Picturepocket's Blog

Tag: parenting

  • Elementary 

    Elementary 

    During my semiannual evening visit to my daughter’s classroom, her 2nd grade teacher posted the following list under “Classroom Management.” Normally, I see a list of simple behaviors like: keep your hands to yourself, or put away the art supplies. This time, on the eve of Ivy’s eighth birthday, I found the teacher’s PowerPoint slide…

  • Gift Shelf Hack

    Gift Shelf Hack

    About a decade ago, Tim and I both bought the same present for the same person. Instead of returning one, Tim suggested that we save the extra in case we need another present someday. He stuck it in the laundry room and we forgot about it until about a month later. We were headed out…

  • Captain & First Mate

    Captain & First Mate

    Yesterday Tim and I got a rare chance to lunch together. In the summer we had the kids and the rest of the time Tim is usually driving over the road. Instead, we had the rare combination of the kids at school and him driving locally. It felt like back when we were dating before…

  • Back to School Daze

    Back to School Daze

    Tim and I attended my oldest kid’s back to school night for high school yesterday. She will be an incoming freshman, so it’s all new to her. We saw the building a little bit during enrollment in the spring, but this was different because she was given her schedule and encouraged to walk the halls,…

  • Perennials 

    Perennials 

    I didn’t grow up with sisters, but I did have girl cousins. One lived in the same town when we were very young and it bonded us early on. Then our parents fell out with each other and we didn’t see each other much over the time of our middle and teen years.  We sort…

  • Two Loves

    Two Loves

    Did I rewatch all the Hunger Games movies over the last two weeks? Yes.  Again, seeing the character arcs as an older adult gives some additional perspective. Now let’s talk romance. Gale is objectively hotter and smarter than Peeta but, ultimately Katniss rejects him. Here’s why. In the beginning, Gale and Katniss have a genuine…

  • Genesis 35: Return & Rebellion 

    Genesis 35: Return & Rebellion 

    God calls Jacob to visit the place he first met him in the desert when he ran from Esau. Decades earlier Jacob dreamt of a ladder with angels and made an altar at a place he called Bethel. Jacob tells his family to bathe and leave their foreign gods behind. They hide their idols and…

  • The Algorithm 

    The Algorithm 

    Yesterday, my phone was telling me things. First it urged me go get my daughter from camp 15 minutes early because it was Friday and traffic is a little worse around Portland area in the afternoon. It was totally accurate and I arrived exactly on time for pick up. Then got a text that my…

  • Softball Season

    We attended our first high school softball game yesterday. Years ago, I played adult, slow-pitch, coed, city D-league, and have watched local farm-team baseball, but I didn’t know what the high school girls rules were. Here is a quick primer.  This was fast underhand pitch and the game play was tight. First off, there are only…

  • Genesis 27: #Blessed

    This chapter begins with Isaac feeling his advanced age. He is going blind and he feels like he’s at the end of his life. He tells his oldest son Esau to go out into the field and hunt for game so he can bless him.  Rebekah overhears him and rushes over to her favorite son…