What are you up to this weekend? I’m celebrating a dear friend’s birthday tonight, and the boys wanted to write a birthday card for her. “Try to write at least four sentences,” I recommended, to which they immediately responded in unison, “‘Happy birthday’ counts as a sentence!” Hope you have a good one, and here are a few links from around the web…
My conversation with Kate Baer, where we cover saggy boobs, turning 40, and writing honestly about marriage and motherhood. (Big Salad, free for all)
Also, Erica Chidi shares pretty pajamas and her beautiful proposal story. (Big Salad, paywalled)
What it’s like being a firefighter with OCD. (NYTimes gift link)
What sexy swimsuits.
How to write delightful snail mail. “Letters don’t always have to be life updates… Draw a map of a stroll you often take through your neighborhood, with descriptions of your favorite memories in each place. Make your own Mad Libs for the recipient to fill out. You can also skip writing and send Polaroids of snapshots from your life, or personal recipes.”
My boys gobbled up this cheddar-roasted broccoli. (NYTimes gift link)
In other vegetable news, salt and vinegar cabbage!
This 323-square-foot home was designed to feel like a luxury hotel.
20 short rules for better days at work. “Play music that came out the year you turned 18. If you work in an office it’ll be a conversation starter and might even defang ageism by normalizing BEING AN AGE, any age. Plus, there’s no music that’ll brighten your day faster than your teenage music.”
This made my dry heels instantly sandal-ready.
Twins speaking in unison. “We have tried to talk separately, but it’s not ourselves, it’s not us.”
Awkward family photos, haha.
Plus, seven reader comments (because we couldn’t narrow them down!)…
Says Jess on guess who was on Jeopardy last night: “I was driving around the day before my husband’s funeral, and I picked up the phone to talk to him about what kind of pickles we should serve… at his funeral. It’s so weird when your humans just vanish. I still text him on WhatsApp, and I’m still sometimes surprised when he doesn’t reply.”
Says Hali on three transgender kids share their stories: “A few months before my grandma died, we were up late talking about transgender kids. She was 93. She explained that she knew kids like to experiment and go through phases and some kids are a little different, but that she didn’t believe anyone was truly transgender. She expressed frustration about parents enabling children to behave certain ways. It was a calm conversation. I’m terrible with speaking my mind (I always come on too righteous and passionate), so I mostly stayed quiet and listened. I remembered a similar post on CoJ (“My Child is Transgender”) and emailed the link to my grandma. It gave her a perspective that changed how she saw everything. She wrote back thanking me; I think about it all the time.”
Says Karen on 8 readers share what they love about their looks: “Today I learned that we Cup of Jo readers are a bunch of stone cold foxes — absolutely stunning! It reminds me of my kid’s favorite Sesame Street book from the ’90s: We’re Different, We’re the Same, and We’re All Wonderful. And aren’t we just? Big love to everyone here.”
Says Allison on 8 readers share what they love about their looks: “I found myself looking carefully at each photo in this post before reading it, trying to guess in advance what they might say. And I realized that it was an impossible task, because there were SO MANY beautiful things to find in every single person. I hope I remember that when I look in the mirror, especially right now as I am undergoing treatment for breast cancer. My hair is thinning, I might lose my eyebrows, the treatment is irritating my skin, but I am still me. My husband tells me that I will still be just as beautiful as ever – just ‘badass beautiful.’ Thank you for this wonderful reminder of that.”
Says Lauren O. on the simplest dessert: “I once yearned for cookies but had no chocolate chips in the house, so I hacked up a bunch of weird, fancy chocolate bars I’d brought home from the giveaway table at work (Sea salt! Caramel! Dried fruit! Chiles! The corpses of other snacks and desserts!) It was great. Now I always get my freak on in the Pretentious Chocolate Aisle at the supermarket before I bake.”
Says Whitney on what non-flashy things do you love? “When I’m lying in bed reading, and my husband rests his hand on the inside of my thigh. Not flashy, but damn it makes me feel content.”
Says Julie on what non-flashy things do you love? “That space on the side of my kids’ faces where their cheek meets their temple, you know the spot right beyond the eye? I’m not a super touch-feely person but I’m already mourning the day they’re too old for me to kiss them right in that spot.”
(Photo by Artem Podrez/Stocksy.)
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