It is my pleasure to present this week’s guest blogger. Gina Gennari is an English Professor, blogger, writer, and TV addict who is currently in the process of editing her first YA novel. She lives in Southeastern PA and is a mom to a chatty and cheerful two-year-old son, Jude, and to two sweet cats, Harry […]
Hilarious Family Moments
My Week in Funny-ish Tweets
If your brain is like mine, 140 characters is max for your neurons on a Monday morning. Here, then, is my week-in-review in tweets. On my kids: On my husband: On Operation Declutter-Email-Inbox: On prepping for teaching high school English: On my appearance: On pop culture: Your turn: What have you been thinking about this […]
Top 10 Ways Not To Get Ready for BlogHer
In 12 hours, I will be on a plane heading to Chicago. I’m off to my first Blog Her, one of the biggest blogging conferences in the world. Heck, I’m even speaking at it (and by “speaking” I don’t mean only to the person in front of me in the bathroom lineup). There are going […]
Rough-Housing, or Why Kids Don't Fold Easily
It is my pleasure to welcome a new guest blogger, Alexandra, to IronicMom. Alexandra is a first-generation American who writes memoir and humor for various writing websites. She posts on her blog Good Day, Regular People of life in a small town as the mother of three boys where she tries hard to go unnoticed. […]
Driving 14 Hours with Kids
We arrived in Manitoba last Thursday. It’s where I grew up, or — more precisely — where I started to grow up. I’m not fully mature yet. The good people of Toyota lent us a Sienna. My son nicknamed it Redman. Then my husband informed me that I shouldn’t shout that name out in the […]
When your husband pimps the minivan
To understand my husband, you have to know he has an ever-growing tacky collection, including canned alligator meat, Chinese Revolutionary propaganda, and a Jesus toast maker. Recently, he told me, “I have a surprise for you.” I raised my eyebrows, choosing silence. “You’ll get it tomorrow when you come home from work,” he said. “Is […]
Announcing Book #2
I’ve been sitting on this 550-word manuscript for six years. Even though Agent Jill doesn’t sell children’s books, I showed it to her anyway. Because she’s awesome, she sold it. It was announced on Publisher’s Marketplace this morning: I love The Change Your Name Store for many reasons: it has Seussian rhyme Wilma, the main […]
The Lazy Mom's Guide to Hosting a Kid's Birthday Party
My twins turned nine last week. I tried to convince them that birthday parties were uncool for the tween set, but they didn’t buy it. They’re junior economists who realize that bigger parties mean more gifts, not to mention more chances for Mom to officially lose it, something that usually results in more TV time. […]
How an 8-year-old boy reacted to hearing his mom's audio book
On May 1, I received an email that the audio version of Don’t Lick the Minivan had gone on sale. As I took my first bite of an English muffin smeared with peanut butter, I pressed play. I immediately started to laugh, mostly at the oddity of hearing a professional read my words with perfect […]
What's Your Grocery-Shopping Style?
I despise gigantic shopping carts, especially when I decide to shop for groceries on a Saturday afternoon. It’d be easier to drive a minivan backwards through downtown Mexico City than maneuver a locked-wheel behemoth adorned with fourteen-day-old lettuce leaves. My solution? Strut by the carts and grab a basket. Then proceed to stuff the basket […]