When I first had kids, I had no idea of the huge weight of guilt I was about to take on. For one thing, I didn't realize I had a temper until I the first time I found myself yelling my head off at my nine month old baby who was crying in the back seat - where had that momster come from!? I had so [...]Continue Reading
dealing with guilt
I Know a Secret About Getting Past the Monster
I've made so many mistakes. And I used to be paralyzed by the feelings of shame and guilt I had about those mistakes. This is a story for any of you who live with a bleak inner monster who whispers to you about why you'll never be worthy or lovable. Many of us get pretty good at shutting out the [...]Continue Reading
What Good Mothers Do
In the youngest years of my children's lives I lived in a world of possibility, and one terrifying possibility was that I might screw it all up. This worry, and the guilt that went with it each time I made a mistake, was crushing in its weight.I wanted to parent perfectly, and I could become nearly [...]Continue Reading
Starting Over – 5 Questions for Making Your Personal Plan
As we've been talking about using a kind voice instead of yelling here, many people have left comments like this one, "On those days where I’ve just lost my cool too many times and the guilt just overwhelms me when my head hits that pillow. I vow tomorrow I’ll be better. And then that vicious [...]Continue Reading
Parenting Reminder for the Hardest Days – Printable
When I published Parenting from the Dark Pit it was met with support and caring. I feel incredibly grateful for the community of readers who are so kind. One of the responses to that post about the hardest days of parenting was a list of what one mom needs to remember when she is in the dark pit, [...]Continue Reading
Parenting from The Dark Pit
I stand in the living room breathing deep, feeling the muscles by my jaw tense as I focus on finding a teeny tiny grain of patience in order to stop myself from yelling, "JUST CLEAN UP THE &%$#@*&! TOYS AND STOP ASKING ME QUESTIONS!!!" I tightly manage to say, "OK, only a few more things [...]Continue Reading
