Last Friday, I was sitting on my living room floor in East Austin, completely covered in red tissue paper and stray comic book clippings. My golden retriever mix, Taco, was snoring loudly on the sofa. He was entirely unbothered by the chaos surrounding him. I, on the other hand, was sweating through my favorite vintage…
My kitchen smelled like wet hay and cheap pizza on the morning of March 12, 2024. It was the big nine for my twins, Leo and Maya. Living in a drafty three-flat in Chicago means space is tight, but my ambition for their “Barnyard Bash” was huge. I had exactly $50 in my pocket for…
The July sun was beating down on Sauvie Island, and I was currently knee-deep in a sensory nightmare involving three tangled spools of fishing line, a leaking bag of salt-and-vinegar chips, and twelve eight-year-olds who were rapidly losing their collective minds. My son Leo was turning eight, and in my infinite “cool mom” wisdom, I…
My kitchen floor was a sticky sea of glitter, half-eaten goldfish crackers, and frantic energy when I realized I had exactly three hours to find the best crown for moana party before Maya’s birthday guests arrived last June. It was June 12, 2024, a typical Portland afternoon where the sky looked like a bruised plum…
My kitchen smelled like wet dog and cheap plastic on the morning of March 14, 2024. It was Leo’s 9th birthday. Outside, the Portland rain was doing its usual gray, drizzly thing, turning our backyard into a literal swamp. Most moms would have moved the party to a bowling alley, but I’d already committed to…
My living room in Austin looked like a digital explosion had occurred on the afternoon of March 14, 2026, with thousands of tiny green and brown paper squares clinging to the velvet sofa, the dog’s whiskers, and my own hair. It was glorious. My nephew Leo was turning eleven, and he had reached that specific…
My classroom rug usually smells like sour milk and damp sneakers by Friday afternoon, but on March 14, 2025, it smelled like pure adrenaline and overpriced sugar. We were celebrating Leo’s 10th birthday with fourteen of his rowdiest friends, and I had foolishly promised a “Professional Photo Studio” setup in the corner by the cubbies….
I spent last Saturday scrubbing edible pink glitter off my kitchen island because my niece Chloe decided that a minimalist unicorn party was for losers. She turned ten on March 14, 2026, and apparently, the double-digit milestone requires a level of sparkle that would blind an astronaut. Living in Austin, Texas, means I am basically…
My kitchen table in Rogers Park was a sea of cerulean blue paper and sticky glue sticks last Tuesday night. Leo and Maya, my twins who just turned eleven on March 12, decided they wanted a “retro” birthday theme. They were obsessed with Captain Barnacles when they were three. Now, they think it is hilarious…
My kitchen looked like a Pikachu crime scene on the morning of March 12, 2024. Yellow crepe paper streamers hung from the ceiling fans like neon spaghetti while red spray paint fumes from my latest “budget hack” drifted in from the drafty Chicago balcony. My twins, Leo and Maya, were turning nine, and they had…
