Tag: kids

I’m afraid I’ve forgotten what it’s like to have small children. How is that even possible? My kids are 12, 11 and 6. It’s not like they’re adults. They are definitely still in need of guidance and discipline, but life is a whole lot different (dare I say easier?) than when they were toddlers.

I see moms walking through the grocery ... Read More


My friend was telling me a story about her son who is a freshman in college. He noticed a peer consistently walking to class without a coat. So he gave him his own.

No fanfare. No conversation or touching exchange of words as the coat was quietly laid on his desk. Just an offering that says, “I see you and I ... Read More


My daughter woke up to 120 text messages on her phone this morning. One hundred and twenty.

We go dark in our house about 9pm, so those 120 messages came in sometime between the hours of 9pm and 7am.

Clearly there must have been some great crisis happening overnight in the world of our almost teenage daughters.

Nope.

Just lots of talk about what ... Read More


I’m in need of a little Fargo love and I’m wondering if you can help.

I’ve been invited to speak at a women’s event at a church in Fargo. Can we all thank God at this very moment that the event is being held in April instead of the dead of winter? My North Dakota blood has thinned quite a bit ... Read More


I got my first cellphone on Christmas morning, 2003. I was eight months pregnant, and if my water broke in the middle of Piggly Wiggly, my husband wanted to know about it. I thought I could just go to the customer service desk and ask them to call him, but he wasn’t in favor of that plan.

I was certain this ... Read More


When I was a child, my biggest social challenge was learning to speak politely on the phone. I never had to deal with the permanency that seems to accompany every email, text message or Instagram photo sent through the World Wide Web.

It would be easier to completely unplug, but since my husband is not in favor of going off the ... Read More


There are times as a mom that you need to be quiet and listen and there are times when you need to speak– even when your opinion is not invited. Figuring out which time is which can be a little tricky.

Sitting in the driver’s seat of the minivan, I would say that my opinion was not exactly invited. I was ... Read More


The funny thing about cancer drugs is that they seem to spit out side-effects cyclically.

I don’t always get hot flashes. They come in waves. Every few weeks I wake up hot and sweaty and know that for a few days I’m going to have some uncomfortable nights. Then just when I think I can’t stand it anymore, the hot flashes ... Read More


The evening’s emcee stood on the stage and said the unthinkable. “The women I’ve talked to say they’re glad they were diagnosed with breast cancer. That it was one of the best things that ever happened to them.”

Jordan and I were invited to speak at the Pink Tie Ball in Indianapolis this weekend. It was a beautiful mother-daughter getaway complete ... Read More


Everyday after school, my son does two things: he washes his hands (I can’t even begin to guess what he has touched in the last six hours) and he unloads his backpack.

Unzipping his backpack opens a window into my first grader’s day. An award for learning to write 120 numbers! A certificate for being quiet in the hallway! A tooth ... Read More