By Esther C. Baird. First published in the Ipswich Local News August 9, 2025 It was 4:38 a.m. on Friday when our daughter screamed from her bedroom, about 15 feet away. “THERE IS A BAT IN MY ROOM!” As she bolted out, a leathery shadow swooped past me at high speed. Yep. That was a bat….
Author: Esther Baird
Busy as the bees in Peabody
By Esther C. Baird. First published in the Ipswich Local News June 30, 2025 I was scrolling through Instagram — which, for me, is mostly a steady stream of cute dog videos and supposedly easy-to-make meals — when a new post popped up. “Can’t wait to sell our own honey at Mosher’s Honey Company!” It was a…
Just a girl in the city with a hot dog
By Esther C. Baird. First published in the Ipswich Local News May 22, 2025 Here are two things you should know about me: 1. I love cities2. I love hot dogs. But here I am, living in Boxford, which is basically a forest with a few houses. And I’m in my middle-age “era,” during which I eat…
That Time We Went Prom Dress Shopping
First published in the Ipswich Local News March 24, 2024 To parent is to jolt along from one unexpected turn of events to the next — all while being expected to constantly provide food. It doesn’t matter how many kids you have or how many times you’ve done whatever milestone you’ve done. Not a single experience with…
Winter is Great. Just Not Here.
First published in the Ipswich Local News January 31, 2025 I can enjoy winter. Just not here. Obviously, I can easily enjoy winter when I’m in the tropics (cue my parents, who live in Miami!). But just last week, we were in Jackson, Wyo., where it’s winter on steroids, and I was happy — sometimes even tickled — by…
The Imperfect Ornament
First published in the Ipswich Local News December 23, 2024 I should have said no, but I wanted to be a person who said yes. A person who was… crafty. (Regular readers can wipe up any beverage they may have just spit out.) I was invited to an ornament party where we’d, “create handmade ornaments for each…
Dancing Outside the Lines
First published in the Ipswich Local News November 30, 2024 On one of our early dates in college — say, 1993 — my now-husband bought me cowboy boots and took me to a Longhorn Steakhouse in the Chicago suburbs so I could show them off (and stomp on peanuts as we threw them on the floor). I…
Make Way for the Muffin Mom
First published in the Ipswich Local News October 25, 2024 I cook a lot. I mean, no one would say that I should open a restaurant, and I’m not great at planning how much food to prepare if the number gets higher than, say, 10 people (that’s obviously what restaurants are for). And yes, I complain about…
Back to School, One More Time
First published in the Ipswich Local News September 16, 2024 I’ve been writing back-to-school columns for 15 years, and I’m basically out of a job. Our eldest is a junior in college. While the half-country drive to Chicago is no day at the park (it’s actually two days in rural Nowheresville), once she’s there — and her…
Robbery Gone Wrong
By Esther C. Baird. First published in the Ipswich Local News August 16, 2024 “I’m in your closet, trying to find gym shorts,” said our high-school-aged daughter. Entire columns could be written about why the American teenage girl feels compelled to raid other people’s closets to accomplish their fashion goals … and why it never ends well….