I hate to sound cliché, but I don't know where the time goes. It seems to just slip right through my fingers. I blink and a week has passed. I turn my back and a month is gone. I go to bed, and when I wake up, three years are missing and my baby is starting preschool. I don't want to sound like it was all weepy eyes and crying. Since I first became a mother eight years ago, my youngest starting school also marks the first time in eight years I will have time to myself. That's a lot of years of having somebody stand outside the shower curtain on the days you attempt to wash the strained …

It starts with the Fourth of July and culminates at the New Year—that flurry of holiday gatherings, birthday parties, potlucks, weddings and family feuds.   Now that many of us are growing up and into our own families, I get calls from friends all the time who both share excitement about going to their sister’s house for Christmas or dread dealing with their in-laws for Thanksgiving.   Complaints have ranged from a mother-in-law refusing to allow her married son to sleep in the same bedroom with his wife to a riveting (and worthwhile, I’m sure) dispute over Tupperware.   In between the …

We've all heard the saying, “Children learn what they live.” When I find myself in a bad mood or a no-patience sort of day, this concept scares me to no end. What am I teaching my kids when I frantically scream, “I'm done! Go to your rooms!” What do they think when I tell them, “Fine, eat all the food in the fridge. Payday isn't for a week and you can just be hungry until then if you want to eat like this today.” And then there are other times when I think I much be teaching them something good. A year and a half ago my children stood by and watched as I had my head shaved to raise money and …

He wasn’t the kind of man who wanted a lot of attention, but his tall, thin frame was hard to miss. He wore blue jeans every day, regardless of the season, and often paired them with white T-shirts. He had simple tastes, and his lunch usually involved the balanced, gourmet cuisine of bologna sandwiches, Cheez-Its and Pepsi. He was selfless and gave every part of himself to others, especially me. He gave me everything I asked for. He bought me my first fishing pole, first scooter, first pair of diamond earrings, first house and took me to my first dance. He took care of my grandmother, who …

I didn’t cry on my daughter’s first day of school. Cienna was outgoing and independent from the moment she was born, so I knew she would thrive. And although she was the first of my three children to go to school, I was too excited for her to be worried about what loss I might feel. But I vividly remember having a discussion with a friend, whose son was entering his sophomore year of college when Cienna was starting kindergarten. He told me the years seem to race once kids start school, with events, holidays, practices, games and seasons running against each other. While I couldn’t relate to …

As the holiday weekend kicks off, it probably means a weekend with family for many local moms. While “an extra day off” is a relative term, it’s likely cause for joy among mothers looking forward to spending a little more time with their kids.   May is always a busy month given youth sports schedules and end-of-school activities. Memorial Day is a great opportunity to catch up with the kids or simply decompress.   But that’s not really how it works out, is it? Something inevitably comes up, forcing you to question if there’s really such a thing as a so-called day off. You spend half the …

Whoever came up with the saying “The very merry month of May” did not have children in school and spring activities. For me, “MAY-hem” or “MAY-day” much better describe what has become my own personal hell month. There are only three days in all of May that my husband and/or daughters do not have some sort of sporting event, whether it be track practice, a little league game or one of my husband's weekly double-headers. Throw into the mix school field trips, end-of-the-year school activities and First Communions, and the month is practically impossible to survive. Healthy, home-cooked meals …

Recent waves of media reports revealed California mother Kerry Campbell admitted she administered Botox injections to her 8-year-old daughter, Britney, for pageant purposes. Following public outrage and an investigation by the San Francisco Human Services Agency, Campbell has since lost custody of her child.   Last week commercials were all over Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon—during programming for children as young as preschoolers—to advertise Skechers Shape Ups for girls. The commercials show a young, cartoon girl performing for screaming fans and being chased by slow-running boy …

Even before I had three children I was keenly aware that it wasn’t the labor and delivery that made a woman a mother. Instead, I always believed motherhood and mothering were revealed in the delivery of character.   Many of us have been mothered by people in addition to our moms. Sometimes it’s a grandparent, teacher, co-worker, friend, neighbor or kind soul you regularly see in the community. For me, it’s been Maya Angelou.   Long before I experienced the joy of motherhood, I read the teachings of Maya Angelou—a worldly wise literary genius. I clung to her quotes and relied on their message …

I know some of my past columns have left room for controversy and criticism of my parenting style and choices. Today’s sentiments may outweigh them all, but I feel obligated to speak from my heart and share an unexpected (and likely unpopular) internal conflict.Sunday night at 11 p.m., my daughters and I boarded a bus headed to New York City to go to a casting call for a modeling job (for them, definitely not for me). I am a bit intimidated by the Big Apple, but was hoping all would go smoothly and we’d make our way around the city without a problem.What I never expected was a text from my …

Sharing opinions with soon-to-be parents about potential registry items used to be difficult to resist. After three children and a lot products, I’ve learned what does and does not work. I’ve also learned that what doesn’t work for my family might work for others.   Yet there are some things—like baby bathtubs that include showers—that I’ve always found to be totally disappointing. And at some point in my life I had no problem being That Guy and telling someone, “You know, 90 percent of the time that won’t work for you.”   As I gained more life and parenting experience, I realized my opinion …

Since I first became a mother eight years ago, I have had the great privilege of being a stay-at-home mom, and let me tell you, the old “bon bons and soap opera” cliché is not the reality of this gig. I prefer grilled cheese with my afternoon soaps. As soon as my daughter was old enough to ask for "The Wiggles" and "Sesame Street," I realized my routine of "Good Morning America" with my coffee was through. I had lost control of the television to my runt-sized mini-me. I knew Diane Sawyer and Robin Roberts would go on without me tuning in. I could accept missing "The Price is Right." My …

If I have a slightly defensive tone in my column, please don’t take it personally. I have become accustomed to criticism and eye rolling when people find out I am a pageant mom.   Yes, it is true: I allow my 6-year-old daughter to compete in pageants. But I want everybody to stop picturing what you have seen on television. It is not all "Toddlers and Tiaras," spray tans, fake teeth, and screaming and crying.  When she first asked to do pageants at 4, I was hesitant. I was worried about the environment and competitive parents we might encounter. I was worried that if Elliot lost she would …

A recent call from a frantic fiancee quickly reminded me which season really kicks off this time of year: wedding season.   “I’m calling you because I know you’ll tell me if I’m being ridiculous,” she said. “I just freaked out because I hate my wedding dress, I don’t like the chair covers and I think my mom might kill me.”   “Yes, you’re being ridiculous. Your dress is beautiful, and you look gorgeous in it. And nobody will pay any attention to or remember the chair covers except other brides-to-be. But your mom might, in fact, kill you,” I said.   I was speaking from experience.   My husband…

I have an underlying condition that recently resurfaced. I need to watch this one closely because, if not properly treated, it could lead to years of bills, stress and sleepless nights.  I have baby fever. Next week is my birthday, and maybe the thought of another year added on is making that proverbial biological clock tick louder. Maybe it was getting to hold a gorgeous, 3-week-old baby over the weekend. It could be the announcement by close friends that they have baby number two on the way. The day that I held that new baby, I had taken my daughter, Elliot, and her friend to Build-a-Bear …

I pulled off to the side of the road somewhere between Canonsburg and Eighty Four, wiping away mascara-tainted tears.   To inspire my sobbing, all a radio host had to do on a May evening seven years ago was discuss the “Friends” season finale.   But I wasn’t crying for Ross and Rachel. I was crying for Carrie — a dear friend I lost to cancer in 2001. I remembered watching the sitcom with her during visits to a Shadyside hospital, pausing between laughs to plan all we would do when she got better.   A journal entry from that evening reveals I called her mom, who I occasionally kept in touch …

I am generally a fairly optimistic person. That being said, there are a few realities I've come to terms with. A few things I know I am not, or will ever be: 1. A perfect mother. I try, but perhaps it is my imperfections that will shape my children into who they are meant to be.   2. Rich. I married an educator and I'm a writer. Money's not in my future. 3. A 10. The way I see it, I'm a high six who creeps up to a seven on good days. However, I thought by now the one thing I would feel like in my life is a grown up. Here I am, about to turn 33, and I still have moments where I feel like the …

I have never been a mom who throws crazy parties for my kids' birthdays. I try to make them feel as special as I can, but all-out shindigs just aren't my style. The first week of March my second born, darling diva daughter turned 6 years old. My little Elliot is without a doubt the more high maintenance of my two girls. I often catch her staring at her reflection in the mirror. Just today I heard her tell her sister, “I love hearing people say my name.” This one keeps me on my toes. I had to attend a board of supervisors meeting the night of her birthday and wanted to do something fun to …

My grandmother, Peg Crowe, used to have a saying about certain children – the variety who tended to charm and amuse everyone in their wake, but who were known to be a handful for their parents. “She isn’t a bad child,” Grammie would say. “She’s just ornery rotten. She’s a corker, that one.” So let me preface the following tale with this statement: My niece, Lilly Belle (who turns 2 in September) is not a bad child. She’s just ornery rotten. She’s a corker, that one. This hit home for me when she hit my living room like a hurricane on Friday night, joyously exploring the open, ranch-style …

I have a confession.  When my oldest daughter was around 18 months old, I was at a local spa for a massage and saw a sign asking if you wanted to “improve your core.”  I mistakenly thought it meant your inner core - your sense of peace, and signed up for the eight-week course.  Wasn’t I surprised when the Saturday morning class was a yoga and Pilates mix in a very hot studio! I’m an athletic person, but that awful class made me look like I had never exercised in my life.   I tried to stick it out. I think I went to the first three classes before I came to the realization that what was …