Tag: children

From One Mom To Another: The Gift Of Perspective Is Everything, Huffington Post

Published on by KathrynLeave a comment

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“You lift your eyes and there is a bird across the street perched on the topmost point of the firehouse bell-tower. Why does she just sit there? What does she see? You need to follow the way of this mama bird, to get up high above the trees so that you can know where you’ve been and where you’re going.

Truth is, the longer you’ve been a mom, the clearer are your failures. The blessing of perspective allows painful truths to emerge that often you picked at blades of grass instead of getting up high. You’ve regarded yourself as a good mom, yet as you gain distance from the early days of babies and toddlers, preschool and elementary school, from this place above the trees you can finally see.

Like that mama bird sitting up high in the tree, you stand now as a humble mom of 17 years, better able to discern where you’ve been and where you’re going. ”

Read in full on Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/kathryn-streeter/motherhood_b_9686272.html

 

What Happened When I Quit Helicopter Parenting And Let My Kids Choose Their Own Path, Scary Mommy

Published on by KathrynLeave a comment

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“But when I coddle, I hurt them. If I keep myself at the center of their universe, helicopter parenting and serving their every need, ultimately, the goal of independence is undermined. It’s much harder to stay in the shadows and watch my kids successfully dodge one bad decision only to perform a dramatic faceplant when the next major obstacle reveals itself. But how else will they learn?”

http://www.scarymommy.com/club-mid/quit-helicopter-parenting

 

 

What Happened When I Quit Helicopter Parenting And Let My Kids Choose Their Own Path

Published on by KathrynLeave a comment

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“I’m a safety mom. A safety person, in fact. During a past ski trip, I consistently arrived back at the chairlift last, underscoring my obvious preoccupation with not hurting myself. I checked my speed the entire descent down the mountain. Speed is not my middle name.

My teens were ahead of me. And though cautionary words were on the tip of my tongue, I made no effort to prohibit them from their rapid downhill flight. I didn’t want to harden their resolve.

People who thrive are people who are being who they believe they were meant to be. That is exactly what I want for my kids, and probably pretty close to what you want, too. We want our kids to mature into independent young adults who can make wise choices on their own.”

Read in full on Scary Mommy: http://www.scarymommy.com/club-mid/quit-helicopter-parenting/

The Days

Published on by KathrynLeave a comment

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You lift your eyes and there is a bird across the street perched on the topmost point of the firehouse bell-tower. Why does she just sit there? What does she see? You need to follow the way of this mama-bird, to get up high above the trees so that you can know where you’ve been and where you’re going. 

Truth is, the longer you’ve been a mom, the clearer are your failures.

Read the essay in full on Mamalode.

 

 

Sharing Online: Moms, Are You Hurting Your Family?

Published on by KathrynLeave a comment

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Building a strong relationship with my husband and kids is like a major construction project–the effort and time are immense. I am unwilling to destabilize this structure with insensitive oversharing.

Every relationship is fragile. Take. Care.

Just released today on Sammiches and Psych Meds. *A variation of this essay was previously published on The Good Men Project.

http://www.sammichespsychmeds.com/sharing-online-moms-are-you-hurting-your-family/

But Is It Safe? Abandoning Helicopter Parenting So Kids Can Grow Up

Published on by KathrynLeave a comment

Screen Shot 2015-09-29 at 11.28.47 PMWhat good are we doing when we dive in and rescue our kids? There comes a time when we need to let go, the most difficult parenting task of all. Sorry for the bad news. Time to stop crying and let go.

“I’m a safety mom. For starters, speed is not my middle name. During a past ski trip, the fact that I consistently arrived back at the chairlift last underscored this reality. My concern about staying safe informed my behavior. I checked my speed while descending the mountain.

Though cautionary words were on the tip of my tongue, I didn’t prohibit my teens from their downhill flight. I didn’t want to harden their resolve.

A person who thrives is being who they were meant to be. That’s exactly what my goal is for my kids, and probably yours touches on this theme in some way, too. We want our kids to mature into independent young adults who can make wise choices.”

Read in full: http://www.sammichespsychmeds.com/but-is-it-safe-abandoning-helicopter-parenting-so-kids-can-grow-up/

The One Trip Guaranteed to Stretch Your Marriage

Published on by KathrynLeave a comment

Coinciding with the time of year where thoughts turn to relationships, I’m happy to publish this story with The Good Men Project which faces the gritty reality of marriage against the backdrop of a grim visit to IKEA after moving internationally to London. 

http://goodmenproject.com/featured-content/the-one-trip-guaranteed-to-stretch-your-marriage-dg/

Spring Break and The Gambler (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)

Published on by KathrynLeave a comment

What do spring break and The Gambler have to do with each other?

I recently finished reading The Gambler and spring break is around the corner. These two facts remind me of a spring break several years ago that included time in Baden-Baden, Germany, the historic casino town where Dostoyevsky wrote The Gambler. We wanted to share Germany with our kids, a country where we’d lived before-kids, two different times in fact. Actually, our daughter was born in Germany just 10 days before we moved back to the US the second time. I wrote the creative nonfiction essay (not yet under publishing contract) Building Family Muscle, One Tower at a Time to tell the story of that trip back with the kids. It’s a story of conquered towers and substantial family growth. Stay tuned as to where this essay is published. But in the meantime, read The Gambler on your spring break.

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