What should you expect this holiday season? What can you expect? Much is written about expectations. Don't set your expectations too high. Don't set your expectations too low. Set realistic expectations. I think there is value in each of those statements. And I have something to add. Your expectations...
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Recently a mom told me, "I'm so sick of hearing the song, It's the most wonderful time of the year, everywhere I go. Really . . . the most wonderful time of the year??? The problem is I have a teenaged daughter." Here's the deal. The...
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Get prepared for the Holidays. The shopping malls have been ready since October with decorations of shiny tinsel, red bows, gigantic wreaths, and white lights. Thanksgiving is almost here and then the busy season hits. If you are not intentional you will be swept away in the...
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I was talking to Chelsea a 15-year-old girl a few days ago. She's gorgeous and tall, yet she looked small sitting on my office couch. I asked her what was going on. She looked out the window and said, "Everyone hates me at school. I am...
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Remember Cyndi Lauper's song from the 80's, Girls Just Want To Have Fun. You might remember singing that song at the top of your lungs driving to the lake with your friends when you were in high school or college. But that was along time ago...
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Your daughter is going to get upset. The question is how will you handle it? This is a hard one for moms. We hate to see our daughters unhappy, so we jump in and try to fix it, but we make it worse. Your daughter needs what...
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My family loves to tell stories. One of my favorites is when my sister was 13. My dad, sister and I were down at Memorial Park in Houston. We had hiked down to Buffalo Bayou. The bayou is brown and murky and God knows what...
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Sometimes the answer is no. It has to be, if we are going to protect our daughters. This is not the fun part of being a parent. There she is standing in front of you in her mature grown-up body. She tells you, she can handle it....
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Is your happiness dependent on your daughter's happiness? ...
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I remember when I was 8 months pregnant when an acquaintance came up me and said, Is this your first? I said, "YES" in a happy voice. With a smirky grin she said, "You just wait!!!!!!!!!" Several years ago someone asked me how old my daughter was and...
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Hurricanes. Fires. Floods. Tornados. So many families have been disrupted and devastated in the past month. Even if you haven't gone through a natural disaster, you may be experiencing disruptions that have invaded your life, be it conflict in your marriage, a loved one finds out...
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I love the ocean. I enjoy the smell of the ocean, the song of the seagulls and the sound of waves crashing upon the shore. Nothing feeds my soul like the ocean. Last week it was still warm so I went to the beach. I watched one...
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How would you answer this question? Why is...
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A thriving home environment is key to having a happy, healthy, and productive home. What is a thriving home environment? A thriving home environment is all the circumstances, conditions, or factors that enable and encourage your family to thrive. Your daughter can be fabulous, but if she...
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Summer is starting to fade away, and the reality hits us. Another school year is upon us. For many mothers the first day of school is a happy day. You get your time and space back. You can relax because you know your daughter is back...
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Have you ever wondered if your daughter was depressed? If you have, you're not alone. A large new study recently came out in the journal Translational Psychiatry reveals that 13.6 percent of boys and a staggering 36.1 percent of girls have been or are depressed. That's one out...
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It can drive you nuts. There she is lying on the sofa being a couch potato while you are running around trying to get your work done....
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I live in Texas. Everyone in Texas rides a horse, right? (Well, maybe not in Houston.) One weekend I was visiting my sister in Austin. We went to see some friends who lived outside of Austin who had four horses on several acres of land. Her...
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We call it multi-tasking. Women pride themselves for being able to do a million things at once. Here's my question. How's it working for you? My guess is that it's not working that well. Something is going to be compromised. It's not just that we are doing several things...
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The fourth of July is a day to celebrate our country's freedom. ...
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