Now Entering the Teen Years
It’s official. I am now the parent of a teenager. My daughter Callie turns 13 this month, and I can hardly believe it. Just like every other parent in the world, I find myself wondering where the time went. I…
Boy, Oh Boy!
LEGOs, comic books, football, video games…These all have two things in common. (1) I have never had much to do with them. (2) My son is crazy about them. Caleb Partridge is my only son, and he’s sandwiched between two…
It Takes a Village
I used to kind-of laugh at the saying “It takes a village to raise a child.” But that was before I became a mother and realized how true that statement is. I, for one, could never make it through motherhood…
A Tough Break
“Mama, come quick! Callie hurt her arm!,” Katie ran to tell me. Our family was attending an M-Braves game with another family, and the kids had gone off to play in the grass behind center field. Since I was in…
A Brand New Baby
I got to hold a newborn baby (my niece) the other day, and I was reminded that there really is nothing else in the world that quite compares. I mean, it’s a whole new person right there in your hands!…
The Trouble with Facebook – or – My Lack of Confidence in Parenting Publicly
I’m the first one to admit how much I love Facebook. But I’ll also admit that I’m glad it wasn’t even around (except for college students) when my kids were babies and toddlers. While there is truth to the idea…
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
I was born at 5:05 pm on March 5, 1975, which was my Granddaddy’s 50th birthday. I love the month of March…and the number 5! I also love that I was named after my Granddaddy’s mother, Carrie Elizabeth. In turn,…
All-Skate
My husband and I recently took our three children, plus some extra girls, to the roller skating rink. We had been skating once or twice before, but it had been a while since our last venture. Callie, my 12-year-old, took…
Now Available: Unlimited Fresh Starts
Fresh starts. New beginnings. Second chances. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like these ideas. And there’s something about a brand new year that gets us all excited about “starting over” and making changes and improvements in our lives. Undoubtedly,…
Testing 1, 2, 3
I’ve taken several pregnancy tests in my 14 years of marriage. And I’ve had a range of reactions to the results. Surprise, disappointment, shock, disbelief, and (of course) joy! I’m not going to tell you which reactions go with which…