Lisa Endlich's Blog, page 419

What This Mom REALLY Wants For Christmas: 21 Things

For weeks now, my kids have been asking me what I want for Christmas. And I have said the thing that I am supposed to say, that I always say — I don’t need anything. I just want all of my children to be healthy and happy. It’s true. I don’t need anything. And I do want my children to be happy and healthy.

But they are good children, so no matter how often I say that I really don’t need anything, they will pool their money and buy me a new nightgown or bathrobe or a maybe well-intentioned kitc...

Internships and the Pressure to Build a Perfect Resume

During the summer between my sophomore and junior years of college, I babysat for my neighbor’s children to earn a bit of cash for the upcoming school year. My friends scooped ice cream, collected garbage, worked as bank tellers or at whatever menial job they could find. None of us were particularly concerned about getting internships because it never occurred to us, at the age of 19, that we needed to start building our professional futures. In contrast, my son and his peers, current college...

My Son’s Depression: I Never Saw it Coming

Actual, physical heartache is real. I am now confident that it exists. I have to admit – I had my doubts until, a year ago, when I jokingly asked my son what the band aids on his arm were hiding, and he looked at me with tears in his eyes. In that instant, something within me broke, and left a painful, gaping hole, anguish that I could not, as hard as I tried, mitigate.

To be left alone with my thoughts was to invite torrents of tears and such self-scrutiny that I invariably questioned my ab...

What Happened to My Family After My Older Son Left for College

As the minivan pulls out of the parking lot after moving our older son into his dorm room, at a college 595 miles away from home, tears start to flow down my cheeks. Not because this is a milestone or that I will miss him terribly (both of which are undeniably true), but because our comfortable “foursome,” two parents and two children living under the same roof, has suddenly become an uncomfortable “threesome.” I wasn’t questioning the calculation – two plus one = three without a doubt, but I...

Sex and Birth Control: The Day This Mom Lived Up to Her Promises

I feel brave and progressive. Yes that’s what I tell myself, I’m progressive. This is the moment I believed I could handle. When the girls were little I would consistently picture myself on this fearless walk of teen parenting. I knew in my heart when this hurdle presented itself I would navigate it like the prepared pro I had envisioned.

Today is one of those moments. When it played out in my head I was a rock star. A hero. The reality is I feel shaken.

I am seated in the “guest” chair in t...

What’s Worse Than Missing My Kids

My kids will soon be home for the holidays. They will bound through the door with piles of filthy clothes and a deep sense of gratitude to be sleeping in their own beds again. They will marvel at our overstuffed refrigerator and delight in being united with their beloved old Lab. I want to say it will be as though they never left, but that simply isn’t true. They will appreciate everything, including their father, me and each other, far more than they ever did when they had no place else they...

Kitchen Gifts That College Kids and Young Adults Will Love

This post is sponsored by REVERE but all opinions are our own.

After dorm shopping freshman year, we thought we were done. So it was a big surprise when our kids moved off campus and there was a second wave of shopping for their new apartments. Furnishing their new home-away-from-home, especially the kitchen, can be both overwhelming and expensive, so start with the true essentials and add to the list with your kid’s style and personality in mind. With the holidays right around the corner, th...

The Rate of Teen Depression is Growing Sharply: What Parents Need to Know

When you have a prolonged conversation with any group of mothers of teens these days, there’s a good chance the topic of depression will come up, and someone will share that their child – usually a daughter – is now seeking treatment. Depression has become another condition, like Autism Spectrum Disorders and ADHD, which we wonder about as it affects our teens and young adults. Is it really more prevalent today, or is it just that we read more about it, and people are a little more willing to...

What to Say When Your Teen Makes a Big Mistake

A while back, while I made dinner and my son kept me company in the kitchen, I mentioned someone I know who spills a lot.

“Spills a lot?” he asked.
“Some people trip. She spills,” I said. “A lot. It’s interesting.”

It was a half-comment, I was probably reading a recipe at the time. But my son was thoughtful. “When I’m a parent, I’m going to make sure the one thing I do when my kid spills a drink is say, ‘No big deal.’”

When teenagers tell you they’ll let their kids hang around with anyone th...

A Letter to My Daughter (Someday) on Her Wedding Day

Dear Daughter,

Hi, it’s me, Mom. Although you’re still a little girl, if you are reading this, you have decided to choose a partner to share your life with. I want to tell you some things about marriage now while I am not wrapped up in your wedded bliss, and standing before me looking so radiant. If I wait until then I am sure to sugar coat, and say things like “Everything is going to be fine” if you reach for me and tell me you are nervous or scared. The truth is, I think more people should...