On time – or not
Here's to all of the moms and dads who try on stay on top of the family calendar. When I was managing the lives of six people, I depended on a huge wall calendar with big blocks to track our...
View ArticleEmpty nest is inevitable and enjoyable
I enjoyed this collection of essays “The Empty Nest” edited by Karen Stabiner because they reflect the stage of life I’m at, with my fourth and final “child” at home for what might be her last summer...
View ArticleChildren will not go away when ignored. Marriages will.
THE MOST important relationship in a family is between the parents. Here we are in China, having fun together. You can have fun in your own back yard and bedroom, too. Go to China when college tuition...
View ArticleShe’s gone away
Kristen at a crossroad of her life. Kristen left on Monday for her first semester of graduate school. Her car full, the house empty. I feel the familiar yin-yang of college students coming and going...
View ArticleWild women don’t get the blues
Mom-baby play groups and a woman’s book group saved my sanity and made me a better mother. I loved the Wild Women Don’t Get the Blues Book Group. We met one Friday night a month and tried to talk about...
View ArticleMistakes, mothering and guilt
Those yellow globes were Big Red's eggs-to-be. This has been a rough week so far. I killed a chicken that was still producing eggs. We plucked one egg from her guts, then saw the eggs-to-be at left. It...
View ArticleRecovered martyred mothers
Becoming a mother at age 22 forever changed my life. The biggest shock was to think about someone else’s needs besides and before my own needs. Until then, it was pretty much all about me, me, me. Here...
View Article‘You’re fine just the way you are’& other gifts from Mom
The four girls in 1961. Do you like the bobbles on my hat? One of the most precious gifts my mother gave me and my three sisters was this simple statement: “You’re fine just how you are.” She shopped...
View ArticleKids resiliency will surprise us
Learning how to get along on the playground is fundamental to resiliency. I know a 10-year-old only child of estranged parents constantly in court over who gets to see the child when.One parent always...
View ArticleHow chores & family meetings have changed everything
Love the action in this photo as well as the reflection in the windows. Appearances can deceive. This 9-year-old is gaining self-confidence, skill, self-discipline, self-esteem and connection to her...
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