Living with loss. Hard for adults. Sometimes necessary for kids. This last weekend my sister brought her daughters to spend some extra time together during this now-somber annual time for our families. We were talking in my kitchen and noticed an ambulance drive by my house, lights on but no siren. Then a fire truck…
filosophies+parenting
Sit down. Quiet down. Rise UP (yes, us parents).
A previous version of this article was published in The Fresno Bee on October 5, 2019. Students, discipline and why us parents need to step up more than ever… kindly stop reading now if you don’t enjoy truth in accountability. Several weeks ago, I had a field day on Facebook with Governor Gavin Newsom’s recent…
Family trips: Don’t bite off more than we can chew.
A previous version of this post was published in TheFABMom’s monthly commentary column in The Fresno Bee on Saturday, July 13, 2019. I’m convinced that easy family trips hinge on one simple parenting rule — don’t bite off more than we can chew. This goes for how many children we may decide to have, how…
Best lesson from Mom? Handle it.
A previous version of this piece was first published on TODAY Show’s Parenting Team in 2015. I’m sharing here now, years later, because it’s still one of my favorite pieces I’ve ever written about my mom… xo ———————————————- The other day my adorable almost-5 year old wandered into the kitchen (as I was writing a…
A day off from school for downtime? Oh hell no. {HLN}
Can we stop over-scheduling our children with back-to-back activities and unrealistic expectations that are completely age-inappropriate for what they can handle developmentally and then blaming it on how ‘this day and age’ is so hard for our poor kids? Wake up, parents. We’re the rule-makers. Recently, a mother I don’t know wrote a piece online…
Family Easter: 10 ways to celebrate the day with kids.
Holler if you’ve got a crazy rabbit this time of year. At our house, Mr. Easter Bunny likes to make a mess of our yard with half-bitten carrots before he somehow breaks into our home in the wee hours of the morning and leaves a trail of candy from my daughters’ bedroom and through the…
Good Friday: A Kid-Friendly Explanation.
“What’s Good Friday, Mommy?” my 8 year old asked. Oh crap. As a mom with longtime faith — faith that grew stronger after I became a parent — I suddenly find myself dealing with what I’m calling “a great Good Friday dilemma.” Spoiler alert: I also happen to be a Sunday School teacher. Although my Pre-K…
