Mom Therapy

Image courtesy of renjith krishnan/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net I know that sounds contrary to the deal-hunting bargainista in me, but the truth is that I prefer to shop online rather than deal with all the crowds on Black Friday. Plus, with so...

Dressing for the holidays can be daunting! Here are a few ideas to make your holiday wardrobe season a little more merry and bright. Thanksgiving: Dress for the season with fall colors.  Even if we don't see leaves changing color here...

In today’s world, the minute a woman finds out she is pregnant for the first time, she has a vast array of helpful resources at her fingertips. There are books, websites, and online support communities for every stage and...

  It all began in 2008... If someone had walked up to me in January 2008 and said, "You are going to be a writer," I would have chuckled and replied, "I'm sorry, but I think you have me confused with...

I live with two little fashionistas.  Even though they are only 6 and 8, they are already experts on what is and is not fashionable. My older daughter, in particular, frequently has an opinion about what I’m wearing.  And...

“No one goes to Target because they need something, you go to Target and let Target tell you what you need.” How many of you ladies can relate to this? I find it amazing how much money you can...

Our family moved to Phoenix from southeast Minnesota 1 year ago, making THIS our first full AZ summer -- and all I can say is Holy Moley. This desert dwelling thing is no joke! If you find yourself in Phoenix sweating summer...

Not sure if you guys have noticed, but we live in something of a digital age. I, more than most, retain an affinity for the old fashioned... I make pen-to-paper to-do lists and include items already completed just to give them a...

A good college girlfriend of mine just had her first baby, and, of course, we’ve had plenty to discuss. I love hearing stories of her new little baby boy. And, I’ll admit, as the mother of two little men...

10 Ways to Launch Great Days? Tap Morning Mindfulness! Your kiddos’ perspective on each new day can greatly benefit from your modeling and/or facilitating the practice of purposefully paying attention to the present, internally and externally, otherwise known as...

This is a guest post by Phoenix mom and breast cancer survivor Barbra Watson-Riley. Read more about Barbra's breast cancer story here. Last year I was diagnosed with breast cancer. It was shocking of course. But as we know, breast...

Your kids are always watching you and always learning from you! Here's a list of five real-life-things your kids should see you do {spoiler alert: this list goes way beyond seeing you say "please" and "thank you"!} 1. Pay Bills Your kids...

I think you have to be very naïve to go into motherhood thinking it will be all sunshine and roses all the time. However, even though most of us go into it knowing there will be challenges, I think...

I never understood why parents got so emotional about their child starting school until about a week before watching my oldest walk through the door of her Kindergarten classroom. While exciting, it also made me sad and I had trouble...

We see each other at the grocery store, play dates, parks, church and gas stations. We are all busy. But when was the last time we were really a friend to someone? I have a newborn and I'd love to...

We moms are all supposed to be on the same team, right? But what about those times when you catch another mom giving you a sideways judgy glance - whether it's because you just let your toddler eat a...

My marriage finally hit rock bottom the Monday morning after Thanksgiving 2012. My husband chose that day to tell me that he no longer loved me. It was my first holiday season as a mother, and I was alone...

Kiddos are freaking out? Facilitate 10 ways of finding calm. Explore below to help them learn or improve on how to smooth things over within themselves. Whether your kiddo just “needs to calm down”, could stand to develop more...

My middle child is three years old and this has been the hardest year of both of our lives.  I think about how with my first child, my daughter, I dreaded the terrible twos and thought to myself how lucky...

It's Archives Week here at SMB, and this morning I'm featuring my favorite post of Tracy's. You can read all her posts here. I choose this post because I have days where I feel guilty for not being “super mom”....

What a busy, adventurous, and just plain old fun week I’ve had with my children! Here’s a little of sampling of some of the things we did: I took them to a children’s museum… AND…went without any other friends, meaning...

Traveling with kids can be BRUTAL, but we all got to do it. So use our tips and tricks to make the journey a bit easier, and GOOD LUCK!  Travel Tips & Tricks {SMB TIP: We also love all these local...

Modern motherhood is difficult, and that’s not news to anyone who’s become a mom over the past couple of decades. It’s stressful from the moment you find out you’re pregnant. Then there’s the sleep deprivation of the baby phase –...

I'd like to think I'm a decent mother. Definitely not perfect, but I love my kids like crazy and hope that this fact alone helps me out someday as they lie on the couch in their shrink's office.  They...

It's no secret. You guys know how I feel about summertime around here. And you can sugar coat it all you want with your talk of "dry heat" and "but remember winter"... You get as cranky as I do -...

“A new year and a new routine. It’s gonna be fine” Well, that’s what I keep telling myself. This year I am moving on and I am closing the door on a relationship that no longer works in my life. But oh!...

It seems to have happened overnight. Our calendar became a shared, color-coded rainbow, over scheduled mess. Events, gatherings, sports, extra circulars, meetings, parties, plans... Partner that with a traveling spouse, and it got out of control quickly. We are...

If you are like me in planning, I'm sure you have been thinking about your New Year's Resolutions. As mothers, we are natural planners, thinkers, and mostly go-go-goers and doers! Yet, in spite of our good intentions, these plans...

There are a million different versions of this poem, but do you remember in general what I am talking about? Here's a great version: via I couldn't stop thinking about this poem while in the kitchen the other night. My...

This is probably the most important thank you note I could ever write... yet I can’t quite find the right words. I’m talking about the amount of gratitude I have toward my mother, especially now that I am a...