Author Archives: Ilene

Old Friends We’ve Just Met

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  First, I’ll share the big news. I have a new man in my life. He’s absolutely gorgeous. Holding him feels like pure heaven. He drools a little bit and he’s shorter than I am. But I can live with that in exchange for his captivating stare and impish smile. His name is Des. You may in fact know Des’ mother, Tamara, if you are in the blog world. I became enamored with Tamara a few months back, when our worlds virtually collided out here in theblogosphere.  Her site became a fast favorite of mine, and then Tamara herself became … Continue reading →

Something Has to Give

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“Cut it to my chin,” I say emphatically. “Are you sure?”  The stylist asks. “I’m sure.” I sit back in her chair and watch as the hip, youngish woman slowly snips off my long, dark, shoulder skimming layers into a pageboy bob.   She told me her name when I walked into the salon, but I don’t remember it at that moment.  Maybe I was too busy checking  my Blackberry, or the time, or thinking of what I had to get done when I got back to work. The haircut had been an impulsive decision but a necessary one.  Maybe there … Continue reading →

Gaining a Little Perspective as a Yoga Newbie

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It’s time to mingle again, guys!  Today, with Kerry Rivera from Breadwinning Mamma.   I’m not exactly sure how I found Kerry, but I can tell you that from my first read, I was hooked on her blog.  Kerry juggles a home and a family with a demanding career, and as she puts it, she writes about the “joys and chaos of juggling a fast-paced corporate career and the messy, but wonderful milestones of motherhood.”  I love the honest conversations Kerry invites about balancing work and life and work and motherhood, along with her awesome book reviews and her journaling of … Continue reading →

Faster

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Maybe it was the parking ticket or the broken windshield or maybe it was the fact that my mother’s house, where I’m staying, had no internet or maybe it was the fact that I was under the same roof as my mother to begin with, but by Sunday, I started to lose my Namaste-ness. OK, let’s be honest.   The Namaste-ness began to slip away weeks ago, the tension of having to be out of my house by closing time on Friday (which I made with an hour to spare) or the mounting conflict of dealing with the naysayers in my … Continue reading →

I Heart Robert

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He had a William Shatner thing going.  He was older than me, by at least twenty years, but young, nice jeans, good shoes, great smelling cologne that I caught a whiff of as he whizzed by with his tool box.  He sang to himself as he walked from his van to my front door. I was in denial about my dryer, the rattling that got louder and louder that one week, during softball season where there was mud on all of my daughter’s clothes.   With a family of five, Laundromat was a dirty word.  I desperately called around to … Continue reading →

My Aha Moment from #BlogHer’13: Thank You Sheryl Sandberg

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I could feel the woman in the seat next to me stiffen as she tapped her trim, pink nails against her Kindle.  Crying makes people uncomfortable, especially when they’re sitting next to you on an airplane.  I had tried to keep quiet about things, face the window and go about my cry in silence, but it’s a cramped space on a plane.  It’s hard to remain an anonymous crier. I cry on airplanes often when I fly alone.  I’m out of my element when airborne, out of the place where I feel the need to be strong and composed.  On … Continue reading →

Learning to Fly

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Wow! Have I crammed in a lot in three days.   I recited a few choice words for the naysayers on Alexa’s blog on Monday and  I introduced you all to a dog loving thirty two year old mystery man yesterday, and today, well today… Tamara’s here.  I could go on and on about my soul connection with Tamara. Our NICU stories, our identical choices in baby names, love of all things grunge, sort of the same maiden names, the instantaneous emotional connection I have to just about everything she says, and the list goes on.  On top of that, I … Continue reading →

Must Love Dogs

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I didn’t want her to throw me a party. I thought I’d slip out of town quietly.  I’d say my goodbyes, of course, but without fanfare, one at a time, on the phone, at lunch, over coffee. The farewell party that Q. insisted she throw for me felt over the top. It felt emotional. Maybe it’s because there were so many people dear to me all in one place.  These were the friends I shared my best times with, and they were the friends who saw me through the worst.  They were the ones who got me through the year … Continue reading →

Go For It!

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Do you know when you have big news to announce or you’ve just begun a new endeavor and people can’t be happy for you?  Like that time you decided to go back to school, start a business, or take up surfing? Doesn’t that stink? Naysayers.  We all have them in our lives, and it’s often someone close to us, either a friend or a spouse or a family member who shows little, if no support for something in that matters to us. Even worse, sometimes these people seem completely against what we’re doing. Today, I’m talking about how I handle … Continue reading →

Designing Home

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This week has been one big blogging high for me, from sharing my “happy,” to hanging out with Tamara, to today, hosting another one of my favorites, Kim, from Co-Pilot Mom.  I love Kim’s slice of life anecdotes and the gentle reminders they give me to enjoy every moment of this beautiful, crazy, unpredictable ride of parenthood.  I love how Kim is not afraid to try new things, such as running.  I love her passion for life.  I love her photographs.  I imagine if Kim and I met for lunch, there would be a lot of smiling and laughing and … Continue reading →