Wednesday, March 23, 2011
What Do We Tell the Kids?
On one beautiful September Tuesday morning, my 3-year-old asked to watch Blues Clues as my 1-old-year-old played in his playpen. I said yes, but then felt a strong draw to turn on the Today Show instead. He whined in protest; I told him "just for a minute." I turned the channel and then life changed. "A plane has just hit the World Trade Center," Matt Lauer reported. The world—as we knew it—fell apart. The images were horrifying, but I couldn't turn it off. My phone rang off the hook: Where's your husband, Kris? Was he flying today? Why couldn't I reach him? Answer your phone, hon! Where were our friends, who worked near the World Trade Center? What about my former coworkers at the agency I worked for, who also worked near the complex? …
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Singing the Separation Anxiety Blues
You’ve gazed into his baby blues and pronounced yourself the Luckiest Mother on Earth, even if it meant feedings at 2 am and 4:30 am. You stayed home with him for his first year, but the moment is here: the budget is tight and it’s time to get back to work. Or, your husband convinces you: sweetie, remember ME? The one who fathered this child? The baby’s 2 now. Can we finally go away for a weekend? You know you must hand him over. It might only be to your mom, your neighbor or your best friend, but for some, it could be a new day care center or a new sitter. Your doubts and worries begin: will he be alright? Whether he’s 1 year old and just going to the church nursery for the first time, or he’s 3 and you’re dropping him off at his first…
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Aspiring scientist with a 4.6 GPA says education is the key to success.
Patricia Ike spotted something a little different about her daughter, Trish when she was just 2 years old. Trish was sprawled on the living room carpet, armed with a pen and a piece of paper. “Even though she only drew circles and scribbles, I knew there was a message she was trying to convey,” she said. “She looked so preoccupied and engrossed in her writing.” Fast forward a decade and a half. Trish is just as serious as a 17-year- old senior at Stonewall Jackson High School, taking 6 IB (international baccalaureate) classes and holding a 4.636 GPA. She credited mom and dad, Patricia and Odili Ike of Manassas, who had reinforced that the key to success was education. “It was definitely my parents instilling the work ethic. They told me I…
Rachel
10:08 pm on Saturday, March 26, 2011
I think this is the first big event that has registered for my son. He was aware of the event in a way that he hadn't been before, in part because of his age and an interest in the region. He has expressed an interest in travel to Japan and China (also known as the land of Karate Kid.) He understood what an earthquake was, but when he wanted to know what a tsunami was, I struggled with the … more ›