My Halloween Growing Pains by Conlee Ricketts
September 30th, 2013
In thirty days the energy in our house is going to be ALL Halloween! It’s my daughter’s favorite holiday. She spends weeks pondering what she will “be”. In fact our house is usually decorated by mid September. Not this year. I am wondering what’s going on?? When she was younger she ...
GUEST BLOG POST: Understanding Introverted Children: Parenting Quiet Kids by Christine Fonseca
September 23rd, 2013
Introverts and extroverts – two words that define our temperament. More than just distinguishing a collection of behavioral differences including social connections and communication, they are also terms that refer to specific hardwiring, how different people utilize energy and respond to the word. Extroverts tend to be outgoing and talkative, ...
Peace of Mind from Good Weather Days by Melissa Swedoski
September 17th, 2013
It's a funny thing about the weather. It can make you feel upbeat and cheerful when the sun is shining just right and the wind is gently blowing, and it's not too hot, not too cold. It can make you feel miserable inside and out when it's cold, wet, gray ...
Could This Life Get Any Funnier? by Melissa Swedoski
September 3rd, 2013
As you roll along this mortal coil, does it ever seem like someone is having a good laugh at your expense? You think you've got it all going on, all that and a bag of chips, and then, just to keep you humble, something ridiculous happens to remind you, "don't ...
Increase the SPF on My Sensitivity, Please by Melissa Swedoski
August 6th, 2013
Recently, I've been pondering if I've gotten more sensitive as I've gotten older. About my looks, certainly. I check the lines, the dark spots, the wrinkles, the grays, a lot more thoroughly than I ever did. If I think someone is either sizing me up, wondering how I'm married to ...
Another Teenager in the House by Sharon O’Donnell
August 3rd, 2013
Today my 'baby' turns 13. For so long, he has played the role of my 'little boy', younger brother to Billy and David who are 9 and 6 years older than he is, respectively. As the older ones grew up, started shaving, driving, dating, and going to college -- I ...
GUEST POST BLOG: “You’re Not My Boss” — Cultivating Respect by Sue Sanders
July 21st, 2013
“You’re not my boss.” My daughter Lizzie is fourteen. Therefore, over the previous few years, I’ve heard this phrase more times than I can count. It’s as if she’s got it on autorepeat. My friends also hear this near constant refrain from their children, as well. Why is this expression ...
Sorry, But I’m Running Late …..By Robin Sydney Wallace
July 21st, 2013
"We don't see things as they are. We see things as we are,"--Anais Nin. As a writer and a journalist, I know the power of words, language and terminology. I know that through the language with which we choose to discuss a topic, we can define the public’s perception or feelings ...
Age Ain’t a Number, It’s Just a Perspective by Melissa Swedoski
July 16th, 2013
When I agreed to marry a man 13 years my junior, I wasn't thinking too clearly. That is to say, I was so giddy with excitement, that I didn't take my usual pros/cons approach and fashion a list of why this is a good/bad idea. Yes, I was that really ...
You Sure Waited a Long Time to Get Started by Melissa Swedoski
June 18th, 2013
It's a tricky business, this later motherhood life. On the one hand, you feel so supremely blessed to have this child(ren) who you can love, hug, snuggle, cuddle, nourish, teach, inspire, support and laugh with, when you perhaps thought you never would. But then there's the trick of time. You feel ...
