Julie Cole is the co-founding VP of Mabel’s Labels, the leading provider of labels for the stuff kids lose!
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My dad turns 80 next year. He is a bull. Looks like mafia. Avid golfer and talented haberdasher. Drinks scotch every night and sneaks smokes when my mom isn’t watching. He is also one of the best things that ever happened to me.
I’m writing this on October 31, which, in addition to being Halloween, is also the anniversary of the day my father died. It’s been two years since my uncle called, with no warning, to tell me that my father was in the ICU in Philadelphia. Two years since I begged a nurse to keep him alive through the night so I could get there in time to say goodbye. Two years since that nurse called me back to tell me that she was sorry, but he just didn’t make it.
We can choose to be happy or not...but the choice is always ours.
It's funny how the universe sends us messages often in scary ways. This morning David and I got into a car accident - we're ok, thank God!!! 10 seconds later and it would have been a different story. It happened on a dangerous stretch of the PCH and could have been 100 times worse. Thankfully I forgot something at home and that small delay changed the course of our day. I believe it was a wake-up call and I am grateful for the message to be more alert on the road and pay closer attention. No one was hurt, just our cars. Phew!!!
As a mom, I am constantly receiving parenting advice that I didn’t ask for. The fact is that motherhood is so incredible and so wonderful that we can’t help but dish out advice about what works best. Well, I believe that we all have our own unique and special way of parenting and that it is important to do what comes naturally to us.
It’s always refreshing when the latest parenthood headlines focus on fathers instead of mothers. Last week, the front page of the New York Times read: “Fatherhood Cuts Testosterone, Study Finds, for Good of the Family.”
Regardless of exactly why the New York Times editors consider this front page news, or exactly what the data shows, it’s inspirational that expensive research resources, and newspaper ink, recognize how critical dads are to raising kids. Unlike so many sensationalist headlines stirring moms’ guilt and our hormones, this headline suggests fairly that good parenting is not all about us moms.
Adrienne Maloof-Nassif is a truly modern woman. She's a powerhouse businesswoman, philanthropist, designer, reality star (she’s a Real Housewife of Beverly Hills) and most importantly, wife and devoted mom-of-three. Adrienne and her hubby, cosmetic surgeon Dr. Paul Nassif, have three young boys: Gavin, Christian and Colin (her two youngest are twins).
Just when I think I have paparazzi radar, they fool me again. I didn’t mention this family getaway because I intended to escape and enjoy some much needed family time…. BUT since it’s all over the web, I might as well share. I also often find myself between a rock and a hard place wondering what to share and what to keep to myself. There is so much stress in our country right now that talking about my vacation time seems a bit inappropriate…. but since the tabloids do it for me, here you go!
To this day, I remember the first time I left my baby. My husband and I had been parents for six weeks when we finally decided to leave our child and go out alone. I remember being excited and looking forward to a little time with just my husband but I also remember the ache and worry in my heart
