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Confessions of a Control Freak
Recently, I got to be the crazy lady at the car wash. Ever wonder what happens if you go through an automated car wash without putting your car in neutral first? You go flying through that baby like a bat out of the netherworld. I kept thinking, "Hmmm, I don't think I've ever gone through a car wash this fast before" and, "Gee, I sure am catching up to that other car quickly." The attendants turned off the car wash and had me pull my car back out and try again—in neutral. I gave the attendants their adrenalin rush for the day. Me? I got so tickled about the whole…
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Letting Go-Lessons in the the Literal Field
Baby Bunnies and vulnerability It was early on a warm, summer morning when the phone ringing woke me. I thought who could be calling at this time? When I picked up the phone, my mom, my children’s grandmother, excitedly told me I had to come right away, as there were baby bunnies all over her back yard. One had succumbed to the pool already and the mother had been struck and killed by a car during the night. Unsure of what I was expected to do, I loaded up the kids and we headed over to her house for the baby bunny round up. The little bunny burrow was…
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When the “Sweet Spot” of Parenting Ends: 6 Tips for Surviving Your Kids’ Milestones
For a couple of years I've enjoyed the so-called "sweet spot" of parenting: each child between the age of 14 and 5, still at home they are all mostly self-sufficient (no more diapers!) and helpful around the house their unique personalities are emerging and developing they like to talk to me! they get my jokes and even the youngest now (5) can instigate his own the oldest was old, and responsible, enough to babysit so mom and dad could go out on occasional dates (!!) Did I mention they were all still at home? Because that is about to change. Sometimes change thrills me, and sometimes I want to punch it in…
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What you need to let go of the people you love
One phone call and life changes: “Lael, this is Mom. They’ve called in hospice for Dad.” I fly to Texas immediately where I’m learning about hospice. It’s no longer just for critical care at the very end of life. With advanced Lewy-body dementia and Parkinson’s disease my Dad continually cycles between somewhat relaxed and hyper-agitated. Psalm 31:7 describes it well: “…you have seen my affliction; you have known the distress of my soul.” Clearly Dad’s soul is in distress. Like the unforgettable quote from George Washington, “I die hard.” Whoever tries to sell death as simply the turn of the wheel in the circle of life is so deceived. Death…
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Lean In. Let Go.
Lean In. The bold black letters greet me every morning. Sheryl Sandberg’s book has been sitting on my desk for the past two weeks as part of a work project. Whether you love Sandberg’s book or hate it, one thing is true for all of us—we could all stand to lean in a little more. To do this we must ask ourselves the same question Sheryl asked a group of women during a collegiate convocation address, “What would you do if you weren’t afraid?” The thought isn’t new or novel. But somehow seeing those black letters typed on a rough, creamy page makes it stick. What would I do if I weren’t…
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Dangling Off the Mountain
My son is hanging from his high chair. He's turned himself around, pushed himself towards the ground,. His hands are still holding onto the arm rests of the hair chair. His legs are dangling. He's a couple of inches from touching the ground. He looks up at me, fear in his eyes, and says, “Momma, Momma, help.” It's kind of a humorous picture. His fear of something I can see so clearly is not a problem at all. Then it hits me. This is what I must look like to God so much of the time. Doing something new, trying something out, unaware there's just a couple of…
