Mean girls, bullies, acne, fitting in...all those things every child from here to kingdom come has had to endure but Day 24 Tell Them It WILL Get Better reminds me that for MY child...in this very moment...when she has been left out, or made fun of...for her it doesn't matter how many millions of children have endured those same scars. It only matters that she did...today...and that her ...
Day 23 Choose Their Forbidden Fruit Wisely
The most desirable things in life are the ones we just cannot have, so Day 23 Choose Their Forbidden Fruit Wisely reminds me that as moms we need to choose very carefully those rules we enforce for our children. A poorly thought-out plan can back fire, with kids that are 2 or 12! "Don't hang out with those friends." "Don't date that boy." "Don't eat that ...
Day 22 Family Dinner Shminner
We've heard it over and over, but Day 22 Family Dinner Shminner is just a peak inside some of the crazy, unorthodox things we do in our family that buck the normal parenting trends. But the real point is this - the best moms figure out a way to take the "rules" and bend them and mold them to make them actually work for their family. "Always sit down to eat dinner as a family"....I've ...
Day 21 When They Are Hard To Love Love Them Harder
"When They Are Hard To Love — Love Them Harder" kind of speaks to EVERY mom in the history of the universe because there are some days it just seems hard: hard to remember that they are only children who need our love, patience, guidance, and joy more than anything in the world. I'm sure you can relate to those days when everything about motherhood seems hard. Those days when your young ...
Day 20 Nurturing Your Marriage After Children
Ahhh the bane of so many a good mom - Day 20 Nurturing Your Marriage After Children reminds me that in this family, it's not just me and my children. There is a husband who needs my love and attention just as much and sometimes more than my 2 kids. Can you even remember what it was like before children - the relationship you had with your husband? Depending on how old your ...
Day 19 Relax – You Are Never Going To Finish
As moms we get so wrapped up in crossing things off our To-Do list that we often forget this: Day 19 Relax - You Are Never Going To Finish. I mean, like NEVER! And it's good and it's bad and it's all in a day of parenting. But the sooner we accept this truism, the sooner we can focus on what's really important. The Race Begins Alarm off - jump out of bed - rouse snoring hubby - ...
Day 18 Quit Beating Yourself Up
I don't know about you but Day 18 Quit Beating Yourself Up is one I need to remind myself of at least once a day. I'm not sure where or how we learn it as moms, but to truly be a better mom, we need to quit using ourselves as a punching bag. When did it happen? When did we become the punching bag in this relationship with ourselves? I don't remember being so hard on ...
Day 17 Put Yourself In Their Shoes
It's really hard to do this sometimes- but Day 17 Put Yourself In Their Shoes gives us moms a little insight into how crappy it can be to be a kid some days. Because when you think about it, it's not all sunshine and suckers that low to the ground. And even though it's all a little funny, sometimes being a better mom is as simple as remembering that everyone faces daily struggles, ...
Day 16 Be Their Calm
On the days when it's hard and the days that you think you cannot possibly bite your tongue or keep the peace any more, Day 16 Be Their Calm is all about why you should. How in the midst of the chaos that is this world, sometimes being a better mom is all about finding the ways to make your home be the eye of the storm. We've all had THOSE days...where we were running about 10 ...
Day 15 Give Them Kisses Lots Of Kisses
When my girls were babies and soft and snuggly and smelled good all the time, I never would have needed Day 15 Give Them Kisses Lots Of Kisses to remind me to do just that. Because they were so fresh out of my belly, still seemingly tethered by that unseen umbilical cord, that kissing their little cheeks, and mouths and toes and fingers was ingrained in me, second nature...an innate ...