Awesome Mom: Small Victories in the World of Parenting

The time I became an Awesome Mom!

#SundayFunday: Miniature Bird Houses

Painting Miniature Birdhouses for #SundayFunday Crafts.

Turning Me-Can'ts into I Cans

Inspiring confidence in your kids

#SundayFunday: Pet Rocks

#SundayFunday Craft Time: Pet Rocks - The Pet you never have to feed!

Tuesday, May 12, 2020

The Power of Choice



“In the space between stimulus (what happens) and how we respond, lies our freedom to choose. Ultimately, this power to choose is what defines us as human beings. We may have limited choices but we can always choose. We can choose our thoughts, emotions, moods, our words, our actions; we can choose our values and live by principles. It is the choice of acting or being acted upon.” 
― Stephen R. Covey



Every day, we find ourselves in situations where we are tested.  We are spoken unkindly to, a co-worker is out of line, a family member or friend is inconsiderate.  It's tempting in these situations to react strongly - to either defend ourselves, or to lash out in anger, or to breakdown in tears.  While it's ok, and natural, to feel strong emotions in these situations, it is how we react in these situations that has the largest impact.

As a child, life was very chaotic, and I often felt powerless.  I remember from even a young age realizing that, by not showing emotion, I could limit the control others in the world had over me to a limited degree.  Years later, however, the full impact of choosing hit home.  I recall clearly, in high school, a student telling our English teacher he “couldn’t” do his homework because he had a football game, and she pointed out he *chose* not to, and to do the game instead.
The conversation continued about choosing. Someone asked her, “well, what if you were robbed at gun point? The robber told you ‘give me your wallet or die’. You didn’t choose you get robbed!” And she said, “no, you didn’t choose to get robbed, but you chose not to die. You chose to live. And in that moment, you made a choice, and that was your power.”
There was more to it but that was life changing to me. I had NO power over what happened to me - whether or not I was robbed - but I had power in my choices in how I reacted to the situations- giving up the wallet, choosing to live- and I wasn’t ever letting anyone take that power from me.

This power is something I continue to exercise daily, in ways both big and small.  Whether it's refusing to raise my voice with an irate co-worker, or being polite to someone who has wronged me in the past, it is up to me, and me alone, to determine how I will react to any given person in any given situation.  It is up to me to consider it, at the end of the day, I want to be remembered as having taken part in an interoffice screaming match, or having kept my cool and remained professional when someone else could not.  If I raise my voice and scream and shout back, I have let someone else have power over me.

For a lot of people, and for women especially, I feel like the world limits our power in every way it can. We may be limited, as I am, by our health or medical conditions, or limited by socio-economic situations, or by domestic violence situations we find ourselves trapped in.  The world loves to convince us that we are limited, controlled, powerless.  But we have power in choices, and every time we exercise that power, it grows and gets stronger.  And one of the most subtle yet impactful ways we can exercise and use that power is in choosing how we react to the situations and people around us.


Monday, April 13, 2020

Social Distancing:Staying Safe

Howdy, everyone.

I hope you're all holding up in this new situation. There really seems to be three very different schools of thought right now - the "NBD. I'm going out! It's all a hoax anyway!" school (luckily, this school doesn't seem to have many people in it!), the "stay home, stay safe, follow the rules!" school, and the "the world is ending! I must own all the toilet paper, as it will replace currency!" school.  I hope you're firmly planted in the second one.

If you are currently trying to help flatten the curve by staying in when possible, you may be wondering how to stay healthy, stay busy, and stay sane. I'm here to try to help.

Staying healthy is dependent on the steps you take and the services you use.




WASH YOUR HANDS
First of all, wash your hands. Twenty seconds minimum, getting between fingers, on the backs of hands, palms, thumbs, and on the nails.  Some people hum happy birthday twice.  My 7-year-old sings it about 7 times.  I prefer the chorus to Raspberry Beret or a little Truth Hurts.  The Broadway

fans in my house go for Hamilton. Visit WashYourLyrics.com to input your favorite song and artist and get a customized poster with twenty seconds of handwashing lyrics and instructions.   Also, fragrant smelling hand soaps, like peony, watermelon, or apply encourage little ones to wash more.



STAY HOME
Many new movies are being released straight to digital, giving you more entertainment options than ever without leaving your home.  Trolls World Tour, Onward, and Frozen 2, for example, all came out in the past month, allowing your family to curl up for a night out, in.

Try Kindle Unlimited if a good book is more your speed, delivered right to the kindle app on your phone.
 

STAY IN THE CAR WHEN YOU LEAVE THE HOUSE
 Use curve side, pick up, or drive through whenever possible if you must venture out.  Many stores, like Walmart, Target, and Joann, offer curbside pickup, as do many restaurants like Chilis.  Staying in your vehicle limits your possible interaction with others.


NO HOUSEGUESTS = NO PANTS
Stay in your PJs ALL DAY by limiting visitors!  Sticks to virtual visits, or only one healthy friend at a time.


HAVE THE DOCTOR ON CALL
On a phone call, that is.  Avoid the doctor's office unless told to come in by the doctor, and save the ER for emergencies.   Call your doctor to discuss symptoms, or opt for virtual visits or services like teledoc. United Healthcare, and some other insurance providers, are currently waiving teledoc fees for customers. A simple call to the service gets you a conversation with a medical professional who can diagnose most issues and prescribe medication, or refer you to a medical facility.


Staying healthy is the fist step to getting through this, and everything that is 2020.

What is your family doing to stay healthy?

Check back for my next post, Social Distancing: Staying Busy, or subscribe to have it sent to your inbox.