A house filled with an endless stream of banter and impromptu late afternoon visits with family and friends. The smokiness of early evening, when conversations become very, very slow and easy. This, THIS is what summertime means to me. The end. © 2003 - 2011 This Full House Read more →

Not unlike many cultures, growing up, my twin brother and I spent a lot of time with our grandmother -- especially, in the summertime. Some of my fondest memories are of helping Nagy Mama cook Sunday dinner, or tend to her vegetable gardens, while listening to awesome stories "from the old country." To be REAL honest, there were a few downright scary moments when I think she, along with others of the grandparent-ly-type, made up half of these so-called folktales, just to scare us kids into, you know, being good. So...YES!...I have taken poetic license in re-telling some of these... Read more →

My friend Diana wrote a wonderful blog post on the acceptance of messes (feeling pride in tending to her less than perfect garden) and, well, for me, hers is such a timely story. My parents always kept a vegetable garden. Growing up in an urban area, surrounded by ironworks, factories, several blocks of shared housing, warranting little more than a quick glance, before the traffic light changes, we were one of the few families to do so, in our neighborhood, anyway. Still, their vegetables were always so beautiful and, my kids spent hours playing in their green house, when they... Read more →

When my son was in the 4th grade, I asked my parents if they'd be interested in speaking to his class about what it was like to have immigrated to America. This year, they were excited to be invited back to Heritage Day by Hope's 4th grade teacher, who heard them speak a few years ago and was hoping they'd share their experiences with her class, as well. This time, I was a little concerned about their being able to go through with it. To be honest, physically, mentally, emotionally, my parents are in a very different place (who isn't,... Read more →

Okay, so I don't usually write about marketing to mom sort of stuff here on this blog anymore (but, I do on this one!) Because, this is where I like to think out loud with very little thought given to word count or social media metrics. Still, as a freelance writer and blogging professional (AM SO!) I do receive a lot of pitches (some good, mostly bad) and probably read twice as many posts and articles, every month, about some blogger being wronged, in some way, by yet another company who, you know, just doesn't get it. I read bad... Read more →

As a mom of a 17, 15 and 12 year-old, other than scraping teeth on utensils, or chewing and speaking at the same time (shiver!) things don't bother me as much, as they did, when ALL 4 of my kids were in single digits...at the same time (double-shiver!) But, this kid...right here...just turned 10 today and, well, I'm still having trouble wrapping my head around the fact that my oldest is now a legally licensed driver. Or, that my middle girl is turning 16 at the end of this year and how much older than 15 that sounds, right about... Read more →

Last week, I got to spend a few days at one of my favorite summertime destinations and, would you believe, it is NOT Disney? My family has never been, actually. Nope, in fact, I was happy for the opportunity to write about my favorite vacation spot, here in Jersey (is, too!!!) Still, leaving home, without my kids, is always hard. However, I did not expect my youngest daughter to cry and hug me, as hard, as she did, or to make my son feel as if I were never coming back home, ever again. Then, about halfway into the 2+... Read more →