Over the years I’ve encountered more cases of domestic violence than I’d like to remember while working with moms.  I was blessed to grow up in a home where that would never happen.  My father loved and respected my mother and was never anything but tender and loving with her. I’m blessed to be married to a man that loves and respects me and would never do anything to hurt me at all.  Unfortunately, there are women out there where this isn’t the case. Domestic violence used to be more commonly found among married women. Now it’s becoming a part of some dating relationships in older teens and …

It seems as though summer vacation just started and suddenly here we are about a month out before school starts again.  It seems so long ago that my kids were in school. I’m even more aware of it because of the moms groups I work with. Talk about back-to-school sales, what uniforms to wear and where to get them seems to dominate Facebook posts and gatherings at playdates and book club meetings.   Stores are advertising their “deals” earlier and earlier it seems. I wish they had done that years ago when my kids were in school because I would have been one of those crazy people dancing down the…

I remember thinking that I was the easiest, most happy-go-lucky person there was.  I learned in my late 20s to be flexible after a series of life changes that started to take place. I was pretty adaptable. I took things a lot easier and found that I was able to roll with the punches.  That was until I turned 40. For some reason things changed. I started to feel a sense of entitlement now that I'd reached “middle age.” I found myself no longer being so tolerant of excuses and rudeness. Where I used to hold my tongue, I found  sarcastic remarks slipping over my lips and wondered, “What happened…

You know how it is. You wake up in the morning and you are raring to go. TODAY is the day that your house is going to be June Cleaver clean, shining from top to bottom.  You've all ready stocked up on all the cleaning supplies and you can hear them calling you from under the kitchen sink. You put on your most comfortable pair of sweats and a clean but stained tank top, pull your hair back, crank up the tunes on your iPod station so that the whole house is full of upbeat, motivating music and ZOOM! You're off and running to the first room you want to tackle. I usually start with the kitchen. …

One of the most common problems married couples face after having children is the problem of romance going out of their marriage.  It’s not that the two of you have fallen out of love, it’s that kids, careers and activities have somehow totally consumed your life.  Every morning is an exercise in survival and you feel like you’re in a race the minute your feet hit the floor. School, carpooling, volunteering, errands, dance class, sports practice and piano lessons fill your days and by the time dinner is done and the kids are in bed, you both seem to flop on the couch staring at the television…

So, have you started panicking yet? School ends today and if you're like most moms, you're seeking a way to maintain your sanity through the summer months. I remember when my kids were smaller, it wasn't such a big deal having them home. They were easy to entertain and we had a lot of fun. Then they reached the stages where hanging out with mom wasn't so cool and they started using that evil phrase, “I'm bored” one too many times.  My two kids,  up until the ages of about 20 and 23 were more like vinegar and baking soda so summer times proved to be very stressful unless I had activities to …

If you're like me, you probably agonize over what on earth you're going to cook for dinner every night. Everyone has a different taste for what they want. I personally think it would be easier to hire a short order cook to handle meals at my house just so I wouldn't have to worry about it.  I was blessed with a picky eater. From the time my oldest was 4 years old, she refused to eat anything that didn't come from a fast food restaurant. I blame my dad for that. He was such an awesome grandfather but he spoiled my children rotten. Dad would run and pick up Happy Meals every time they babysat …

Should you start saving NOW for that big day? It's prom season and every high school girl has been planning for months. Every parent is holding onto their wallets as tightly as possible. It's a vicious cycle. I am shocked at the amount of money that is spent these days for prom. Some parents are spending between $500-$1,000 or more on dresses, shoes and accessories, not to mention the hair, makeup and nails. In the 80s, when I was in high school and my sisters were in high school, dresses were below $100 and a lot of the girls did their own hair and nails. Dresses were poofy and had crinolin …