It's All About Me

Renee, LSWA

I'm the mom of a teenage daughter.  Thanks for your sympathy!  She's a great girl-beautiful, talented, smart, kind (most of the time)!  She's really a good kid and I'm so very proud to be her mom.  But even my "good kid" can become easily caught up in the "Me, Me, Me!"  pit.  Last summer, she won a Go Phone at a Bingo.  You can imagine the excitement of the first cell phone.  I was wary at first about the whole thing but her dad and I decided she could have it, but she had to earn the money to keep it stocked with minutes.  She did odd jobs for friends of the family and her aunts and uncles and she did earn the money.  She was never without the phone, waiting for the next "bzzz" to notify her when someone was trying to communicate with her. 

Much to my dismay, it became a constant companion and we began to see more of the top of her bent head and less of her beautiful face.  As she turned more inward, communication with my daughter changed drastically.  I didn't like who my daughter was becoming and I didn't like who I was becoming with her. 

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Fingerprint Friday: Mater

We call him Mater. He lives in the big tank with all the sharks, blow fish and a few others. We call him Mater because he reminds us of the little tow truck in the movie, Cars. You have to admit, there is a resemblance.

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Tasty Bites: Choosing the Best Peanut Butter

By Candy (Steele the Day)

Even though peanuts are actually a legume and not a nut, they pack a punch in terms of nutrition. They are loaded with vitamins and minerals. Unfortunately, they also pack quite a few calories, and for peanut butter lovers, that can be a little discouraging. The good news is that a little peanut butter goes a long way on flavor.

If low-fat peanut butter is your usual choice for your diet’s sake, let’s take a closer look. The brand on the left is advertised as low-fat. It contains 12 grams of total fat and 2.5 grams of saturated fat. The brand on the right has 16 grams of total fat, and the same 2.5 grams of saturated fat. Either way, this is pretty caloric-dense food. One serving (2 Tbs) of the low fat variety has 190 calories and regular peanut butter has 200 calories per serving. What’s your choice? Lower fat?

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YOB: #18. Build Something Together (Part 2)

By Lara

I can still remember it all so clearly. Beth and I were in line at Lowe's. She had just picked out a new piece for her Christmas village. I had just been fantasizing about my future french-doored, stainless steel refrigerator with pull out freezer and humidity controlled deli and vegetable drawers. Sigh.

Beth was admiring the gift cards. One of them was clever. It said something about projects bringing people closer together. Beth got excited. "We should build something together." I looked skeptical. Build. Something. Together. That's vague, and I'm clumsy.

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Pride Goes Before The Fall

By Pat

Pride can be a very good thing. For instance, when we take pride in our appearance, we make sure we're clean and neat and look our best. Pride of ownership ensures that we are taking proper care of our homes, cars, even our lawns and our pets. We take pride in them, so we take good care of them.

However, there is another component to pride that's not such a positive trait. Pride can also prevent us from making a necessary apology, admit we're wrong, or give someone else credit for something we did.

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