Letting Your Kids Go
One of the most difficult things I have found about being a mother surprised me. It wasn’t the sleepless nights or the tantrums. It’s the “letting go.”
One of the most difficult things I have found about being a mother surprised me. It wasn’t the sleepless nights or the tantrums. It’s the “letting go.”
I’m sure there isn’t a parent out there who doesn’t want to give their child a better life than what they had. But at what cost does giving “everything” come?
I have been asked how I am talking to my young children about the shootings in Arizona. My answer is, I’m not.
Maybe the question isn’t why some kids are bullies, but rather why the rest of the kids are not stepping up to stop it.
Lying is a necessary part of parenting. Any parent that tells me they never lie to their kids, well, I think they are lying.
Teen boys are wearing bracelets with the message I Love Boobies. Do these bracelets really raise awareness for breast cancer or are they promoting sexism?
I’ve been thinking about the qualities that people most often comment about in my children and how they learned those things.
I always hear people complain that their family members can’t seem to change the roll of toilet paper when it runs out. I don’t have that problem. It was solved the one time my head spun around in a full circle and pea soup spewed from my mouth, frightening my children into submission. I do have a different toilet paper problem, one for which I can’t manage to muster as much outrage. See for yourself…
What no one tell you is that while you are longing for some space, one day the roles will reverse. You will be the needy one in the relationship.
What happens when you leave your tween son’s punishment in the hands of his siblings? Hilarity, that’s what.
I was worried about what my kids would think of the things I wrote about them, turns out I should have worried about what they would write about ME.
What has happened for me as parent is redefining what actually matters, not getting as caught up in the small things, and choosing my battles wisely. Â
Mistakes, I’ve made more than a few.
We have the illusion of control and the peace of mind that comes with technology. But are we better parents or the same parents with more to feel guilty about?
A parents first inclination is save our children when something goes wrong in their lives. Truth is we all learn better through making our own mistakes.Â
What I hadn’t realized then was that was the easy part, discussing the cut and dry mechanics of sex. I hadn’t realized that it was just the beginning of an ongoing conversation where I would have to push past my own embarrassment and get over my own hang ups.
What can I reasonably, realistically expect of a 12.5-year-old babysitter?
People ask “Does it get easier?” That’s a tough question to answer. Physically? Without a doubt. Mentally? Emotionally? I think it becomes much more difficult.
My son was 7 when he was diagnosed with ADHD, ODD, OCD. As a parent who had been opposed to medication this was a humbling, eye-opening experience.
Some days I think chasing a toddler around the pool’s edge would be less exhausting than parenting teens.