One reader’s poignant response to yesterday’s blog about “Golden Nuggets” was:

Without hope, what do we have?

Hope really is the crux of it all, isn’t it? What do we have without hope? If we give up hope that our lives and the behavior and lives of our children will improve, how are we to survive?

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Continuing with my thoughts about a Reader’s Digest article on happiness, a sidebar in the article was a list of “Ten Ways to Turn That Frown Upside Down.” There were some great ideas here, and I felt they were worth sharing.

1. “Be less virtual, more 3-D.” This suggestion encourages us to seek out healthy relationships rather than sitting at a desk or computer all day, or hunkering down doing nothing at home. Of course, this is far more complicated... more

I have mentioned before that I am a fan of Reader’s Digest. I like to be able to read short bytes and not get committed to a book. The February 2008 issue arrived about a week ago. It has a wonderful article that is very helpful in addressing how we might survive life in a war zone. The article is called, The Way to Happiness; Proven tips to help you get where you want to be.

The introductory paragraph in this article states: “… happy people thrive. They’re more creative and productive, earn more money, attract more... more

Last week I discussed PTSD, and several readers commented about living with chronic PTSD. How does one rise above the fray? How can we focus on the bigger picture, find joy in the moment, and reframe our lives so that our entire family is not centered around our disruptive kids? The latter can be very difficult to do when, in fact, our entire family is centered around our disruptive kids …

I really wasn’t sure what sterling advice I had to offer. I survived my long period of struggle with Amy one day at a time. There were many, many days where... more

A reader recently asked if I was drained and needed a break after all this emotional work we are doing here of late. I can’t describe how drained I am. Beyond beat. Not to mention increasingly resentful of being the only one in my home who pays any attention to any of the details of running the home and managing the kids. Gee, I’ll bet there aren’t any of you moms or dads out there reading this who could understand that sentiment? How many of you have... more

Tonight was “cowgirls night in”. While I was in Colorado last month, I found this game that sounded like tons of fun. It is called Cowgirls Ride the Trail of Truth and it is a board game played only by women, moving horses along the game board, answering questions and acquiring a saddle, boots, spurs, hat, steer head, and a gun. The first one to the end of the board who has all the acquisitions wins the game. Along the way you answer questions, much like Trivial... more

Stephanie is a waitress this summer, at the same restaurant she has worked at in Illinois and even Minnesota, where she is in college. It’s a chain, if you haven’t figured that out …

Kyle also waited tables, as did my husband (in college) and I, in high school and college. In fact, I worked at … are you ready? … Farrell’s fantastic fabulous fountain of fun! Just for jollies, I Googled it tonight, and was surprised to find it is making a comeback. I guess some old things still... more

I talked to a mom this morning who has already signed up for ATN’s conference this August. I am really getting excited about this event, for many reasons. But probably the most significant reason is how energized everyone feels when they are actually in the physical proximity of other parents who are leading parallel lives. As long as I have been living this life, and as stress-free as my parenting existence is now, with no challenging kids... more

I think my favorite holiday of the year has to be Mother’s Day. It’s great to be acknowledged on your birthday, and Christmas is a fabulous holiday, both spiritually and in terms of family sharing. But Mother’s Day is the day we moms get to be honored for our role in shaping young lives. I absolutely love being a Mom and consider this to be my greatest contribution during my lifetime. I have no problems intertwining my identity with my role as someone’s mom. There’s a bumper sticker sitting on my desk that says “Significant Mother”!

The... more

I cannot believe how energized I feel tonight. I knew I needed a vacation but I had no idea how badly I needed it. I prepared a nice dinner for a change. I made sure I was available to “play” with my daughter when she arrived home from school—we both rode my horse. I walked the dogs twice and worked all four of them on obedience and/or agility.

I was pumped up when I wrote the exuberant “chasing cattle was a ton of fun” post… and I’m not sure... more