Articles written by Grace Brentley

What is Helium

About me - Grace Brentley

I am a 25 year old wife and mother. I have been married for almost 3 years and have a beautiful baby boy. I am currently a stay-at-home mother and recently discovered the Helium site. I enjoyed writing very much in my adolescence, but put it on hold when life

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Creative Writing > Reflections Reflections: Where was your favorite place as a child?: 4 of 102
Standing outside the rusted gate, I can see the faded, rotten remnants of the glorious tree house behind a thick curtain of leaves. It looks so sad now, so lonely that it's nearly impossible to believe we spent so many summer afternoons up there. When I was young, I spent every afternoon at my friend Tiffany's house. My paren... More..
Creative Writing > Novel Excerpts Novel excerpts: Loss of innocence: 2 of 36
Aunt Grace was my father's older sister. She was ugly, fat, and scary. I never had much to say to her. She didn't come around often, only when Daddy was desperate for a baby sitter. He told us she had problems, but never elaborated. It didn't take a genius to figure out she was a drunk.That afternoon we came home from school ... More..
Parenting & Pregnancy > Baby Sleep Issues Is it OK to allow your baby to stay up late and become a "night owl"?: 2 of 12
I would have said no to this question before having a child of my own. After all, conventional wisdom tells us that early to bed and early to rise is the way to go. I am an early riser married to a night-owl, and our son falls somewhere in the middle. After numerous tries to develop an earlier bedtime routine, I am resigned t... More..
Creative Writing > Reflections Reflections: Giving birth: 4 of 23
Thank God this day is over, I thought as I walked inside the house shortly after 6:30. It was Friday night. My husband was in his usual festive Friday mood, basking in the glow of two glorious days off work. I, on the other hand, was grouchy and mildly irritable because I worked on Saturdays and was nine months pregnant. My p... More..
Health & Fitness > Nutrition Tips How to eat healthy during the holidays: 2 of 11
Holidays are often centered around food. There are the Thanksgiving turkeys, the Christmas eggnog, and the New Years Day football pizza party. It's enough to make you gain weight even thinking about it, but it's not impossible to make the holiday fare a little easier on your waistline.One trick to remember is to never attend ... More..
Parenting & Pregnancy > Parenting Styles (Other) The joy of being a stay-at-home mother: 4 of 19
When my son was born, I honestly had no idea if I would stay home or return to work. I took maternity leave from my job, figuring that eight weeks would be long enough to make a sound decision. In the early stages of my pregnancy, my husband and I battled (sometimes bitterly) over the issue. He was concerned that his salary a... More..
Society & Lifestyle > Personal Morals & Values Humor: How to procrastinate like a pro: 2 of 9
Procrastination is not my area of expertise; in fact, it is my pet peeve. Unfortunately, in some twisted way, I ended up married to the king of putting things off. I have carefully observed his behavior in attempt to foil his clever methods, but usually just end up so annoyed that I either wind up doing it myself or screaming... More..
Creative Writing > Reflections Reflections: Motherhood: 21 of 64
I was anxious the entire time I was pregnant. The pregnancy was planned and everything was sailing along smoothly. The problem was that I didn't really consider myself a baby person. I could count the number of babies I had ever held on one hand. I didn't know the first thing about formula or diapers, but I had convinced myse... More..
Style & Beauty > Tanning & Sunscreen Are you tanning to death?: 20 of 51
It started as a spot, not much bigger than a freckle on my right wrist, as if someone had accidentally touched me with a marker, but it was expanding. The border surrounding it became jagged. I dug out an old magazine article with the time-tested ABCD's of skin cancer. Asymmetry, irregular border, changing color, and expandin... More..
Creative Writing > Reflections Reflections: Stray dog stories: 12 of 29
My dad has always had a soft spot in his heart for dogs. He works for the city, and his office is adjacent to the town's dog pound. Being such a small town, there are only three stalls, usually occupied by mangy mutts in need of a good bath and a filling meal. If no owners come to recover the dogs, they are taken to a bigger ... More..