“Always kiss your children goodnight – even if they’re already asleep.” –Jackson Brown, Jr.

I originally published this post with no intro, because I was curious to see if anyone would notice that the tips completely contradict each other. Some of you did, others… I’m not so sure. : ) The reason it’s not immediately apparent is because all of them are true, at least in part. I have heard completely valid explanations from parents as to why each of these is the only right way to properly raise children. It seems to me, if they are all valid, then the answer lies somewhere in the middle. What do you think?

Posted in balance, choices, family, love 13 Comments »

I never thought I would choose to homeschool my son

Ever since I left my career to stay home with my baby, I assumed it would be temporary — just until he started school. Then, I figured, I would have time to work, go back to school, or write the great American novel.

There are a million reasons why parents choose to homeschool (or not), but in our case the reason was mostly medical. Just before he was due to start Kinder, my son had a somewhat routine (if there is such a thing) surgery that went… let’s just say, awry. (You can read more about it in Overcoming Challenges.) With the surgeon’s blessing we still enrolled him in school, but as he suffered more complications, and later needed a repair surgery, titanium screws, and a halo, we opted to keep him home.

Posted in family, homeschool 34 Comments »

“I am a woman above everything else.” –Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis

I hate to admit this, but I spent a good twenty years wishing I could be someone else… ANYone else. I wanted to be thought of as mesmerizing, noble, admirable, witty, charming, wonderful, spectacular… the list of labels I wanted for myself was endless.

I’ve been called a lot of things in my life, some which I dare not repeat here for fear of making sailors blush. Most of the time I didn’t pay any attention to labels others used to describe me. I could just let them go in one ear and out the other. But a few of them lingered long after the words had been spoken and the painful silence had taken their place.

Posted in about me, acceptance, mental health 34 Comments »