As we bump down the messy path of childhood to teen-dom, I have often found myself explaining away unexplainable kid behavior as being related to the trauma of their childhoods, the lack of a dad, their grief. Irrational eruptions over homework are explained as unexpressed grief from their tumultuous...
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Grief Kid Syndrome? Maybe Not
Tip-toeing Through The Teenagers
Borrowed from crazyismysuperpower.blogspot.com I’ve been tiptoeing through the morass of teenage angst – worst day of life, I’m stupid, I have no friends, everyone hates me, I hate everyone, why is everyone else getting As when they don’t even work for it – being just a few of the themes....
...continue readingTwelve Years. Where does time go?
Carter, Port Hope, July 2011 Twelve years. Such a short amount of time, and such a lot of life lived. You arrived quickly in true Carter style, determined to be early for your own arrival. Determined. I think that word describes you well. You know what you like and you...
...continue readingA Single Parent’s Natural Summertime Habitat
Can I have those shoes, please? You may have noticed my lack of posts of late. I am experiencing that vortex of time known as summer vacation – the one where you find yourself cleaning the kitchen five times a day, tidying the fifteen pairs of shoes by the door,...
...continue readingWhooping A Bully’s A$$
Raising kids without a partner can often make you think you are going crazy. Sixth Grade is a tough year. Middle School is brutal. We all remember and often cringe thinking about those years. So when a certain middle schooler began getting teased for his perfect Justin Beiber hair at...
...continue readingSweet Sixteen
Olivia and Millie, June 1st 2011 You asked me yesterday if I thought you would ever grow up. I told you I hoped not. You were offended, thinking I thought you were immature, but that was hardly the case. I think you are perfect. I really don’t want you to...
...continue readingThe Shame of Parenthood
I heard myself say “I’m a bad parent” this morning on the phone. It’s a refrain I have, kind of tongue in cheek, kind of not. I say it when I find myself in that strange gray area where the rules of parenting are unclear, or when I’ve broken...
...continue readingWill the Real Mother’s Day Please Stand Up?
I wake up on Sunday morning to the pitter patter of little feet and giggles coming from the kitchen. There’s the sound of more giggles and dishes rattling as the tray of burnt toast and watery tea is brought up to my bedroom. The door opens to the cry...
...continue readingAn SMH (Shake My Head) Moment
The kids at Sunset, Maui, February 2011 My life has been a little surreal this week. A TV interview, quotes in various national publications, an Op-Ed published in Seattle Times and as I sit here writing this blog, my photo is being taken for an article about the 10th Anniversary...
...continue readingSlaying the Beast of Shame
The sky is gray and I feel myself slipping back down the slope a little. I have spent too much money this month and I lie awake at night worrying about it. I worry about the kids, their grades, the amount of time they spend on the computer, worry...
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Learning to live again after the sudden death of my husband Arron on 9/11. I live with my two children, Carter, 11 and Olivia 15. I have written my book, The Alchemy of Loss, as a testament to finding the silver lining of grief
