This blog subject came to me on Sunday at the annual Easter egg hunt. Since my children are all part of the “older generation” of teenagers (as my daughter called them), they really aren’t part of the little ones who head out with baskets and bags to hunt the eggs. Instead, they make up the clean-up crew who go around and gather up all the eggs the littler ones miss. So, my teen daughters and I sat on a bench as watched as the under 8-year-old group of cousins and nieces and nephews trundled off in their rubber boots through … Continue reading →

I think one of the toughest parts of parenting is trying to explain and talk with our children about really unexplainable things–war, death, suicide bombers, crime, and all those other heavy, unfathomable realities of life. I haven’t figured them all out myself so how can I offer wisdom and explanations to my children? According to the experts, our children need us to make them feel safe–but how can we do that in a world that can feel extremely un-safe and precarious. Letting our children know that we will be here to look after and protect them is important. We can … Continue reading →

One of my kids pointed out to me recently that she thinks that adults have a tendency to either expect too much or too little of kids–especially teenagers. As she explained it, parents, teachers, and other adults either underestimate kids–expecting them all to be ill-behaved or incapable, or over-estimate kids–expecting them to behave like adults or be “super-human.” Her comments got me to thinking about times when I really have expected more of my kids than I probably had right or reason to… I know that as a single parent I often expect more of my children than I would … Continue reading →