Rebekka’s Blog
Thoughts on parenting our children, ourselves, and humanity
Featured Posts
Getting out of the House: Family Outings in Los Angeles (Physical Distancing Edition)
Just because you're keeping safe doesn't mean you can't have fun
Love in the Time of Coronavirus
Let us uphold the three hundred million years of mammalian wisdom that course through our veins: the knowledge, baked into our DNA, that we must let go of the comforts of the past in order to welcome what is to come.
Lockdown Day 45: Keeping the Pieces Together
I'm not sure what it is about my parental role that has bestowed me with some preternatural sixth sense about where everything is. Nor am I certain how I wound up the guardian and keeper of things in this relationship. But perhaps more aptly, I'm very attuned to things being lost and missing, and desperately wanting them to be found.
Groundhog day, Passover, and breaking up the monotony of lockdown
In my last post, I said we were finding our rhythm, but when rhythm becomes too predictable, it becomes monotonous. What punctuates your rhythm?
Day 22: Finding our rhythm in self-isolation
Today marked day 22 of our self-isolation. I don't know about all of you, but we're starting to find our rhythm around here. For those who know anything about music theory, you'll recall that rhythm can take many forms.
Parent Q and A: Help, my preschooler doesn't want to attend virtual circle time!
What's a parent to do when their preschooler doesn't want to join virtual circle time? First, count your blessings. Second, join in and sing along!
Stories, Comics, Resources, and Giant Lists to Help Families Navigate the COVID Crisis
A Google Drive folder chock full of materials to help children and families understand and cope with the current state of affairs!
Resources for Families Living in "Interesting Times"
What a strange few weeks it has been. We have the dubious honor of abiding by the apocryphal old fortune cookie whose wisdom portended, "May you live in interesting times."Here's some resources to get your family through all that interestingness.
The kids are [not] alright: Thoughts on early childhood development, social isolation, and the Coronavirus Crisis
Yes, most assuredly, this experience will affect them. It will most likely, if not definitely, cause developmental setbacks. But, the truth is, our children are going to have developmental setbacks no matter what happens, no matter how hard we try to protect them.
When you're brave enough to take a small child shopping: Mindful tips for before, during, and after the shopping trip
Most outings are adventures for little ones, which is both good and bad news. Simple chores or errands can become massive Arctic expeditions when a small child is in tow. Here are some tried-and-true mindful offerings in service of helping parents everywhere get through their shopping lists more efficiently.
Dictated, not read: The power of note-taking to help small children move on
Whether you're dealing with adults or children, the first step in helping someone move on and adopt a cooperative mindset is listening to them until they feel good and listened to.
Notes from the field, November 22, 2019
That feeling when you realize you are responsible for wiping n-1/n % of your household's butts.
The Nine Magic B's: Inexpensive Things to Do with Siblings Ages 0-5
It can be very difficult for children under the age of 5 and of disparate ages to find ways to play with each other in the way that each one would prefer most. I've worked out nine wonderful activities that my disparate-aged children enjoy doing together for more than 37 seconds at a time. Let me know how they work for your family!
The gift of experiences (or, please stop giving my kids stuffed animals)
This must be a form of cultural amnesia, a collective delusion that each of us is the first one to come up with the idea of gifting a stuffed animal to a young child. The antidote? Distinguished guests, I offer to you the gift of experiences.