Posts by Kate
NICU giveaway
My friend and former student, Emily Hedges, who is also the dynamo behind my blog book tour, said one of the most wonderful things about Ready for Air. She said, “Your book is a book that people want to share. When someone has a premature baby, you feel so helpless…like with my step-daughter. It made me feel so…
Read Morepublication day and skype contest
Well, today is the official release date for Ready for Air. It seems unreal, but there you have it. Of course I’ve written about my struggles to get this book out into the world. And yet, here I am, with my first review under my belt. And I want you to know that I couldn’t…
Read Morein appreciation of our teachers: an interview with beth kephart
I have been reading Beth Kephart’s work since before I could call myself a writer and really believe it. And when I say I was reading Beth’s work, I mean I was studying it. Because each of her books and essays seems effortless, as if she reached up and pulled the words from the sky.…
Read Morelooking forward
Every morning this week, after Donny and I have walked the girls to the bus stop, I’ve said, “Ah, I love to work at home.” And I do. There is no rushing to shower and get dressed, no driving across town to sit in an either too hot or too cold office, no trying to…
Read Morea letter to my daughter on her 10th birthday.
Dear Stella, I know I’ve been talking a lot lately about how grown-up you seem. And it’s true. Each time I look at you I’m amazed by the young person that you’ve become. And now you’re ten years old. When you were one, two, and three years old, I spent your birthday reliving the day…
Read Moreand that's why
This morning the doorbell rang at ten o’clock. A FedEx driver handed me a thin package. When I turned it over I saw that it was from University of Minnesota Press, my publisher. I tore it open and there it was—my book. The cover is so smooth, matte finish, just as I’d hoped. It’s paperback,…
Read Morejoy
Every Labor Day at my mom’s cabin, we unhinge the ladder from the dock, pull the boats from the water, and say goodbye to the lake—the lake I love, the lake the girls love—and I feel that familiar swell of melancholy as I realize another year has gone by. In the last two weeks I’ve…
Read Moreupcoming online class – and a podcast!
Now that the kids are in school and my schedule has opened up a bit, I’m turning my attention to writing and teaching. Registration is now open for my fall online Motherhood & Words class. Here are the details: Motherhood & Words Online Thursday, September 26 – Monday, December 9 (10 1/2 weeks) Whether you…
Read Morefirst day
Yesterday, I took Zoë to get her hair cut. She grimaced as the stylist combed through her tangled, matted red hair (she hates to brush it or have anyone else brush it). But then her hair was free of snarls, and I watched as chunks fell around her shoulders and slid to the floor. It was…
Read Moreshifting gears
Today marked the beginning of the great emptying of the house. Stella went back to school and D went back to work, and on Wednesday Zoë will begin kindergarten. KINDERGARTEN! She’s a little worried, I think, about making new friends and learning a new system. A couple of times in the last week she’s mentioned…
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