I just wanted to start my Spring off with a clear head. And as much as I love to talk to my friends...especially my single mom friends, like me, I thought it would be fun to share some of ours and to hear others. And for some reason, talking to someone who seems to understand or at least pretend to...helps me clear my head for the night and my heart as well.

I'm a single and proud mother of two...and as much as I love them, it seems like a struggle sometimes. A struggle to fix her hair or inspect my son's hygeine before he leaves for school every morning.

My son, who is eleven, is going through a phase I don't ever remember having. He does not care about doing anything. He would be happy just laying in his bed all day watching the millitary channel. Or, playing a war game on computer or playstation or xbox. Yeah, I know, I've done this to my son. I think i've tried so hard to give him things i never had growing up. And now, it upsets me that he doesn't appreciate sunny days and riding his brand new bike.

So, I've done what a good mother does...i've taken them all away. Not to be mean...but his grades were suffering and it was meant as a punishment. However, after two agonizing weeks of pouting and giving me the silent treatment, he has finally found the backyard!

I loved being outside when I was young. I took pride in feeling like I was the "tomboy". Of course I'm guilty of those famous words "when I was your age", I think I've said it to my son more than my parents ever said it to me. (I secretly like to believe it was because my childhood wasn't that much different than that of my parent's of the 60's).

When he was younger, I worked two jobs, therefore he spent a lot of time at my parents house. He was the first grandchild and got treated to that respect. But, I regret it. I'm glad that he got that time with his grandparents, but now I realize how much I missed out on. And how much we both missed out on that bonding when he was young and I was still growing up myself at 20.

So marking the first days of Spring...I want to invite anyone who shares the frustration and pure happiness of being a loving parent. I want to share my stories through the summer of our heartaches and celebrations.

Also...I just recently found out that my sister-in-law who has been battling breast cancer for about a year, has only a few months to live. She has inspired me to be open and proud of who I am as a person and as a single mother. Although she has a loving husband (my brother), I always thought she was raising their two boys...and her husband. So, this is also in honor of all the women and families of women who are fighting this battle. I lost my sister five years ago to brain cancer. She was only 28. And she was a single mother as well.

...pray for Kristy and in memory of Wendy