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FMF - Agree before you disagree

Mom Advice – Find a way to Agree before you Disagree!

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FMF - Agree before you disagree

 

//  I think it’s time for some good ‘mom advice’ again. You know those times when your kids are arguing about some topic, and each of them have valid points to say, but they AREN’T listening to each other.

  • Perhaps they just want to hear the sound of their own voice.
  • Perhaps they’re determined to be ‘right.’
  • Perhaps they’ve just stopped listening to what the other is saying because they’re busy thinking about what they’re going to say next.

I especially find it funny (or annoying, I’m not sure which) when they are BOTH saying the same thing, just in different words. Aaaaagh! Makes me crazy!

So, being the SuperMom that I am (yes, that’s sarcasm), I calmly (or sometimes not so calmly) point out that “Before you disagree again, find something the other person is saying that you can agree with. In other words, say something like this, Read more

Finding that Home for the Holidays Feeling

Day 10 – Finding that ‘Home for the Holidays’ Feeling when Everything is Different

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Finding that Home for the Holidays Feeling

 

I remember the first time I saw Santa Claus in a swimsuit. Not a pretty sight. It was our first Christmas in South Africa, and we were walking through a local mall. There before us was a Christmas display showing Santa on a surfboard with board shorts and sunglasses. [gasp]

SOOO wrong on so many levels.

Erwin and I looked at each other and said, “We’re not in Kansas anymore, Toto.”

We were about to experience a VERY DIFFERENT Christmas.  

 

SHOCK #1 – SWELTERING HEAT

What a shock to experience a HOT Christmas on this side of the planet. We’d only ever known the snowy, cold Christmases in Canada—freezing temperatures, warm fires in the fireplace, ice skating and tobogganing, and hot apple cider to warm up afterward.

Snow wasn’t an inconvenience—it was our friend. Read more

Day 9 - Connecting in the Busyness

Day 9 – Connecting in the Busyness (Come Back to Me)

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Day 9 - Connecting in the Busyness

 

Have you ever gotten the feeling that the person you’re sitting with isn’t REALLY present? I mean, they’re physically present, but they’ve checked out mentally and emotionally?

“Hellooooooo?” … I’m here.

“Where did you go?” … Nowhere. I’m here.

“Come back to me, honey.” … What are you talking about? I’m here!

Except Elvis has left the building.

Yeah, I think we’ve all ‘checked out’ at one point or another. I know I’m guilty of it, especially when my kids are trying to get my attention and I’m focused on my ‘to do’ list. You know, those days when even “Mom, Mom, Mom, Mom,” doesn’t cut through the noise in your head.

Can you relate?   Read more