Abby Off the Record — The scoop on life, writing & raising kids

How Not to Make a Wine Cork Wreath

November 25, 2013

So you know how you get on Pinterest and start clicking around and before you know it the weekend is shot and you’re up to your eyeballs in corks and hot glue? Just me? Well, I had to do SOMETHING with all those wine corks I’ve been saving. So why not make them into a […]

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On Suzanne Vega and Playgrounds in Winter

November 22, 2013

I saw the snippet of song lyrics below in another parent’s email signature. (File under “Unlikely sources of inspiration”) It caught my attention first because of the time of year. There’s something strange and melancholy about playing outside with the kids after school now. You know what time the sun sets these days? 4:45 pm! […]

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Are You Settling, or Finding the Silver Lining?

November 20, 2013

I used to think those “silver linings” people were full of it. Look on the bright side, count your blessings, turn that frown upside down! To me, it sounded an awful lot like… settling. Like, “So what if the cute quarterback didn’t ask me to prom, because now I get to do something even BETTER […]

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The Best Vegetarian Chili on the Planet

November 18, 2013

Not to brag or anything, but I’m kind of a rockstar when it comes to vegetarian cooking. (Except for those unfortunate tofu nuggets.) I’ve had 20+ years of practice, after all. Too bad this skill is entirely wasted on my family, which consists of 3 carnivores and 2 small pickytarians. Lucky for my ego, though, […]

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What Would Mindy Kaling Do?

November 15, 2013

I am a fan of both Mindy Kaling and Gretchen Rubin, so I’m shocked that I somehow missed the latter’s recent blog post about the former. (Did you follow that..?) Rubin, the author of The Happiness Project, posted Kaling’s rules for writing her hit sitcom, “The Mindy Project.” The rules help the comedy writers achieve […]

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Into the Light

November 13, 2013

“Sometimes just looking up and seeing the light is enough.” – Terri Guillemets On the way home from dropping off my son at preschool, there’s a special spot. If you stop at the intersection at just the right moment, the early-morning sun streams through the trees in just such a way that everything around it […]

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3 Parenting Tips That Actually Work

November 11, 2013

It’s a post-Halloween miracle: the Switch Witch worked! That idea I mentioned last time that I got from some smarter mom online, about letting kids trade in their candy for something else? It worked! I floated it tentatively by my 4yo, bracing myself for his strident rebuttal. But what do you know? He agreed. All […]

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Halloween Candy Hell, Christmas Toys, and Blog News

November 8, 2013

Sometime around the third candy-induced tantrum of the week – this one over not being allowed to eat Skittles for breakfast. I know! I’m SUCH a mean mom – I decided that Halloween truly is the work of the devil. First, Riley is still scared spitless by all the zombies and skeletons and everything we […]

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5 Ways to Deal With Writer’s Block

November 6, 2013

I don’t really believe in writer’s block. I’ve been writing for publications for over 20 years now, and I’ve never met an editor who would nod sympathetically and pat you on the back if you said, “Sorry I can’t meet my deadline. I have writer’s block.” They’d be on to the next writer before you […]

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Look, Kids, a Backhoe!

November 4, 2013

One of my boys’ favorite books is Toot Toot Zoom!, a story about a fox named Pierre who drives a zippy red convertible over the mountain in search of new friends. So now every time I see a little red sports car, I shriek, “Look, kids! A Toot Toot Zoom car!” What? Who doesn’t get […]