This is my favorite season. I wish I could end the post right there. Five words and — click — done. But, like most beginnings, the first five words only tell some of the story. The season is not ideal. For children who have hard histories, this season brings extreme emotions. Hope for a family that stays forever. Grief for the family that’s been lost.Joy for being well-loved. Fear of being well-loved. Their emotions explode.Waves of giggles. Swarms of screams. Abundance of hugs. Plenty of stomps. Somehow,surrounded by the twinkling… Read more Emotions Explode →
The line of stockings hung from the stairway banister keeps catching me by surprise. They began, 36 years ago when someone gave my parents a baby gift. The hand knitted… Read more The Stockings are Hung →
Right now Thanksgiving and Christmas are coexisting in our house. I like this moment when one holiday unfolds into the next. It’s a season of gratitude and joy all rolled… Read more Healing Holidays →
I do laundry in the middle of the night.I finish school work after my kids are in bed.I exercise at 9:45 pm.I find time to read before 5:00 am.I write when the sky is dark and full of stars. Sometimes I get a little whiny. Usually it’s when I’m matching socks and the clock is ticking past midnight. I think something like this: Why do I have to fold laundry in the middle of the night? Or even worse: When do I get to do something I want to do?… Read more Strength →
A hug is the number one mood booster among men and women. I heard this fact on the radio today and it gave me pause. Whenever our kids get frustrated or angry or start sliding down into the land of no-self-control, we ask them: Do you want a hug. Sam always takes the offer. Always. Growing up with endless hugs must make it easy to take one even when you’re grumpy or angry or frustrated. The other kids have learned to take the offer. Hannah learned the fastest. It took… Read more hugs →
From Merriam-Webster Online Sometimes life stops you. You think you can do it all, get more done, be everything to everyone. It doesn’t matter if there are too many tasks… Read more Sustenance →
When we adopted Jordan last January he left his second grade class in the middle of reading aloud Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. One of the first things… Read more The Power of Books to Bond a Family →
This parenting gig is not an easy one. Sometimes when I think it’s too big and I’m not going to make it, I remember this story. It’s a story of… Read more Reforming a Liar {+ a MOPS Giveaway} →
I returned to school cold turkey this year.No candle.No chili.No new school shoes. Nothing. Two days before my first day this conversation happened: Andy: You go to school on Monday? Like two days from now?Me: Yes.Andy: No…you have to be joking around. You really go to school on Monday?Me: I’m not joking. Monday I start school.Andy: Where did the summer go? I’m not sure, because I didn’t let go of summer at all. But it’s gone. I don’t think I’d do it differently, because even though I didn’t transition, the kids… Read more change is coming (sols) →
Ruth Ayres Writes 