Musings on life, parenting, Jesus, and more...

Most of you may not know this about me, but I dropped out of school when I was 15, sophomore year, and got my GED as soon as I turned 16. I also ran away from home at 15 and besides moving back in with my mom for a year while I went to cosmetology school, I’ve basically been on my own ever since then. It’s crazy to think about really, especially as I look at my own almost 16 year old, preparing to get her license, interviewing for her first job, starting her junior year of high school. She essentially is an adult. She could take care of herself and as I am proof of, she could survive on her own at this age.  In the eyes of a teenager, they’re all grown up too. I remember what it felt like to be that age. You feel invincible, you think you are smarter than your parents (and in many ways you probably are!), you want independence and to discover who you are as your own person, apart from your parents and siblings. It’s normal to push away at this age. Our job as parents is to be there...

Dear Dads, I know divorce and separation are hard! Maybe even harder for you at times since you will most likely be giving up more time with your kids than their mom will, especially if you were the bread winner and she was the stay at home caregiver.  I know that strife between the two of you might make you want to give up and not fight for time with your kids. I urge you not to give up, if at all possible.  My mom left my dad when I was 12 years old. She left me and my 10 year old sister with our dad and moved half way across the country. Nine months later, in the heat of an agrument with my dad, I asked to go live with her. Despite her mental instability and poor parenting choices, my dad allowed me to move half way across the country to live with her. I'm sure he thought he was making the best decision for me. He didn't want to fight with my mom. He didn't want to fight with me. So he let me go. And then he never fought to get me back. And that has had a lasting impact ...

We had a few transportation options to get to Southern California for my Dad’s Memorial this summer. I thought about taking the train, we did that two years ago when we came down for a family reunion and I really enjoyed it! The slower pace of things, and the train stations at some of the stops made me feel like we were taking a step back in time. Plus it was great not to have to have my eyes on the road all the time and just enjoy the scenery.  I looked into flights but we already have to buy 4 plane tickets to get down here in December for our cruise, so I wasn’t excited about buying 4 more tickets, and then also having to rent a car once we got there.  Ultimately we settled on driving, in part because my uncle Steve has a chair that he made and wants to donate to the Casler Farm property in North Idaho, so he’ll be strapping that to the top of my rig for the trip home, (and that’s why we are just making a quick stop back home before heading over to Idaho, so I don’t have to...