Maggie
Maggie is an entrepreneur and mother of two boys (Davis, age 10 & Patrick, age 9). She recently left her job in corporate healthcare strategy to open a family business (you can check out her blog at The Learning Lab). Her motherhood journey has included infertility, transracial adoption (Davis), a fortuitous pregnancy (Patrick), a child with mental health issues, managing serious pediatric asthma and parenting a profoundly gifted son. Maggie was born in Australia, but moved to Texas when she was a toddler. She met her husband, Rob, at Trinity University and after graduate school at the University of Michigan (Go Blue!), they returned to San Antonio, which has been home for almost 20 years.
Politics and Parenting: Raising Civic-Minded Kids
Despite the title, I'm not going to talk about politics.
That said, we really can't avoid presidential politics this time of year. Like you, I'm already sick of the bickering, the partisanship, the hatred. It's hard to...
The Thin Line Between Grumpy and Rude
I don't know if it is the heat of the summer, the fact that my boys are heading into 7th grade, the sheer amount of togetherness that summer brings, or something else altogether, but my...
May All That We Do Be Done In Love
I've been an ACMB contributor for almost two years now, and I keep on avoiding a topic: race.
Honestly I haven't written about it for all sorts of good reasons. The biggest one being that I'm...
The Work of Parenting Preteens
We are in the middle of learning all about parenting our newly minted preteens. A few weeks ago, Rob and I realized we needed a little course-correction in our parenting approach. It seemed as...
Seven Practical Ideas for a Technology-Free Family Dinner
Kids and personal electronic devices: it's a frequently discussed topic. Articles abound offering advice about how much time your kids should (or should not) spend on their iPad/Kindle/phone, which games on Xbox/Wii are acceptable...
Sex Ed: Why I’ll Tell My Kids Anything
I'm pretty much an open book. My friends tell me that I spit "mad truth." I'm pretty sure that means I'm not shy with my opinions or assessments of a situation; I don't hold...
The Ultimate Guide to Beating Summer Brain Drain
Summers are meant to decompress, let loose, and for our kids, learn lessons in self-direction and self-regulation. They are meant to get hot and sweaty and then jump into a cool pool, to be...
Summer Camp: High Adventure and Character Building
Sleepaway camp. It normally elicits strong reactions—either warm memories of childhood summers just beyond the reach of your parents or terrifying worry about what will happen to your children if you send them away...
Get Help! Stop Struggling with Homework Headaches
Homework seems to be an ever-present, pervasive part of our family life. If you have school-aged kids, it probably plays a prominent role in your family life also.
Reactions to homework at our house vary....
A Conversation About Risk
Do your pre-teen kids play unsupervised? How old is old enough to stay home alone? When do you let your kids walk to a friend’s house by themselves?
Last week, Ashley shared with the rest of...
Holiday Stress-Busters
I am really into Christmas—the music and lights and food and family time. I love the candlelight Christmas Eve service and the sweet nativity play for kids at church. This year I am particularly...
Our Adoption Journey
November is Adoption Awareness Month. Adoption is an enormously important part of my family’s life. As I thought about writing on the topic this month, I asked many friends and family what they wanted...
Family-Friendly Local(ish) Hikes
Every year I forget that summer in South Texas can easily extend into October. I know the calendar says it is fall, but so far I haven’t seen much evidence of it. Last week...
I am a San Antonio Mom – Shawne Zakaria of Eva’s Heroes
I've known Shawne Zakaria since before our kids were born (my oldest is now 10). Her smile is infectious, and her energy is abundant. Shawne has been an advocate for children and other issues...