Are You Teaching Your Teen About Money
That’s what a ‘good’ parent does. As a tween, your child’s becoming more independent and doing things with friends, so you offer ‘fun money’ to grab a slurpee, coffee or whatever the treat of the day is. You rework your budget for increased costs in food consumption, activities, pursuing passions, and replacing outgrown clothing. Where’s […]
The Year I Never Wanted For My Daughter
“As a child of the system, including adoption where I was worse off than where I started, I endured physical abuse, emotional manipulation, and sexual molestation. I worked hard to heal and grow, providing my own children with the emotional health and stability I never had. Somewhere along the line I got off track with […]
Having ‘The Talk” With Your Teen
God and sex. We went to church on Sundays, we just didn’t talk about God any other day. Based on results, there was sex at least twice (Exhibit A and B – my sister and I) but we didn’t talk about the birds and the bees either. To my parent’s credit, studies show these are […]
I caught my boyfriend cheating on me
Laughter and was our thing. We laughed until we couldn’t breathe about silly things and I was intoxicated; feeling accepted, loved and free to talk about anything and everything. Sure, we partied and did stupid things too, but not more or less than I would’ve without him. Two years later we’d gotten serious and were […]
This is all YOUR fault!
“I hate you!” “If you loved me this wouldn’t happen!” When your teenager lashes out because all their problems and pain are your fault and now you’ve ruined their life, it’s heartbreaking. Ouch. It’s like stabbing a knife in your heart, twisting it around, ripping it out, and then driving over it a few times. […]
I’m Worried My Teen is Anti-Social
Even though your child was reserved when they were young, at least you had small conversations. Now you feel shut out and you’re worried about the long-term effects of their lack of social interaction. What if they’re struggling with their mental health? Your teen’s changing brain already has them in ‘dark mode’, needing more alone […]
My Teen’s Angry Outbursts Are Getting Scary
You have rough days and get frustrated too so you don’t expect your teen to be perfect. You’ve even caught yourself projecting your frustration and had to reign it in or apologize after. You’re human so it’s going to happen at some point. That makes it harder to understand why your teen’s anger is escalating. […]
You Missed a Spot
Are you good at gratitude? I don’t mean the #gratitude posts on your social streams, memes and gifs on your stories or quick thank you’s in passing while doing a million other things. I mean the deep breath in stillness, heartfelt, eyes closed or eye contact gratitude you feel in your body. When your life […]
4 Tips for Coping with Conflict Without Losing Your Sh$t
The last thing you want to do is upset the apple cart so you become ‘easy breezy mom/dad’ with covert enthusiasm. You know, the generally agreeable, cheery mom who slaps on a smile because forced and fake kindness is better than most alternatives? She doesn’t need to yell or nag because she can wrap almost […]
2 Tools to Get OFF the Teenage Emotional Rollercoaster
My whole day was dictated by my teenager’s mood. On his bad days, we referred to him as ‘the eyebrow’, a furrowed shelf shading his green/grey eyes that made it clear he was angry, upset, struggling and not available for conversation (AKA steer clear!). I felt horribly out of control as a recovering rescuer which […]