The humidity in Houston during May is enough to make any elementary school teacher want to hide in the supply closet with a bag of frozen peas, but my second graders had other plans. We were finishing up our “Kindness Unit” at Highland Elementary, and I decided we weren’t just going to color worksheets. We…
My living room looked like a glitter bomb went off in a kelp forest. It was March 12, 2024, and Maya, my five-year-old ball of energy, was finally having her “Big Splash” birthday bash here in Austin. I had precisely $72 left in the party fund after the cake debacle, and thirteen kids were about…
My son Leo turned twelve on March 14, 2025, and I learned a painful lesson about structural integrity while holding a slice of greasy pepperoni pizza. We were mid-party in our Denver backyard when the cheap paper plate I bought for $14.99 at a big-box store surrendered to the laws of physics. The plate folded…
My twins, Leo and Maya, stood in the middle of our cramped Wicker Park kitchen last June 12th, staring at a cake that looked like a muddy swamp. I had tried to swirl six different colors of cheap store-brand batter into a masterpiece, but instead, I created a brown, sinking crater. It was the first…
My living room looked like a Peppa Pig crime scene, and I was the lead suspect holding a leaking bottle of neon pink punch. Being a single dad in Atlanta means I’ve spent more time in the party aisle of the Target on North Druid Hills than I ever spent in a sports bar. I…
@lucia.smith: Hey Ginyou fam! So, my sweet Maya just turned seven, and bless her heart, all she wanted was a Hello Kitty party. Now, you know me, I’m a Richmond, VA girl, and I love a good party, but planning? That’s where things get a little… improvisational. My kids, Asher (4), Ellie (5), and Maya…
Twenty-two first graders in a Houston classroom during a humidity spike is exactly what I imagine the waiting room for purgatory feels like. It was May 12, 2024, and I was attempting to host a “Royal Reading” celebration for my students who finally mastered their sight words. I had a tray of cupcakes that were…
Houston humidity does things to paper plates that no teacher should have to witness. It was October 15, 2023, and my second-grade classroom was a swirling vortex of 22 kids dressed in flannel and denim for our Wild West Wednesday. I had spent $42 on plates and napkins at the last minute because I was…
My living room in Denver looked like a NASA junkyard last Tuesday. Leo turned 12, and he wanted an “Interstellar” vibe without the three-hour runtime. I spent four hours researching a space party party hats set because I refuse to put lead-painted cardboard on my kid’s head. Space is quiet. My house wasn’t. The noise…
My living room looked like a neon green crime scene on July 14, 2025, which was the day I learned that a 5-year-old’s expectations are higher than a Portland housing price. I was helping my neighbor Sarah set up for her son Oliver’s birthday, and we had exactly two hours before eighteen toddlers descended upon…
