Since it is Monday and the new week is upon us, I thought that I would share with you a job description that a friend of mine recently shared with me. I have posted this blog once before but believe that it it is worth repeating. I hope that it brings a smile to your face and starts your weekend off on the right foot. It is hilarious and something we can all relate to.
POSITION:
Mom, Mommy, Mama, Ma Continue reading »
In the State of Colorado, the law states that in order to operate a motor vehicle, you must first attend a week long course from an accredited driving school, as well as complete a driver education course consisting of behind the wheel training. I think that most would agree that this law is a good idea.
Luckily for my kids, I have not always lived by that belief, at least not 100%. Now before you rush to the phone to call the police on me please allow me to explain. You see my belief that kids (under the right circumstances) should be allowed to learn how to drive at 14 was ingrained into me at a young age. Growing up in Butte, Montana as one of five kids, you have a tendency to do things a little different. My friends and I would drive ourselves to drivers education and park a few blocks away so that we didn’t get caught. Now it’s not that I took the car without my parents permission, they just threw me the keys and said “don’t get caught”. Now, when you grow up in a smaller town, you have a tendency to know most everyone. I am sure that on more than one occasion I passed a cop who knew that I wasn’t 16 yet, but really didn’t care. I’m sure that he learned to drive the exact same way. In fact, it’s a true story is that when my mom was growing up, she used to get driven to the ski resort outside of town by Sheila Penaluna all the time. Oh, by the way did I mention that Sheila was 12 when she drove them? Go figure. Seriously, growing up in Butte is a little different, as anyone from Montana will attest too. So when it came time to get my kids ready for drivers education I did what came naturally, I put them in the car at 14 and said “let’s drive”.
Now Jack was easy. I really didn’t worry about his ability too much. Maybe it was because he was a boy, or maybe it was because he had a small battery operated jeep as a kid. It could have been the fact that he was quite accomplished at racing cars on his video game. I don’t really know why, all that I did know was that teaching him to drive was really not much of a worry to me. The first day I took him over to the streets of an undeveloped commercial project put him in the drivers seat and said lets go. He took to it like a southern boy to a NASCAR race. Now he is 17 and cruising all over the place in his 2000 GT Mustang, has had no accidents and only three tickets to show for it. I am so proud:) Continue reading »
I have a friend of mine who is an amazing single mother. She is always present for her children, but like so many of us single parents, not sure if she is getting through to her kids. Earlier this week she shared with me a “Creed” that her daughter wrote in school. What makes this letter so amazing is that over the years this beautiful young lady has been through allot. She has experienced the death of a sister, the divorce of her parents and a move to a new home. For all of us that worry about how our kids deal with life changing experiences, never forget that kids are very resilient, especially when we as parents are there for them.
My Creed
I believe in sunsets and watching the stars Continue reading »
I know that each one of my children is a gift from God. I also know that as a parent, it is my job to build a foundation that one day will allow them to spread their wings and soar, to fly without fear, to fly with confidence and to fly in the direction that their heart takes them. I have always supported my kids in whatever sport, event, hobby and challenge they have faced. I love them unconditionally and without judgment. I love them for their uniqueness and their differences. I love them for who they are and what they are not. I love them for being them.
Have you ever noticed how people tend to describe their children, as well as others, by mentioning only a few of their many amazing qualities? They say things like; Tommy is such a great athlete, or Suzy is such a good student, or Mary is an amazing dancer, or Joey is a wonderful musician. I’m not immune form this. People always seem to describe my daughter Michaela as, beautiful with amazing blue eyes and a good soccer player. I agree with both of these descriptions but I also describe her as a protector of the underdog, a determined young lady, and one who has a heart of gold. People always seem to describe my son Jack as handsome, witty and smart. Again I agree with all of these assessments, but I also describe him as independent, headstrong and a young man who can do anything, and I mean anything, that he sets his mind too.
Ever since Jack was young I have had this gut feeling that he was going to truly do “something special” in this world. Since he is witty and charming, stubborn and independent and very intelligent (he had the 30th highest score out of 400 kids on his high school entrance exam) I always thought that he might become a doctor, a lawyer, or a successful entrepreneur. I really didn’t care which career he chose, although with the cost of med school being what it is,I was hoping that option three would be the last of his choices. All that I really ever wanted for Jack was for him to reach his full potential, and do that “special thing” that I have always believed in my gut he was destined to do. Continue reading »
Today I want to challenge each and everyone of you with my blog. I want to challenge you to be brutally honest with yourself and ask yourself just one question “Are you in Denial?”. I will bet that the majority of you will emphatically answer NO. I’m not in denial, I fully accept what has gone on in my life, what is going on in my life and why it has all happened, I have no regrets… But I will say to you right now that you ARE in denial, you just don’t know it yet. First let’s understand what denial is.
Webster’s Dictionary defines Denial as:
Refusal to admit the truth or reality (as of a statement or charge) (2) : assertion that an allegation is false. Continue reading »
There is a saying that goes like this, “In life we mainly see what we look for”. I think that all of us at one time or another has looked for the worst in our situations, only to have it become our reality. Why is it that some people see themselves, and their lives, in such a negative way that they can’t seem to figure out why nothing ever goes right for them? Why is it that we as parents sometimes see the negative things in our children, and then wonder why they lose confidence in themselves? Why is it that we are all products of what our minds tell us, rather than what are dreams instill in us?
Our minds are like a movie, replaying over and over again what we see in them. If we constantly see the past, present or future as a negative thing, then that is how our movie will play out. If we see our children never amounting to anything, then that is the movie we will portray to them. If we see every little thing that has gone wrong with our lives as a bad thing, rather than a lesson, then we will never be able to create a happy ending to our movie.
Our experiences are just life’s lessons, not defining moments. They are just one of the the scenes in our movie that occurred prior to us becoming wiser. Never forget that your mind is constantly creating a movie that is playing right before you. Even more importantly, never forget that you are the director, producer and writer of you own movie. If you want to create a sad ending you can do that, but if you want to create a happy ending, where all of your dreams come true, then you can do that as well. It is all up to YOU and only YOU. Why not start today creating an Academy Award winning movie that will bring you happiness, joy and success for not only you, but your entire family. Continue reading »
When I was young, my friends and I would go to the local amusement park each summer and ride the roller coaster. Damn that roller coaster would scare me, but I was not about to be the first one to say it. I was convinced that each time I would get on it, would be the day that it was going come off the tracks and violently hurl me through the air to my inevitable death. No matter how many times I rode that roller coaster, the same thought would rush through my head. In reality the roller coaster never did breakdown, let alone slam anyone into the ground, but that sure didn’t keep fear from entering my mind.
Now that I am older I still go on roller coasters and in the back of my mind I still believe that today might just be the day that the damn thing finally breaks down. Fortunately for me my past experiences tend to remind me that it just isn’t going to happen.
It’s funny how the life of a parent is like riding a roller coaster. It starts off slowly as you lean back in the seat, looking up at the blue sky above, without a worry in the world. Oh sure, you know that inevitably there are going to be some twists and turns but nothing that you can’t handle. Then reality hits! Before you know it your life is spiraling downward, your stomach drops and you start praying to God to save you. Please God just let me survive this fall and I will make sure that I do it right as a parent. Then just when you get a break from the fall, and before you can catch your breath, the next twist and turn is before you. Your mind races, your heart pounds and you hang on for all you life praying that you will survive. And when you finally are convinced that today is the day that you are going to be hurled off to your death, the ride comes to a sudden stop, and you slowly coast into the safety of the platform. Continue reading »