Being resourceful is something I have always thought I was pretty good at. I have put together many a big-themed party fit for any episode of Martha Stewart – OK, maybe not Martha, but at least a feature on Rachel Ray – OK, maybe not Rachel either, but a party worth a mention on the local news arts and leisure...
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Sometimes your house burns down, or someone you love gets cancer and dies, or your dog dies, or you are in a car crash, or your partner announces their intention to leave you, or all the money you thought you had disappears and you’re scrambling for ways to feed your kids. If you are me, this is called 2006. 2006...
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"No one loves you like your Mother." That's according to Mimi, the Italian matriarch. And, as you can imagine, no one argues with Mimi. No one. And it is true, mothers are sacred. I know fathers are important and I honor their role - but let's face it, they are no mothers. [Editor's note: Um... what?] Mothers love fiercely and...
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My husband/editor is away this entire week - and also the week before that, but who is counting? I am actually. That means about 87 diapers I have changed and 45 meals I have prepared and five trips to the airport I have made and ... OK, getting a little bit off-topic here. The point is my man is gone...
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I am freaking out a little bit. In four weeks my daughter Boo (8) performs in the school musical Aladdin as narrator #5, thank you very much. I am thrilled for her. She is already drunk on the excitement of being on stage and I can imagine she will be over the moon when she actually has an audience. But,...
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Change is inevitable and scary. It is the source of our anxiety and often we have no control over when it happens. The recent tsunami in Japan was a sobering reminder that sometimes everything you know to be real can be gone in an instant. So there’s fast change, and there’s slow, lumbering change. A gradual change for the worse...
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Today is April 2nd. This year I promised myself I would have all my tax stuff in by April 1st. That has not happened. I have most of it gathered, but I have yet to collect the medical stuff, that stupid IRA stuff (I knew acting like a grown-up would come back to bite me), and school expense stuff. Now,...
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Here is a little secret about me: I cry at every performance I see my kids in. EVERY performance. From the first preschool all-school sing-along to the middle school jazz band performances. I weep like an Italian mother at a funeral. Big, bawling, red-faced crying usually reserved for a Barbara Walters interview. I guess maybe that is not such a...
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I have done the math, and when people say "There simply are not enough hours in the day!" they are not kidding; there really are not enough hours in the day. If we think of the things we want to do, the people we want to spend time with, and the things we want to prioritize - and divide them...
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I am a little pissed off today. Pissed off is not usually where I live. I usually live in happy, or goofy - or at the very least appreciative- but pissed off is unusual for me. There is really just one thing that gets me to this place and that is being dismissed. That is a tough one for me....
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Karen is an outspoken comedian, writer, artist, teacher, speaker, podcaster, Mom of seven children, and an adventurous thinker. She is a strong advocate of mindful thinking, asking for what you want, and living an empowered life. Karen speaks with expertise and humor on gender issues, parenting, homeschooling, autism, co-housing, sex and sexuality, positive self imagery, and being ridiculously happy and super-cool.
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