Perspectives in Parenting

Having children changes your life in so many ways. Of course, we can all remember how naïve we were pre-kids, saying how things wouldn’t change – that we would still regularly get together with friends, go on date nights with our significant other, and travel. But in reality, things don’t ever stay the same once those little bundles of joy arrive. Here are four things that I’ve given up since becoming a parent. Being well rested Like ever! I never wake up feeling refreshed and fully rested since having children. I had no idea what I was talking about pre-kids when I said I was “so tired”. Several times I have had to be a functioning member of society with only a...

Hard times in life are inevitable, unfortunately. I rather despise difficulties when they come up in my own life, but it is a part of the experience. We live in an imperfect world, and when hard times hit, they can hit hard. Some difficult times are predictably terrible. Divorce, death, legal issues, sickness, miscarriage, infidelity, financial ruin … it’s no secret that these experiences can be traumatic. Some would suggest that this would be an opportune time to show compassion, help, or wish hurting individuals well. These dark moments are when your “village” should show up and cover the hurt with their love. If only life were perfect. But for narcissists and other “hurting people who hurt people,” it is irrelevant that...

Most moms feel super guilty about needing “me time.” And when we do make the choice to take that break someone else will come along and add to that guilt.  I’m always amazed at the plethora of comments on my husband’s social media posts telling him how much he deserves a break and saluting him for being a dad. However, if I dare to say, “I am tired,” I’m usually met with “that’s what a mom does.” We have been conditioned to teach moms that they MUST burn both ends of the candle and be ok with it.  Especially if you’re a working mom … jobs expect 110% of you, kids need 200%, and a spouse wants 300%. At the...

We have all said it, time FLIES, and something about having kids makes time move 1,000 times faster. Before we know it, our kids are looking at high schools then colleges. As a first-time senior parent, I truly believe nothing prepares you for this. There are a lot more questions than I have answers but things that have helped us is knowing that we have done what we can do to prepare our son for the real world. My son will graduate in May from HIGH SCHOOL ... I will have raised a whole human who can vote and go to college all out on his own. For me, "success" in this area is independence. What can my son do...

Y'all. This list could go on forever. I never wanted to know how to do these things, but I'm married to a first responder husband, who is also in the Navy. Some things can't just wait until he gets home, because sometimes that's going to be a few weeks or even months. So, if YOUUU have a partner that greets you every evening eager to fix whatever is broken, hug them extra tight. When duty calls and I'm the only household manager in sight, here are the things I don't want to do (but I suck it up and handle it.) Handle anything that deals with any sort of bodily fluids Including but not limited to injuries, doctor visits, plunger-related crap. #punintended...