Tag Archives: lactose intolerance

Fostering Appreciation in the Single Parent Family

It can be easy in a single parent family to see all the things that are “not right” or all the ways that things could and should be better. What can be more challenging, however, is to gather one’s thankfulness and resources and develop a sense of appreciation for all the joys and wonders of the world when one is often struggling just to make ends meet. So, what do I even mean when I start writing about “appreciation”? Back in November I wrote a little about my own “appreciation” around Thanksgiving, but this morning I am thinking of how … Continue reading →

Sometimes, We’re All a Little Weird

There is nothing like family life to keep a person humble—no matter how cool and hip and “put together” you are able to present to the world at large, when you get a group of people living together in the family space, you’re bound to be confronted with just how weird you can really be. Not to mention, as parents, we welcome these adorable little creatures into our hearts and homes—only to discover that they have some strange habits, and evolve into the occasional weirdos! One of my daughters came into the kitchen this morning as I was finishing loading … Continue reading →

You May Have to Tolerate a Bad Attitude

How many times have you wished you could control or manipulate your child’s mood or attitude? I know that as my children reached the pre-teen years, I really wasn’t ready for the snarkiness and bad attitudes that came along. It wasn’t enough for me that they actually did what I asked them to, I wanted them to do it with a smile and glee. The reality was, if I waited for them do both mind and obey, AND be happy about it–I would probably be waiting forever! I learned that it is perfectly normal to expect and tolerate some grumbling … Continue reading →

Making Productive Use of Disappointment

Things do not always go our way. Even the most optimistic and successful among us has to face disappointments in our home businesses occasionally. For others of us, the disappointments may seem to come more steadily. Instead of letting ourselves get crushed and discouraged, however, there are productive ways we can make the most of those disappointing times. There are a lot of things we can do with disappointment—we can use it to remind us that we really do care about what is going on in our businesses; we can also take the circumstances that led up to the disappointment … Continue reading →

Would it Help if You Were Getting Paid for It?

I was chatting with a friend the other day and we were talking about all the grief, troubles, stress, and challenges we put up with as parents. She mentioned that she might feel differently about it if she were actually getting PAID for it! As she shared, chucking: “I put up with a lot of babysitting and annoying personalities at work—but I do it for the money. I’m not sure WHY I’m putting up with all of it at home?!” While I laughed along with her, I couldn’t help think there was something in those comments. After all, we put … Continue reading →

Should You Lower or Raise Your Standards?

I recently wrote about how I think that those people who tell single parents that they should “stop being so picky” need to stop! In my opinion, single parents have earned the right to take their time and be as picky as they feel they need to be whether they are dating and looking for love, choosing friends, finding a new neighborhood, working on their careers, or whatever. As I was writing, however, I got to thinking about the whole idea of “standards” and whether or not some of us single parents have a tendency to have standards that are … Continue reading →

Losing Focus…and Getting it Back

The other day I confessed that there are those time when I really don’t want to work! I can think of a dozen things I would rather be doing, or I just cannot seem to muster the focus to concentrate on what needs to be done. Since we are working from home in our own businesses, we don’t have bosses or external forces to motivate us. Somehow, we have to find a way to get ourselves back on track and deal with it when we lose focus (and find a way to get it all back!) I am most likely … Continue reading →

When They Say They Don’t Care, It Often Means They DO

“I don’t care what you say!” or “I don’t care what happens”–how many times does a parent hear that in the course of raising a child? I have found, however, that when a child is touting how much he does NOT care about something, it generally is his way of covering up for the fact that he really does care. Now, this doesn’t mean that we try to force the issue as parents and tell our child, “Of course you care!” as he will just balk and refuse even more. But, it does give us insight into the fact that … Continue reading →

There Are Days When I Don’t Want to Answer Another Question!

I have written here in the Home Business blog about how important it is to focus on being “helpful” and structuring our business and marketing in such a way that we hone in on what we can do to improve the lives of our customers and clients. While I definitely subscribe to that approach to business, I thought it would be only fair for me to confess that are those days when the last thing I want to do is be helpful to anyone! There are those days when I don’t feel like I have any answers and I don’t … Continue reading →

“I Don’t Want to Work!”

Yesterday, I was commiserating with a colleague about trying to stay motivated and focused on work these last few days before the holidays. The fact is, it is more like a drudging death march and less about motivation. I really don’t WANT to be working. I would much rather be finishing up my shopping, wrapping packages, having lunch with friends, and chatting with my kids. I don’t want to be trying to carve out lines, search for words, and answer e-mails… Now, just because I do not WANT to work, it doesn’t mean that I have abandoned my business—I’m still … Continue reading →