Jennifer Briggs

Last Sunday we had a wonderful Father’s day that also contained a fraught moment in which we learned important lessons. We started our day with breakfast at a new cafe in walking distance from our house and then we went downtown for a ride on the Gateway Clipper, followed by lunch outside near a fountain,… Read more »

Amy is officially a rising sixth grader! How did that happen? I swear that I was just a little first grader on the bench outside my classroom looking at the sixth graders at my school and thinking it would be impossible for me to ever become one. Not only did I actually become a sixth… Read more »

We now have a rising eight grader in the house! Baby Crocodile had her last day of school on Tuesday, with dismissal at 10 am. Basically the last day is just going in for Mass and goodbyes. I had a few work things for the rest of the week, and Carl worked from home to… Read more »

Sarah has been having more times of missing me than she normally does. This has been notable for the last couple of weeks. It seems to be getting a bit better, in that she isn’t sad right away when I leave anymore, as she was a couple of times. But if something is stressful for her,… Read more »

“Mama, is it an alligator or a crocodile?” “Well, that depends… when are you going to see it next?” …pause… Sarah smiles as she gets the joke and belts out, “After a while!” I have started telling Sarah, “I’ll see you after a while” when she gets on the bus. When she comes home I… Read more »

We have had a full and wonderful week. Last Sunday Carl and Amy went on a long bike ride with a bakery stop to refuel. That afternoon Sarah had her spring piano recital for which she wore her musical-note-print sundress. I got the dress for her a year and a half ago, at her request,… Read more »

Last Sunday was a wonderful, relaxing Mother’s day that included hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa. Sarah delighted in showing them the short clips that I recorded from her Peter Pan Jr. dress rehearsal. Then Sarah, Amy, and Carl acted out a small scene involving the crocodile (Sarah), Tinkerbell (Amy), and Captain Hook (Carl). I’m… Read more »

How many clusters of headaches will it take for me to learn…? The answer may be 26 years worth of episodic clusters. I hope this time I have actually learned, but please remind me in the future if you see me once again thinking that “this time I can get the headaches to go away… this time… Read more »

I started going to a physical therapist this week and starting next week I will go thrice weekly for the month of May. The most helpful part of my first session was having the therapist tell me I didn’t need to be scared of my hip and new hardware breaking so I could expand my… Read more »

Last Sunday the kids had an Easter egg and jelly bean hunt upon our arrival home after our time in Florida. Amy then made color-coded hunts for the rest of us to complete throughout the week. There is still a bright pink plastic egg hiding in Sarah’s bright pink shoe, waiting for her to notice… Read more »