Diary of a Confused Mom: May 6th 2015

Carpool lines are what nightmares are made of...

Diary of a Confused Mom: May 5th 2015

Little Z's hair has become ridiculous long for a little boy. Only his curls betray its true, shameful length. I just can't get myself to cut it and a part of me feels like I'm subconsciously trying to hold on to his babyhood.

I tell myself I can't cut it before I manage to take a picture with it in the shower, full of soap and stood up high on top of his head.

Diary of a Confused Mom: May 4th 2015

The duck in our nearby lake has laid some eggs and can usually be found sitting on them. We went again today to check on them and they haven't hatched yet.

We are all anticipating the birth of 'our' ducklings!

Diary of a Confused Mom: May 2nd 2015

O told me yesterday that I was the most beautiful woman in the world. I was extremely flattered for about 2 seconds until he followed up with "but..." and proceeded to explain to me how I used to look much younger before Little Z and now I have all these wrinkles around my eyes and forehead.

"So now," he concluded "you look 30."

I openly pouted, but secretly I'm thinking that's quite alright as an ending to a conversation about my newly found wrinkles!

Diary of a Confused Mom: May 3rd 2015

After over 10 years of experience as a mother, I've come to the conclusion that when the boys say things like "you're the worst mother ever," or "you're so mean," I've somehow managed to do something right!

Diary of a Confused Mom: May 1st 2015

I hadn't realized how bored of me Little Z was, until grandma and grandpa showed up. He almost won't even look at me anymore...

Book Review: "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" by Stephen Covey

I do not hesitate to say that this book is - literally- life changing.

This is no easy bedtime read. It's not a light book you breeze through. Well, at least I didn't. My brain hurt when I read this book as I grappled with and internalized the deep concepts it presented.

As the title suggests, the book discusses 7 habits that are characteristic of what Covey calls "highly effective people."

The first 3 habits Covey elaborates on, discuss work on an individual level, while the next 3 habits are about relationships and interaction with others and habit 7 (one of my favorites) is sharpening the saw by highlighting the need for a person to care for themselves physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually without neglecting any of these aspects, in order to function in an optimal fashion.

I see this book as a blueprint for life, utilizing what Covey refers to as "timeless principles." And that's exactly what they are.

For example, Habit 1: Be proactive, is something that will forever be a solid foundation of a truly responsible and competent person. There will never be a time when it is conceptually wrong to take responsibility for your actions. And Habit 4:Win-Win addresses the misconstrued notion that we should succeed at the expense of others and the further we push people down, the higher we get. In fact the opposite is actually true. No one can argue that a win-win is a bad result. Everyone wins!

In summary, this is an excellent, insightful and extremely deep book. I found every word of it useful and it has been a wonderful blueprint for evolving in character. To me, this book is an essential read. If everyone could read and comprehend this text, the world would undergo an amazing transformation.

When I heard Stephen Covey passed away in the summer of 2012, I cried. I think it would have been an amazing experience to hear this man speak in person. He is quoted saying "Live, love, laugh, leave a legacy." And he did leave a legacy, that we are fortunate to have.