Mary Oves
Send Mary email at: Ovesblog@yahoo.com
- Thinking about potential and the need to let go
- There is a difference between December snow and February snow.
- more »
- Sometimes, she just wants to be left alone
- I've been explaining myself lately.
- more »
- Reading the news on a snowy morn
- Snow day.
- more »
- Dreaming of carefree days of golf and Alex
- I've been developing old lady habits lately.
- more »
- Learning about the manly art of roughing it
- "How long can that possibly take? And why do you need the whole living room floor?"
- more »
- There's nothing to dislike in this snack
- I'm sitting at my kitchen counter staring at my no-fat, no-salt, no-sugar, no-flavor, no nothing (no kidding!) rice snacks. I'm not sure what to do with them.
- more »
- The satisfaction of being Mom
- Saturday morning found me a-scrubbing.
- more »
- Getting in tune with today's pop culture
- The People's Choice Awards were on last night, and I admit, I did not watch them. But I saw some highlights.
- more »
- The heavy burden of losing weight
- The titles hit me as soon as I walked into Borders book store.
- more »
- 'Tis the season for resolutions, or not
- I love the movie "Christmas Story." My favorite scene is on Christmas morning, after Ralphie and his brother open their presents. The little brother falls asleep on top of the wrapping, clutching his new toy zeppelin, while the parents sit…
- more »
- A blizzard without snow days is a holiday treat
- I have never been so happy to see a blizzard.
- more »
- When girls wrestle with boys, who’s the real winner?
- I watched my sons wrestle competitively for the first time when they were 6. I held my breath the whole time. "Oh, my," I exhaled, to no one in particular. Football, surfing, skiing, soccer, Little League, I've seen them do it all. But thi…
- more »
- Being cool and dressing warm
- My mother has passed, but I think of her every day. Especially this time of year.
- more »
- The urge to travel vs. the need to parent
- I love to travel. I think I live to travel.
- more »
- Fake trees and the real Christmas spirit
- As I sit here drinking my morning coffee, I wonder at the magic of these holidays. I'm staring at our artificial tree - we've never had one before. But circumstances necessitated it.
- more »
- A tale of Christmas cards and unwanted grooming
- Christmas cards.
- more »
- Hey guys! A little help for the clueless giftgiver
- Men are clueless. Well meaning, but clueless. For the most part. Or maybe it's just the men I know that make me think that.
- more »
- Clearing the way from one holiday to the next
- It was the morning after Thanksgiving in the Calendar Year house. Mother Year was moving about briskly in the kitchen, getting breakfast ready for the kids and putting away special dishes that they had used the day before. She smiled at th…
- more »
- Doing some scouting before starting shopping
- I went Christmas browsing today.
- more »
- The frustrating challenge of feeding hungry boys
- I saw a recipe for barbecued chicken legs on the internet. The tag line was "Dinner for five for $5? I'll take it!!!"
- more »
- The best kind of thanks are those from the heart
- I'm going to write my Thanksgiving blog early.
- more »
- The dream, or nightmare, of a Pottery Barn Christmas
- Pottery Barn is ready for Christmas. And I feel unworthy.
- more »
- Ripping into the puzzle box of life with gusto
- My sons worked on a puzzle this weekend. They played chess. They whittled, and rock climbed. They told ghost stories, built a bunch of really great fires, and made S'mores. No computers, no video games, no washing machines. Just nature.
- more »
- When your kids are the greatest, why brag?
- I got one of those awful surveys from my girlfriend the other day. You know, the ones that ask you to take out the last person's answers and put yours in? They ask questions like your favorite television show, the best place you've ever be…
- more »
- Finding the worm in her son's new Apple
- Steve Jobs, if you were in front of me right now, I would punch you in the nose.
- more »
- Giving the gift of childhood freedom
- Childhood memories are like little pearls that you find in the most indifferent oysters. You pull them out, smiling, and admire them, amazed that something so beautiful and pure could possibly belong to you.
- more »
- In praise of pumpkins and all things fall
- So we're in for a bout of Indian Summer.
- more »
- Observing the grooming rituals of the pre-teen boy
- Boys are a strange phenomenon. Sometimes mothers have to observe them from a distance to understand their proclivities, like Jane Goodall watching chimps in the jungle. Jane eventually earned the privilege of picking bugs out of their fur,…
- more »
- A night with the gadget ghouls
- Woooooooh, it's almost Halloween, my family's favorite time of year.
- more »
- Experiencing the joy of weekdays
- For the twelve years my children have been on this earth, I have been going to work and leaving someone else in charge of mornings with my kids. And I was always glad. I liked the morning grownup world of coffee, meetings and high heels. I…
- more »
- Sometimes, the boys need an incentive
- ‘Tis the season for some bribing.
- more »
- This one thing is true: Love is good
- Love is a funny thing.
- more »
- Finding ways to spend rainy days
- My goodness, there's been a lot of rain. It gives my sons ample time to pass the time constructively in the house. Here are five ways that our family amuses itself on rainy days:
- more »
- Savoring Saturday morning breakfast
- It's Friday.
- more »
- Appreciating and being careful. That's the goal
- I texted my friend Susie yesterday to tell her that I had her son's shoes from the day before.
- more »
- Moms have a language all their own
- Thank you, Lisa Belkin. And Melissa Sher. And Pauline.
- more »
- A trip to the mall - and through life
- I sacrificed an hour of my sons' soccer game to go to Macy's today.
- more »
- Healthy eating is getting to her
- Crudites enrage me.
- more »
- Thinking about new challenges
- I have been teaching for 22 years.
- more »
- Celebrating cool weather and hot coffee
- How can this time of year not be everyone's favorite?
- more »
- She's putting herself at the top of the list
- I'm getting my housecleaned next week.
- more »
- Happily riding that summer wave
- I love the end of the summer. It really brings out the best in people.
- more »
- Cavorting with the young gods and goddesses at Hollister
- Every generation has been coined. Hemingway and Fitzgerald were part of the Lost Generation. My generation was X and supposedly, I was not considered part of the dominant culture (who knew?). A well-known New York Times columnist branded o…
- more »
- The fun of back-to-school shopping
- "Mom, I am so bored, I think I am going to throw up."
- more »
- Quickly tiring of the perfect moms
- Oh, you perfect beach mothers. You're so ... perfect.
- more »
- Her lifetime plan for her kids: Happiness
- I don't think I'm getting old.
- more »
- When she's around, stuff happens
- My birthday is next week. I only want one thing for my birthday.
- more »
- Dealing with the August Cranks
- It's happening.
- more »
- An alien view of Sundays at the Shore
- If aliens were looking down on Earth on a beautiful sunny Sunday morning in August in Ocean City, I think the conversation would go something like this:
- more »
- A dog can become part of the family - and make you a better person
- I'm a problem solver. Whether it needs batteries, a band-aid or a kiss, I can fix it. That's all part of being a mom, I guess.
- more »
- The kids don't understand, it's a Jeep thing
- I was driving my sons home from the beach and cranking Lady GaGa. The top was down (on the Jeep), I had my Wayfarers on in tribute to Don Henley, and my hair was blowing in the wind. I was feeling the joy of summer, of youth and of being a…
- more »
- She's far from ready for summer to end
- I heard a woman on the beach today telling her friend they should go out for drinks.
- more »
- She'll miss her neighbor-hood's 'character'
- I grew up in a small house in Hammonton. My father was superintendent of schools, and made a great living, but with four kids, he never believed that a big fancy house was important. Food, clothing, education - those were the important thi…
- more »
- Looking back on younger days and loving where she's at now ... 44
- I'm gonna take a moment. To celebrate my age.
- more »
- She sings the praises of her new love - the iPhone
- I ordered tickets to see Chelsea Handler in Atlantic City today. I confirmed that my mother-in-law and sisters-in-law wanted to attend. I set up a tentative babysitter, and checked out dinner reservations for The Quarter.
- more »
