Do you sometimes feel like a "Dr. Phil?"
Does your teen constantly ask you for relationship advice? When your teen finds someone they really like do they come to you for some advice on how to handle their relationship?
It seems to me that more teens today are more apt to seek advice or communicate with their parents about their relationships. Of course that is a great thing because all parents want to have an open line of communication with their teen. Just judging from my own personal experience and from listening to other parents it seems as if the line of communication between teen and parent is …
Kass and her Visual Arts Buddies - Class of 2012
Over the last two years I have become intimately familiar with the stretch of I-40 heading West to Winston-Salem, all four hours of it (each way)! I know just about every nook and crannie, cow pasture, farmer’s market, and gas station there is along the way. I guess you can tell that my agrarian roots accompany me wherever I travel.
I am always on the look out also for Mediterranean food, a good bakery, and a great consignment shop. And all of these things I have surely found as I have trekked back and forth these …
Mother's Day got me thinking...
Prior to Mother’s Day last weekend, I got to thinking about collecting my thoughts about being a mother and fashioning them into a blog post. But faced with battling “mom moments” all week long, I was not able to come up with much. So I offer what I tell my sons every year, “It is Mother’s Day for me every day.” I have explained to my Gus and Max that statement means that being their mom is a gift. And that is true.
Being their mom is a gift because it has made me determined to reach for my dreams and …
After a year of dance classes, we had our final dress rehearsal this weekend for our recital. All the songs, the costumes, the pictures, and the videos are all coming to an end for another year. Watching the rehearsal brought back so many memories.
As I watched the three and four year old dancers take the stage with their adorable little tutus, it reminded me of the first days of dance for my daughter. As the girls continued to file into the auditorium to rehearse their numbers, the past eleven years flashed through my mind. I thought about all the costumes that are not so neatly stored in every closet in …
Ah, the last month of school. The month between mid-May and mid-June where moms lose their minds. Oh, wait. Moms lose their minds every month. This is the time where moms feel frantic because there is so much going on and we’re filled with a mix of excitement and dread when we think about all the end-of-school events and tasks.
Let’s face it, about this time of the year we’re all ready for summer to hurry up and get here. I think moms and kids alike get that feeling at this time of year. It’s hard to manage all the many events and tests and projects and try-outs and what-not when …
Letters for Academic recognition
I recently had the privilege of attending the academic ceremony at my son’s high school. I thought it was really cool how the sophomores received a letter for a high school letter jacket for academics. I had always thought the letters on the jackets were made for athletics only. It was nice to see a full auditorium of people for an academic presentation.
At the start of the presentation some of the seniors received some really nice scholarships for the college of their choice. I didn’t realize some really wonderful scholarships can be granted if you put forth the effort to do some research.
The …
John, Nana and Drew
If there were four traits that you could be assured of your children having as “second nature” , what would they be? That’s a great question I was asked recently. I liken the answer for some reason to construction work. Raising kids is a lot like building a “home”.
I have torn down and rebuilt my “house” several times, so to speak, especially since Sharon died. Does the Devil ever leave?
Sickness strikes with the deftness of a Cobra, then rolls in like an ominous incoming tide on a full moon, surging with a steady torrent of traits abhorrent to our very …
Lydia with Grandma
I cannot remember all the lyrics of the song, “Myrtle Beach Days” by The Fantastic Shakers, but the tune came to mind this past weekend as I spent Mother’s Day with Lydia in Myrtle Beach. Indeed, we have spent Mother’s Day there for the last 5-6 years in fact, as Lydia traditionally attends the Showstoppers Dance Competition there with other dance protege members from her dance studio. It is ALWAYS held on Mother’s Day weekend. Usually, there is also a motorcycle convention going on there on that VERY same weekend! Oh joy! Myrtle Beach is a busy, happening place on any given …
When I think of Mother’s Day, I reflect on the women in my family; not only my own mother but my grandmothers, great-grandmother, and aunts. As a child I did not fully realize the strength of these women and the sacrifices they made for their families. My paternal grandmother fed her family from the sweat of a small farm. In her later years she took in sewing to help make ends meet. I was an adult before I realized what an amazing seamstress, cook, and gardener she was. She never worked to buy frivolous things for herself but solely to provide for her family.
My maternal grandmother learned to be …
Performing on stage is a great experience for teens.
It seems most of the Realiteen bloggers have teens who have performed on stage in musical or dance productions. My two sons were involved in community theatre and as I recalled their enthusiasm and excitement for the stage I got to thinking about what our teens may have gained from their experiences.
I think that they learned something about teamwork. The cast of a play becomes a pseudo-family. From what I observed with my two sons, the sense of closeness develops quite quickly. There are intense group dynamics for a few weeks. Cast members have to learn how to work …
