(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…
I was sitting outside and watched a little boy who was diligently following a pigeon around. When the bird stopped walking, the little boy stopped, crouched down and stared at the bird with the intensity of a National Geographic Explorer! His fascination with the bird fascinated me, as I pondered how the simplest things appeal…
One of the many lessons I have learned over the years is that trying to understand the heart of individuals aids greatly in learning how to deal with them. If you get where they come from, you know where they’re going. Here’s an example: Perhaps someone you know socially is very bossy – I mean always…
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…
My parents named me Calandra Yvette Campbell. You can imagine the jokes I endured when I was growing up. I was called everything from Calendar to Campbell Soup. I was also a very sensitive child, so it really bothered me. The Campbell part wasn’t so bad…it was Calandra. Fortunately it isn’t too difficult to pronounce,…
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…
I’m going to keep this quick – just jumping on my soapbox and then jumping back off. I love when people share their children’s cute photos and funny videos on social media. Vine has given many the opportunity to catch those cute 6-second scenarios on video. ‘Howsinever’…if I see one more video of some child,…
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…
Up until now, I have considered myself fortunate in that my children have never been whiny or continually asking for toys every time they see a commercial on television. Actually, that has happened in part because the only channels they watched up until this year were Sprout, Nick, Jr. or PBS Kids, neither of which really…
Growing up, I was not one of those children who vowed to not be as hard on her children as my parents were on me, in part because my parents meted out a fair amount of discipline, mixed with more love than discipline. Secondly, as I became older, I reflected on their parenting practices to…
Liner Notes Lounge 