Welcome to Search Ironic Mom, a new series where I (a) take actual search terms that have led people to my blog, and (b) answer the search query. Today’s search term inquiry falls under the category of American Thanksgiving. Since the majority of my readers are American and since both sides of my family originally […]
Ironic Mom
A Twisted Guide to the Worst Toys of 2011
If you’re planning to purchase toys for some darling children this holiday season, you might want to look elsewhere because my annual list of toys-that-suck is here. Without further ado, I present the worst toys from Santa’s workshop, where quality control appears to have taken an extended vacation. A 365 day one. Toys That Assault […]
Stop! What's Your Sign?
I’m cheating. I posted this two years ago today, when my blog was a newborn, crying for attention from a small audience. ** Today is Married To a Scorpio Support Day. That makes me laugh. Is there a support group for people married to bulls? (I mean the astrological sign – not the animal or […]
Humor and Funny Stuff
I’ve been writing for Nickelodeon for the past six months. And now, at last, their new site is up. 9 Reasons Why You Should Go Check Out NickMom.com Your life is chaotic and you desperately need a laugh. (Sorry, I may have been projecting here). You want to see bizarre pictures with even more bizarre […]
Send Your Child Scavenging . . . in the Dictionary
Alternate Title: Messing with Your Child’s Mind It’s Saturday night. Vivian has discovered the dictionary. She wants words to look up. I suggest clever. She looks it up, reads the definition, and smiles. My husband suggests geek, which isn’t in there. He throws out its slightly more popular cousin, nerd. A few words later, Vivian […]
Haircut Horror Stories
Today, I have a humour column in the Neighbours’ section of The Calgary Herald. I somehow manage to time travel and make reference to both Miss Piggy and Edward Scissorhands, not in the same metaphor (I hope). Click the link below to read it. **Kids and the Chaos of Haircuts** What haircut horror stories have […]
When Kids Write Jokes
On Monday, Vivian and William went on a joke telling spree. Thankfully they seem to have slightly more talent in this department than their mother. After ten minutes of variations on the chicken-crossing-the-road joke, Vivian freestyled. VIVIAN: Why did the mommy cross the road? ME: VIVIAN: Close. Because she wanted to hug her children. ME: […]
Things I Suck At: Telling Jokes
There are a number of things I suck at. Doing anything crafty tops the list, followed by shopping and anything requiring opposable thumbs. Fourth is telling jokes. I recognize this is ironic-to-the-power-of-infinity given that I’m writing a humor book. I was reminded of this last night, when my husband and I were watching an episode […]
Stephen King on Parenting
If you have children, you’ve lived a horror story or two. You know that bad things happen at night and that fear (of disease, of cheese curd vomit on your shoulder) drives anxiety. No one exemplifies the horror genre more than Stephen King. Below are 10 of his titles applied to parenting. It: What you […]
Whiteboard Wednesday: Pardon Me?
Sometimes it’s the simple stuff. I’m not talking about foot rubs or walks on the beach or other centerfold “likes” (though I could if you want me to). I’m talking about simple words. Specifically, what comes spewing of my mouth. The other day, William remarked to his father: “Dad! We love mommy. We don’t like […]