Is Working From Home For You?

Do you dream of working from home? Do you want to be able to stay home with your children and still contribute to your family’s income, or do you want to get rich quick? If your goal is to get rich quick, you better have a million dollar idea that no one else has already thought of, otherwise you are going to be quickly disappointed. When you decide to work from home you have to determine why you want to do this, why is it important, is it really feasible with your family and lifestyle and how much money do … Continue reading

Making the Most Out of What You’ve Got

I was in a car accident on December 2nd, and I’m probably going to be under my doctor’s care for quite a while. Yesterday we started physical therapy. I’m grateful to be getting the care I need, but it’s taking so much time away from my family, and in particular, my husband. I see my kids during the day because we homeschool, but my husband is at work all day, and I’m starting to wonder if I’m even still married. I think I am, but sometimes, it is a question. He comes home and I’m gone, and then when I … Continue reading

When Someone You Love Won’t Face Their Depression

I have found myself in a difficult situation. I have come to believe that my husband, whom I love dearly, is suffering from depression. He is expressing a lot of common symptoms. He has lost interest in doing things, to the extent that he will sit in front of the TV all day. He doesn’t have any desire to play with our children. He’s moody and sarcastic. He rarely has anything positive to say. He’s irritable. He has little to no patience. He will sneak away any chance he has and nap. He has no desire for sex. Adding to … Continue reading

Your First Fight

No matter how in love you are, no matter how determined you are never to fight, no matter how much he makes your heart go pitty-pat or she makes you forget how to breathe, the day will come when you have your first fight. There’s really nothing you can do to prevent it. Something will come up, you’ll have a difference of opinion, and before you know it … your blissful marriage has come to an end. True? No. Yes, you’ll have a fight eventually, but it’s not the end of your bliss. In fact, if you handle it maturely, … Continue reading

Trauma and Trouble: Is It Always Bad for You ?

Having emotional troubles and experiencing breakdowns are traumatic events. And sometimes the trauma and breakdown does not go away but the client must learn to manage their illness, such as in the case of schizophrenia and bipolar, just to name two conditions. But trauma is not all bad, and many people who have experienced emotional difficulties are enriched by them, despite the enormous pain that accompanies the illness. This is not to minimize the stigma and despondency and outright soul-wrenching pain that accompanies mental problems, but reminds us that with little adversity or challenge in our lives, we can become … Continue reading

Special Needs Children and Your Marriage

The divorce rate is high in this country – over 50%. That’s huge. That’s more than half of the weddings you have been to and half of the happy couples you have celebrated with. Although statistics differ, the divorce rate is even higher for couples who have children with special needs. And I completely understand why. We head into marriage with big dreams, goals and ideas of how it will be. We picture this perfect life with these perfect kids. We may expect some bumps along the way, but when your child is sick, disabled, or challenged in anyway, it … Continue reading

Would You Risk Your Life To Have A Child?

Ask my husband about when I first started wanting babies and he’ll quickly respond, “right away!” Even in our first year of marriage, despite the fact that I’d always said we’d wait four to five years, I wanted to have a baby already. The months passed and the desire grew. It’s hard to describe how bad I wanted to start having kids. I almost became obsessed with the idea and would test for pregnancy often, hoping for an “accident” and assuming every upset stomach or mysterious symptom was pregnancy. Finally, I got a grip… and a few months later, my … Continue reading

When You Don’t Love Your Husband

A friend of mine recently confessed to me that she just doesn’t love her husband. She is considering leaving him, although she is unsure of the decision since this man is a wonderful husband and father. He has always been loyal, faithful, kind, and a good friend. What do you think she should do? The first question I had for her was whether or not she ever loved her husband. Many people feel as through the first flush of love and romance is gone, especially after kids. Most couples go on to develop a longer-lasting deeper love and fall in … Continue reading

Your Child’s Art Stories

I admit that I am not a scrap booker. I take a lot of photos but then don’t do anything official with them, other than sharing a few on our family website or Facebook. Although I got several baby books with my first child, I managed to make just one single entry, the day that my son rolled over for the first time. Still, I do like to collect my children’s artwork for posterity. I keep the very best pieces of art and donate the rest to the in-laws, because how could I possibly toss anything out that a child … Continue reading

Wagging My Tail Goodbye to the Pets Blog

I’m sitting in my office looking out the window watching the snow melt from the rooftops and bushes as I’m writing this. Last night we got measureable snow, a bit of an oddity in December for us here in Nashville. Whenever we get snow like this now I think about the first winter I was writing for Families.com. We got snow one February and I took Murph outside to play in it, then wrote about it as my blog for the day later. How much inspiration I’ve drawn from my pets over the past two years since I first began … Continue reading