TodsCircus

Every so often, we buy a lottery ticket. And for just one dollar, we let our collective minds run wild and dream about the day we hit it big.
The other day, after buying this one-dollar dream, the Painted Lady asked, “What would change? If we really did win the lottery, what would change?”
What [...]

I’m a scrabble fanatic. It’s in my blood. Every family vacation, for as far back as I can remember, was filled with endless games of scrabble.
For some reason, the game has been reserved only for vacations and family get togethers. It’s just hard to squeeze a game in between dinner and [...]

I suppose I should explain the long absence and why the circus has been dark for so long. This seems to be the logical step in taking our show back on the road.
I’m happy to say there were no lion attacks, no freak clown accidents, just merely paying my volunteer dues and chairing an [...]

Life should be filled with firsts. Seconds and thirds are just not as exciting.
Today I had a first. I drove the kids to school in my pajamas. I realize this is not an uncommon practice, but in the ten years of driving kids to school, I have never once driven in my [...]

There’s nothing that makes me more uncomfortable than the question, “What does your husband do?
It’s not that I’m ashamed by what he does. It’s just that I don’t really know. I mean, I know. I sit right next to him everyday as he works away on his computer. It’s really that [...]

I’m not one to get too upset about spills or breaks. I kind of expect that with kids.
The clown, on the other hand, can get a little annoyed, especially if something of his gets broken. So when he backed over the Strongman’s bicycle today, the brand new bike that Santa just brought [...]

I got a call today. From school. When I see that caller ID, my heart skips a beat, followed by a moment of panic. Is something wrong? Is someone sick? Did someone forget something?
Today, it was the Strongman. All he said was, “Mom?” I glanced at the clock [...]

I hate chain letters. And yet, I’m too superstitious to disregard them. It must be the threat of death, dismemberment and financial ruin that motivates me to action.
Having said that, I realize it’s odd that I would initiate my own chain letter of sorts.
You see, I was nominated for the 2010 Weblog Awards. [...]

I’m finding it hard to carve out time to write our family business plan. Just as many companies face that end-of-year frenzy, so too, does a family. The shopping, baking, decorating, and wrapping, combined with pageants and parties, leaves little time for business affairs, be it personal or professional. But without the [...]

In my quest for peace, sometimes I lose sight of the fact that I am the parent. I get to make the decisions.
As a peacemaker and pleaser, I have a hard time when someone is unhappy. I want to fix the problem. But with four kids, odds are, some one person will [...]