Today is the 4th annual Donna Day and I am joining a huge group of bloggers in promoting a special event meant to raise money for pediatric cancer research. Donna Day is named for the daughter of my friend (and 2013 LISTEN TO YOUR MOTHER CHICAGO cast member) Sheila Quirke, who blogs under the name Mary Tyler Mom. Sheila and her husband Jeremy, who also have two young sons, lost their beloved Donna in 2009. Donna’s Cancer Story is documented in a series of thirty-two posts that Sheila wrote. Their story is hard to read but I think it’s so important to read. No family should have to go through…
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Hugs
I think about hugs a lot. That seems like a ridiculous statement, especially for a post-opener. My blog, my rules. Hugs, real, live, in-person ones, can be so healing. They can fill you up a little bit (or a lot) if you’re feeling empty. They can reassure you, warm you up, and make you feel more loved in that moment than in all the other non-hugging moments of that entire day. Hugs are magical, especially the ones that linger just a couple of seconds longer than you expect. Virtual comments on Facebook or texts that say “Hugs!”? Well, the jury is still out on those but I choose to believe…
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#ChoosingHappiness
Today I’m joining over 100 women in spreading the message of #ChoosingHappiness. In today’s post I share how I chose happiness in the midst of life’s messiness by answering a few questions from best-selling Publisher Linda Joy, whose new book Inspiration for a Woman’s Soul: Choosing Happiness, featuring the soul-inspiring stories of 27 amazing women who share their intimate stories of transformation, is being released today. Choosing Happiness also includes Reflection Questions after each story which will empower you to integrate the vital lessons of each woman’s journey into your own life. For a limited time you can get over 40 transformational gifts with your copy of Choosing Happiness. Grab…
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Rosecrance’s “In My Shoes” Exhibit: Go See It!
Last week I told you about how I’ve been doing some sponsored work for Rosecrance, one of the country’s leading teen substance abuse treatment centers, to help get some tough teen conversations started. I participated in a Twitter chat and then was all set to visit the traveling art exhibit called “In My Shoes”, currently on display at Hinsdale’s Robert Crown Center. Today, I’m reporting back!
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Once Again, It’s All In The Attitude.
We spent most of last weekend moving D from Kenosha to Madison (Wisconsin!). It’s an interesting time for him right now. After doing production work for a mid-sized marketing company for the last year, he was hired by a much smaller graphic design firm. He’s wanted to work at this place for nearly three years, since he was still finishing his classes. Here’s the rub: he’ll be a design intern, which is fantastic for long-term and getting him where he wants to go in his career but in the short-term, it’s a pretty significant pay cut. That’s why we’re focusing on the long-term. His living situation is also being downgraded;…
- My Kids Have Mad Skillz, Proud Moments, Reflections on Parenting, Something That Could Change Your Life
Preventing Substance Abuse Requires More Than One Conversation.
Even though we have never experienced communication issues, some of the most difficult-to-begin conversations with our boys were the ones about substance abuse. As parents, the idea of our kids—actually our whole family—dealing with substance abuse was always one of our biggest fears as they got older and became more independent. The fact is, drug abuse–prescriptions and illegal substances–is rampant no matter where you are. Here in Naperville specifically, there’s a huge, scary heroin problem in addition to the “usual” stuff. Recently I was asked by the folks at Rosecrance, one of the country’s leading teen substance abuse treatment centers, to do some sponsored work in helping them spread the…
- Confessions, My Friends Have Mad Skillz, Something That Could Change Your Life, Working On My Fitness
Rebalancing.
Making it through last week felt like a huge victory for me because, well, you probably read all about it already. Besides the moving parts of my life over which I have no control that I ever-so-vaguely mentioned, the other main source of my internal crisis was a repeat offender: hormones. THANKS, MOM. KIDDING, MOM. I took some action over the weekend and reached out to a friend who is a wellness coach and so smart about and active in treating things holistically that one of her nicknames is “Witch Doctor”. This is NOT my thing. I’ve always been skeptical of the healing properties of oils and other natural—what shall…
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A Tale of Two Movies.
We are HUGE movie fans in this family. Often, if we have a free weekend day or two, you can find us at one of the two movie theaters that are conveniently located within about six minutes of our house. Checking out a movie is an easy afternoon getaway, and one of our theaters even serves lunch and dinner in addition to popcorn and candy, so it’s a great way to spend date night. I’m not sure if it’s because we’re just easy to please, because we let ourselves be carried away/entertained by what’s on the big screen rather than analyze every little thing in hopes of discovering plot holes…
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Neverland
This was originally going to be a Throwback Thursday post but as it turns out, yesterday was a crazy work day and two things happened since then which will help this be a better post. It’s all good. First, last night, many of my friends were watching “Peter Pan Live” on NBC, which is something I probably would have tuned into if our antenna would allow the Peacock Network, but it doesn’t and so I lived vicariously through everyone else. I enjoyed reading everyone’s tweets and Facebook posts, and thought fondly about Peter, Tinkerbell, and the rest. It’s a great story. Second, this morning, I overheard part of a conversation…
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Read, Share, Listen.
I find myself unable to think about writing anything this morning other than a post about the current racial tension in America, while at the same time I can’t seem to locate the words to do that. I thought I’d go ahead and provide some links to posts written by people who are much more eloquent than I. Please read and share. Arnebya’s post, Again. And Again. And Probably Again: “Until we change the mentality that rights are distinguishable by race, that black boys are subpar citizens who should automatically be feared, we change nothing.” Keesha’s post, Dear White Moms: “I need to know that you are not merely worried…