I have always felt that there is something healing about using your hands to dig in the soil. Whether it is planting a tree, flowers, or a vegetable garden, I love the smell of freshly turned soil, and how the cool dampness feels on my skin. I love watching for seeds to sprout, or waiting to see new buds of leaves on a tree that was dormant all winter.

I figure if gardening is healing for me, it just might be healing for my children as well. If you would like a project for your children to work on together to improve... more

Part 1

Tonight after making beds that had been stripped since this morning's laundry, dealing with boys who didn't want to brush their teeth or go to bed and then stepping with a bare foot on a stray Lego, I was not exactly a candidate for Loving Mother of the Year Award. I went into the kids' bathroom to find urine sprayed on the toilet seat--only from a boy!--no toilet paper, and clothes from one of my sons thrown on the floor.... more

Tonight the savage beast that needs calming would be me.

It's been one of those days...I knew it would be a rough one when I'd only had 5 hours of sleep and children were already up and arguing early this morning. This penguin looks how I felt this morning.

I know I don't do well during the day when I haven't had enough sleep the night before, and when kids were already sniping at each other this morning, I decided I needed to do something. Caleb was having a rough morning and was on the verge of a meltdown on a number of occasions.... more