Turns Out I Can Camp, Cook, and Not Get Eaten by a Bear

– Posted in: Bright Side of Life, Chronic Pain, Elfie, Parenting, Personal Insanity, School, The Great Outdoors, Vacation, Worst Mom Randomness
Back of Honda Pilot stuffed with camping gear

Last night, Elfie and I went camping at Lake Tahoe with her 3rd grade class. It's an end-of-the-year tradition, and even though I wasn't that jazzed about the idea of going up without my husband, I did because she really wanted to take me, not Dad. I don't mean to be a wimp, but honestly, [...]

Not Every Kid Gets Potty Trained at Age 2 — At Least Not Mine

– Posted in: Autism -- The Handbook, Autism Recovery, Parenting, Poop, Potty Training, Solicited Advice, Worst Mom Randomness

Many weeks ago, I promised to write a post on potty training. You guys should know by now that I never do anything on time, so hopefully you weren't holding your breath. Anyway, yesterday I got this message on my Facebook page: I have a 27-month-old boy that I am potty training, and when I [...]

World’s Worst Moms’ Guide to a Successful Sleepover

– Posted in: Kid Friends, No Good Deed, Parenting, Solicited Advice, Things To Do with Kids, This Is Supposed to be Fun, Worst Mom Randomness
little boy and girl in pajamas with yellow dog in green shirt

Last weekend, the kids each had a sleepover. Unfortunately, I couldn't manage to schedule them both on the same night, so it kind of felt like an elementary school B&B here (except for the part where I drag my ass out of bed and cook everyone breakfast). Anyway, my buddy, Cheryl, who's much more experienced [...]

My Name’s Tammy and I’m a Cake Froster-holic

– Posted in: Bright Side of Life, Crazy Tammy, Food, Memories, Mouths of Babes, Parenting, Personal Insanity, Tammy Thinks, Things To Do with Kids, This Is Supposed to be Fun, Worst Mom Recipes
DIY Thomas Train snowy winter cake with toy trains

So just to solidly make the case that I'm absolutely off my rocker, I'm sharing the following. Actually, let me back up. Over the last couple of days, I posted some pictures of the cupcakes I helped make for a school fundraiser, and people have made some lovely comments about my decorating abilities. The thing [...]

Bullying Update — Mom Fights Back!

– Posted in: Bullying, Mean People, Parenting, Solicited Advice, Worst Mom Rants
person raising arms in air victory

Thought everybody would be anxious to hear the update from my friend whose son experienced the horrible bullying/sexual assault incident at his school. Thanks to everybody who wrote and gave such thoughtful advice. ******** Here is the follow-up, and please let your readers know how much I appreciate their input and support. This isn't quite [...]

Helping Your Kid Out of Autism — The Preschool Post

– Posted in: Autism -- The Handbook, Autism Recovery, Newt, Newt's Story, Parenting, Personal Insanity, School, Solicited Advice, Worrying
Newt, age 3, coming out of school.

More tales from the autism front. Today's questions come from the mother of "Tara," a 3-and-a-half year old who was just diagnosed. Keep in mind that I've never met these people, so I'm basically just relaying what we did in these same situations. Our son, Newt, was diagnosed with high-functioning autism at the same age and [...]

When Barbie Looks Fat and Frumpy, You Know We’re in Trouble

– Posted in: Complaining, Elfie, Growing Up, Mean Girls, Parenting, Sex, Shopping Hell, Tammy Thinks, Women's Issues, Worst Mom Rants
monster-high-dolls

I was in Target today, just cruising because I'd hit one of those dead-time points in the day when you can't go home but it's too early to pick up the kids, and I found myself in the toy section (for reasons I myself still can't understand). Anyway, I was checking out the Monster High [...]

Kids Know Awards for Everyone are Stupid. Because They’re not Stupid.

– Posted in: Elfie, Mouths of Babes, Newt, Parenting, School
Do awards for everyone ever motivate kids

The kids turned in their science fair projects last week. Neither of them made it to "the big show," but that wasn't a huge surprise. Motivating kids in this department has been historically. . . frustrating. They basically procrastinate for two months, decide last minute that they want to do a "great job," and then [...]