too. We feel blessed to be their parents and we enjoy every minute that we have to spend with them. Being a parent, though, definitely changes your life and there … [Read more...]
The Gloves Are Off…
Dear Mr. Principal, I am writing to you to express some concerns that I have regarding Ms. Incompetent's grading policy. My son, B, is in her class and I have already expressed my concerns to her previously. My first issue was her criteria for grading penmanship. She has yet to provide me with a scoring rubric for how she is grading my son's handwriting. I don't think it is appropriate for her not to be formally assessing the children's penmanship, but rather "piggybacking" grades off their Spelling tests. Today, I received a homework worksheet that she graded. She never specified that the children had to complete both sides of the sheet. I'm sure of this because I check the assignments every night on the school website. Also, she never notified the parents that she was grading that homework. My son completed the front side of the sheet and she gave him a 57. Had I known he was supposed to complete both sides, he would have. … [Read more...]
That’s What Friends Are For…
Those of you who are regular readers of my blog know that one of my recent blogging goals was to reach out to my fellow bloggers and to continue reaching out to my loyal followers. Let's be realistic, all of our blogs are merely specks on the internet super highway but for the support and recognition that we receive daily from our readers. They are the ones who are always there to read all about our thoughts and experiences and they selflessly give of themselves in the form of comments and feedback that validate us as writers and bloggers. I am very lucky, in that respect, and I can honestly say that I have some wonderful followers who are always there to cheer me on and whom, without, this blog would not be possible. They are as diverse as they are supportive and they actually take time out of their busy lives to listen to what I have to say about my life juggling motherhood, marriage, a career as a Middle School English … [Read more...]
It’s Bedtime!
This week has been an extremely hectic and tiring one as most weeks usually are when we return to back to school routines. There are two staples in the program that either make or break us in terms of surviving through the week, they are the morning and evening routines that we follow. Lately, I feel that my morning routine has been pretty productive and we have all been getting out of the house prepared, in a timely fashion, and ready to tackle the day ahead. However, our evening routine could use a little tightening up because it can be stressful sometimes due to a fluctuating bedtime. As I have stated in previous posts, my husband works nights and I work days. This arrangement has its pluses and minuses and we have done a good job of maximizing on the benefits of this schedule. I usually arrive home from work anywhere between 4 and 4:30 p.m. When I arrive at home, my children are already doing … [Read more...]
Reach Out
This is probably going to be one of my favorite posts because it revolves around one of my favorite things to do, blogging. Ever since I was a little girl, I have known that I was a writer. Nobody ever tells you to be a writer or gives you permission to be one, you just know you are one. It is a passion that compels you to reach into the innermost crevices of who you are and to share these thoughts and feelings, in written form, with just about anyone who will be receptive to them. Since I became a mother, seven years ago, I kind of put my writing on the back burner due to the overwhelming demands of being a mother, a wife, a full-time Middle School teacher, and the list goes on and on. This is often what happens to us women when we have a lot on our plate, so to speak, we make sacrifices and put off doing the things that bring us personal joy to do the things that need to be … [Read more...]
Back to the Future
Recently, I was watching a futuristic movie with my husband and it really got me to thinking about what I would want people from the future to know about the times that we live in now. What better way to give them an idea of how we lived than to fill a time capsule with all of the things that either define us as a people or that made our lives here on earth a little more comfortable. They probably will have technology and gadgets way beyond what we could even imagine currently. However, they will never truly know what it was like to be a Mom in 2010 so I figured I would devise a list of all the items that I would want to include in my own personal time capsule to bury in my backyard. Well, maybe I won't bury it there but, you have to admit, the idea does sound kind of romantic. Now, coming up with this list has been no easy task because there are so many things that I use daily that I could possibly include in this … [Read more...]
