Blog

  It’s 2 days until Thanksgiving, y’all–gird your loins! Dr. Jenn and I did a Facebook Live to address the holiday stress everyone encounters including the “perfect” moms who look like they have it all together. I used to espouse a version of that, with the beautifully appointed house and […]

I’m writing this in the passenger seat as my husband drives, something I’ve done eleventy-nine times in the last 20 years. The road ahead and my sweet man beside me form a cocoon of creativity where I can do what I love most—turning feelings into words. I haven’t always been […]

In honor of Halloween, I’m changing my battle cry from “Hail to the Crone!” to a more festive version. Both are equal names, witch or crone, for an older woman who has gained power and self-confidence through challenge and experience.  Witches have been maligned throughout history for being powerful. A […]

  Last month’s blog described the last six months of difficult feelings. I was triggered a lot, and when I’m trauma-triggered, I fall into some old habits. I try to fill the hold in my heart with comfort foods that don’t bring me lasting comfort. This is a habit I […]

For most of my life I’ve ignored my feelings, because they disrupted efficiently completing my onerous TODO list. But I can’t ignore my feelings anymore, no matter how much I want to control them. In the last six months, I’ve learned that feelings can either get in the way or […]

I had a dream last night that I was a brand new student in a writing class. The teacher said “Begin!” and the class started to write a timed essay. Except I didn’t have any paper, and the only writing implement I had was a highlighter. I hunted everywhere for […]

Throwback blog to Sept. 2012!!    SOMETIMES YOU NEED TO BE SILENT We all know the old adage, “Do as I say, not as I do;” well, that never works–especially with teenagers. What’s more effective with teens is a two to one (or greater) ratio of listening to talking. Teens […]

Have you ever wondered why we get into a deep blue funk from time to time? When you are in a deep blue funk, do you try to blame other people for putting you there? “Why can’t my husband respect me enough to pick up his nasty boxers and put […]

Random acts of kindness are sometimes as helpful for the giver as well as the receiver. I remember, not too long ago, when I was plagued with resistance and frustration. I tried to buy my way out of that stuck place, and I acquired a plethora of gorgeous shoes and […]

Random acts of kindness are sometimes as helpful for the giver as well as the receiver. I remember, not too long ago, when I was plagued with resistance and frustration. I tried to buy my way out of that stuck place, and I acquired a plethora of gorgeous shoes and […]

When it comes to parenting, I think we are like my fluffy Goldendoodle; we are always on the wrong side of the door. It doesn’t matter if he’s been inside for only 2.5 seconds; he still wants to go outside. Whereas, when he gains his freedom, he’s immediately whining to […]

As a result of a pneumonia scare, and the ensuing emotional growth, my clothes are loose. I find it fascinating that emotional growth leads to physical shrinking. For the first time in my life, I have pants that are falling off my hips, so I ordered some smaller pants. When […]

Our storms of late have brought back my migraines, with a vengeance. It’s made me think of the concept of pain, and as a society how much we try to avoid it. Surely there must be something we can do, some secret, to stop having to experience pain?    I […]

Flowers are blooming, and birds are chirping. Bare legs are blinding us with their unearthly glow. Summer is on its way! Remember when summer was all ice cream and hammocks?  Now it’s a parental horror movie, with zombie kids following you around the house whining that they’re bored. Or, latchkey […]

Our 7th Season is complete, and I couldn’t be more thankful for all the lessons learned and connections made. We have two teams who received bids and will be attending USAV Nationals for the second season in a row! That is success by anyone’s standards. And I want to pause […]

I’m not sure why I have such an issue with rest. The pastoral scene of napping in a hammock is like a horror flick to me. It’s not that I’m always moving (I spent quite a bit of time sitting and knitting), but I am always doing. That’s fine when […]

I think there’s a little drill sergeant in our head who thinks that yelling expletives at us will ensure more productivity (the old “beatings will continue until morale improves”). When, in fact, the shaming shuts down our motivation and creativity. We need to be creatively open in order to devise […]

If you are the kind of person who has a tough time asking for help (ME– we’re talking about ME), then a way to ease into the process is to intentionally GIVE help to another person. I listened to an old episode of “Kind World”, a podcast I highly recommend, […]

  This is a big summer for our family, and it also feels like a finish line, of sorts. I remember when I had three teenagers, one preteen, and the accompanying hair pulling that went along with that. I could not imagine this finish line in the midst of worrying […]

When I visited Londolozi Game Reserve in South Africa in 2013, I was obsessed with connection as the antidote to mean girl syndrome. I don’t know if it’s a syndrome or a disorder, but whatever you call it, it’s pervasive and soul-sucking and I want it to stop.    When […]