My Kid, the Lawyer

Often, parents say they would like to see their children follow in their footsteps in terms of career choices. Whether it's continuing a lineage of public service, running the store that's been in the family for generations or joining the military, some people fervently wish for their kids to take the same path they did.

Well, not me.

See, my kid is already on the same path I chose.  I'm a lawyer.  When I was a child, my parents said I should be a lawyer....but I don't believe they meant it as a compliment.  They meant I was argumentative and wouldn't give up.  I suppose they thought those attributes made for a good lawyer, but one heck of an obnoxious kid.

I wanted to give orders, not take them!

It's In The Way That You Use It

No, this isn't just one of my favorite Eric Clapton songs. It's something I'm trying to work on in my own life when I try to turn lemons into lemonade. It's advice I would give to a friend, it's something I need to remember for myself, and it's something I need to model for my daughter.

Life throws us a lot of curve balls, and that's putting it mildly. Some of us have more than our fair share of challenges and sorrow. But, no matter what kind of issues we may have - some decidedly beyond our control - the one thing that is NOT beyond our control is the way that we react to them, manage them, accept them, cope with them and maybe, just maybe, better our lives, not in spite of them, but because of them.

It really is in the way that you use it.

Beautiful rainbow (taken 7/1/12)

Can Working Moms Really Have It All?

I've written before about how difficult it can be to be a working parent. I'm a mom so that's my frame of reference, hence the title of this post. But I certainly recognize that there are an increasing number of dads who also have the challenge of balancing raising their kids and working long hours.

To some extent, this is an unavoidable conflict, and we who face it simply manage the best we can.

I'm new at this whole thing...

Where Is Your Passion?

What have you done today to make you feel proud?

It’s never too late to try

What have you done today to make you feel proud?

You could be so many people, if you make that break for freedom

What have you done today to make you feel proud?

--“Proud,” Heather Small

I’ve been asking myself this question a lot lately, so I thought I’d ask you. When I pose this query internally, the answer that comes to mind is:

I don’t know.

Photo from rlnaquin.com

She Works Hard For The Money

Parental competency area number 6 is “life skills” – which sounds like a ridiculous high school class. In any event, this skill area entails having some sort of plan for the future and providing adequately for your child.  Clearly these are important considerations, although I don't think I would have rated this above others, such as safety. 

I had what I thought was a pretty clear plan for my future – and then Annapie came along and changed my entire world.  I’m so glad she did! The great irony is that now I want to make corresponding changes to the rest of my future plan, but I can’t because this little girl depends on me to provide for her.  Funny that the remainder of the plan I had all along doesn’t fit so well anymore, or at least it feels that way sometimes.