Dear Greta, You asked your Elf on the Shelf Snowball for a gift from the heart…with your heart being so big at 8.5 years old, this will be an enormous undertaking. You seemed very happy with your cozy, fleece Christmas blanket the morning before you kicked that older boy, not your brother, in the… Continue reading Gifts from the Heart: Body Belongings, Elves, and Tooth Fairy Criminals
When we reflect on our blessings this year, at a time when people and places around us are suffering unparalleled grief, loss and tragedy, it’s important to think about the connections that remain in humanity. The other day while walking the dog, I found myself getting irrationally angry about people littering in front of the… Continue reading Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation Blog: “Thanksgiving, Kindness, Second Helpings, and Helpers,” November 26, 2019
Our son lost a tooth recently and for a few days the Tooth Fairy was super busy, battling some wind and rainstorms, forgetting to stop at our house because of the Halloween candy wreaking cavity havoc from coast to coast. But then our son said, “Mom, do you think she has really forgotten me because… Continue reading Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation Blog: “In Honor of Care-giving and Flawed Parenting,” November 30, 2019
A scientist friend recently remarked on the foliage as having an understory and an overstory. These terms had been unknown to me at the time, despite being a next door neighbor to National Forest for the last 20 years. Yet, I have not been able to stop thinking how an understory perfectly defines the forest,… Continue reading Why the “Understory” of Growing Up is Essential and Why We Need to Listen
The word on our local streets, even before we had confirmed the decision in our hearts, is that we would be moving from our condo to a stand alone home, one that has already been made accessible, a dream come true for our family. However, as we packed up and purged our possessions , cleaned… Continue reading Packing Up the Place Where We First Became a Family
Despite my kid swimming all day long, his feet were still disgusting at bed time- the shiny dirt ground in deep. But his teeth were clean, and, even more importantly, he had an awesome, active day and happily crashed into sleep before the sun went down. Why is the dirt on the bottoms of one’s… Continue reading For the Love of Dirty, Summer Feet
Growing up and out of things is funny and maybe even a little sad. The days pass without the recognition of any significant change until something casual shared like, “Hey, Mom, Greta and I were talking and these are the only tub toys we need to keep.” Oh, ok. Cool. So the remaining seven dwarfs,… Continue reading The Last of the Tub Toys
“I can’t believe it’s happening,” overhead in the back seat by a friend’s kid. “What’s happening?” I inquire, honestly believing we are talking about an upcoming test or someone’s behavior or an eagerly anticipated event over the weekend. “Puberty is happening. Well, it isn’t exactly happening at this minute, but it’s going to. What I… Continue reading Growing Up is Hard: Just ask April Flowers and Teenagers
Dear Dr. Phil, Last week, I had a cold. My husband, Geoff, was traveling for work for two weeks in Eastern Europe and life was hectic, so I missed the social media reaction over your recent show about love and caregiving.However, when Geoff returned from his trip this weekend, one of the first conversations we… Continue reading Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation Blog, April 4, 2019: “Hey Now Dr. Phil”
Dear Experienced Administrators, We are in need of an excellent administrator, but before your read the OFFICIAL information regarding the application, please check out these student testimonials about how much they love their school. They care as much about who comes next as parents and staff members do: Jillian wrote, “So here are several reasons… Continue reading Wanted: One Fabulous Principal
