Stephanie Jankowski's Blog, page 41

Freckles & Curse Words

In my current very pregnant state, one could accurately describe my emotional well-being as fragile. Iffy. Psychotic. I don’t pretend to be stable right now; the tears fall when I repeatedly drop my razor in the shower, and the curse words fly when the dogs lick the sliding glass door I just friggin’ cleaned. I […]

Potty Training’s Got Nothin’ On Us…

…except maybe that whole consistency thing. You may recall, my little peanut was NOT on board with potty training. In fact, she was pretty adamant that she just wanted M&Ms and I was to leave her alone. The adorable designs on Huggie’s Pull-ups didn’t melt her Disney-loving heart, nor did the allure of a post-pee-pee […]

Husband: WTF?

Even though Facebook continues to be a thorn in the side of bloggers everywhere, I’m holding out hope that my pals and I will be given Mark Zuckerturd’s blessing to rant, rave, and laugh as per our usual. Especially because I’ve started a new “trend” (in quotation marks because I believe a trend requires more […]

Won’t You Be My Neighbor?

Growing up, I never missed an episode of Mister Roger’s Neighborhood. His adorable cardigan sweaters, the whistling trolley, and Daniel Tiger were the fabric of my childhood. I learned words like empathy and patience, and took trips to crayon factories without ever leaving my living room. I knew the theme song by heart (“won’t […]

Primanti’s, Yinzers, and Black & Gold: Mapping My State

Allow me to introduce you to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: gritty city, full of heart and and pride, and while most of our collars are blue, the rest of the place is draped in black and gold. Da ‘burgh, as it’s affectionately called by its inhabitants, boasts 90 different neighborhoods. My brother-in-law and his beautiful wife actually […]

#NakedMoms: Growing Into Motherhood

When I received the #NakedMom’s prompt for this month, Motherhood & Growing, I immediately interpreted it in the most literal sense: the bulging bowling ball that is currently rolling around in my belly is a present reminder of exactly how much I havegrown in motherhood… Belly shots aside, I stoppedto really reflect on […]

I’m Going to Alaska

As I type this, I’m wearing jeans and a tank top, and my swollen feet are donning flip flops for the first time in what feels like years. The sun is shining and–wait, what’s that?–BIRDS. Birds are chirping. My windows are open and a warm breeze is slipping through just enough to gently sweep my […]

Introducing: The Leading Ladies of I Just Want to Be Alone

All classic movies have’em. They’re unforgettable, they’re repeated in social contexts, and they make for awesome one-liners when you can’t think of anything else to say: “Here’s lookin’ at you, kid.” –Casablanca “Go ahead, make my day.” –Dirty Harry “There’s no crying in baseball!” –A League of Their Own “Heeeeeey you guuuuuys!” –The Goonies Okay, […]

Five Years Ago

Thirty-three years ago, I was the first grandchild, the favorite. You actually called me Number One which made me wonder if you were just trying to remember the birth order of your grandkids or if I was, truly, Number One. I think we both know the answer. Seventeen years ago, when I got my driver’s […]

This One Time I Took Stuff Without Paying For It…

I was in seventh grade. Maybe eighth. I was having a hard time “finding myself” as I watched those around mesubmerge,never to be seen again, in the various social cliques of middle school. Preps? Brains? Jocks? Bad Girls? I owned an argyle sweater, had a 4.0 GPA, played softball, and had a smart mouth. Where […]