When my third born was in her first year of preschool, her teacher mentioned to me that she had a hard time understanding her speech. When it came time for the parent-teacher conferences, there was a formal, written recommendation that we have our little lady screened for a speech delay. I can still feel my … [Read more…]
As the steam rose off the asphalt in the summer heat, so did our tempers. Entitlement runs deep this time of year, both in my heart and in theirs. The downtime that is inherent in the summer allows our minds to wander toward all the things we don’t have, but wish we did. As the … [Read more…]
If I have learned anything over the past nine years, it’s that every woman’s experience with pregnancy, childbirth, and motherhood is uniquely her own. It is the same with every father’s experience. No two birth stories are the same. We thought we would share ours… Disbelief: Our First Birth Story I woke up particularly early … [Read more…]
With the onset of warmer weather, and the increase of physical activity, I hear that same complaints from my children each and every afternoon. “I’m hungry.” Again, and again, and again. For years, I stuck with what I thought were childhood staples in our pantry, despite my dislike for the clean up. Goldfish, Pirate’s Booty, … [Read more…]
Pediatric surgery can be especially daunting when it’s your child having the procedure. Even if you have had surgery yourself, you might not know what to expect, or how to best prepare your family. Pediatric outpatient surgery is fairly common; I know in our house, we have had four ambulatory procedures. Two surgeries for our … [Read more…]
Baby registries make shopping for new parents easy. Finding great gifts for second babies is not as straightforward. It is often tough to know what to give to a family when they welcome their second, third, or fourth child to their home. Many parents don’t register the second time around, though baby “sprinkles” (mini showers) … [Read more…]
Our Favorite Discipline Guides This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you, if you make a purchase using this link. Always a believer in teaching our children how to function as adults in this crazy world, I latched on to discipline guides early in my … [Read more…]
The piles were growing with each passing season, and I kept adding to them. As our youngest continued moving forward out of her babyhood, I started to wonder what I should do with all of this baby stuff. When her first birthday passed, and the piles kept growing, so did my cluelessness. What do I … [Read more…]
Big day! My first guest post (ever!) was published on Grow Christians, a blog currently under the guidance of a new editor who, in my ever so humble opinion, is a rockstar! Help me up; this is my song My great-grandmother was so influential in my spiritual formation, and this piece is a tribute to … [Read more…]
“What’s it like living with five women?” a friend asked The Engineer one afternoon on the side of the soccer field. “There are a lot of feelings. Big ones. And lots of talking about these feelings.” Wise words, dear husband. And those big ones tend to come from one child in particular. My first-born is … [Read more…]