Learning Japanese

Towards the end of his freshman year in high school, our son came home with his school schedule for the following year and proudly announced that he was taking Japanese for his foreign language. Two years of language was required and he had just locked himself in. We were not as excited as he was... Continue Reading →

Don’t Stop

What do parents say when life gets hard with their children? "We are exhausted all of the time. I don't know how to do this well." "Is there a class we can take? Can you recommend a good book? Maybe she needs counseling." "I love him, I just don't like him right now." "It's a... Continue Reading →

Be Little

So many parents encourage their children to grow up quickly, always seeming to be looking at the next step. We’ve all had those conversations where Mom is questioning if Junior will ever walk/talk/sleep/potty the way another child his age does. As parents we can get so caught up in where they are going, that we... Continue Reading →

Open to Suggestion

“Are you planning to mow the grass today?” I asked my teenaged son one day over the summer and he replied with an honest, “Nope.” I suggested that my teenaged daughter do her laundry last week, and she said no thank you. Now, as the mom I have a choice to get upset with my... Continue Reading →

The Reason I am Excited about Fifty Shades of Grey

My family went to see a movie together on Christmas Day and watched several three minute trailers for upcoming movies, as you do. When we see a movie, we usually react to the future films, making faces or nodding in agreement that we're going to see that one. The advertisement for Fifty Shades of Grey... Continue Reading →

Do You See Me?

In tenth grade our daughter decided to become a rugby player. Our sweet, creative, incredibly dramatic daughter who is not terribly athletic wanted to play a violent game that we knew little about. We had some reservations, but went to the team meeting and entertained the idea. Somehow she convinced us that rugby was her... Continue Reading →

Date Night

This is one of my favorite subjects. I love Date Night. We try to go out weekly, and have been quite successful for the past ten years. Thankfully we no longer have to hire expensive babysitters, but we did that for years because it was worth it to be alone and get back on the... Continue Reading →

Great and Terrible

Last year was a tough year in our house. We had teens that were struggling, but who were not talking to us about it. The result was that one got into a pretty big mess and pulled others into it, as well. I won't go into detail because it's not my journey, although as the... Continue Reading →

Yes is the Answer

You know the drill: there is a birthday in your house and child 1 receives all kinds of new treasures while the siblings look on with hungry eyes. How do you teach birthday-child-who-has-more-than-they-could-ever-want to share his new bounty? We had to institute a policy early on; the first day with the new treasure was just... Continue Reading →

PG-13 or Rated R?

Suppose an investigator walked through your house without you being there, gathering clues about who you are as a family. What would they conclude? If a MPAA rating were to be placed on the environment, what would it be? Consider the books being read, the movies and TV shows ingested and the language and tone... Continue Reading →

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