There is an indoor play place here in Shanghai where my kids love to go. Nicknamed, the "slide with the balls" (astutely, as there is slide that dumps into a shallow pool of balls), its is almost always the first place named when asked, "what do you want to do today?" I imagine it's like… Continue reading The Mom Who Cried Wolf
Category: Parenting
The ultimate guidebook to becoming the world’s best parent.
When Viruses Attack
When you first have a baby and your a saggy mess of hormones, nerves, and adrenaline, the uncertainty of what you're actually supposed to do with another human being can be overwhelming. So while well meaning friends and relatives and "been there" strangers will try to assure you there is no guidebook to parenting so… Continue reading When Viruses Attack
The Lost Art of Communication
My parents are avid Jeopardy watchers. If there were jerseys and foam #1 fingers, they would have enough for every night of the week. So when I skimmed a US news site and came across an article about a recent Asian Jeopardy contestant labeled a villain, I read more. Apparently people find him annoying. Arrogant.… Continue reading The Lost Art of Communication
Say What?
I was in the bedroom. From the other room I heard a soft crash, then, "Fuck!" Ayi Jiang doesn't speak English and Hunter was at school. There was only one other person in the house…my mischievous, two year old birthday boy. I walked out and he was picking up one of his cars. "What did… Continue reading Say What?
Less is More (Or Less)
When I opened my 3 year old's backpack after school the other day, I found a folded piece of paper and two paper plates that had been glued together and decorated with colored paper and glitter. I could feel my heart rate pick up a bit and for a moment I was paralyzed. Again. I'm… Continue reading Less is More (Or Less)
Relationship Status: It’s Complicated
I knew the day would come. It breaks my heart to think about it, let alone write about it. For three years now, it's been the eye of my stormy days, the oasis in a day otherwise consumed by barren stretches, the much needed commercial break allowing for a trip to the bathroom, my recess.… Continue reading Relationship Status: It’s Complicated
If Toddlers Ruled the World…
Living with toddlers can sometimes feel like being at a frat party gone wrong. Old food crumbs can be found between stained couch cushions at any time, a faint smell of urine seems to permeate from God knows where, and the floor is always just a little sticky. If you have, have had, or know… Continue reading If Toddlers Ruled the World…
The ramblings of an uptight, politically correct mom.
Over the weekend, I happened to catch the CCTV news. I was half watching but they were running a story about the growing Chinese protests of Jimmy Kimmel - calling him racist and holding up signs that said, "genocide is not a joke." Intrigued, I did a little more research and found out that back… Continue reading The ramblings of an uptight, politically correct mom.
On Potty Training
The thought of never buying diapers and no longer contributing untold pounds of garbage to land fills appealing. But then there's the reality of actually being out in public and having to stop what we're doing to find a clean, public toilet and dealing with that whole thing. So, rather selfishly, I prefer to keep… Continue reading On Potty Training
Play Dating
There are lots of things that change when you become a parent. There are all the obvious cliches - the new meaning of late nights, the new understanding of endless worry, the glamour of diapers and boogers - but there is something else. Something no one seems to talk about even though (I think) it… Continue reading Play Dating
Kathleen Siddell 