The Challenges of Staying Neutral–Part Two

Earlier today, I wrote about how a single parent can initially face the challenges of trying to stay neutral in regards to your child’s other parent. Tips like talking to the other parent directly about concerns, and taking time to settle down and process before confrontation have been helpful to me. In part two of this series on the challenges of staying neutral, I wanted to talk about ways we can work with our children and prepare them for handling issues instead of feeling like they always need to bring them to us. This situation has been very real for … Continue reading

The Challenges of Staying Neutral–Part One

We’ve all heard it a hundred times–how important it is to stay neutral and not bash on the other parent. We KNOW in our heads how we need to remain as detached and “middle-ground” as possible, all while being compassionate and committed parents. It can be a lot easier to stay neutral in theory than it is to do it in real life! The divorced parents, or the two-household family seems to be a perfect set-up for diverse ideas about parenting and with all the waters that have run under the bridge, it can be so hard to be mellow … Continue reading

Breaking Away from Beige

I love beige. Beige is soothing, it’s neutral, and it goes with everything. However, sometimes you have to break away from beige and get some color into your life and into your home. If you are in a beige rut, and you want to try color but you are intimidated, start by taking baby steps. Just add a little color here or there or go ahead and stick to a neutral backdrop but liven it up a little bit with some richer or more vivid tones. Start by adding small splashes of color. A new piece of artwork that pops … Continue reading