This is great... I just had a convo w/the hubby about lying. He HATES it. I don't like it either, but like you said, there are times that a little lie isn't going to hurt anyone and is necessary. For instance, there's somewhere you're invited to and you don't want to go. To say, "I don't want to come to your thingy" to the person who invited you would hurt their feelings. So, instead, you say something like "Oh darn, I'd love to come but I have this other thingy." The hubs just doesn't see why you need to lie about it. I'm a pretty straight forward person who tells it like it is, but I do have a heart and sometimes for the sake of saving an important relationship, you lie... ahem, omit the truth. As for lying to my husband, I'm pretty open about everything with him, and he with me. I just can't lie because somehow, it'll come back and bite me... I just can't remember sh*% when it comes to keeping up with lies, or anything else for that matter... but I'm sure there are things I omit like buying a shirt at Target when I went there for shampoo, wipes, and toothpaste.

Thanks for sharing! I throughly enjoyed my visit to Emily's site and can't wait for writer's week for tips to add to my collection!

Hey Missy... loved the guest post! Thanks for the fair warning. I was SO NOT a sleep over kid... one-on-one was fine, but I hated the big one's. Is it wrong to hope my daughter feels that way one day too? I can't imagine having to be the mom hosting *yikes*

Love hearing everyone's mental health remedies... and getting some ideas to use for myself! With my personality, I'm always on-the-go, so I'm learning to relax. This might sound funny, but breastfeeding has become my #1 mental health break. I HAVE to slow down. And, it's great time for me to reflect and connect. I also love yoga so that helps slow me down and relax.

I love this post! Your comment "she finds what's best for her child (sometimes different things for different children) and then does it" really hits home for me. It's easy to follow the crowd, but the point is to find what works best for each individual child. Thanks for posting!

Wow Rach, I couldn't have said it better myself... I experienced very much the same situation. My first is four months, today actually, and I'm just now learning that while the "experts" offer good guidelines, it's just that, a GUIDELINE. Not everything works for every child. It's been hard though because, like you, I'm used to researching–I'm a writer–and I like a clear plan of action and when things don't go accordingly it's difficult for me to just go with the flow. But, I'm learning that you just have to take the things that work for you and throw out the rest even if some well-meaning person thinks you aren't doing it right. If the child's happy, healthy, and you're sane, then in my opinion, it's working!