Many times in our lives we are asked to let go, and often it doesn't come easy.

I wrote this poem from a mother's heart, but I believe that no matter where we are in life the principle of letting go applies to all of us. Ultimately it's the key to liberating us to move through growing pains.…

Trust.

As babies it is easy to trust. We learn to vocalize our needs and we trust that they will be met. That trust continues as children.

But at some point, at some point our ability to trust changes.

Someone hurts us.

We learn to be careful with who we put our trust in.

And the kicker?

While the time it takes to trust someone may be long, that trust can be torn down in moments.

And once that trust is broken?…

Use every letter you write

Every conversation you have

Every meeting you attend

To express your fundamental beliefs and dreams

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Grandma strikes again! Grandma decided it was time to get #8's ears pierced. I was livid. #8 told me she was scared to tell me her ears were pierced because she knew she had to wait until she was 13 years old. My mother used to do this a lot. She believes, because I am on only child, she can usurp my husbands authority within our marriage, especially when it come to "her" grandchildren. Arguing with my mother does no good. In her mind she is 'practically perfect in every way'. She ain't no…

In my mind: I purchased a house. Paid off my car. I was able to raise #4 without her becoming pregnant and/or using drugs. I went to work everyday. I graduated from college while raising 4 children alone. I was doing the dang thang. I was a WOMAN. Hear me roar. I was an idiot. I was so burnt…

Then all the children of Israel, and all the people, went up, and came unto the house of God, and wept, and sat there before the Lord , and fasted that day until even, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord . (Judges 20:26 KJV)



And they gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water, and poured it out before the Lord , and fasted on that day, and said there, We have sinned against the Lord . And Samuel judged the children of Israel in Mizpeh. (1 Samuel 7:6…

I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the  Lord . (Psalms 122:1 KJV)

My mouth in the beginning of our marriage was nasty as hell. There wasn't a curse word in the dictionary that did not come out of my mouth on a routine basis when I spoke at my husband. "They sharpen their tongues like swords and aim cruel words like deadly arrows (Psm. 64:3)."  We did not have normal pleasant conversations. We were not pleasant to one another because we honestly did…

“Mom, you’re always right. You were right about “XYZ,” so you must be right about this.”

Not so long ago, this was my 5-year-old daughter’s view of me. I don’t remember what “XYZ” was, but since I was right about it, it gave me credibility in her eyes.

Fast forward to a recent…

It's that time of year again. My little boy celebrated his third birthday yesterday. And for the last three years, we have basked in the blessing of being able to celebrate his birthday with him. It is not something that we take lightly. And every year, I have a deeper respect for God and my appreciation flourishes as I watch my little boy grow. As well, the lesson we had to learn, that I'm still learning, becomes deeper and more profound.…

Let me tell you a story…

A team of mountain climbers was scaling Mount Everest, and they camped below the summit. Another team was returning from the top and saw them camped there.

“Why are you camped?” they wanted to know.

“We are waiting for our map,” they…

Terrific Tuesday - this is a terrific day to take a chance and trust someone.



The Terrific Tuesday posts throughout the month of August have been about taking chances and doing things that are good for us, but perhaps a little scary. Today's post is about a scary chance taking opportunity. That is taking a chance by trusting someone in a relationship.…

Kids and slumber parties seem as sweet and traditional as Mom’s apple pie and getting a tan while watching a baseball game, huh?

Blame it on Grease, or maybe personal experience, I’ve always assumed our girls would eventually age to the time when they would have sleep overs complete with giggles, pranks, and outrageous memories. (I’m not sure why I assumed this; every slumber party I attended as a youth involved games of “Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board,” scary stories,…

At least, I'm trying to look at it that way.



We're moving to Nika's mom's house for a while. We've had a rough time with her back issues and my lack of employment and, frankly speaking, it's smart to do it.



She's lived away from her mom's since she was a teen, and I've been away from my mom's since I was a teen (minus 6 weeks in my early twenties which was hell). This is not easy on either of us. I know that.



I'm having a hell of a time handling it though.…

I meant to post tonight on the weighty topic of parental decisions with regard our kids’ secondary school educational options. It’s near and dear to me right now and I’m pleased with how the write-up is trucking along. I’ll finish tomorrow. When I’m not hungry. Now I just really need food.

Me – tonight

It’s the fault of that greedy woman sitting next to me at the dance studio.…

As I wake up this morning, I can't believe it’s really happened. It almost feels surreal. The house feels empty and so do I.

When I walk into the bathroom, the emptiness strikes me like an unexpected punch in the stomach. I don’t stumble over hairdryers, make-up, or piles of laundry. All signs of my daughter are gone. I turn around and go downstairs. In the fridge is her vegetable juice that from now on will never be…

If you are a mom, you will sooner or later have to let go of some of your dreams. That's just the way it is, but that's OK. When we are young moms, and our babies are bouncing and giggling, we just know that all of our tomorrows will be as bright as our babies smiles. And then as a bit of time goes by, we become exhausted from chasing toddlers around, trying to…

There was a time in my life when my work life wasn't so easy. Now when I say "easy" I don't mean whe whole climbing the corporate ladder and working 100 hours for days drama... My high "D" type personality probably would have categorized days like that as "fun" and "challenging". This "easy" for me, the people pleasing, love to be loved, everyone should have a Catherine is a Rock Star T-shirt human…