Without meaning to, I may have suggested that parenting teens is all unicorns and roses. It’s not. Parenting teens is my sweet spot. I know it’s not the same for everyone, but it’s the stage I’ve found easiest and most rewarding. While there’s much I loved about the baby phase, babies really don’t do much. I got excited when my […]
When I was expecting my third child, I read that children enter a new, but similar stage every three to three and a half years. During this time they strongly assert their independence and challenge the status quo. When I learned this, my kids were seven and three and a half (I wish I had gotten that memo sooner.) Over […]
When you have teenagers, things change quickly. It seems like each time you blink, they have grown a little; they are becoming small adults before your eyes. To make matters worse, with every other blink, it is possible for the mood to shift. (Perhaps the answer is to not blink.) I have learned over the years that living with teenagers […]
There are definitely benefits to having only older children, but sometimes I miss having little ones around. Once they all got past a certain age, Christmas changed. It lost some of its magic. Sure we continued with traditions, but it wasn’t quite the same. I don’t think there are many teenagers who believe that a man in a red suit […]
We all make note of our children’s “firsts:” their first smile, first tooth, first step, first day of kindergarten. Especially with my youngest, as my kids moved on to big milestones (moving from elementary to middle school, for example) I started noting the lasts, with more than a little melancholy. With the youngest, these lasts were also lasts for me. […]
Savor the moments. Every mom has heard that they should enjoy each minute, that they will miss these days someday. Not really. There are moments I miss, but overall, I have no desire to go back in time. I am beyond thrilled to be past the stage where I need to carry a diaper bag everywhere or rent a U-Haul […]
