Rolling with the Good Times: Navigating Baton Rouge’s Mardi Gras with Kids
by Ellen Mecholsky on
When my husband and I moved to Baton Rouge, we had absolutely no idea about Mardi Gras. I mean, sure, we had heard of “Fat Tuesday” and had the vague sense that beads were involved, but the Louisiana Mardi Gras EXPERIENCE was a complete unknown. That... Read full article
My Life: After Attempting Suicide
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Emma Benoit is ascending. The 19 year old graduated from Dutchtown High School in 2018, but the summer before her senior year was when her life changed forever. ... Read full article
The Remembering: Reflections on My Pregnancy Loss
by Ellen Mecholsky on
It starts the first week of December, the remembering. I had felt her move for the first time in the car driving home from a Thanksgiving trip to Florida, which is why I suspect my anniversary grief stress begins so early. I subsequently gave birth t... Read full article
From Boys to Young Men
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The day will come when they really feel they’ve found their soul mate or more likely, their love of the week. Either way, you have to prepare for mending a broken heart or teaching them how not to break someone’s heart.... Read full article
Lessons From the Ballpark
by Cheryl Brodnax on
I’m a baseball mom. I live at the ballpark from February through July. For the last seven years, I’ve sacrificed my weekends (and sometimes sanity) to drag an unearthly amount of stuff to every ballpark imaginable so our boys can do what they love.... Read full article
Play! Create! Imagine! (and then Clean. It. Up.)
by Ellen Mecholsky on
I walk a very fine line between wanting my children to play and create and imagine...and wanting/NEEDING a tidy house to function at my best. I need order around me to feel relaxed and productive. If I wake up in the morning and I am greeted by a tra... Read full article
Finished, But Not Done (Making the Decision to Complete Our Family)
by Ellen Mecholsky on
As parents, we all ask each other similar questions about parenthood: “How is your baby sleeping? How do you handle tantrums? Are you getting your kid a cell phone?” But the question I get most often these days, as a mother of three children who are ... Read full article
Bipolar Disorder
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Regardless of outside circumstances, being a parent can be difficult, but when you do factor in those outside circumstances, things can be even more tricky. These outside circumstances can include an unexpected mental health diagnosis. For around thr... Read full article
Slowing Down: Reclaiming Sanity
by Cheryl Brodnax on
So, I have a problem with over-commitment. It seems that any time there is white space on my calendar, I find some excuse to fill it. My husband often points out that I never just sit. What? Who doesn’t sit?... Read full article