MamaBlogger365 - February Slips Away by Veronica Hosking

Here it is, the Monday morning before my scheduled blog post, and I have nothing written. It seems strange to have the February blues in sunny Arizona. Many people are looking forward to spring while my whole winter is spring-like. On February 2nd, do you think, six more weeks of winter? Or are you more optimistic and think, six more weeks 'til spring? This year I was happy to have all the paperwork I was busy filling out in January behind me. For most of this month I sat around reading books, cleaning house and helping with homework. There was little writing accomplished.

February 2nd not only marks Groundhog's day, it is also my mother's birthday. She turned 70 this month. I wrote her a letter and sent off the card at the end of January - no writing on the actual day. I told her Rachael has been accepted to AAEC. We have a very excited daughter, who is waiting on pins and needles for the actual confirmation letter. Then on February 14th, Valentine's Day, Shawn and I had our traditional dinner. We send the girls to their rooms early and have a quiet dinner for two. This year Shawn decided to go Greek. I think even he is feeling winter doldrums or his approaching midlife birthday, because he bought a lot of prepared foods he didn't have to cook.

As we were enjoying our souvlaki, olives, artichokes, cheese and wine, Shawn asked me what happened to his poetry. A few years ago he gave me a blank journal and added some borrowed poetry to it. Throughout the year, I added original pieces of poetry and gave it back to him the next Valentine's Day. This year the journal was in his possession. I asked him where my poetry was? And he pulled up his haiku app and composed a few haiku for me. "There's an app for that" really isn't romantic. How hard is it to count syllables? Hard - since I found out Shawn thought "Shawn" was two syllables.

February slips away. Three days after this blog posts, Shawn will celebrate his 40th birthday. For the past few years, he has been growing his hair. He keeps telling me it will fall out on its own soon enough and he wants to remember what it was like to have hair. Back over winter break, the girls and I went for haircuts. Now the only man in the house has longer hair than all the women. Years ago Shawn grew his hair long ewww... but one day he came to my house with a nice new haircut. I keep waiting for this day a second time. I really thought he would go before he had to get his new license photo, but no. If he is going to be bald, his license will make people do a double take. All is not lost though, I came up with a great dig for his birthday.

Forty is a fickle friend
Only trying to pretend
Ripe with hair
Turning bare
Youth has reached its bitter end

Veronica Hosking
http://hosking.gather.com

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MamaBlogger365 - Remove the Child, Keep the Curtains by Joan A. Friedman

Joan A. Friedman, Ph.D.

At times, parents of twins get so caught up in the twin relationship that they unknowingly lose sight of their bigger parenting responsibility. A few months ago a couple sought my advice about how to minimize the fighting and competitive behavior between their four-year-old fraternal twin boys. Mother explained that most of the family members were "afraid" of the feisty twin’s outbursts and tantrums. She told me that she often cautioned her other son to avoid his brother. Father added that he felt compelled to buy two of everything because his more aggressive son would snatch a different toy away from his brother. Mother chimed in to emphasize that this boy grabbed everything away from his brother under any circumstances – even if there were two of the same thing.

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MamaBlogger365 - Affection for Sickness by *Dr Mama* Amber Kinser

I sit in the early morning quietude, not quite awake yet, drinking my cup of “high test” coffee while a pot of half-caff brews. This is my ritual on Thursday mornings as I write my post. As I type, I await the onset of my cold symptoms, lulled as they were through the night by meds and sleep; I anticipate their resurfacing -- aches, sneezing, watery eyes that won’t quite open -- you know the drill. I’ve cleverly attempted to preempt them with Alka Seltzer Plus cold medicine (the best ‘you have to go to work anyway’ medicine I’ve found). And not strangely, I’m thinking about illness and compromised bodies and how they mark moments in family life, connecting people at times and disconnecting them others.

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Photo credit: Hand Print In The Sand by Jiří Hodaň

MamaBlogger365 - A Love Beyond Telling by Aiya Art

© Aiya Art, all rights reserved

"Loved with a love beyond telling,
Missed with a grief beyond all tears."


Bio: Though born in Germany to German parents, Judith Kuegler grew up among tribal communities in Nepal and Indonesia. Her interest in creating art began at a very early age and is profoundly influenced by her multicultural upbringing. After attending Art College in German she moved to the US to continue her studies in art and psychology. Judith works as an artist and writer specializing in global women’s issues, multiculturalism and anthropology. She lives with her two sons in North Carolina.

Her work has been featured in a variety of publications such as, Victoria Magazine, American Scientist, Motherverse, Juno, Journal of the Association for Research on Mothering and New Beginnings. Judith participates in group and solo gallery shows as well the Carrboro and Hillandale Art Walks, MOMart and Whimsical Women. Her blog about art, motherhood and everything in between can be found at http://judithkuegler.wordpress.com

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MamaBlogger365 - "Sex in Mommyville" by Anna Fishbeyn

My journey with the show, Sex in Mommyville, began as a solo reading at Cornelia Street café, which I entitled Conversations with My Breasts. My audience primarily consisted of mothers - including women I met at my daughter’s preschool and nearby playgrounds, women from my graduate days at New School University and Columbia University, women who like me had become mothers and now faced enormous challenges. But it was the little essay entitled, "The Nuts and Bolts of Espionage" (i.e., "Sex in Mommyville") that truly resonated with my audience, sending them into uproarious fits of laughter: the simple story of one mother repeatedly attempting but failing to have sex with her husband during one weekend. Click here to read more...

"Sex in Mommyville" will be at the Manhattan Repertory Theatre, 303 W. 42nd St., 3rd Fl (RSVP 646-329-6588, www.manhattanrep.com). July 27th at 9 p.m.; July 29th at 9 p.m.; and July 31st at 3 p.m.

Support MamaBlogger365 and help the Museum of Motherhood secure a permanent home in 2011! Your tax-deductible donation in ANY amount will help us make our September POP-UP exhibit in NYC a permanent reality - visit our Members page to learn more.

MamaBlogger365 - When the Dust Settles by Shira Adler, Diva Mama

Looking back to last weekend, I have to admit I really had NO idea what I was getting myself into organizing and running a multi-family tag sale. Yet as suddenly as the tempest hit, it was over. The only telltale sign is the tent at the bottom of my driveway covering a motley collection of unsold items including clothes, toys, furniture, and miscellaneous knickknacks piled high ready for donation pick up. Boxes are precariously perched atop each other draped with large trash bags and plastic tablecloths now covered with a week-old sheen of pollen and fallen whirlybird green things from surrounding trees. Read more...

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Photo credit: Empty Cardboard Boxes by Vera Kratochvil