Category Archives: Parenting

parenting, children, working motherhood, reality check

The Scariest Halloween

Posted on October 31, 2011 by Susan H. Greenberg

There’s no trick-or-treating in Snowville tonight. In my house, we couldn’t even enjoy our rare uncontroversial family tradition of pumpkin carving, which Mr. 70 Percent and I started long before we ever heard the splitter-splat of baby spit-up on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Family life, Kids, Parenting | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

The Go-Between

Posted on October 26, 2011 by Susan H. Greenberg

My 16-year-old and I recently enjoyed a very 21st century mother-daughter outing: we made a pilgrimage to the Apple store to purchase the new iPhone 4S. (Each of us was using a phone with a screen so shattered it routinely … Continue reading →

Posted in Family life, Kids, Parenting, Teenagers | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

The Things I Shouldn’t Have Said

Posted on October 17, 2011 by Susan H. Greenberg

It was on 6 x 9 that I snapped. We had been over it dozens, maybe hundreds, of times. “52?” she’d say. “No, 56!” I could swear she’d had her math facts down cold by the end of 3rd grade, … Continue reading →

Posted in Family life, Kids, Parenting, Reality check | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

A World Without Jobs

Posted on October 6, 2011 by Susan H. Greenberg

Of course I’m sorry that Steve Jobs is gone. I enjoy Apple products as much as anyone. More important, he was far too young–56–and lived the kind of unconventional, multi-faceted, follow-your-bliss life we should all aspire to. In addition to … Continue reading →

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License to Run Errands

Posted on September 22, 2011 by Susan H. Greenberg

If you’re wondering why there are so many horrendous drivers on the road, I’ve got the answer: it takes exactly six minutes to pass a driving test. At least that’s how long it took my daughter–the one who, en route … Continue reading →

Posted in Family life, Parenting, Reality check, Teenagers | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

Like School, But Worse

Posted on September 12, 2011 by Susan H. Greenberg

“Nobody likes going to religious school,” I tell my youngest daughter whenever she complains about going to Hebrew school, which is twice a week. “It doesn’t matter if they have to go to CCD or Sunday School or a madrassah. … Continue reading →

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The Places Our Car Has Been

Posted on September 6, 2011 by Susan H. Greenberg

My husband and I tend to see eye to eye on the big issues that can make or break a marriage: politics, music, child-rearing, operating systems, sports teams. However, there is one area of dispute, religion and foreign films notwithstanding, … Continue reading →

Posted in Family life, Parenting, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

A Family Vacation With Someone Else’s Family

Posted on August 29, 2011 by Susan H. Greenberg

The biggest disadvantage of having three kids covering a seven-year age span is that it is virtually impossible to find a family activity that makes everyone happy. Movie night, for instance, means either the 9-year-old hides her eyes during Pulp … Continue reading →

Posted in Family life, Kids, Parenting, Reality check, Travel | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

There’s No Place Like Camp

Posted on August 22, 2011 by Susan H. Greenberg

Usually when the kids arrive home after being away, we enjoy a brief honeymoon period: they are engaged, chatty, appreciative, helpful and pleasant. Not this time. My 16-year-old daughter returned yesterday after four weeks of being a junior counselor at … Continue reading →

Posted in Family life, Kids, Parenting, Reality check, Teenagers | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

The Back-to-School Build Up

Posted on August 15, 2011 by Susan H. Greenberg

I love that old Staples commercial that shows a father gleefully filling a shopping cart with school supplies, kicking his heels to the strains of “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” while his kids mope along behind. I, … Continue reading →

Posted in Family life, Kids, Parenting, Reality check, Working motherhood | Tagged , , , , , | 10 Comments