Richards family "Eras" tour of 2023

 

The Richards Family “Eras Tour” – 2023

2023 was a year of many things, and regardless of whether or not you are a “Swifty” or not, one cannot deny the force that was Taylor Swift’s “Eras” tour.  I am not a super-fan, but I am a bit of a “hype girl”, especially for strong, powerful women rockin’ the world.  I also work with a handful of Zellenials (young millennials / older Gen Z) who ARE super-fans, So, while none of us attended a live concert, it felt part of our 2023 and seems fitting to use as a metaphor for this year’s recap.

Without further ado, here are a few “eras” of our family’s 2023 – complete with wardrobes / accessories for you to imagine.

The Nimbus Era (costume:  fanny pack full of treats and poop bags, sneakers, ball cap)

Nimbus is our 4-legged fur-child; an English Pointer / Boxer / Dalmation mix we adopted in April of 2022.  She is afraid of many things (ceiling fans, the toaster), loves to romp and wrestle with her dog friends, and snuggles with all of us.  While she can occasionally be a real sphincter (if you know what I mean), most of the time she is a sweet girl.

Harper hugs Nimbus and cleans her eye goobers every day.  Rory plays chase with Nimbus and lets her eat pretzels out of his mouth.  Eric serves as Nimbus’ personal popsicle, and Haley imagines Nimbus’ inner-most feelings and musings about the world. 

For her part, Nimbus keeps us taking walks every day.  She also makes sure our savings account balance doesn’t get too comfortable.  We’ve had two pricey trips to the vet this year and are currently looking into pet insurance.

The Kid Sports Era (costume:  knee pads, shin guards, sneakers, bball jersey, shorts, and a shopping bag full of water, snacks, layers, and a blanket)

With two active kids in 7^th and 4^th grade, we stay busy attending sports activities.  This year we watched:

·       Harper play basketball with team Tsunami, which was put together by another 6^th grade mom.  Haley coached, dusting off her body’s and brain’s basketball muscles.  Harper has a knack for finding open teammates and helping on defense.  She’s working on building confidence in shooting and handling the ball. 

     Harper run middle school track.  She enjoyed the 200m hurdles, 4x100m relay, and  4x400m relay with her loooooong strides.   

·       Rory played soccer with his rec team, The Sweaty Sox, in both spring and fall.  His team has been together for a couple of years now – mostly boys from his elementary school and coached by some of the dads.  We love the community of families AND seeing all the boys improve so much.   Rory likes to play mid-field, which means the entire field.  He is a hustler and typically scores at least 1 goal per match (2 hat-tricks this fall).

·       Harper played middle school volleyball this fall.  She made the JV team and improved so much over the season!  She was a calm and consistent force on the team.

·       Rory played rec basketball this fall and Eric coached his team.  The 4^th and 5^th grade boys are learning a ton every game, and Eric has only a few more gray hairs because of it.  Rory plays basketball like he plays soccer: all-out hustle and fearlessness.  Translating ball-handling & seeing the field from feet to hands is an area of growth for him.

·       When Haley and Eric aren’t coaching, they are dutifully putting in time honing their bleacher butts and cheering like crazy.  This includes learning the rules of soccer (neither of us every played) and the NEW rules of volleyball (different than when Haley was a kid).

Hawaii Era (costume:  flip flops, swimsuits, sun hats, sun glasses)

Our family was blessed this year to get to travel to Kauai, Hawaii with Haley’s parents , sister, and sister’s family.  We spent 9 days soaking up the sun and adventuring around the island.

Some highlights:

·       Hiking to Waipo’o Falls in Waimea Canyon

·       Attending a luau

·       Seeing seals, sea turtles and dolphins

·       Eating a Puka dog

·       Taking a boat tour of the Na`pali Coast

·       Jumping off the pier in Hanalei Bay

·       Kayaking up the Waialua River and hiking to Secret Falls

·       Taking morning walks on the beach at the Waimea Plantation Cottages

·       And so much more!

Outdoor Adventure Era (zip-off hiking pants, backpacks)

While Hawaii took a big chunk of space in our iCloud photo drive, we did have other noteworthy outdoor adventures, including:

·       Family ski trips to Granby Ranch and Ski Cooper

·       Haley & kids spending spring break in Buena Vista, CO and doing the polar river plunge at Cottonwood Hot Springs

·       Haley visiting friends in Austin, TX

·       Harper attending Rocky Mountain Mennonite Camp for the 2^nd year and climbing Pig Rock

·       Camping trips to Lake Isabel in southern Colorado, State Forest State Park, and Brainard Lake

·       Trip to Moab, Utah to visit Canyonlands and Arches National Parks

Gotta Work Era (backpacks, “work clothes” laptops)

On the work front, Eric changed companies after 10 years.  He is excited for new challenges and new projects.

Haley now does much less advising of students at CSU and instead leads two advising teams at CSU:  Exploratory Studies and Health Professions advising.

Rory started 4^th grade and has already been on more field trips than Harper got to do in all of elementary school, which is a sore subject.  He is a curious kid who dives in deep when he is into something, rarely pausing to eat or go to the bathroom. 

Harper started 7^th grade and got to choose many electives this year, in addition to her core subjects.    She really enjoys band, Science Olympiad, and being on Yearbook.  She is also learning that taking math with 8^th graders isn’t as scary as she thought.

Creative Era (aprons, tool belt, Bauder t-shirts, mis-matched socks)

Creativity is a value in our family, as we’re always creating something.

Rory builds and assembles a variety of things (Legos, origami, etc), draws, and plays guitar.

Harper bakes cupcakes and muffins, coordinates theme-parties with all the details, crochets, and plays trumpet.

Haley’s creativity these days takes the form of hosting and coordinating said theme-parties or school events and trying to squeeze in time here and there to make cards, learn to crochet or tinker on the piano. 

Eric’s art continues to be his patio-project.  This year, he built doors for the cabinets out of wood and is currently learning to weld so that he can complete the metal cabinet under the grill. 

 

 

Whew!

Much like Taylor Swift’s Era’s tour, every era in our family is constantly evolving.   We are holding on and leaning in to all the eras give to enrich our lives – the people, the lessons, and the memories.

We hope the “Eras” of your 2023 were rich and rewarding.  Here’s to new “Eras” in 2024!

Holiday Songs for 2021

 

Holiday Songs for 2021

Richards family style....

We have a rule in our house:  no listening to Christmas music until after Thanksgiving unless you are making the music on your own (piano or voice).  Once we hit the day after Thanksgiving, Boom!  It’s on – at home, in the car, in the shower until well-past the big day arrives (at least through New Year’s). 

So, in the spirit of the music of the season, I bring you a (sort-of) mash-up of Christmas Carols to summarize our year.  I highly recommend reading this post with its accompanying audio – visual presentation at this link:  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIAkDcU0a7U

“All I want for Christmas is my 2 front teeth…. “  In true second grade fashion, Rory lost both of his front teeth the week after Thanksgiving after allowing them to dangle grotesquely in his mouth for almost a month.  My mention of not wanting to spend the money set aside for Christmas gifts on dental bills was enough to help him accelerate the process. 

Now, we travel back in time chronologically to the beginning of the year…..

“Joy to the World, we’re off to school….”   After doing remote school at home for almost the entirety of the fall semester in 2020-2021, we found out we would get to return to school at the end of January – IN PERSON!  The kids over-the-moon excited to see their friends and get to interact with teachers in real-life.  I was relieved to be able to work while they were in school, meaning I was actually able to do my job! 

We are eternally grateful for the courage and resolve of teachers everywhere to deliver learning experiences in whatever format they could. 

“Walking in a Winter Wonderland……”  We were fortunate to enjoy multiple opportunities for winter play in early 2021.  We went tubing at Beaver Meadows tubing park, which was thrilling and warranted wearing helmets in my opinion.   We cross-country skied up in Wyoming at Happy Jack’s.  We took a long weekend to downhill ski at Granby Ranch, where the kids gained a lot more confidence on their skis.  When we had snow in Fort Collins, we went sledding on our neighborhood sledding hill, snowshoed around the neighborhood trails, and built epic snow forts.  These snow forts endured numerous snow ball battles and hide-and-seek games with quality engineering and construction strategies.

“Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Now we have a new vaccine!. . . “   After 6-8 months of not seeing grandparents, we welcomed the grandparents for visits in spring of 2021.  Woo-hoo!  It felt so good to reconnect and laugh together.

“Rory (not Rudolf) our youngest member, bounced right off a trampoline….”    It was bound to happen.  One house in the neighborhood got a trampoline during COVID and that quickly became the hangout for all of the gang.  Despite adult recommendations of zipping the netting shut and limiting the number of kids on the trampoline at the time, Rory bounced right off that thing one day and broke his wrist.  Despite kick-starting spring break with a broken arm, Rory didn’t let it slow him down.  He played half of his first soccer season with a cast wrapped in soft towels.

“ O Pop-Up Camper, O Pop-Up Camper, you are so nice and cozy…”   We certainly enjoyed camping and visiting some new AND old favorite areas in summer 2021.  Our first trip was across northern Colorado to Dinosaur National Monument on the border of Colorado and Utah in early June.  It was an awesome trip despite having to change a flat tire in the middle of the desert on a 90+ degree day (yuck).   In July we enjoyed a large family camping trip with grandparents, sister/aunt and cousins!  We played a lot of games, ate a million snacks, told countless stories, and hiked to couple waterfalls in Rocky Mountain National Park.  For Labor Day we returned to Brainard Lake (one of our fave camping spots) for a re-charge before the fall got busy with sports and activities. 

“Over the river and through the plains, to grandparents’ house we go…”   2 trips to Kansas kept us connected to extended family in summer 2021.  We were grateful to get to attend a celebration of life for Haley’s late grandmother, Anneliese, and a Baldwin family reunion.  We watched a lot of the summer Olympics in Wakeeney, and then Harper and Rory got to attend “Cousin Camp” for a week, coming back with countless adventures to share. 

“It Came Upon a Utah night, a million stars so bright . . . “  Utah was a new state to check off the list for Harper and Rory.  As mentioned earlier, we took one trip to Utah in early June to visit Dinosaur National Monument.   In the fall, we visited southeastern Utah and Canyonlands National Park.  We learned a lot about the ancient Puebloan people, the desert landscape, and astronomy – holy cow dark skies!!! 

“Deck the Halls . . . “   Back to school 2021 – an actual “normal” back to school!!!  In August, Harper began 5^th grade (her last year at Bauder Elementary, sigh), and Rory began 2^nd grade.  They both love their teachers and are thriving in school.  I got to return to working on campus at Colorado State University after working 100% remotely for 17 months.  We’ve all learned a lot about what it means to “work” throughout the pandemic.  I’ve found that it’s HARD to do my job when I cannot see and interact with my team and my students in-person.  And yet, I’ve also found that there are many tasks I can do even more effectively at home, so I’ve crafted hybrid work schedule to blend the best of both.  Eric continues to work at Larsen Structural Engineering without too much change or disruption. 

“O Come, All Ye Neighbors. . . “    The great blessing of the pandemic has been the strengthening of community and neighborhood bonds.  There are 10 kids on our street who are now a super tight-knit group, traveling in small packs from yard to yard, entertaining themselves for hours outside and eating all the popsicles parents can stock in the freezers. 

Harper appointed herself (sometimes in collaboration with other friends) as event coordinator of the group.  She planned an epic Last Day of School party that spanned 4 houses, with 5-6 different activities over 8 hours.   Yes, 8 hours.  That party lasted from noon to 8pm.  Whew!  In October, she and 2 classmates (who are not neighbors but know all the neighbors from school) created a Harry Potter party that basically involved guided activities that followed the plot of the first Harry Potter book.  Everyone came in costume and had a great time.  Upcoming:  Winter Break Christmas movies – 2 different showings with tickets and a concession stand. 

“Up on the Rooftop. . . . “    Our rooftop is changing!!!!  After years of saving and planning, we finally embarked in a big house project - - re-doing our back yard to include a covered patio and outdoor dining space.   We’re hoping to have it ready for dining al-fresco from May  - September 2022.  Come visit!

“Silent Night, Holy Night.  All is not calm, and not all bright.  But, we seek peace and honor our light….”   These are uncertain and complicated times.  It’s not always easy or Instagram pretty at our house.  We know it’s not at your house either.  We do our best to live our values everyday and honor the light we see in all around us, including the light in you.

Sending love, hope, peace, authenticity, honesty, and empathy to you – however you are feeling yesterday, today, and tomorrow. 

“We Wish you a Merry Christmas . . . and a Happy New Year!” 

 

 

 

2020 Reflections : Rock 'n Roll and Rom-Com style

Every Rose has its Thorn

As I sit down to summarize 2020, I’m struck with a couple of writer’s dilemmas.  How honest should I be?  How positive should I be?  Should I go for documentary style or Rom-Com Hallmark movie style? 

The answer?  Both.  It feels fitting for 2020 to choose the paradoxical option.  So, here goes…..

2020 started off optimistic.  Eric and I just turned 40 at the end of December 2019, so we were embarking on a new age decade that matched the new decade of the 20s.  We had a celebratory family vacation planned to Mexico in February and lots of other big moments to look forward to in the new year.

We had a wonderful vacay to Akumal, Mexico, albeit our traveling party was smaller than we had originally planned.  Harper was thriving in 3^rd grade, and Rory was killing it in kindergarten.  Eric and I were working, juggling all the things, and keeping ourselves as balanced as can be expected for a busy family of four.

The, March hit.  And, well…… you know.

We endured the hardships almost all the rest of you have endured. 

·         There was the shortage of toilet paper, hand sanitizer stock-ups, and making sure we had masks with us as all times. 

·         There was the struggle through remote learning, working from home, and stay-at-home orders. 

·         There was the weekly highlight of take-out dinner, just to break up the cooking.

·         There was racial injustice and a divisive election. 

·         There was the learning of Zoom, Messenger, Facetime, etc. and how to connect meaningfully in socially-distant ways.

On top of all this, a wildfire – the largest in Colorado history – ravaged the mountains directly west of our home.  We had days where the sky was so dark at noon you would have guessed it was 8pm.  We had air-quality alerts of purple (beyond red).  It felt dystopic.

This was almost too much to bear.  Throughout the pandemic, the only place we felt “normal” was in the great outdoors.  From August through October we were stripped of our playground, our solace, our sanctuary.  Evacuated.  Burned. 

2020 was paradoxical too, as I found myself stuck in cycles of contradictory thinking:

·         I can feel completely overwhelmed and underwhelmed in the same moment.

·         I can feel grateful and bitter about the same things.

·         I can feel liberated and homesick when I think about not traveling for holidays.

·         I can feel resentful and proud of my work.

·         I can feel worried about and comforted by my kids.

·         I can feel annoyed and completely love.

·         I can feel like time is racing by and standing still at the same time.

·         I can feel frantic and unmotivated simultaneously.

As I look at all of this, 2020 definitely did feel like the Dumpster Fire the popular GIFs and memes allude to.  But, in the words of the 1980s hair band, Poison, “Every Rose has its Thorn”,  2020 feels like a patch of goat-heads popping bicycle tires.  Or a huge brambly, overgrown bush. 

And yet, we have grown some beautiful roses.

·         2020 has cultivated a strong sense of community amongst the families in our neighborhood.  When we moved her 5 years ago, Eric and I hoped that our kids would someday roam the street, knocking on front doors to play.  It took a pandemic to get there (and maybe just a level of maturity), but the “United Nation of Reedgrass Kids” has formed (complete with a rotating cycle of presidential office and a flag).  Playing outside with neighbors has been one of the only social outlets Harper and Rory have enjoyed this year.  They have built bike jumps and snow forts.  They have played soccer, basketball, and hide and seek.  They squirt each other with water blasters.  They have lego-building derbies and paper-airplane contests in the driveways.  This group of kids is tight-knit now.  We are so grateful.

·         2020 has allowed us to continue our love of outdoor adventures.  Shopping malls and movie theatres shutting down didn’t impact us as much as others.  Thankfully, we were able to get out for most months this year (wildfires aside).  Some highlights

o   Biking over 50 miles together on Fort Collins’ bike trails in the month of May and discovering some new natural areas in the process.

o   Stand-Up Paddle Boarding once a week during June, July, and early August in Horsetooth Reservoir. 

o   3 lovely, blissful camping trips – 2 of which with excellent company.

o   Snorkeling and beach-combing in Mexico.  Harper is such a water girl.  She just took off!

·         2020 made family visits all the more precious.  We feel so thankful we were able to make a few trips back to Kansas in the summer when COVID rates weren’t as high to see family.  The kids got to participate in their beloved Cousin Camp, which made summer feel “real”.

·         2020 made us lean on our Fort Collins family.  In addition to the “Reedgrass Kids”, we had to invite others “in” to make life in a pandemic work.  Our nanny, our school “pod” family, our honorary “aunt and uncle”, my running group, and more.  All of our important local peeps are showing up for us in different ways.  We only hope we are adding as much to their lives as we gain from them. 

·         2020 has made us flex our creativity, resilience and gratitude muscles.   

o   We’ve performed plays, had cupcake baking challenges, written and illustrated books, created art, built things, and developed games and scavenger hunts. 

o   We’ve cried, journaled, meditated, hugged, slept, talked it out, and reached out.

o   We’ve practiced gratitude by lighting a candle and sharing something we are thankful for every night before dinner.

Whew!  There is a lot of beauty there.  Giant, blooming roses.

While we hope 2021 won’t be as thorny as 2020, we know there are hardships to come.  And, hopefully some of our thorn-like experiences in 2020 transform into roses of some variety in the future. 

Transformation.  I love that.  I guess I’m a fan of Rom-Coms after all 😊.  But, I don’t like super-cheesy rom-coms.  I like stories and characters with depth.  Happy endings are nice, but I’m most interested in seeing growth that results in some sort of transformation.

So now the writer’s question that remains:  How can we transform our own personal 2020s to become bouquets with beautiful thorns and flowers? 

Wishing you a transformational 2021 – documentary or Rom-Com style.

 

A Pacifist Joins a Fight Club and other news from 2017

I love getting the mail this time of year.  I love seeing family and friends’ beautiful photo cards and hanging them up in our dining room.  And, I also love sending them.  Addressing them, stamping them, and sorting them would not be tasks I would want to do on a regular basis.  But, I do find joy in the task once a year.  Along with the cards, I also like to send a little note for our blog post, so that I can share some updates on 2017.  So, without further ado, here goes……

3-year-old Rory becomes the worlds youngest real estate mogul

I remember last winter we found our old Monopoly game and the kids were curious.  So, we got it out, came up with some modified rules, and played.  Rory was the luckiest player!  With our modified rules, you could build houses on properties you owned if you just landed on it again.  Rory kept landing on his own properties and building house after house, hotel after hotel.  In the end, he won the game by a landslide – no cheating involved!  (just modified rules of course).

If addition to being a budding real estate investor, Rory (who is now 4), enjoys drawing very anatomically correct people and detailed machines, building with blocks and legos, playing outside, riding his Strider bike, cooking with Mom, and snuggling.  He started pre-school this year and is really starting to enjoy it after a couple of months of transition.

6-year-old Harper breaks world record for most days of a loose dangly tooth hanging on

Harper has had a loose tooth since March.  On the day she discovered it, we busted out the sewing machine to make a little tooth bag for when the tooth fell out.  She carried it with her on all overnight trips through the spring, summer and fall.  Guess when that tooth fell out……. December 12!  It was hanging on by a thread for months, but that thing just wouldn’t fall out.  Upon advice from her wise cousin, Gavin, she visualized it falling out on Dec. 11 and then it just happened the next day.  Woah!

Aside from breaking world records, Harper worked very hard to break a hard thumb-sucking habit this year.    She loves to ride her purple bike, swim, play school, make things for people, do crafts, and read.  She’s starting to learn to play piano, and she tried soccer for the first time this fall.  First-grade suits her very well.  She loves school.

Eric wrestles an Alligator and keeps all 5 fingers

Well, almost.  This statement is only partially true.  Eric did not wrestle a gator, but he did hold one.  Yes, it’s true.  In June, we took a family trip to the Great Sand Dunes National Park and not far from the park is the Colorado Gator Farm.  I did not want to go, but Eric convinced us all to stop.  During our tour, we fed gators, watched gators, and Eric HELD A GATOR!  The other 3 of us touched its tail.  Saying reptiles are not my thing is an understatement.  But, in the end, I will say it was one of the most fascinating places I’ve ever been. 

Thankfully, Eric decided not to enroll in the gator-wrestling class.  Instead he proved his athletic prowess cycling hundreds of miles in the foothills around Fort Collins, playing basketball, and building a play structure in our back yard.  He continues to amaze me with his handy-man skills.

Haley, the pacifist, joins a Fight Club

Earlier this fall I had the opportunity to co-facilitate a presentation at CSU’s Diversity Symposium called “Fight Moves for Working Parents”.  It was sponsored by the Feminist Fight Club at CSU, which is a group dedicated to combating micro aggressions and discrimination in the workplace.  It was a fun opportunity for me to step outside my comfort zone and speak up for how we can make the workplace more productive for working parents, which is an issue I feel passionate about.

Outside of the fight club, this year I’ve enjoying being active outside (running, biking, hiking), deepening my yoga practice, learning some new crafty skills (hello fabric screen-printing), and getting more involved in Harper’s school community. 

Our Holiday Card this year says “Find your Merry”.  For our family, some of the best times we’ve had are when we’re adventuring outside together.  Unplugging from technology, having no strict agenda, and simply exploring the wonders of the natural world make our hearts swell.

In this world that sometimes feels chaotic, too-busy, and unpredictable, we hope that you can find ways to connect with what brings you joy and merriment in 2018.

Peace and Love,

Haley, Eric, Harper and Rory 

*** photo credits to Derek Haynes ***

The Apple of Their Eyes - May 2017

The Apple of Their Eyes

May 5th was Harper's Kindergarten Music program.  She had been excitedly talking about it, practicing songs, and telling us all the details for months.  One set of grandparents attended.  We pre-ordered the official school video to show the other set of grandparents and cousins.  This was THE event of the year so far for Ms. Harper.

And, it did not disappoint.  The amount of energy, enthusiasm, and overall cute-ness of 80ish kindergartners singing their hearts out was just too much.  We clapped and waved and laughed and gave "thumbs up" signs.  Harper is typically pretty reserved and leans on the shy side, but in this program, she came to life!  Her singing was strong.  Her actions were bold.  Her smiles was wide.  Afterward, she told me it was even better than she imagined. 

 My heart was bursting with happiness and pride.

Harper and Rory do things big and small each day (well, most days) to make me proud.  They don't have to perform or demonstrate a new skill for me to feel proud of them.  Sometimes it's just a thoughtful, kind comment or a though-provoking question.  They teach me lessons every day and allow me to feel every emotion under the sun; pride and wonder being two of them.  

And, they feel such pride in themselves.  "Mommy look at this!"  "Mommy, guess what I can do?"  I hear phrases like this all the time.  Young children are so eager to learn and so proud to share their accomplishments with others.  

Thinking of their pride makes me wonder:  when is the last time I felt proud of something I did?

It only took a flip through the photos on my phone to find something.  A couple of weeks ago, I completed a half-marathon.  I say "completed" because I did not run the entire thing.  The Horsetooth Half Marathon in Fort Collins is tough!  Lots of ups and downs over the hills to the west of our home.  It was a gorgeous spring day and I had trained with an inspiring group of friends.  Given the hours I'd spent training in February, March, and April, I felt so relieved to cross the finish line and get my medal and free beer!!  It is safe to say that 13.1 miles is a bit beyond my comfort-zone.

After the race, both Harper and Rory ( and Eric too) gave me big hugs and asked lots of questions.   'Did you win?"  (ummmm.  no).  "Who won the race?"  (ummmm, I don't know).  "Why did you run so far?"  (good question!).  "Did you get to eat snacks and drink water?"  (yes, water and gatorade).  "Did you have to go potty?"  (again, yes).  

They seemed curious and pleased to be there at the chaotic, noisy finish.

Once we got home, I looked at the photos both Eric and I took of the race.  He and some other dads and kids collaborated to amass quite the cheering squad, complete with signs and noise-makers.  The photos he took of us runners running toward the kids is great.  We are so excited to see them!  I took a couple of the kids holding signs and anxiously awaiting high-fives from the moms in the group.

But my favorite, is a pic Eric took of me in the last quarter-mile.  I had just stopped to give Harper and Rory quick mini-hugs and had started running again.  I look excited to finish the race.  

 

 And, the look on Harper and Rory's faces is priceless to me.  Here's the zoom in.  

The looks of excitement and that's-my-mommy-pride fill my heart to overflow status.

I signed up for this race to get outside, gain strength and endurance, and socialize with my friends.  I need those things to be a happy, healthy Haley.  And, I gained something else in the process.  I realized that my kids are capable of feeling proud of me for doing something that isn't even connected to their ego-centric little selves.

As parents, we give so much of our energy and so much of our selves to our children.  We tend to their needs, support their dreams, and celebrate their accomplishments.  

AND, there is huge value in us parents challenging ourselves, getting out of our comfort zones, and accomplishing a goal we set for ourselves.  I feel strongly that if we want our kids to be resilient, to think outside of themselves, and develop healthy relationships, we have to be willing to demonstrate that we are complex people.  Even though being a mother is the most important thing in the world to me.  It's not the only important thing in my world.  I hope they will come to understand that, respect that, and live that as well.

So, when is the last time  you made yourself proud?  your kids proud?  Or, for my non-parent friends, when is the last time you made someone important to you proud?  

You don't have to run a half-marathon.  Just try something new and share that experience with others.  Feel the pride.  Relish it.  Share it.

Ready - Set - Go!