I’m Not Biting My Tongue Anymore! Speaking My Truth: Learned From Kids

Speaking my truth, I'm a GenX'er and that comes with many things I'm proud of. We didn't get trophies much but the ribbons I earned from track are cherished memories.…

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Did You Really Lose Yourself as a Mom? Or Were You Lost Long Before?

We hear moms say it all the time… “I had children and I lost myself”. I get it. I’ve seen so many women in therapy who feel this exact same…

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How Do We Safeguard Our Kids From Toxic Relationships?

It's in the media. It's on so many episodes of crime shows. Toxic relationships turned into domestic abuse. Families are ripped apart by the grief of domestic violence. How do…

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My Daughter Is Getting Married and This Girl Mom Is Getting a Son

The milestones of being a girl mom and raising daughters is priceless. Parenting comes with surprises every turn. Imagine my new delight at the engagement of my daughter. A feeling…

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When Are You Going To Have Kids? Sensitive Topic Most People Don’t Understand

We recently flew to Minnesota and being a family of four we had one row with the girls and me, then my husband across the aisle. A seemingly nice woman…

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Redefining “Smart”: The Importance of Emotional Intelligence

“Emotional intelligence is learned and learnable by everyone; whereas intellectual intellect is not learnable. The daily practice of doing emotional labour is what develops emotional intelligences. In the beginning, the…

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There is Beauty in Giving! But Do You Have Limits?

I write a lot about how the beauty of giving is a gift itself, literally and figuratively. What about boundaries or cut-off points to your extended hand? If you do,…

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People Pleasing: Set Yourself Free From the Lies You Tell Yourself

It's subtle, people pleasing. The lies women are telling are often so close to the truth, so subtle that they go unseen, but they never go un-felt. Women are telling…

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Give Voice to Maternal Exhaustion – A Story of Burnout, Betrayal and Fear

What does maternal exhaustion mean? Well, I knew that I needed to face this topic for the last six months. Instead of writing, maternal exhaustion has been where I’ve lived.…

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Grief: A Delicate State of Being of the Mind and Heart

Hello there and greetings to all who read this article. I hope and pray that everyone is doing well. That is indeed my hope for you. This article was going…

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Read more about the article Body Image: How Birth Helped Me Heal After Abuse and a Lifetime at War with Myself and My Body
Sarah Nicole Landry @thebirdspapaya

Body Image: How Birth Helped Me Heal After Abuse and a Lifetime at War with Myself and My Body

I was 20 when I lost my first pregnancy. I felt betrayed by my body, but at that point in my life, betrayal was all I knew towards her. My…

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The Aftermath: Pressing Through the Pain to Find Healing After Trauma

Warning: traumatic birth story detailed below. Please read on with caution as the material or descriptions may be triggering. Every January, as his birthday draws near, I have a tightness…

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Reasons Why We Hesitate to Ask For and Accept Help When in Need

Do you find it difficult and are hesitant to ask for and accept help when you are in need? Why do some of us hesitate when it comes to asking…

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Distance Learning: Educating the Heart Through Self-Compassion

How to educate has entered pretty much every parent’s home this year in a new way. As I write this I am embracing our third month of facilitating online kindergarten…

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Black Mothers Matter: Addressing Deadly Healthcare Disparities

I believe that it is important to continually educate ourselves on the prevalence of racism that plagues our society. Recent events have created a new awareness surrounding the treatment of…

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Mom Burnout: Finding Balance in a Season that has us Burning at Both Ends

What do you think of when I say the word balance? Do you picture the perfect system or a schedule that FINALLY makes motherhood feel balanced? What we experience in…

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Three Ways to Overcome The Challenges of Being a Caregiver

Being a caregiver can be very challenging and sometimes difficult to overcome but it can be done. On January 31, 2017, the rest of mine and my mother's lives changed…

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The Best Thing We Can Do for Our Children: Allow Them to be Themselves

“When you parent, it’s critical you realize you aren’t raising a “mini me,” but a spirit throbbing with its own signature. For this reason, it’s important to separate who you…

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How Many Times Are You Willing to Get Back Up When You Fall?

We all, at some point in our lives, have fallen down physically or mentally, ranging from childhood to adulthood. We've collected a treasure chest full of scars from a few…

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You Reap What You Sow: How This Phrase Affected My Mindset.

There is an old proverb that mentions the idea of you reap what you sow. If you've ever heard this growing up, how did you decern it? When I heard,…

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This Isn’t A Hallmark Movie! 6 Ways to be Present, Not Perfect, During the Holidays

If you know me, you know I really love a good, sappy Hallmark movie, especially a Christmas one. During the holiday season there's little I enjoy more than snuggling up…

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The Secret to Doing It All: Don’t! And Five tips to help you look like you Do!

People often ask me how I “do it all” or how I “keep it all together," and I’m just going to be honest from the start and tell you my…

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When Life Doesn’t Go as Planned: Healing after Having a Baby at Twenty-Three Weeks

We are coming up on five years since having a baby at twenty-three weeks gestation.  Every year, my processing takes off another layer from the pain of that situation. My…

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Military Wife Life: Tools to Survive the Constant Transition of His Career

The same day I chose this blog topic, I received a “heads up” that my husband’s name was at the top of a list for a deployment next year. He…

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Read more about the article Military Brat Parenting: Five Things I Tell My Kids in Hopes They’ll Be Better Humans
Royalty free photo by Josh Willink

Military Brat Parenting: Five Things I Tell My Kids in Hopes They’ll Be Better Humans

My dad was an Air Force colonel, a fighter pilot and a Vietnam veteran. In addition to being a proud (and dutiful) daughter, my upbringing in a military household shaped…

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The Day I Cried Over Spilled Milk: My Journey of Self-Care and Embracing my “Enoughness”

In 2012 I began my self-care journey and it changed my life in ways I'd never imagined. Sharing this story has become part of my mission because every time I…

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