There’s certain qualities I would name if you asked me what makes a good mom. I’d begin with patient, sacrificial, creative, strong. I’d add in encouraging and consistent, loving and empathetic. In this birds-eye view of mothering though, they’re the words that describe it, not the moments ... Read More
How to Be a Girl in a Comparison-Driven World
Here I am, a girl in America raising three girls in America. Not surprisingly maybe, I’ve had experiences with my daughters recently in regards to beauty and it’s all just a muddled mess, really. It begins in our bathroom, getting ready for the day and Mae stands next to me as I put on ... Read More
When a Shift in Thinking Changes Everything
I realized something the other day, and don’t mind me being overly-dramatic, but it’s kind of changed everything. We ran in a race on Saturday. A 5k, with our family, for heroes and surrounded by heroes and because of heroes who sacrificed actually everything both as long ago as September 11th ... Read More
For the Tired Ones, the Weary Ones, the Ones Who Need a Nap
Picture this, if you will, because I know you can because I know you’ve lived it: A day begins, with new promise and new hope and the newness of new beginnings- it’s going to be a good day, you can feel it in your soul. Then, as it turns out, not five minutes pass and you don’t know how you’ll ... Read More
Building a Love for the Long Haul Even When It Feels Like Too Much Work
A long-running feud exists between Lane and I, and I am claiming neither guilt nor innocence as matters such as these are incredibly complex. Rather, I merely present the facts of a marriage, black and white, you decide. Lane and I graduated high school in 2001. This was a long time ago. All I ... Read More
On Mothering & the Confusing Mess of Exhaustion and Delight
It is evening, it is morning, one day. In the barely-there light of this morning, sun not yet even dancing with the horizon, a baby (fine, fine, a 5-year-old) traipses into my room, and with the pre-dawn light peeking through the blinds, she exclaims “Mommy! Mommy! MOMMA. My tooth? It’s wiggly! ... Read More