Big Sister's thoughts...

  • What Did You Just Say?

    The smallest sentence with just six words… Completely turned (my otherwise great) morning upside down. A decision in my past was thrown in my face in a somewhat joking manner. But it came from the person I trust most in this life… and it ruined the moment. It was uncalled for, it was hurtful… And I gave in to every dark thought that swirled around my head after it was spoken. Guilt, shame, not being trusted, not measuring up, anger, resentment… All things I’ve dealt with. All things I’ve worked through years ago. And here they were greeting me with a great big, open handed slap to the face… before…

  • The Art of the RSVP

    As the holidays approach and we start planning and hosting parties… Nothing is more frustrating than the guest who never lets you know if they are coming or not. And we’re not talking about teenagers here… We’re talking about full-blown adults. Typically, that adult would be accompanied by a spouse and/or a handful of children. So I wanted to get my frustrations out by telling you my view of the art of RSVP-ing. The RSVP originated in France in 1845 and is shorthand for respondez s’il vous plait… English translation: respond if you please. Back then, a formal invitation to an event didn’t require a response unless the invitee was NOT…

  • I Was So Hopeful

    It happened again this morning… I was getting ready for church and the outfit I had picked out in my head (once again) didn’t fit right. We finally got test results back from our fertility doctor and found out that my thyroid is indeed out of whack. I started medication to fix it, switched to another doctor for more bloodwork, and started a supplment to get everything functioning correctly. I was so hopeful! Hopeful that my excruciating joint pain would finally go away; that I would be able to sleep well again and not stay in bed until 10AM; hopeful that my motivation and energy would come back; hopeful that…

  • Boundaries

    The word “boundaries” used to make me feel uneasy. I assumed it would be bring about certain confrontation. Establishing healthy boundaries was something I didn’t know how to do until my mid-30’s. I thought, “If I put my foot down about this and makes them uncomfortable, then I shouldn’t be doing it.” I know exactly where that framework in my mind came from, but that’s another story for another time. In a nut-shell… I think I am a people pleaser at heart. I like seeing people happy and getting along. There isn’t anything wrong with wanting to help others and make those around you happy. But, there was a huge…

  • Pumpkin Pie Martinis

    Pumpkin pie martinis are a huge hit around the holidays for me and my bestie! It’s a great way to use up left over canned pumpkin that might be in your fridge. These fun martini glasses are on my wish list!

  • “Hi, I’m New Here!”

    I guess I always imagined a “playdate” as an awkward few hours of the moms sitting around chatting about surface-ey topics while the children ran around like the crazy, small humans that they are. How I have avoided the dreaded play date for six and a half years as a mom… I have no idea. But, alas, I have succumbed to scheduling one… and I have already come up with about seven different ways to cancel as the time gets closer. Anxiety heightens and insecurities soar as I mentally prepare a list of “acceptable” topic subjects. I’m more of a dive-right-in-and-if-they-don’t-like-me-oh-well type of person. I’ve never had a large group…

  • To Have Another Baby…

    or to not have another baby… this is the question. The problem is that there is no “right” answer. My husband and I agreed that we wanted to be done having kids by the time we were 40. We also agreed that we wanted to have four children. The pros and cons for the argument seem to be evenly weighted on both sides… and my opinion is smack in the middle of it. With potty training proving to be kind of a nightmare… One day my hubby said, “And you wanna go through this whole diaper thing again?” But a few days after that he said, “Well, I’m thinking another…

  • Potty Training

    Two words that make me cringe. Two words that will be the death of me. My daughter was a piece of cake. At 18 months, she started potty training herself so there was barely any effort on my part. At that time, I didn’t understand the struggles other moms would talk about, I didn’t get what was so difficult about it. Enter my son. At three and a half years old, he has successfully resisted every tactic I’ve tried and I just want to give up. Tactic #1 We started with a reward system. Bought him a new dinosaur that he could open if he went on the potty “like…