Sheila | Heart of the Matter

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When Are You Grown Up?

I was not a happy teenager. I didn’t particularly like the high school scene, the ridiculous courses, the boring teachers, and the regimented schedule. I used to dream of finally being a grown up and being allowed to make my own decisions. I idolized adulthood. Then I hit eighteen and nothing magical happened. Surely I’d...

Guilt Makes the Woman Go Round

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They say that love makes the world go round, but I think they’re wrong. I think the majority of the things women do are motivated by guilt. We women feel guilty about everything. In fact, they say that the most common emotion women feel is guilt, and if you’re a woman, and you’re not feeling particularly guilty right now,...

The Getaway Plan

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By the time you read this, I’ll be back, but right now my family is preparing to go camping. The girls are collecting the towels, bathing suits, and bug repellent, my husband is filling the coolers, and me? I’m dusting my bedroom. If that doesn’t make sense to you, it’s because you are missing the crucial nesting...

Accidentally on Purpose

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Most of the really important moments in our lives happen by “accident”. A few years ago we were driving when the sky suddenly darkened and the air began to vibrate. We pulled over, stepped out of the car, and looked up at thousands upon thousands of geese in V’s, honking as they headed south. We watched, in silence, in...

Skipping Stones

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If I were to say the words “summer” and “childhood”, what would come to mind? Maybe fishing, or playing by a lazy river, or swimming at a beach. Maybe exploring some old woods, or playing in a barn, or jumping on a bike and taking off for the afternoon. Yet while these activities may sound typical, I don’t think they...

Prepare for the Best

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In the springtime the butterflies return from their southern migration, flitting on fresh blooms like a welcoming parade for the new season. But many of our children live with butterflies year round. Not the monarch variety this time, but those that buzz inside children’s stomachs. Will I find friends at church? Will I get...

Romance Amid Reality

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Every Valentine’s Day many of us are plagued with questions in the romance department. Will he send flowers? Will she say yes? My question is a bit different: why can’t he ever bang up his car? I would feel significantly better about myself if just every now and then my husband would back into a tree, or rear end the car in...

To Love, Honor, and Vacuum: It’s the Little Things

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One of the most intriguing movies I have seen is Gwyneth Paltrow’s Sliding Doors. The movie follows a woman’s life in two possible scenarios, based on whether or not she missed a subway or caught it at just the right time. We often think that the pivotal moments in our lives are the big ones: when we propose, when we...

Resolutions you CAN keep

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As parents, our resolutions usually concern our children. This year, I will not yell at my children (Probable time until breakage: 2.3 days). I will not get behind on the laundry (4.2 days). I will exercise (1 day). I will organize creative crafts for my children everyday (2 days). I will not eat my children’s candy (1.5 days...

The Family That Cleans Together

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When the textbooks were stacked away and the final school day ended on that long ago day in June, many children felt as if they had been released from their torment. A month and a half later, many parents feel as if the torment is now theirs. We are in the midst of summer vacation, and that means seemingly endless weeks of...