A Secret to Success as a Working Mom: Turn Burn Out Into Bliss and Embrace Joy

Last weekend my youngest was committed to going to the "Water Steps" a man-made water fall in Pittsburgh by the rivers. (Fun Fact: Three rivers converge in Pittsburgh--The Ohio River, The Monongahela River, and the Allegheny River.)  He kept asking. I knew he was serious when he said, "If you won't take me, I'll ask  daddy!" Given that it was highly unlikely that would happen on an unscheduled day, I relented. So, we went. It wasn’t planned in the way most things in my life are. No calendar block. No checklist. No “productive” purpose attached. And, so in some respects it was uncomfortable. And yet, it seemed necessary. It was the idea of my 8-year-old—offered with the kind of urgency only children possess when something is profoundly important to them.

Dating Rules Are Made to Be Broken...


When women abandon their dating rules they tend to get surprised by love.

I recently had dinner with a friend described her ideal man and then stated all of the things she wouldn’t do. She ended the conversation with a declaration that she was content being alone and intended to count her blessings instead of lamenting her losses. I wasn’t at all convinced that she was as committed as she sounded, but in the interest of kindness, I simply smiled.

If You Abandon the Rules You May Find Love Where You Least Expect It


I smiled because at one point in my life, I had been her. I refused to date outside of my race. I refused to date short men. I refused to date men who were more than four years older than me or more than four years younger than me. I wouldn’t be involved in a long distance relationship. The list goes on and on. However, once I started breaking my rules, I started loving.

As fate would have it, my friend found love in the most unlikely of places. She found with someone who defied all of her rules. I won’t go say any more than that because it is her story. However, she found love because she realized that people are real and rules are arbitrary. And that’s a lesson that anyone who wants a chance at happiness needs to learn.
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