I had never heard the term “Rainbow Baby” until very recently. I saw social media posts and looked up the definition. According to thebump.com, “A rainbow baby is a baby born shortly after the loss of a previous baby due to miscarriage, stillbirth, or death in infancy. This term is given to these special rainbow babies…
(In response to WordPress’ Daily Post from MANY weeks ago, By Hand) What was the best gift you ever received that was handmade? Those of us who are parents probably have a ton of handmade pictures, bookmarks, keychains and jewelry that our children have made for us. But there are three special handmade gifts I will…
Last weekend, I took the children to Toys ‘R Us to redeem gift cards. It was a surprisingly short trip, as we easily found the Power Rangers section. They then quickly spotted the toys they wanted. Easy peasy. We were in and out of the store in less than 20 minutes. We had gone to…
It’s that time of year, when the kiddies prepare to go back to school. Moms and Dads run frantically down school supply aisles at the local big-box stores, shopping lists in hand. I read an interesting article this morning from blogger Mocha Dad entitled, “5 Ways to Avoid Back to School Headaches.” I was thankful…
It’s back to school time for children across the country. My own children will be starting second grade and kindergarten next Wednesday. I ran across an interesting article/quiz in Scientific American about study skills. I believe that like learning, optimal study habits differ by individual. However, there are some basic principles of learning that can…
When my sister and I were younger, my parents often took us to restaurants for dinner. We were taught to be on our best behavior and learned to select and place our own orders. At 5 and 7, my children know the same. In fact, on a recent trip to Friday’s, Yvette began circling her…
Today I celebrate my firstborn child’s birthday. Seven years ago today, after 19 hours of an uncomfortable labor (not painful, just uncomfortable), Isidoa Branch III came into the world. I had waited so long to become a mother, and I was not about to mess this up! I spent the first several weeks feverishly recording…
The other day I had a conversation with my 5-year-old daughter that concerned me. Yvette is a beautiful, smart, feisty and confident young lady who never backs down from a challenge and isn’t afraid of anything or anyone! The other night as she was putting out her clothes for the next day, she informed me…
I’ve put this post off long enough. A few weeks ago, two tragedies hit relatively close to home in my hometown and current place of residence, Queens, New York. A 14-year-old girl was fatally shot on the bus after attending a party. The shooting took place a few blocks from my home. On the day…
Hello TTWC family! As many of you know, since March 2012, I have been writing a weekly column for the online publication, MortarNBrique, entitled The Mommie in Me. Most of those columns were either reblogged to, or posted in their entirety on This and That With Calandra. Last week it was announced that MortarNBrique will be on…
Liner Notes Lounge 