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Leadership Mom: Vision

Before we delve too deep into the strategies and planning on our leadership as moms, we have to first talk about what our vision is. We aren't talking about our daily mission that - if you're like me - is often just to survive the day.  Nor are we talking about the generic response, "To raise well-mannered children."  Because, really...there's a lot more to it than just having good manners when you send them out the door at 18. Our vision is our grandiose dream - the ideal - of who we are as an organization (a.k.a., family).  This is the perfect scenario - our dream - with no failures or setbacks.  When I think about my vision for my family, I think about having patience; developing deep, meaningful relationships with my kids and husband; working together as a family; making a positive impact on our extended family and the neighbors around us (maybe even around the nation and world), staying healthy and safe, and continually learning. So, perhaps I'm ask...

Leadership Mom

Maybe you noticed that it's been a while since I posted...maybe not.  There's a good reason for this.  I've been an exhausted mom.  Lately, it seems that I find myself going in one direction only to look back and see that my kids, husband, work, school, dog...you name it...are going in the opposite direction.  I've tried pushing through.  I've thought about just giving in.  I've even thought how am I going to survive another day.  The days get longer and longer as I stay up later and later trying to accomplish all of the tasks that I think I'm supposed to be accomplishing throughout the day. Then, a kid gets sick.  Then, another kids...and another kid...gets sick.  Then, the husband gets sick.  Then, the dog has to go to the vet.  And, finally, after everyone is well and we're in the midst of the busiest week of our lives...I get sick. At this point, I have to understand that I'm not superhuman.  Or so you would think....

Who's ready for the holidays? Not me...

I must admit that I am nowhere near ready for this holiday season.  I am a perpetual procrastinator when it comes to getting ready for the holidays.  It's not that I don't enjoy them.  It's that it takes so much work to get the house decorated, make the cookies, buy the presents, wrap the presents...and then clean up from all of it come January. I'm going to be frank.  I love the holidays, but the holidays don't always love me.  They are a stress-filled time of the year with a lot of expectations. I would love to be the Pinterest wife and mom who has time to make and decorate those adorable sugar cookies.  Yet, I'm happy to be the person who will order my already-decorated sugar cookies from the tasty bakery in town after I burned the first two batches I tried to make myself. I would love to have a well-coordinated and decorated Christmas tree.  Yet, I'm happy to have three homemade preschool ornaments hanging on the same branch with all of the b...

If you give a mom a coffee cup

If you give a mom a coffee cup, she'll say "thank you" and immediately go to the coffee pot.  At the coffee pot, she'll start the coffee and pour herself a cup...noticing the full cup of cold coffee that she poured herself yesterday. She'll take the cold cup of coffee to the sink, dump it down the drain, and go to put it in the dishwasher. She'll open the dishwasher and realize that it's full of clean dishes that need to be put away. She'll put away all of the clean dishes and then will put in the dirty - now empty - cup of coffee from yesterday. She'll notice that there are other dirty dishes in the sink that need to go into the dishwasher, so she'll put them all in the dishwasher. She'll then realize that there may be other dirty dishes other places in the house and will go looking for them...finding them in bathrooms, on the coffee table, under beds, and in the sandbox outside. While looking for dirty dishes, she'll not...

Getting out the tangles

There are so many great things to do with my children, but one of the simplest ways that I enjoy spending quality time with them - especially with my daughter - is by brushing and styling her hair.  I find this a bit odd seeing as I hate brushing and styling my hair.  After all, my hair never does what I want it to do, it gets frizzy, is turning grey (or "super blonde"), and it just takes a lot of time.  Even though my daughter has pretty much the same hair as me (I mean, it is the color that I tell my stylist to make mine every time that I go in for a hair appointment), it's so much more pleasant and rewarding to style my daughter's hair. Brushing my daughter's hair isn't just about getting out the tangles.  This simple act of proper hygiene gives the two of us time to sit and chat about the day, about troubles or wishes.  It's a bonding time for us...time for the two of us to just sit and be together even when the rest of the day has been filled with s...

Pre-K Homeschool: Day 1

I never thought I would find myself homeschooling my 4-year-old son during the first part of his Pre-K year.  But, as luck would have it, we were unable to get into a local preschool - instead being put on all the wait lists - after a military move to an installation we weren't expecting.  But, thus is the life of a military family and, as a parent who wants my child to be fully prepared for when he enters Kindergarten, I was left with little choice but attempt to teach him at home. I know there are parents out there who absolutely love the idea of homeschooling their children.  And, the "idea" of it does sound great to me.  It's the practicality of ME teaching MY SON that frightens me.  I'm not a preschool teacher.  I had to google how to pronounce the letter "X" during my daughter's Kindergarten year (FYI, you pronounce it like at the end of fox ...not the beginning of xylophone ).  I taught English and Spanish to high school students where we wo...

Where has the Golden Rule gone?

You would have to be living in a cave or some extremely remote location with no access to satellite or wireless reception in order to not hear or read about American politics and the upcoming elections.  It's everywhere...and it's an all out war.  Or, at least that's what it seems like to me.  I usually try not to say too much about politics because I was taught that talking about politics in polite conversation was rude and uncivil.  Today's state of social media and 24-hour news has proven to me that this lesson is, sadly, true.  As a parent, I am trying to instill a sense of respect in my children.  Yet, how am I to do this in a world where everyone is out to get anyone who thinks, speaks, looks, or acts differently than they do?  No, this isn't always about politics.  But, let's face it, we've politicized everything.  There has been no subject left untouched in this year's political race.  There's no topic deemed to be out of bound...