Personally life is rich and full. My incredibly supportive husband, Dr. Daniel Rutledge has recently purchased a new practice (Northgate Chiropractic and Massage). He works in the city as a Chiropractor (my personal endorsement is that he is the
best in the city!) and also provides acupuncture and Active Release
Technique (ART).
It has been so neat to watch him grow into the role of clinic owner and operator – he’s really hitting his stride.
Our two children are amazing. My daughter, now 4, is a beautiful open-hearted little girl. Madelyn loves to read and create. Her imagination leads her to many fun places and watching her and her friends play harmoniously all the varied “pretend” games they come up with keeps me in constant awe of the creativity that we are innately born with.
Madelyn has taught me the gift of spontaneous love – to love freely and wholeheartedly, something she does so well. In our house, I
have coined the term “crazy love” to capture the feeling of one’s heart bursting open with such love that you want to crawl inside the other’s skin in a deep deep hug.
I can’t say I have truly parented, though, until we had our son. What they say is true:
Boys and Girls are different! Shea is so curious and his curiosity has led him to
move. To move and not to stop!
He is constantly on the go. Climbing, running, tumbling, dancing, swimming – you name it, it’s an activity and he’s doing it. And if it has wheels… he will sniff it out and ride on it. It doesn’t matter if is a Barbie car, he will try to sit in (on) it and
“drive”.
Parenting is such a wild ride. Absolutely a blessing - there is nothing like bearing witness to the unfolding of another person.
As parents I believe that our job is to create a safe and loving place for our children (both in our homes and in our hearts) and allow their own wisdom and personalities to develop and grow, without too much interference from us. That being said, we all learn more through example than through words, so to lead by example – rather than lecture – is imperative. If I want my children to be healthy and make healthy food choices, I need to be responsible in my own food choices.
If I want my children to be loving and kind and good listeners, then I have to practice this in my own life and work on being continually loving and kind and a good listener – to not only my children, but also my husband and anyone we might meet at
the playground or grocery store. They are sponges for everything we do.
One thing I have learned, however, that has served me very well, is that we only need to get it “right” something like 50% of the time. Which is a huge relief! It means, as parents, we can put less pressure on ourselves to be “perfect” (ha! Good luck!) – and instead focus on being humble. When we realize we have lost our
patience, acted out in anger, raised our voice or demonstrated a behavior we are not
proud of – the ability to “repair” the situation is more important than getting it right the first time. When we can admit our mistakes, take responsibility for them, apologize to our children and dialogue what a more appropriate response would be – without
over-justification or excessive guilt – our children learn that it is okay to make mistakes and they also learn how to resolve difficult situations through personal accountability and right action.
best in the city!) and also provides acupuncture and Active Release
Technique (ART).
It has been so neat to watch him grow into the role of clinic owner and operator – he’s really hitting his stride.
Our two children are amazing. My daughter, now 4, is a beautiful open-hearted little girl. Madelyn loves to read and create. Her imagination leads her to many fun places and watching her and her friends play harmoniously all the varied “pretend” games they come up with keeps me in constant awe of the creativity that we are innately born with.
Madelyn has taught me the gift of spontaneous love – to love freely and wholeheartedly, something she does so well. In our house, I
have coined the term “crazy love” to capture the feeling of one’s heart bursting open with such love that you want to crawl inside the other’s skin in a deep deep hug.
I can’t say I have truly parented, though, until we had our son. What they say is true:
Boys and Girls are different! Shea is so curious and his curiosity has led him to
move. To move and not to stop!
He is constantly on the go. Climbing, running, tumbling, dancing, swimming – you name it, it’s an activity and he’s doing it. And if it has wheels… he will sniff it out and ride on it. It doesn’t matter if is a Barbie car, he will try to sit in (on) it and
“drive”.
Parenting is such a wild ride. Absolutely a blessing - there is nothing like bearing witness to the unfolding of another person.
As parents I believe that our job is to create a safe and loving place for our children (both in our homes and in our hearts) and allow their own wisdom and personalities to develop and grow, without too much interference from us. That being said, we all learn more through example than through words, so to lead by example – rather than lecture – is imperative. If I want my children to be healthy and make healthy food choices, I need to be responsible in my own food choices.
If I want my children to be loving and kind and good listeners, then I have to practice this in my own life and work on being continually loving and kind and a good listener – to not only my children, but also my husband and anyone we might meet at
the playground or grocery store. They are sponges for everything we do.
One thing I have learned, however, that has served me very well, is that we only need to get it “right” something like 50% of the time. Which is a huge relief! It means, as parents, we can put less pressure on ourselves to be “perfect” (ha! Good luck!) – and instead focus on being humble. When we realize we have lost our
patience, acted out in anger, raised our voice or demonstrated a behavior we are not
proud of – the ability to “repair” the situation is more important than getting it right the first time. When we can admit our mistakes, take responsibility for them, apologize to our children and dialogue what a more appropriate response would be – without
over-justification or excessive guilt – our children learn that it is okay to make mistakes and they also learn how to resolve difficult situations through personal accountability and right action.
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