A Thank You Letter to Coach From Parents Everywhere
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A Thank You Letter to Coach From Parents Everywhere

Every time we end another sports season, I want to write a love letter to the coach and give them a million dollars. Since that’s not realistic, I have to settle for this thank you letter to Coach (and a gift card of waaaay less than $1,000,000). I’m sure I’m not alone in feeling this…

Dear Husband, I am So Thankful For Your Job (Even If It Doesn’t Always Seem That Way)
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Dear Husband, I am So Thankful For Your Job (Even If It Doesn’t Always Seem That Way)

Dear Husband, I want to take a minute to let you know that I am so grateful for your job.  I know that should seem obvious, because that job pays the bills around here (which are basically never-ending), but I think, at times, maybe it actually isn’t so clear.  The truth is, sometimes the inconveniences…

This Mom Doesn’t Have It All Together, But I’m Giving it My Darndest
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This Mom Doesn’t Have It All Together, But I’m Giving it My Darndest

You can’t always count on me to text you back, but you can count on me giving it my darndest by mentally responding to your message 57 times. You can’t always count on me to remember every grocery item we need, but you can count on me giving it my darndest by making a list,…

We Made A Lot of Mistakes. Marrying Young Wasn’t One of Them.
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We Made A Lot of Mistakes. Marrying Young Wasn’t One of Them.

We made a lot of mistakes when we were younger. Getting married wasn’t one of them. Marrying Young: Everyone Has An Opinion The average couple marries in their upper-20s (27.5 for women, 29.5 for men). When we got engaged at 21, and married at 22, there were choruses of “You’re too young to get married!”…

Deciding to Become a Stay at Home Mom. Only.
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Deciding to Become a Stay at Home Mom. Only.

Today, I will be unemployed for the first time since… well, since I-don’t-know-when. My only job title will read: Stay At Home Mom. I taught my last class three weeks ago, finalized my grades two weeks ago, and this afternoon, I’ll show up to collect a few signatures and officially be done. I will no…

A Mother’s Day Letter: Thank You, Mom, for Everything I Never Realized You Did
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A Mother’s Day Letter: Thank You, Mom, for Everything I Never Realized You Did

As a kid, I always thought Mother’s Day was kind of stupid. I mean sure, I made you a card or craft and said, “Happy Mother’s Day!” but I can tell you right now that, growing up, I would never have written this Mother’s Day letter.  After all, you have a birthday. Why did we…

Lessons From 383 Years of Parenting
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Lessons From 383 Years of Parenting

My grandmother had seven kids in six years (no twins), and as a colonel’s wife, she spent large periods of time raising them alone. Growing up, and even in my early adult years, we would always joke, “Man, I don’t know how Nana did it!” Then all the aunts, uncles, cousins –and even Nana herself–…

Everyone’s Entitled to a Hard Day –Except Moms, Who Should “Shut up and be Grateful.”
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Everyone’s Entitled to a Hard Day –Except Moms, Who Should “Shut up and be Grateful.”

I had a hard day with my boys a few weeks ago. Truthfully, we had a series of hard weeks. I wrote about it, because, well, that’s what writers do. The article went crazy. It was shared thousands of times across various forms of social media and I received countless messages from other parents who…

Stay at Home Mom Struggles: Sometimes Stay-at-Home Motherhood Feels Like Death by 1,000 Papercuts
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Stay at Home Mom Struggles: Sometimes Stay-at-Home Motherhood Feels Like Death by 1,000 Papercuts

I’m in a hard season as a stay-at-home mom. The thing is, there’s no one specific issue that’s making it particularly hard. There’s no looming physical illness, no pressing financial stress, no urgent marital crisis. The “hard” is more the sum of 1,000 little things. More often than not, by dinner time each day, I…

To The Mom Whose Tank Empties Too Quickly
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To The Mom Whose Tank Empties Too Quickly

There’s so much talk these days about filling your tank. Self-care. You can’t pour from an empty cup. Blah blah blah. This isn’t untrue, but my problem isn’t with filling my tank. My problem is that, often, the tank just doesn’t seem large enough. You know how you go to buy a vehicle and they…