A month or two ago, as the U.S. saw some of its highest levels of tension this year, I found myself posting on social media more frequently in support of Black Lives Matter. I still lend my voice (and support, in other ways) to the movement, but I’ll admit my advocacy and ally-ship were more prominent during the times of black boxes on Instagram and nationwide protests.
On one such day I received a direct message from an old sorority sister. A minority herself, she thanked me for being an ally. …
Disclaimer: I am not a poet. But I was a desperate parent about a year ago, looking for answers as to why my beautiful new baby (my first) was so inconsolable. During an exceptionally tough day, I jotted this down in the notes of my phone — even while my little babe wailed beside me as I pumped—because it helped me find a way to release my frustrations … and even have a little giggle.
You ate all the food,
and burped all the burps,
your diaper is fresh, clean, and dry. …
Less than a year ago I was still on maternity leave. Three long months I spent at home catering to a screaming infant’s every need. And when I say screaming, I mean it. Our poor baby was dealing with colic, reflux and latching issues, and as a result, I was scared to leave the house with him.
Don’t worry, that story has a happy ending. Almost everything with babies is “this too shall pass.” And it did. After three months he started smiling and cooing, just like all my friends, family and health professionals told me he would.
I learned…
I recently gave birth to my first child — a beautiful, healthy boy. It took many years and ups and downs for us to get here.
Only nine months after our first date, my now-husband moved to Dublin, Ireland, to take a job in the online gaming space. Being a newly-minted couple, neither of us entertained the notion of me moving with him. I stayed behind, continued to teach 7th grade language arts, and we maintained a long-distance relationship.
We survived nearly a year of video chats and expensive phone calls before I moved to Dublin to be with him…
Moving abroad with my boyfriend (now husband) eight years ago was one of the most exciting, gratifying, and challenging experiences of my life. When you take that big leap, you must adapt to new cultures, be open to meeting new people, and work daily to learn and understand new languages. I see much written about how to best tackle this life-changing adventure.
But for many, time in a foreign land is only temporary, and moving home can be far more overwhelming and lonely. This tricky move called “repatriation” is filled with its own uncertainty, anxiety, and challenges.
I remember moving…
World traveler, writer, editor, kitty-handler, missing the European life