Category Archives: Children

The Peer Pressure I Will Not Succumb To

Posted on April 30, 2015 by Rutabaga the Mercenary Researcher

“30 minutes a day.” “1 hour a day” “Only on the weekends; and only for an hour or so” These are the statements I’ve heard from parents concerning playing video games.  I totally “get it” – but I don’t limit … Continue reading →

Posted in Childhood, Children, Parenting, Reading, Society | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 42 Comments

A Leap of Faith – A Series on Progressive Education

Posted on November 24, 2014 by Rutabaga the Mercenary Researcher

Originally posted on The Mercenary Researcher:
Jumping Across the Abyss to Progressive Education “We destroy the … love of learning in children, which is so strong when they are small, by encouraging and compelling them to work for petty and…

Posted in Blogging, Childhood, Children, Education, Humor, Parenting, Philosophy, Progressive Education, Society, Teachers, Teaching | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Scary Mommy 2014 Thanksgiving Project

Posted on October 15, 2014 by Rutabaga the Mercenary Researcher

Greetings People, It’s been ages since I posted anything – I don’t know what has happened… I decide to write a book and my brain just dries up.  But sometimes that’s OK, because it allows us to have room for … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging, Children, Cooking, Eating, Society | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Whirlpool Sploosh Ball Wars Update

Posted on July 10, 2014 by Rutabaga the Mercenary Researcher

Greetings People, I know it’s been a while since I posted.  There’s actually a reason, besides the obvious one, that my brain no longer works correctly.  I, too, was worried about that for a while ~  But stay tuned, all … Continue reading →

Posted in Childhood, Children, Family, Health, Injury, Mental Health, Parenting, Philosophy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Whirlpool Sploosh Ball Wars – Therapy in Action

Posted on June 9, 2014 by Rutabaga the Mercenary Researcher

We have a round pool. An above ground round pool. It is much, much, much fun. We’ve had these kind of stanchion pools for years now – and having a pool available in the Tucson’s summer heat is most desirable. … Continue reading →

Posted in Childhood, Children, coping mechanisms, Family, Health, Humor, Mental Health, Parenting, Philosophy, Random Thoughts | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 46 Comments

Searching for Tribe

Posted on March 31, 2014 by Rutabaga the Mercenary Researcher

Give me some place that I can go  Where I don’t have to justify myself Swimming out alone against this tide Looking for a family looking for tribe                          … Continue reading →

Posted in Bikram Yoga, Blogging, Childhood, Children, Family, Italian, love, nostalgia, Philosophy, Random Thoughts, Relationships | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 46 Comments

The Five Second Rule Fail

Posted on March 28, 2014 by Rutabaga the Mercenary Researcher

My husband and I feel very differently about ‘the 5 second rule’ – come on, you know what it is…the rule that food dropped on the floor is edible if picked up within 5 seconds (as long as it’s not … Continue reading →

Posted in Childhood, Children, Eating, Family, Food, Humor, Parenting, Story | Tagged , , , , , , | 68 Comments

In Response to the Woman in the Ice Cream Shop

Posted on March 24, 2014 by Rutabaga the Mercenary Researcher

That’s my alternate title to “An Open Letter to the Woman in the Ice Cream Shop”… It was 2008, my 6 year old son and I were in a Baskin-Robbins, it was his first visit to an ice cream shop … Continue reading →

Posted in Aversions, Childhood, Children, Cooking, coping mechanisms, Eating, Education, Food, Food Allergies, grieving, Health, Parenting, Random Thoughts | Tagged , , , , , , , | 63 Comments

The Ring Tale

Posted on March 22, 2014 by Rutabaga the Mercenary Researcher

This is my fast Saturday story – enjoy. Several years ago we invested in a laundry ring to use instead of detergent in our wash.  We really loved it and one of our friends was curious about how well it … Continue reading →

Posted in Childhood, Children, Humor, Injury, Random Thoughts, Story | Tagged , , , , , , , | 32 Comments

I know we are connected

Posted on March 18, 2014 by Rutabaga the Mercenary Researcher

In the past I was chastised by a peer. It concerned giving my opinion about a matter amongst a group of people.  He took me to task because he felt that another person in the group might have been upset … Continue reading →

Posted in Bikram Yoga, Blogging, Children, Coincidence, connections, Humor, love, Philosophy, Random Thoughts, Society, Teachers, Writing, Yoga | Tagged , , , , , , | 92 Comments