About This Blog
Welcome to my blog. I'm Anne-Marie Nichols, a 40-something WAHM to Nathan, 6, and Lucie, 3. I've been married 12 years to their dad Paul, a scientist. When I'm not doing the mommy thing, I'm a freelance writer, and vice president of the board of directors for a Colorado public charter school. In my spare time I like to sleep, eat, read, and decorate cakes.
I created this online journal to share some entertaining and insightful stories from my own experiences as a writer, domestic engineer, and mom. I encourage you to share this blog with your friends, and hopefully it will spark some lively discussions on issues we can all relate to. Enjoy!
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Jan 6 2009
In Lucie's world
As I work upstairs, Lucie's got her own thing going on downstairs. Lately, she's been entertaining imaginary guests. I'll hear her singing, "You're my girl. And you're my boy." Or she'll ask, "Do you have to go to the potty?" Sometimes she's addressing one of her stuffed animals. But sometimes it's someone else.
I try not to interfere, wanting her to explore her imaginary world. Yet I'm extremely curious. Who is here? And what are you guys doing, besides making a mess?
So, the other day, I had to ask, "Lucie, who were you talking to?"
"Oh, that's Maddie," she replied. "Mama, Maddie comes over to play. And she likes to eat everything you make."
She likes my cooking? Oh, this imaginary friend can come over anytime.
Dec 30 2008
Quarterly report
Paul and I just attended Nathan's first parent-teacher conference for the year. As we expected, Nathan is doing well in all his subjects. The only exception is occasionally being a little distracted during class and/or on assignments.
Not that we're surprised. He's always a little distracted. "Earth to Nathan" is a popular refrain at our house. And if that wasn't bad enough, he's in every class with his buddy Ethan. If Ethan isn't distracting Nathan, Nathan is distracting Ethan. It's gotten so out of control that they've been told not to sit together by their teachers.
However, Nathan is doing poorly in one subject -- handwriting. Again, this is no surprise to us. We know it's awful. But it's another way Nathan's turning into my dad. Like my father, Nathan is slim, long limbed, and eats likes a horse. He's also smart but not very focused, and has lousy handwriting just like my old man. The similarities are a bit scary.
To improve his handwriting skills, we've been having him practice writing at home. Since he has a weekly spelling test, we make him write out the spelling words. I also bought him a handwriting practice book with laminated pages, so he can use wipe-off markers instead of going through pads and pads of paper.
Still, Nathan's not crazy about practicing. He has a bit of a lazy streak in him, and would rather play than work. (Now that sounds like Nathan's father, not mine.) So who's using the book to practice their writing? Lucie -- and she's doing a great job, too.
Dec 26 2008
The cartoon effect
As we walked out of the school to our car, Lucie started walking stiff-legged and swinging her arms.
"Lucie, what are you doing?" I asked.
"I'm a robot," she replied as she marched around. "I like to eat robot food and do robot things."
I smiled at the cuteness of it all. Yet where did Lucie come up with her robot routine? They weren't learning about robots at school that week.
Maybe we're letting the children watch too many of those strange Japanese cartoons featuring futuristic machines, and judo chopping bad guys. Usually, it's Nathan who turns them on. However, I can't stand these shows and neither can Paul. In our minds, they have no redeeming qualities. So we make the kids turn them off.
Of course, we let them watch Tom and Jerry, so what do we know?
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