April 26, 2023
by Maralee
Comments Off on When You Don’t Want to Need Your Village
My son participated in a track meet in another city this winter. Track season is usually in the spring, but he conditioned all through the winter and participated in an indoor meet outside of what the public school typically offered. … Continue reading
April 14, 2023
by Maralee
Comments Off on Self-Talk for Touched-Out Moms
I genuinely love being physically affectionate with my kids. . . until I don’t. I have eight kids and my oldest is 16. That’s a lot of years of dealing with kids when they are at their physically neediest and … Continue reading
November 2, 2022
by Maralee
Comments Off on I Don’t Need You to Lie to My Kid
I had an experience this last week that’s left me a little unsettled. I don’t like being unsettled. I took my daughter in for an appointment with a pediatric dentist. We typically all see the same dentist, but she had … Continue reading
October 20, 2022
by Maralee
Comments Off on When Your Parenting Rules Need to Bend
Yesterday morning I was listening to a great podcast interview with a very wise, very credentialed woman who was giving parenting advice. She was talking about the importance of resilience and how our kids need to face disappointment in order … Continue reading
August 18, 2022
by Maralee
Comments Off on The “Forgotten” Baby Sibling in a Large Family
Today I was listening to a podcast I like when I heard something I didn’t like. They were talking about an amazing woman who has done so much good for her community, but they started it by saying she was … Continue reading
May 5, 2022
by Maralee
Comments Off on Signs Your Potty-Training Toddler Needs to Poop
The most important part of potty-training is learning how to read your child’s cues. There are some very simple and straightforward indicators that your child needs to poop(/has already pooped). All you need to do is be alert for these … Continue reading
March 18, 2022
by Maralee
Comments Off on I Missed His First Track Meet
My beautiful boy is running in his first track meet today. I dropped him off and watched him walk across a high school parking lot to his waiting team. I gave him a hug before he got out of the … Continue reading
February 11, 2022
by Maralee
Comments Off on Stop Beating Yourself Up About Movie Nights
I was smoothing down my seven-year-old’s hair the other night while we sat next to each other on the couch. He was snuggled up next to me and it occurred to me how rare these moments feel as he’s getting … Continue reading
January 20, 2022
by Maralee
Comments Off on How to Make Small Talk with a Large Family Mom
I had an awkward interaction with someone the other day. It wasn’t the first time. It certainly won’t be the last. When people see a large family, it’s kind of tough not to comment on it. In the immortal words … Continue reading
December 16, 2021
by Maralee
Comments Off on I Think I Did Nothing Today
Sometimes I lay in bed at the end of the day and ask myself the inevitable Question of The Night: What did you do today? What did you accomplish? Sometimes it makes me want to cry. I don’t have a … Continue reading