http://marybethhicks.comRSS feeds for Marybeth Hicks60http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/822/A-conservative-creed-for-today.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=822http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=822&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/822/A-conservative-creed-for-today.aspx"Mom, I need to ask you something," my daughter begins as she buckles her seat belt. Knowing the drive to school lasts only six minutes, she must figure the answer will be either concise or embarrassing, so I brace myself for a question about the meaning of a phrase I will undoubtedly have to look up on Urbandictionary.com. "What's the difference between liberals and conservatives?" Whew. An easy one. I'm just glad she didn't ask the difference between Democrats and Republicans. That's harder to explain. "The short answer is, liberals think government can solve a lot of our problems, while conservatives believe the government should be limited so that people can solve their own problems," I say. I offer up a couple of examples of government programs to illustrate the point — the economic stimulus package, "Cash for Clunkers" — but there's not much time to elaborate as we arrive in the school drop-off lane. "Well, I'm definitely a conservative," Amy says as she climbs out of the van. "See ya." I'm amused, but not surprised, that my 12-year-old already has decided on a philosophical label. Knowing Amy, it won't be long before she's asking me the difference between neo-cons and libertarians or the "Old Right" versus the "New Right." Clearly, she was sent to us by God to keep us on our toes. I'm also not surprised to be having a conversation about political theory with one of my children. Call us geeky (we're OK with that), but we believe it's crucial to teach our children not only our core religious beliefs, but also our political beliefs. This is what it means to instill our values, and thus, to do the real work of parenting.  mbhWed, 17 Feb 2010 15:52:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:822http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/773/Default.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=773http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=773&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/773/Default.aspxThe television hanging above my head in the waiting room airs an episode of the syndicated talk show "The Doctors." The topic? Sex. But not just sex. Graphic sex. The guest talks candidly to the show's regular cadre of physicians about exactly how she contracted HIV, and she's not using any euphemisms. Call me repressed, but I just don't want to share this moment with a roomful of strangers. As my teenagers would say, "AWK-ward." On the other hand, I've never felt awkward talking to my teens about sex. It's a subject we've discussed openly in our home since our children were young. At every age and stage of development, we've addressed their curiosity and need for information about human sexuality just as we talk about other issues of health and morality. It turns out for all our culture's "sexual liberation," today's parents are still too reticent to discuss sexuality with their children. This month's edition of the journal Pediatrics includes a study that shows when it comes to communicating with children about sex, America's parenting can be summed up thusly: too little, too late. "Many adolescents report little or no communication about sexuality with their parents," the study found. Worse, "Many parents and adolescents do not talk about important sexual topics before adolescents' sexual debut." Past studies have suggested that many parents underestimate their adolescents' sexual activity, assuming their children are not engaging in sexual behaviors. One such study found 58 percent of teens reported they were sexually active, while only one-third of their mothers believed they were. Perhaps this is why so many parents miss the chance to influence their teens' choices to become sexually active. Yet one thing is abundantly clear: Parents who make their moral beliefs about sex known to their children and clearly express their disapproval of adolescent sex have a positive influence on their children's attitudes and behavior. These conversations also serve to strengthen relationships between parents and adolescents, and closer relationships also are a key to avoiding premature sexual activity.mbhWed, 20 Jan 2010 16:23:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:773http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/537/Kids-a-threat-to-civilization.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=537http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=537&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/537/Kids-a-threat-to-civilization.aspxThey're everywhere and you simply cannot escape them. They follow you to church on Sundays. They sit behind you on airplanes, in restaurants, even in the waiting room at the doctor's office. They disrupt family reunions and days at the beach. They're the unwelcome but ever-present subtext to countless moments of irritation and unpleasantness. And now that it's summer, they're out with a vengeance, just waiting to raise your blood pressure and steal the peace of mind you hoped to find with a good book in a park, or over coffee with a friend, or while enjoying a movie with your spouse. It's not politically correct to admit that you don't like them, but let's all confess our contempt for these ruthless killjoys and demand that someone do something about their growing numbers and the inescapable destruction they are causing civilization as we know it.mbhWed, 08 Jul 2009 21:02:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:537http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/456/Dont-fume-teach-virtues.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=456http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=456&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/456/Dont-fume-teach-virtues.aspxNext week, the U.S. Senate is slated to take up a long-planned and unprecedented overhaul of the American health care system. In such an effort, I'm certain these lawmakers will overlook a huge but hidden cost of their massive national health care program, that being the indubitable spike in high blood pressure among those taxpayers who read newspaper articles about health care reform and then pace across the kitchen, fuming. To wit: My husband. I hope Altace is one of the drugs the government plans to hand out like candy on Halloween when it imposes its new system to assure our good health.mbhWed, 10 Jun 2009 18:53:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:456http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/457/Happiness-myth-traps-parents.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=457http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=457&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/457/Happiness-myth-traps-parents.aspxThere's a parenting proverb that says, "Prepare not the path for the child, but prepare the child for the path." I can't find the source of it, though I once had a lovely decorative tile with this phrase that I kept in my kitchen until my son broke it. At the time he apparently was on a path of destruction. There's a lot of wisdom in that phrase, but in our culture, it seems we parents spend a good part of our time trying to smooth out the bumps in the road for our children, rather than help them develop their own sets of internal shock absorbers. Our fixation on our children's happiness has created a perverse and unnatural reality. We're raising up a generation that expects life to always be fair and predictable; and also not too painful and not too difficult.mbhWed, 03 Jun 2009 19:00:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:457http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/432/Standing-out-from-the-pack.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=432http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=432&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/432/Standing-out-from-the-pack.aspxThey say there's one in every family -- one who is different from the rest. There's the one who looks like dad's side or who has the only set of brown eyes or who uniquely displays a talent for music or art. Usually, there's one child who's more athletic, or less; more academically inclined, or not at all; more outgoing or wouldn't say "boo" to a ghost. Of my four children, Betsy is the different one. She's the only blonde. She's the only child who isn't easily distracted. She was the only 13-year-old who wanted a George Foreman Fat Reducing Grill for her birthday (because she was the only one who liked to cook). Betsy is the one we dubbed "Little Miss Independent." Not only because she tried to scramble eggs on the kitchen floormbhWed, 13 May 2009 14:35:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:432http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/404/Freerange-for-kids-sake.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=404http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=404&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/404/Freerange-for-kids-sake.aspxOur conversation paused just long enough to be sure the screech from the basement was a happy squeal, and not a painful wail. No tears. Score one for the moms. "How did you do it?" my friend asks. "I only have two daughters, and I'm overwhelmed. You had four kids, and you seemed to have it all under control." "I had help," I wink. "A great baby sitter who made it all possible." The young mom in my kitchen had been that great baby sitter some 15 years ago. Missy says, "I learned so much from you; you'll never know." By way of example, she recalls a time we chatted in the kitchen while my daughter Betsy shouted for me from the backyard. "You looked out the window, but we kept talking, until finally she yelled and cried so much you walked outside."mbhWed, 22 Apr 2009 12:47:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:404http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/387/Parent-skills-take-work-not-luck.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=387http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=387&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/387/Parent-skills-take-work-not-luck.aspxA few years ago, author Rebecca Hagelin appeared on Fox News' “O'Reilly Factor” to promote her first parenting book, “Home Invasion.” During the interview, an incredulous Mr. O'Reilly challenged Mrs. Hagelin, asking how she reacts to teens who rebel against standards in the home about media. Mrs. Hagelin calmly explained that when children and teens understand their parents' standards and values, they tend not to rebel much - or at least, that's been her experience. Mr. O'Reilly summarized, “Well, then, you're just lucky, that's all.” I've no doubt that Mrs. Hagelin is lucky, in the way that we all feel blessed with the embarrassment of riches that parenthood brings. But it wasn't luck that created a household in which she and her husband could expect that their children follow guidelines about media consumption; it was skill.mbhWed, 08 Apr 2009 15:04:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:387http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/353/Filling-potholes-of-life.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=353http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=353&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/353/Filling-potholes-of-life.aspxIt's been a week of rough rides in the minivan. Midwest potholes being what they are, I wish I had a Lunar Roving Vehicle in my garage. Our roads resemble pictures of craters on Mars, or worse, the new federal budget - big, dark and dangerous. I don't take my responsibilities in the driver's seat lightly, so I've learned to avoid the unforgiving cavities that have formed beneath the snow all winter, awaiting my aluminum wheels. The potholes I can't avoid - the ones causing all the rocky rides in my van these days - are the parenting variety. Being the mother of three teenagers, you might assume that I'm up to my steering wheel in teen angst, anger and rebellion, but I'm not. No, the one at the heart of all the consternation (hers, not mine) is the 11-year-old - my "tween" - and the issue that has us haggling back and forth in a familiar dance of pleading and denial:mbhWed, 04 Mar 2009 16:07:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:353http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/326/Teens-not-with-stupid.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=326http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=326&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/326/Teens-not-with-stupid.aspxThis is what people always say when they learn that I'm the mother of three teenagers and a tween - "Whoa ... I guess you spend a lot of time hearing how stupid you are." Usually the people who say this also are the parents of teens, and the comment comes as an attempt to bond over our presumed mutual suffering from the ill effects of our adolescent's bad attitudes. I heard a comment like this recently at the doctor's office, when I mentioned that I have a 14-year-old son. "Oh, my kid is 15," came the reply. "I never knew how dumb I was until now. But that's just a teenager for ya. Right?" Decision time: Do I say, "It is a dumb adult, indeed, who lets a teenager speak to him as though he is a potted plant," or do I smile and nod in deference to the needle he holds in his hand?mbhThu, 05 Feb 2009 01:39:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:326http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/239/Giving-thanks-in-all-things.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=239http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=239&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/239/Giving-thanks-in-all-things.aspxIt must be the result of an official safety study, conducted by at least three highly trained traffic engineers, culminating in the adoption of a policy on interstate snow removal. Said policy, because it reflects "best practices" as well as a full spectrum of litigation-avoidance measures, now must demand that the highway be cleared of snow while simultaneously being treated with an anti-icing agent — salt or sand, or more likely, some chemically perfect combination of the two. I have no doubt this policy is dutifully followed after having been reviewed by the head of the road commission only weeks ago, when it was presented with all due authority at a meeting of professional snow-removal technicians. This is the only explanation I can imagine for the illogical traffic jam in which I have, for the past 27 miles, crawled down the interstate while ahead of me three snowplows ride abreast across the entire expanse of expressway, slowing the midday flow of cars to a maddening 15 miles per hour.mbhWed, 26 Nov 2008 19:49:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:239http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/199/Phones-unsafe-for-kids.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=199http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=199&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/199/Phones-unsafe-for-kids.aspxKnee pads? Check. Low-sodium, sugar-free diet? Check. Annual well-child physical? Check. Seat belts in the minivan and helmets on the bike? Check. Cell phone? Not so fast. According to a study released in Europe, your child's risk of brain cancer may jump as much as five times if he or she uses a cell phone as a youngster. Presented in London at the conference of the Radiation Research Trust by Lennart Hardell of the University Hospital in Orebro, Sweden, the research concludes that children who start using cell phones before the age of 20 are much more likely to contract glioma, as well as two other forms of cancer. Or not.mbhWed, 24 Sep 2008 15:17:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:199http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/172/Kitchen-TV-adds-spice.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=172http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=172&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/172/Kitchen-TV-adds-spice.aspxTrue confession - a little over a year ago, I caved and bought a TV for the kitchen. It's a small TV - not the sort of thing on which you'd watch an important football game or a movie - but big enough so I can see what Rachael Ray is doing across the room while I'm making my own yum-o version of mac 'n' cheese (from a box). I didn't get the TV only because I'm a Food Network junkie. The real reason I got it was to try to keep people from taking food to various parts of the house so they could watch television while they ate. Our family room was starting to look like the dirty-dish belt at the local all-you-can-eat buffet. So I capitulated on my longtime rule that there would be no TV while my family ate because clearly I was suffering under the delusion that anyone was obeying this rule in the first place - my husband and myself included.mbhWed, 20 Aug 2008 17:23:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:172http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/126/Begging-works-if-you-let-it.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=126http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=126&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/126/Begging-works-if-you-let-it.aspxI have to give my daughter credit. She's persistent. Despite my repeated denials, emphatically delivered in my most characteristic "mom" voice, she pleads for a cell phone as if there is any chance on God's green earth we will relent. She's tried every conceivable argument. "I'll be safer," she says. "Think of the convenience when you want to call me home from Nicole's house." (Nicole lives next door.) And my favorite - because it's so unconvincing - "I'm the only one of all my friends without a cell phone." Amy is going into the sixth grade. She's not getting a cell phone for another three years, when, anticipating the start of high school, we will arm her with our own version of an electronic tether - a bargain phone with basic features, not to include a portable typewriter.mbhWed, 30 Jul 2008 18:29:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:126http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/93/Take-charge-to-instill-values.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=93http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=93&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/93/Take-charge-to-instill-values.aspxPink now is the wardrobe essential for an entire generation of tween and teen girls, so it didn't surprise me when a mom I know mentioned taking her daughters to the new Pink retail store at the mall. What took me aback was when she said: "I absolutely hate the Pink store and I can't stand shopping there. Yet my two girls are always walking around with the word 'pink' across their rear ends. What can you do?" What can you do? Hmm. ... What can you do? What, oh what, can you do? This is the pivotal parenting question for 21st-century moms and dads.mbhWed, 25 Jun 2008 13:10:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:93http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/50/Learning-should-be-its-own-reward.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=50http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=50&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/50/Learning-should-be-its-own-reward.aspxRight away when I answer my cell phone, the sound of Amy's teacher's voice tells me this is going to be bad. "Mrs. Hicks," she said gravely, "we have a problem." "I have given your daughter several chances to complete her missing work and also to have you sign a slip saying she has told you that she has fallen behind in social studies," the teacher said. "She continues to lie to me about having done the work, and I suspect she is also lying about having told you about the missing assignments." This is a veteran teacher: Her suspicions are money in the bank. According to Amy, she somehow "forgot" to tell me she owes her teacher enough workbook pages to wallpaper an airplane hanger. Go figure. We'll leave the issue of integrity for another day. The other more immediate problem is, fifth grade is about to come to a close. The teacher would like to be sure Amy knows enough social studies to matriculate to the sixth grade. Quite honestly, I'd kind of like to know this, too.mbhWed, 11 Jun 2008 20:53:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:50http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/48/Default.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=48http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=48&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/48/Default.aspxNo matter how many times I attempt it, I still haven't figured out how to be in two places at one time. My problem isn't that I feel the need to be with every child at every event. I'm long past the guilt and fear that I'll send a message of favoritism to one child while another feels neglected. No, the issue that still plagues me after all this time is something much simpler, much more basic than the instinct to offer maternal love and support. This issue is transportation. Never mind cloning myself so I can demonstrate my devotion to each of my offspring by sitting on multiple sets of bleachers, yelling "Go!" or "Way to go!" or "Go faster!" There are plenty of folks who will stand in for me to cheer on my children at any given sporting event. No, if I could clone myself, it would be for the purpose of creating a fleet of minivans, each containing extra gym clothes, a replacement trombone and a box of cereal and fruit bars.mbhSun, 25 May 2008 20:47:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:48http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/36/Welcome-home-to-a-smelly-kitchen.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=36http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=36&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/36/Welcome-home-to-a-smelly-kitchen.aspxWhen I open the back door, I am greeted by my dog's wagging tail and the unmistakable, pungent scent of overripe bananas. I close my eyes and breathe deeply, knowing fruit flies are swarming in my kitchen like locusts on the prairie. Ah, home sweet home. The kitchen is a four-day time capsule. There, squeezed against the wall, is the ironing board, right where I left it. The iron still stands precariously on the end where I set it to cool before it could be put away. There's a newspaper on the kitchen table. When I left it was Monday's edition; now it's Friday's. On the island counter sits the bowl of fruit and vegetables I restocked last Sunday, uneaten and in various states of decay. The now-black bananas emit their gaseous odor alongside wrinkled peppers of yellow, red and orange; a shriveled lime that resembles a Hacky Sack; and an avocado covered in cheesy white rot. If my plane had gone down or I had been snatched away by aliens, I wonder how long it would have taken for someone to notice the rotting food in the middle of the kitchen.mbhSun, 11 May 2008 13:31:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:36http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/34/Platform-for-a-fight-then-a-bit-of-reality.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=34http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=34&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/34/Platform-for-a-fight-then-a-bit-of-reality.aspxDo you have any idea how far a mother's voice can carry in a designer shoe warehouse with 28-foot ceilings? Far. Really far. All the way from the dress shoes on the back wall of the store, off the vaulted tin ceilings and up to the sandal display near the front doors. I discovered this as I walked into the store. That's when I heard Prom Mom and her snarky daughter duking it out over a pair of 4-inch platform heels. It was a match worthy of HBO on a Saturday night. "You called me all the way over to this store to ask my opinion. I'm telling you right now you are not wearing 4-inch heels. Now, if you're going to ignore me and wear what you want to wear anyway, why did you drag me here in the first place?"mbhSun, 04 May 2008 12:58:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:34http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/20/Serving-food-for-thought-at-dinner.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=20http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=20&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/20/Serving-food-for-thought-at-dinner.aspxIf it's 9 p.m. Tuesday, it must be time for dinner. Now if only I had thought to get to the grocery store earlier in the day. Sigh. The dinnertime challenge around our house isn't just figuring out what to feed the troops — although that's certainly part of it. I have teenagers who still think it's "yucky" to eat tomatoes. No, like most families, our challenge is to manage our respective schedules in such a way that we're all in the house and hungry at the time I coincidentally serve a hot meal.mbhSun, 13 Apr 2008 15:21:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:20http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/23/Dogs-trip-to-ER-a-journey-for-two.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=23http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=23&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/23/Dogs-trip-to-ER-a-journey-for-two.aspxA long line of pet owners already waits at the reception desk when I walk into the small-animal clinic, yet the two women behind the counter don't seem to be helping anyone. Instead, one secretary stands next to her chair looking helpless and waiting for direction, while the other one — obviously the alpha secretary — talks into the headset hooked around her ear. "Raisins?" she asks. "How many?" Silence. We all wait while the caller on the other end of the phone responds. "What kind of chocolate?" More silence. We're gradually getting the picture, knowing glances passing among the dog owners vying for service from the staff. "It depends on how much milk chocolate he had," she finally says.mbhSun, 06 Apr 2008 16:00:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:23http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/24/Not-just-a-game-to-lunatics-in-stands.aspx#Comments0http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=200&ModuleID=582&ArticleID=24http://marybethhicks.com/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=24&PortalID=1&TabID=200http://marybethhicks.com/columnist/pastcolumns/tabid/200/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/24/Not-just-a-game-to-lunatics-in-stands.aspx"Did you hear that woman screeching in the stands?" my girlfriend asks. We're lingering on the bleachers after a basketball game in which our sons and their teammates' valiant effort couldn't overcome a 15-point deficit. "Yeah," I said. "You have to wonder what she's thinking." "I don't think we have to wonder," my friend said. "She didn't seem to let any of her thoughts go unexpressed." I crack up, because no matter how fervently I deny that I'm a hypercompetitive sports mom, the truth is, when it comes to basketball, I have to be careful. I don't want to be known as a parent with a problem.mbhSun, 17 Feb 2008 17:13:00 GMTf1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:24