This Father’s Day the gift I’m giving Daddy-o is the reminder that I will try very hard not to be any of the archetypes I described a few years and a few kids ago. Any of these sound familiar?

1) The Critic:
You know when dad is bathing the newborn and you think the water is the wrong temperature and that he picked the wrong towel? And you know how you keep correcting him while he’s bathing the baby? This is the pattern that emerges:

Could you fly as a child? I did! The world was at my feet and I believed that anything was possible. The truth of who we truly are was not clouded yet. Life was ONE big magical adventure.

Last week I told my tween girls that I’d got them a subscription to a magazine. I thought they’d be excited, but instead they responded with “We don’t want it mom – we don’t want to read about lip gloss”. Interesting. They already know what they’re being fed and don’t like what’s being served up. Once I explained that the subscription was to New Moon magazine and its website, they were appreciative of my gift.

What are you going to do? Are you going to have a party? What are you going to get her? What should we get her? What day are you celebrating?

I have been asked these (and other) questions repeatedly over the last month or so. They are all in reference to my daughter’s upcoming first birthday, in about three weeks.

Today we’re celebrating a huge success. Our fourth child passed the road test. I just got back from the store to buy big cake. Woohoo!

What a relief! Joy and new freedom for both of us!

I’ve spoken before about how I think it’s important to always look happy when you see your children. Whether the kids are walking in from school or I’m picking them up from Cubs, I try to look ridiculously excited to see them. Sometimes I have to fake it – sometimes I wish they were gone for another hour, but they don’t need to know that. In the morning, I try really hard to give a ‘good morning’ hug before saying “Why aren’t you dressed yet?” or “Did you make your bed?”

Mother’s Day

Celebrate!

 What it is

A celebration of motherhood and peace dating back to the Ancient Egyptian Goddess Isis and resurrected by the suffering of civil war.

Mother’s Day is around the corner and everyone is asking the moms what we want. I’m a simple gal and not particularly high maintenance in the gifts department. I don’t want flowers or jewelry for Mother’s Day or any other occasion really.

Often times, as a working mom surrounded by strong, professional women, I forget that we are not immortal. We have weaknesses and fears, failures and setbacks. So many of us bounce back from them but, many of us have to jump over a series of serious hurdles before we can bounce back... One of the best ways for women to overcome challenges and face them head on is to embrace the strong network of female friends that we have. Lean on your sister, biological or adopted, and let her lean on you.