Parenting – Running for Disney

The Best Cookie.

I have a daughter who always wants to pick the best of an available selection of items for herself. If there is a plate of 12 cookies, she will study the plate to determine which cookie is a) the biggest, b) has the most chocolate chips (if chocolate chips are in the equation), and c)Continue reading “The Best Cookie.”

Reality Acceptance, Relationships, and Middle School in Quarantine.

I’ve noticed lately that I’ve been working with a lot of clients about reality acceptance. I know this is where I could go in the COVID direction, but I’m talking about it with clients as it relates to their relationships so that’s what I want to focus on here. In relationships, we often have resentmentsContinue reading “Reality Acceptance, Relationships, and Middle School in Quarantine.”

“Back” to school?

Both of my kids have gone back to school now. I say “gone back” because that’s the figure of speech we always use to describe returning to the educational environment and not because they’ve actually, well, gone, anywhere. They, along with my husband and I, have embarked on an online school odyssey of online platforms,Continue reading ““Back” to school?”

Shame and grace

Shame and grace. These are the two things on my mind today. As a mom with anxiety, I can spiral quickly when I make mistakes. Last night I made a doozy. It’s hard to even call it a mistake – yelling at my husband about something that barely matters in front of my oldest daughter,Continue reading “Shame and grace”

Runaway train

I feel some pretty deep ambivalence lately about our level of activity and plans. I love how busy and engaged my kids are and, for the most part (hello piano) we’ve let them pick their own activities and pursue any of their interests that they’re willing to work for. But it comes at the expenseContinue reading “Runaway train”

Scaffolding and self construction

Sometimes it’s hard to know what clients want from me. Actually, it’s not hard to know what they want – it’s just sometimes absolutely impossible to give it to them. I think they want a magic wand. They want to feel better so desperately that they want me to be able to sprinkle some pixieContinue reading “Scaffolding and self construction”

Gratitude.

Last night something happened that has prompted me to feel real gratitude for my husband, our relationship, and the support he offers to both me and our children. In our daily lives its easy to overlook all of the things we love and appreciate about our spouses and focus in on the things they doContinue reading “Gratitude.”

Parenting therapy

Clients often seem worried that I will judge them for the things they say in session. I have a resting disgruntled face so I have to remain conscious of my expression during session to avoid giving them any inadvertent evidence that this is true. The reality is that I’m very rarely judging, mostly I’m reacting.Continue reading “Parenting therapy”

Vulnerability and self-disclosure

I’ve been writing parent questionnaire responses for Number 71’s middle school applications. It’s actually my favorite part of the process – getting to sit down and really think about how to encapsulate a person I love so well in a way that allows others to love her too. It’s a lot like writing a celebrityContinue reading “Vulnerability and self-disclosure”

VSCO Girls….

I know it’s supposed to be Fiction Friday and I’ll probably come back to that next week, but this week I’ve been thinking a lot about how we teach our kids to be comfortable with who they are. The Dancer is in seventh grade. She’s figuring out how to balance who she is with whoContinue reading “VSCO Girls….”