Why Being A Parent Is Like Training For A (half) Marathon

1. Training begins before sunrise.
2. It's 70% mental ("I can do this") and 30% physical.
3. Goals should be realistic and broken down into smaller milestones
4. Having a plan in place is essential
5. Rest is scheduled and necessary for recovery
6. While the flat course is ideal, there will always be hills
7. For every hill there is an up AND a down
8. You are stronger than you think you are
9. Part of training is figuring out what works for you...and what doesn't
10. It may be painful at times, but giving up is not an option
11. Don't forget to enjoy the scenery
12. It's not about winning, it's about doing the best you can do and finishing what you started

A Style All Her Own

When one thinks of having a daughter (especially after having 3 boys), one conjures up images of fairytale and princess dresses, tea parties and cute bows in her hair. Unless that said daughter is Ella...she has her OWN ideas. Dress up? Absolutely. It's her favorite thing to do...but not in fairytale and princess dresses.


Okay, sometimes princess dresses, but with her own flair. "Poo-wee, mama, poo-wee!" (pretty, mama, pretty!).

A moment of pure joy when Ella discovers her bathing suit matches perfectly...with her pajamas. And, yes, she did sleep in it...some battles just aren't worth fighting.

Tea parties? She loves those too. Just not the kind complete with white gloves and feathery boas. In all fairness, her "guests" are not really the glove-and-boa type. And, for the record, I just knew it would only be a matter of time before she was coercing her brothers into her fabulous tea parties. They may never admit it, but I think her brothers enjoy them too...


And if there is anything on Ella's head, it usually doesn't resemble a bow. Maybe a hat. Or a beanie. Maybe a bucket or a box or the hood of a sweatshirt (or anything else she can balance there). But bows are pulled out the second they placed there. And, of course, no outfits are complete without some kind of off-the-wall accessory...

like goggles...

or oversized glamour sunglasses...or hiking boots....or gardening gloves...or all of the above! Like I said, she has her OWN ideas. But, holding true to my promise from my previous post, I will continue to encourage her creativity. Even in public. Just please try not to stare.

Building Dreams and Creating Memories

One of the things I admire most about Brian as a father is his not just tolerance (that would be me), but the encouragement and help he gives our kids to create and build whatever crazy ideas they seem to come up with (within reason, of course). Maybe it's because he remembers what it's like to be a kid and the endless curiosity and adventure that goes along with it. Or maybe it's because as adults we lose most of that to the responsibilities and demands of everyday life. After all, ideas take dreaming and dreaming takes time...and we all know what happens to time as we get older.

So, here are some of the boys' latest "creations". Blake loves the outdoors, so he's often busy building and/or growing things and every time we go to Home Depot he is sure to return with his next project. When we planted flowers on Memorial Day, Blake randomly scattered sunflower seeds in our front yard. I have to admit, I wasn't going to be disappointed if they didn't grow since they weren't part of the real landscaping. But the joy on his face as he saw first the sprouts, then the buds, and now the flowers and studied their progress every day made me realize that the pride he took in this process was more meaningful to him than anything I could have contrived. Even if they didn't match the rest of the landscaping.

And every time I step foot outside our front door I am reminded that just because his goals aren't necessarily my goals, doesn't mean they aren't valuable. Just look at the beautiful sunflowers that now decorate our yard.

And the same goes for the lovely bird buffet he built for the neighborhood birds. (The sign is for the dog, too bad she can't read...). We now have multiple birds outside our windows throughout the day.

Garrett's creativity seems to manifest itself in different ways. He loves to draw and paint. Here's a wood block he found, painted with water colors and "framed" himself with rubber bands and glitter glue. I'm pretty sure I never would have thought of this.

Then there's the fruit dish he created (pretty much a smoothie but stirred instead of blended). He is happy to give you the recipe if you ask. And just so you know..."not all the great chefs eat their own food" according to Garrett.

He "invented" what he calls the Air-O-Nator which is an empty sports water bottle which, when squeezed, gives a puff of air. This comes in handy for blowing up balloons and on a hot day. Garrett is constantly building new and novel "models" from Legos and continues to invent whatever comes to mind. He's even written out his own set of instructions to go with it!

He reminds me that having faith in him and believing in his ideas means more to him than whatever it is he is building.

Leave it to their "silly" ideas to teach me how to be a better parent. Who knows, maybe one day they will invent or create something extraordinary! Until then, I promise to tolerate and encourage their goals, ideas and creativity. Even if they don't think that having a clean bedroom is a goal worth striving for.