Reflections, tools, and mic-drop moments for growing through the hard stuff — imperfectly, but with heart.
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Parenting in a blended family can feel like the emotional Olympics — constant chaos, love, and lessons in patience. Here’s how we’re rebuilding connection, one family meeting (and meltdown) at a time
Start the Conversation
I ghosted the woman I love — twice. This is the story of how fear, shame, and healing collided, and how we rebuilt trust one honest conversation at a time.
Messy Growth and Personal Development
Gaslighting, ghosting, and co-parenting cage matches—welcome to the Emotional Olympics. I ghosted my now-wife, wrestled through our momma bear years, and somehow retired from the games with love, laughter, and a gold medal in second chances.
Messy Growth and Personal Development
I spent August 3rd through 11th in Florida visiting my aunt. She has stage 3b lung cancer — not small cell, which apparently makes a difference. But I’ll be honest, the details didn’t matter as much to me as the feeling I couldn’t shake while I was there:
Messy Growth and Personal Development
Grief is weird. There, I said it. It’s awkward, unpredictable, inconvenient, and sometimes it comes with lizards. I spent the last eight days in Florida visiting my Aunt Dee Dee. It was a last-minute decision to go—one of those gut-pulls you can’t ignore because everyone was worried,
Messy Growth and Personal Development
There’s no manual for this kind of news. You hear the word cancer, and suddenly your brain is spinning faster than a toddler after their first sip of soda. Except this isn’t a sugar rush — it’s dread, confusion, and the weird urge to cry and make inappropriate
Messy Growth and Personal Development
Parenting is already a full-time emotional job, but when you’re battling your own anxiety while raising an anxious child or teen, it’s like trying to be a lighthouse in a storm while also trying not to sink. You want to support them through every panic attack, every meltdown,
Messy Growth and Personal Development
The Encounter I was standing in line at Family Dollar—because yes, I’m also ballin’ on a budget, so let’s not pretend I’m above anything—when a family in front of me caught my attention. They looked rough. Clothes dirty. Hair wild. Teeth mostly MIA. There was
Messy Growth and Personal Development
Turns out the world doesn’t end when you make small talk Spoiler alert: I survived. Not only did I survive — I teared up during the ceremony (because duh), had a genuinely good time, and only had to “go get my jacket” (read: hide in the car) once. Honestly, that’
Healing in Progress
Subtitle: Trusting yourself when your brain would rather hide in the car Let me set the scene. We’re currently in the car, halfway to a wedding where I’ll know approximately three people — two if we’re counting me and my wife. The bride is my wife Jen’s
Healing in Progress
Yesterday, I missed my usual post. Not because I forgot. Not because I didn’t care. But because I was deep in the throes of anxiety-fueled cramming for my Accident, Life, and Health Insurance Exam. And let me tell you — I wasn’t feeling confident. At all. This morning, I