My husband stumbled on the video of the first time my stepdaughter met my son, shortly after he was born. "Awww," I said as I watched her nervously skip into the room with a shy, excited grin and climb into the bed where I was holding her sleeping baby bro. But then something happened in the video that made my jaw drop. Something small but not actually small at all. Something I had no memory of... There was a little bar code sticker that had somehow gotten stuck to my arm from something. My...
20 days ago • 2 min read
I knew Saturday was also my only day to get some work done, uninterrupted, but I also knew that we needed at least a few minutes together as a family to just be together and laugh. My son, as always, had wild energy (it seems to be getting more and more wild as he approaches age 4… who can relate??) ...and I was proud of him for asking, “Can we play ‘Who can sound like?’” where I give him weird, silly prompts to channel his loudness. I shifted from that game to “You are…” so I could give him...
27 days ago • 2 min read
Yesterday I did something I haven’t done in four years. I went into the studio to record harmonies on an album. This was for a producer I used to work with a lot… …until I gave birth to my son. Last time I was in there I was super pregnant. It was like time traveling, because it had felt like such a long time and also not a long time at all. This was a big deal for me because it was like getting a big part of myself back that I had been missing! 🥺 Singing harmonies is good for my soul and...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
There’s this trend on social media, maybe you’ve seen it - short videos saying… “I’m bored. Tell me your wildest hack for ___. I don’t mean basic, I mean unhinged.” Honestly though some of those comment sections have some really interesting tips! But what I get hung up on is like… You’re “BORED??” Adults get bored? I don’t! I don’t have the time or space to be bored. I wish I could be bored! I don’t think parents even remember what it feels like to be bored. Right? Maybe… and I’m literally...
about 1 month ago • 1 min read
“I know the truth.” That’s the mantra I’ve developed over the last few years. When I started Playful Heart Parenting I thought I’d have to grow “thicker skin” to deal with criticism on the internet. It felt like part of the deal. No way around it. What I didn’t know yet is that the criticism would sometimes bleed into my real, non-internet life too, from people who know me personally. But guess what? Two and a half years later, I have not grown thicker skin. Criticism still stings. It still...
about 2 months ago • 1 min read
“This room is driving me CRAZY!” I huffed as I pushed a couch to the other side of the room while holding a clingy baby on my hip The living room was crammed with stuff, the furniture so oddly arranged that walking wasn’t even possible. “Why is it driving you crazy? It’s just a room!” My 3yo… The voice of innocence… and wisdom!! All I could do was laugh. Because he was RIGHT! It reminded me of a song that Leah S., one of the parents in the first round of Activate Play Mode, made up. The...
about 2 months ago • 1 min read
Hello! Two things are out today that I want to tell you about... 1... My new app bundle!! You know how sometimes you’re just totally tapped OUT of ideas… and you wish you could just tap IN to something that would give you an instant spark of inspiration? That’s what gave me the idea for my very first app — the Little Moments Generator in Little Moments for Big Laughs. I wanted an eeeeasy way to access ideas from “Creative Mia” on the days when I’m “Burnt-Out Mia” (those days are APLENTY, I...
2 months ago • 2 min read
There’s a social media trend going around where people say: “I used to be cool but now I say things like…” And then they share something wholesome or weird or very parent-y But… I never used to be “cool.” At least, I sure didn’t *feel* like it! Not “popular”Kind of shyNot fashionable or trendy Goofy and quirky when I felt safeAt home or with my few close friends On stage in the school musicals And as a theatre performer in adulthood. In theatre, goofiness, creativity, and general weirdness...
2 months ago • 1 min read
My baby girl has decided that instead of going to sleep, it’s her comedy show. It all started when she began blowing raspberries on my chest that sound like big wet floppy farts… …followed by her big five-tooth smile and belly laugh. Only egged on by my 3yo son cackling and then us inevitably all laughing. Last night was the third night in the row of this. And while I’m usually eager for bedtime each night… I also want to soak this in because it’s hilarious and cute and who knows how long...
3 months ago • 1 min read