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

Keep Your Quirks and Your Cousins Close

June 27, 2012

Ever notice how kids have no qualms about being quirky? Most of us start out pretty confident about our own preferences and peculiarities. Just today when I tried to break my 3yo’s fresh-baked zucchini muffin in half so it would cool faster – patience is not his strong suit – he shooed me away. “I […]

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Mom Math

June 25, 2012

Childcare can get complicated when you’re a work-at-home mom. As I’ve said before, as a freelance writer I try to do as much work in as little child-free time as possible. Since I’ve never been one of those writers who can work at 5am or 10pm (I value my sleep too much), I usually have […]

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A Letter to My Younger Self

June 22, 2012

As of this week, I am one year deeper into my late 30’s. (Insert Botox joke here.) Seriously, though, I’m not sweating it. I mean, I AM sweating, because it’s 100 degrees in Baltimore, but not the aging part. I got carded buying wine on my birthday last year, so I’m taking that as proof […]

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Is it Time to Reboot American Birthday Parties?

June 20, 2012

My 3yo son was recently invited to a birthday party by a little friend whose family moved here from Italy. We arrived at his house and found a dozen or so friends, neighbors and family members gathered on the patio. The boy’s father was playing the guitar and singing a children’s song in Italian while […]

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Extreme Juggling: Work-at-Home Mom Edition

June 18, 2012

Ready for another episode of “Extreme Juggling: Work-at-Home Mom Edition”? Well, grab your cup of twice-reheated coffee and let’s get started! First, the phone rings with a promising assignment from a new client. Great! It would’ve have been even better had it come a couple weeks ago before preschool let out, but what can you […]

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Soft Pants

June 15, 2012

Pants. The reason my husband is a great dad to our 2 boys comes down to pants. One Saturday, I went to get our toddler out of his crib after his nap. “Did you put these sweatpants on him?” I asked my husband, since I had dressed Riley in jeans that morning. “Yeah. It’s so […]

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My Dad in 3 Anecdotes

June 13, 2012

Longtime readers of this blog may have noticed that I don’t write about my father a lot. I’ve realized this is completely unfair. I love my dad, and he’s a big part of who I am today. He’s the reason I know how to properly load a dishwasher, balance a checkbook, and pack a suitcase, […]

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Happy Birthday to My 6-Year-Old!

June 8, 2012

Dear Miles, Today you are 6. Happy Birthday! In just a few days you will graduate from kindergarten, if you can believe that. That means I’ll be the mom of a FIRST GRADER soon. Crazy! They say moms forget these things, but I can still remember the day you were born. The thing I remember […]

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How to Be Funny

June 6, 2012

As you may have noticed, I’ve been struggling to find my funny lately. What with all the sentimentality and trauma. Although even in the ER, there were moments of humor. Like when the doctor sewing up my son – upon learning my husband is a die-hard Red Sox fan – threatened to stitch the Yankee’s […]

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13 Stitches

June 4, 2012

Thirteen stitches. That’s how many it took to close up the 1.5-inch gash in my baby boy’s forehead. A freak accident: Daddy’s shoes, stairs, a sharp corner. You hear the scream – THAT scream – and your heart stops. Then the blood, so much blood. You think you could never handle a moment like that. […]