Recent Posts By Kristin Brandt

Ah, back to school. The time of year when I imagine I can hear the incessant hum of a vacuum attempting to suck all the money out of my wallet as we attempt to prepare the children for the upcoming year. While I haven’t figured out a way to avoid purchasing the seemingly random (yet amazingly specific) items on the teachers list, we […]

If you can see the photo embedded in this post, you can probably figure out what recent incident inspired the headline. My seven-year old daughter dropped my new iPad, shattering the screen. I know. I’ll give you a moment to catch your breath. Until recently, I never (ever, ever, ever) shared my technology. I didn’t let the kids play games […]

Our 7-year-old daughter has a way with words. Specifically, when she is angry or upset, she likes to leave us “love notes.” Variations on these notes include: I wish I was never born. I hate my brother. I have been grounded forever. Leave me alone. I wish I was part of another family. Our 10-year-old son has been known to […]

Summertime is definitely a good time to disconnect and keep time watching the boob tube to a minimum. While our television time has been severely (and happily) reduced in favor of summer fun, we do have a couple of new favorite shows that we like to watch when we are looking to spend some quality time on the couch: The […]

Something not-so-funny happened on my way to adulthood and crazy-busy motherhood – I lost my hobbies. When questioned in my youth, I would have told you my interests and hobbies included reading, rollerblading, singing, writing, and downhill skiing. Since graduating from college those hobbies have either been dropped because they are too expensive, too inconvenient, or just don’t fit into […]

I am wrapping up two weeks of summer vacation – the first spent away with friends (and without children), the second at home taking a “staycation.” If a vacation is, to quote my friend Erin, “just moving the chaos and madness to another location,” then a staycation is just keeping the chaos and madness at home, but removing the ability […]

I’ve discovered something this summer – there are lots of fun activities and interesting experiences available, just as long as you (and/or your family members) are willing to run. For example, in June my family and I were signed up for a 5K and Kids Fun Run on Spectacle Island in Boston Harbor. While the schedule of planned events was […]

Since our last disastrous trip, I have been a bit gun shy about bringing our children to one of the many local art museums we have readily available to us here in Boston. Beyond the psychological damage another failed trip might do to me, I had serious concerns that if we had a similar trip, my children may never understand why we […]

With my new fitness regime, comes a new obsession with accessories. I have my sneakers, favorite shorts, socks, running cap and sports bras. To that I’ve added new sunglasses, a cute hand-held water bottle for when it’s hot, and an amazing little ball to massage my right arch. Each time I go out I wear a basic digital watch on my left arm, and […]