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

Birthdays, Blog Conferences, and Tweens, Oh My!

June 8, 2015

Today my baby is 9! Happy Birthday, Miles! I can honestly say that 9 years ago I never DREAMED motherhood would be this great. Or this hard. But mostly, this great. The sweet-smelling little bundle of baldness I gave birth to after many, many hours of labor has grown into a smart, sweet but not […]

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What I’ve Been Doing Besides Writing

May 26, 2015

A mom friend of mine put it perfectly: this time of year is second only to the holidays in terms of busyness. The end-of-year school events: picnics, concerts, gatherings. The field trips, permission slips, yearbooks, teacher gifts. The baseball games, rain delays, birthdays, school holidays. The mad rush, the final push, before school lets out […]

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My Perfectly Imperfect Mother’s Day

May 12, 2015

All I wanted for Mother’s Day this year was a little day trip. I had this idea that it might be fun to go kayaking as a family, then grab an early dinner by the water somewhere. I even thought of a place and researched it some, but it wasn’t looking good. The kayak rental […]

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Monkey Moms

May 5, 2015

My 8yo son is not a big movie guy, but he has been dying to see “Monkey Kingdom” ever since he saw a preview for it months ago. This kid is a nature lover through and through. He’s constantly rattling off facts about animals and bugs. “Mom, did you know ladybugs play dead when they […]

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Too Close to Home

April 27, 2015

On Saturday night neither my kids nor I could sleep, but for different reasons. They were beyond excited about going to Little League Day at Camden Yards the next day. They were going to see the Red Sox and Orioles play, and they would get to walk onto the field in their uniforms and meet […]

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Why Kids Are Natural Entrepreneurs

April 20, 2015

My kids have an entrepreneurial streak. I think they caught the bug when they encountered their first yard sale. What? You can make cold, hard cash just by throwing some old toys out on the lawn for strangers to paw through? Sold! Then they tried their hand selling tissue paper ghosts at Halloween, handpicked flowers […]

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Clumsy Crab and Crazy Foxes

April 14, 2015

One cool thing about having kids if you’re a creative type is that you get to work on fun projects with them. And not just Lego and Play-Doh – though those are fun, too. As they get older, you might even get to do actual multimedia collaborations with your kid. For instance, this is a […]

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Grasping for Gratitude

April 6, 2015

It’s always fun to start your Spring Break with your child suffering the sudden onset of a violent stomach bug at 3 a.m. after a day of eating Easter candy. I’ll give you a second to let that colorful image sink in while I Purell my hands and start another load of laundry for the […]

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Adventures in Shopping: Cardigan Edition

March 30, 2015

I have a love/hate relationship with shopping. When I’m in the mood and hit a good sale, watch out. You are looking at the scorer of some legendary deals, people. Le. Gen. Dary. For instance, the $11 military jacket from Loehmann’s. The $17 patent leather driving moccasins from Loehmann’s. The embroidered silk slip dress from […]

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On Over-Planning and Igloo-Building

March 23, 2015

I am a sucker for an online quiz. You know those ones that tell you what country best fits your personality or what your spirit animal is? Well, a while back I took one on happiness. To my surprise, the results indicated that I highly value spontaneity, and that some of my happiest moments were […]