The dirt smudged across her cheek sparkles, and her girly fingernails hide the grit of a day well played. Today she has snuggled under a blanket and read aloud to her brother from a book called, “Warrior”. She danced to pop music in her bedroom and then built legos with her brother when he told her he was bored without her. She left her breakfast behind because she realized she hadn’t fed the animals yet. Out the window I watched her move from one animal to the next, dog, chicken, chicken, chicken, horse, chicken, cat, more chickens, making sure each animal received a bit of attention as she said, “Good…
“There Are No Rules, Aunt Bobbi”
This is my big sister Bobbi. Bobbi is almost 52, but is forever a kid. She was 16 when I was born, but we still played baby dolls together my whole childhood. As the rest of us girls grew up, she stayed the same. It never felt very fair, the hand Bobbi was dealt…but such is life. Bobbi loves for me to do her hair and makeup, she loves to watch movies together, and listen to music. She loves my UNDIVIDED attention! I used to give that to her when we were together, but once I became a mother…it became so much harder! Things are different…our time together is different…
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Running Into The Sunshine
This winter has seemed like one that will never end! After several years of mild winters here in Missouri, this one has reminded us what a “real” winter can look like! But today the sunshine made an appearance! Even though the wind was cutting and I still thought it was freezing, the sun was all the kids needed! We came home from art class and instead of getting right to our school, I let them go soak up the sunshine! I loved watching them run and play like it was a summer day! Their cheeks were rosy, but it was like they couldn’t even feel the cold because they were…
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A Mother’s Garden
Yesterday, we walked among the most beautiful gardens. Hundreds of flowers and each one so spectacular! I do not have a green thumb, and though I am completely fascinated with flowers…it is simply not a skill I have! My mother and all the women on my husband’s side of the family are amazing with flowers and plants! I often wished I had a knack for it, and always imagined that one day I would take the time to really invest myself in learning more and trying harder. I even planned that this summer would be the year I do that! But as the list of things to do this summer…
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Growing Pains
Empathy runs deep in my veins. I have the level of empathy that makes me sick to my stomach when I hear people talk about a getting a cut or breaking a bone. I will honestly have throbbing, sympathy pains and I am not exaggerating that a bit! When I hear of something awful that has happened to someone, it is so hard for me to move on past my heartache for them. I know there are many other “feelers” out there that know exactly what I’m describing. I am glad I have strong empathy. Being empathetic has shaped who I am. There were stages of my life when I…
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Worth the Effort
Parenting is hard. But I’m here to tell you, we can do this. We can get through every hard stage, because our kids are worth our effort! My constant parenting mantra these days is “today will not last forever…but the lessons from it will.” I want to be patient while my kids work through tough stuff and offer them all the right tools to get through it. I don’t want to give up on them learning meaningful things, in a real and lasting way, by demanding immediate perfection that will really only look good on the outside. I want their hearts to guide their behavior, not fear…and hearts are slower…
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Embracing Monday
I used to dread Monday. Sunday at about 4 o’clock the Monday depression would set in and ruin what was left of a perfectly good weekend! It also ruined the beginning of what could have been a perfectly good week! It helped when I was able to quit working outside of the home, but Monday was still hard. I knew I had a million chores to do, school had to be done, Ryan would go back to work, and we sometimes would all suffer from over exhaustion and be super grumpy. About a year ago I was so tired of feeling that way. I had the realization that though my…
