Pushing on a Rope
parenting a teenager
Flashback Friday — Night to Remember
Can’t believe it’s been a year since the high excitement that accompanied the end of Catherine’s senior year. The cliché is true — time flies (and seems to do so more quickly with each birthday I mark). A year ago, the household was consumed with Catherine’s prom and the Port Chester (NY) Band Night anniversary performances … Continue reading
Games college freshmen play
Parenting is full of surprises, some of them more pleasant than others, but one of the great joy lies in watching your child come into her own. Now that Catherine is in college, Basil and I are treated fairly often to glimpses of the person she is, the grownup she’s becoming. We sometimes look at each … Continue reading
Life as We Knew It
Well, the big day is here. This morning, we deliver Catherine and the 3,000 things she had to have to Hofstra University. Everyone else is sleeping. I’ve been up since 4:45, head pounding from clenching my teeth all night, trying my darndest to program “stoic” in to my emotional framework for the day — if … Continue reading
Flashing Back and Making Memories
Less than two weeks til dorm move-in day at Hofstra and the emotions continue to ratchet up here in the house. Lots of excitement, a fair bit of anxiousness, all tinged with a pressing sense of “holy cow, we’d better get our acts together and finish all those things we were going to do.” Although we’re … Continue reading
Flashback Friday — On the March Again
Flashback to June 2009, the 65th anniversary of Port Chester, NY’s annual band night celebration. That’s me in the crowd, playing clarinet in public for what then was the first time in a long time. A whole lot has changed in the five years since — new career, new family members, new perspectives for me. (But … Continue reading
On her way
The envelope was big, white and emblazoned in red with a 48-point message of congratulations. I couldn’t resist texting Catherine a photo of it — her first college acceptance letter — when I pulled it from the mailbox yesterday morning. Oddly, she of the fast fingers didn’t reply to my message, but rather burst through … Continue reading
At Seventeen
Happy, happy birthday to our daughter, Catherine, who turns 17 today. As I watched her walk to the bus stop this morning (yes, I still watch out the kitchen window, every morning), I couldn’t help but remember her first steps, those chunky-monkey thighs wobbling under the effort. Her first words (Da-Da, naturally. Sigh. But many, … Continue reading
It was my moment — and she missed it
It took a hurricane, but I finally got Catherine to willingly accompany me to the Jazzercise Center of Southwestern Connecticut, where I teach a couple times a week. Given the choice between a dark, cold house and watching Mom in all her embarrassing glory, the choice was clear — as long as she could rely … Continue reading
Curbing my enthusiasm for driving lessons
“What to Expect When You’re Expecting” and books by Spock, Brazelton and other child experts may walk you through morning sickness and stretch marks, colic and the terrible 2s. But those aren’t the most challenging milestones a mother will face. Nope. I submit that high in the running for that honor is Teaching Your Child … Continue reading
Getting quite an earful
Yesterday marked the end of Catherine’s first stint as a camp counselor in training. She’s had a great time this summer seeing ESF, the camp she loves so much, from the other side of the fence. Plus, she’s gotten some good insights into what it’s like to work with children — which is handy … Continue reading
Pushing on a Rope 