On the Way to Becoming Me

I must admit I've spent way too much time on Facebook this summer.  Confession...I have a Facebook tab up right now as I type this post.  It's not like it's a crime or anything, but IMO it is a total time sucker-upper (if there is such a word).  What is it about scrolling through your news feed, liking posts, watching videos and reading your friends' vent sessions that keeps us coming back each and every day, hour on the hour, minute by minute?  Why is it so addicting? I don't have a beef with social media.  Really I don't.  I use it, and I know it's what we do now.  It's cool!  But, part of me despises it for the hidden competition that it initiates.  You know...the #mylifeisbetterthanyours type of competition.  I call this the "Faces of Facebook."  I mean it's all really a facade, right?  We only see a snapshot of what our peeps want us to see, but this quick view can cause you to feel some kinda way...if you let it.  Let's be hone

July has been an especially busy month for me and my family.  Between work, summer camps, football workouts, family reunions, sorority reunions and other impromptu events, downtime has been a welcome addition to our schedule.  Honestly, it seems like summer just started!  It's hard to believe that we're gearing up for yet another school year. Being a teacher, summer break takes on a whole different meaning; whereas, if I were just donning my mommy hat, I'd be totally elated that school is almost in session (just keepin' it real).  But, for real, I almost shriek in horror when I see back to school commercials on T.V., and the store displays seem to be taunting me as a constant reminder that time is winding up. Before I can say farewell to the "summer of reunions," I have one more gathering to attend.  My 20 year class reunion!  It's crazy that it's been 20 years since I graduated from high school.  With the reunion approaching next week, I can't

A couple of months ago, I wrote a post titled "My Love Affair with Winter."  Perhaps you read it, but if not check it out at some point.  It was my first post, and I think it was pretty good (if I do say so myself).  Anywho, in that post I used winter as a metaphor for the challenging times that we all face at some point or other our lives.  In this post, I want to reflect on something that you don't think will ever come when in the depths of winter....spring. Recently I was listening to my all-time favorite album, "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill," and even though I've heard EVERY song about a gazillion times, one lyric in particular resonated with me on this particular day.  On the track, "Everything is Everything," L-Boogie spits out encouragement to listeners by simply saying, "after winter MUST come spring, change it comes eventually."  Wow! Did you take that in?  I mean, did you really let it seep deep down in your spirit?  You

So, I'm driving along in the car with my permanent passengers (aka my children), and we're having a battle of the radio stations.  I'm sure you can relate to these battles well if you think back to when you were a pre-teen/teen.  Your parent wanted to listen to the sweet sounds of the Stylistics, and you want to hear the latest hit by Biggie. There was a tug-o-war over the radio stations, and somehow your parents always seemed to prevail.  Mind you this was before everyone was all plugged into their own iPod, iPhone, iSomething. Well, fast forward to 2015, and I find myself in the same situation only I'm the parent this time around.  For the most part, I won't 'stand my ground' and refuse to share the radio, but when my jam is on the radio, I do expect you to kindly remove your fingers from the dial.  This brings me to last night. My family and I watched the 2015 BET Awards last night.  I'm a lover of music, so I can appreciate artistic expression.

Last week iTunes radio featured a "First Play" from one of my favorite artists, Tamia.  While I loved all of the new tracks, one in particular, "Day One" really caught my attention.  The melody is smooth and definitely classic Tamia, but that's not what grabbed me.  I was captivated by the lyrics of this particular song because it seemed to be the perfect anthem for marriage.  In case you haven't heard it, here's a few lines of the chorus: If I could do it all again I would  Give me the bad days along with the good My heart is even more in love Then it was on day one... Funny how it all falls into place We grew even closer with every mistake Its crazy how we’re still in love The way we were on day one... Beautiful, right?  The thing is anyone whose been married any length of time, and especially those of us with a lot of mileage on the road know that it is not easy.  For me, being married ranks right up there with parenting; these are two of the har

Ok, so this post is not an homage to Beyonce or my claim to wake up each and every day looking "funky fresh dressed to impress ready to party."  However, it is the perfect caption to the craziness that happens in the mornings at my house.  Notice I said my house and not yours.  I'm sure you  have stress-free and blissful mornings in your crib, but in my family of five, our mornings are anything but.  So, first of all let me just say that I love my family to the moon and back (even the teenager ;-).   **I had to throw in the personal shout-out to my teen since he claims I "offended" him in last week's post.  And to that I say "sorry, but Momma keeps it real, son!" Anyway, I digress.  Am the only one who wakes from a restful night of sleep only to immediately don your referee shirt and start spewing out phrases like "no, you're not wearing that...it's 40 degrees outside," "stop arguing," "get ou

Something happened and I'm not exactly sure when it occurred and why I didn't notice it.  It didn't just happen to me, but to my husband as well.  No one gave us a heads up, posted a warning sign on our front door or whispered the words "new traffic pattern ahead."  Nope, we didn't see this coming at all!  And so I'm sure you're asking what didn't we see?  What caught us totally off guard?  One of our three children has become.......has become....a TEENAGER!!!!!   It seems like only yesterday that we were "oohhing" and "ahhing" over our first baby.  Back then I thought my biggest challenge was nursing and getting him to sleep through the night. I had absolutely no idea that the teen years would be, what I jokingly refer to as "my graying years."  Pause right now.  Stop reading and go thank your mother that you are still alive :-). Seriously!  While I do remember my aunts and older family members (who were empty neste

For years I  believed that winter was one of my favorite seasons.   I love the holidays, the comfort foods, warm sweaters, hot beverages and everything that is associated with these colder months of the year.  I especially enjoy the snow days, but what teacher doesn't love a good snow day...or two...or three? Yet, what I've come to realize is that I'm really not as "in love" with winter as I once believed.  I'm "in love" with the things of winter, but not the season itself.  I actually hate being cold!   I can't stand the dreariness of the long, dark days.  I long for the warmth of the sun, and the days where I can just leave the house without bundling up like Ralphie's little brother in "A Christmas Story."  What I also realized is that I don't like the winters of life; the times where everything is going wrong and nothing turns out as planned.  Nope...I can't stand these either, but I know that they are a n