Christmas is full of planning, stress, and obligations. The anxiety of the day can take over rather quickly. The distractions of the holiday details can blur your view of what is truly important. Many times this holiday season I have found myself worrying about preparing to have a perfect day. I worry my children will … Continue reading Presence Not Presents
There are days that are more emotionally taxing than others. We've all been in an emotionally vulnerable frame of mind that leaves us exhausted. For me, today was one of those days. Emotional vulnerability is not something I am comfortable with. I prefer to keep my emotions tight-lipped. Honestly, I'd rather have a colonoscopy than … Continue reading Tonight I cried in front of my kids.
I had the diapers, wipes, bottle, sippy cups, snacks, extra clothes, bandages, bug spray, kitchen sink, pacifiers, blanket, back-up blanket, and the stroller. I counted a couple times and I for sure had all the kids. I even went the extra mile and remembered the husband. My little family was totally prepared to take on … Continue reading Why forgetting your phone is not the end of the world: Advocating for a digital diet.
Parents around the country are preparing for battle. Lists are printed, sales are researched, and coupons are gathered. Back to school shopping has returned and with it copious amounts of stress. Take up your shields, coupon apps, fuel up and charge on. The Needs It's no secret that American education is underfunded. Teachers across the … Continue reading Let the Battle Begin: Back to School Shopping.
We're supposed to be honest. We're also supposed to be nice. Here lies a real dilemma. Many times honesty is not nice. So we find ourselves stuck in a bizarre limbo between what we say and what we actually want to say. For example... Parenting advice: Parenting advice is frequently unsolicited. Unwanted and unneeded advice … Continue reading When you are only honest in your head: Mental replies versus reality.
Let me begin by explaining a few important contributing factors to The Hairy Nipple Incident. 1. I am a nurse. Because of this my son is well versed in anatomy. 2. My son enjoys arguing. Especially when it is an argument he knows he can win. 3. My son is 6-years old and 6-year olds … Continue reading The Hairy Nipple Incident: Trying to parent with a straight face.
This is one of the parts of parenting that I typically get judged pretty hard for. I find no logical reason to not be straight forward with my children. No one in the world is going to placate my children or keep their world in isolated perfection. The more honest and open I can be … Continue reading No need to sugarcoat: Advocating for straight talk with your kids.
I have three kids. A 5-year old boy, 4-year old girl, and a 1-year old girl. Others frequently assume I have figured out a few things in regards to parenting. This entire notion is humorous. My parenting skill is far from expert. Asking me for advice on raising children is like asking … Continue reading I can’t help but laugh when asked for parenting advice.
Grocery shopping with kids is stressful by itself. Trying to remember everything, stay on budget, and not lose my mind while wrangling small children in public is no easy feat. Then enter the level of hell that is the grocery car-cart. On the surface one would assume that the car-cart is a fun distraction … Continue reading The psychological torture of the car-cart
Lately, my 5 year old has been a real handful. Arguments, back talk, sass, the whole shebang. I could tell him the sky is blue and he would contradict me. It is exhausting. Timeouts do not work, taking things away does not work, so what's left? Bribery, er, I mean, goal-making. Most recently I had … Continue reading We don’t call it bribery. We call it goal making. So there.
Tired Not Dead 