Grasshopper New Media Presents...

I’ve written before about my selectively shy son. And today my mind is once again wrapped up in his reticence. My middle child often offers us only one word answers unless we really focus on drawing him out.
Don’t get me wrong- at playtime at the Hatches my boy would give […]

My first reaction was dismay. I’d torn open the envelope from Ten’s school, the envelope we’d been awaiting for the better part of a week. It contained a letter from his soon-to-be fifth-grade teacher, as well as a list of kids who would be in his classroom. For whatever reason, there are […]

I was five or six.
It was about 8:00pm just outside Webster, Wisconsin. We were at my grandparent’s house. We had probably driven a couple hours from our home in New Hope, a suburb of Minneapolis.
I don’t much about arriving, about the conversations. My first clear memory of that evening is walking next to my Swedish […]

If only babies came with manuals and toddlers came with warranties.
That terrible whining noise that my two-year-old is making should definitely be enough to send him back to the manufacturer, if one existed.  I take comfort in knowing that this is just a phase.  That’s what people keep telling me, at least.
There’s a relatively new […]

We interrupt this saving money/food organizing series to examine an important question.
Do you ever feel like people are judging you based on the food you serve your family?
I know I do.
And let’s face it, most of us have probably looked at the eating habits of at least one other family and ummmm, drawn some conclusions.  […]

I’m not a doctor, nor do I carry any professional credentials, not the slightest. However, I am a stay-at-home, full-time, primary caregiver to two children. As such, I’ve developed certain techniques that work for me. I thought I’d share one; maybe you’ll find it useful. If not, hey, maybe it didn’t take that long to […]

Whenever I go out in public with my twin daughters I get lots of stares and lots of questions. Most people are polite and smile at my girls. Some will make eye contact with me, others won’t. If they ask me silly questions, I respond using a pleasant tone and non-sarcastic reply (most of the […]

We’ve spent some time on vacation this summer visiting relatives, and doing group vacation stuff.  Issues have come up from time to time about who pays for what, and it causes some awkward moments, so I thought I’d open this up to the GNM Parents readers to discuss.
In Dan Ariely’s book (and blog) Predictably Irrational, […]

September is as natural a month as January for making resolutions. Summer wraps itself up and the sun is softened by cooler mornings and the rumbling bus pulls to the stop and whisks the school-aged Punks away for hours of “reading streets” and “everyday math.”
And Mom walks back to the house holding […]

In Indiana, the beginning of the school year is less that a week away. My nine-year-old is counting down his days of freedom. My thirteen-year-old is actually excited, because she would like more contact with her friends. And my three-year-old is looking forward to going to his school “with the blue floor, […]