Raising girls

I truly thought it was the joke of the century when God decided we should have girls. I have seen countless "girls gone wild" moments lived out in reality that the thought of girls terrified me. This week I am reflecting on the fact that Kiley is seven years old. We are beginning to have those conversations about her body and modesty. We have never shyed away from this topic but I continue to see my inadequacies bubbling as I address these issues. Perhaps unfortunately, I am a child of the south. Sometimes I think it would be much easier to be a nomadic, hippy mother who really doesn't have a problem with pot or nudist colonies. I could live and parent as irresponsibly as I wanted and society would be amazed by whatever achievements my children had in spite of their upbringing. But, alas, I am a southern girl in the end who has a high sense of how I want my daughters to be received by the world. But mostly, I want them to have e high sense of self. I want my daughters to respect themselves in every way. I am realizing that this is not accomplished easily. I can't believe she is seven, and Robyn four!!!! My time with them is so limited. I pray for more teachable opportunities. I pray they compensate for my failures. Mostly, I pray for grace in parenting them.

How to love

I'm wrestling with this question tonight. I had to deal with a particularly difficult situation with an employee today. I also started reading Love Wins. I feel like a paradox. It is difficult for me to keep the best interest of my organization and the best interest of my employees in mind when the two are in conflict with one another. I struggle with the application of loving people in the right way sometimes. How do I show love when there is no other option left to handle my employee's actions? Sometimes bad news just can't be wrapped in love gift wrap. Any suggestions?

Just Playin'

I keep playing around with the design of my new page but I think I have it now! Please forgive the large Christmas tree in the background of the picture. This is the best family pic I have to boast at this time. It was some kind of Monday today. On my list of unfinished business: research curriculum, research grant, write grant, write checks, file employee absences, run, investigate discipline issue. List of items accomplished: I ate two oatmeal creme pies for breakfast! It was a good day!

A couple of recent pictures of the girls on a day hike:

Thunderstorms

When I decided to go to school this semester I did not anticipate it being storm season with Brad gone two nights a week. Of course each night I have had homework the storms hit and the kids freak out. So far tonight they are actually doing pretty good. Bring it on late night!

New Blog

As promised six months ago I have redesigned my blog. A lot has changed for the good in our lives and i want to reflect those positive things about ordinary life. I am running again, sort of. Brad and i ran the relay for the LR Marathon in early March. Running is no longer a floodgate of emotion for me, thank God! Life is busy, more to come on that later...maybe, if I find time. kiley's birthday is this weekend. She is seven? Can that be right? Man where did the time go? Lots more to come in the near future. I imported mother posts to retain the history. Much Love...

New things

Can summer already be over???? This year is flying by. I knew 2010 was going to be a much different year that would send us in new directions. It has delivered. In fact, I have turned a page on 2010 and feel that this blog has served it's purpose. I want my blog to evolve as my life has this year. Therefore I am starting a new blog and discontinuing this one. I will post one last time here when my new blog is established.

Political Season

I have lived in Arkansas for 14 years now. During high school (in Chattanooga) I was amazed at how a man from a small town called Hope could become President. It used to be the quintessential American story. The underdog. The dark horse. The cinderella story. But now that I'm here, I am less and less surprised at how Arkansas politicians are born and bred and groomed to greatness on the national scene. I don't know about other states, but Arkansas makes it very easy for budding politicians to gain momentum. This state grows smaller and smaller to me all the time. It is both a blessing and a curse to have such open access to the political machine. I have met our Governor on numerous occasions, have dined with State Senators and Representatives, and will be campaigning for a close personal friend running for the U.S. Congress.

I love living in this state because the civics lessons are endless. Our politicians are all over the place. Although my emmersion into political issues has been highlighted since moving to the capital city, politics was on our front door step in Jonesboro too. I am amazed at how easy it is to get involved at the local and state level. Brad and I have been blessed to be a part of some really interesting movements and I love seeing the state moving in new directions.

In many ways, I feel like Arkansas is on the brink of exploding culturally and intelectually. We have a long way to go, but people are genuinely interested in making a difference and making Arkansas attractive. At the Chamber, we talk a lot about how industries are no longer looking for capital investment as much as they are searching for a strong human resource. I am proud to think that we are attracting some of the right players because our politicians are making some tough decisions and trying to move our population in a new direction. I see more and more young families wanting to move to or back to Arkansas. We are focussed on investing in our human resources.

I applaud the decisions our politicians are making and appreciate their accessibility to the average person. I truly feel like I live in a state where my voice is heard. I may not always agree with the outcome, but I know I was heard.

So, as we kick off this political season, I hope we can keep the mission in mind. We all work for one another in order to make our communities better. May this political season be respectful and may rational minds prevail.