The Myth of Effortless

Alexa Chung doesn’t just pull items from her closet and dash out the door. Oprah doesn’t just show up on a couch and chat with her friends, either. I think we all know where I’m going here. We’ve heard about the merits of good, hard work. We know that – to produce change in ourselves

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Gumption

There are roughly five million lessons I need to learn from her – how to lay down in the grass and watch the leaves blow, how to ask for help when I need it most, how to twirl with my eyes closed. How to pay attention. When to pay attention. To whom to pay attention

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A Non-Movement

Ladies. I’ve been meaning to tell you something. I fear we’ve been misleading ourselves. In a cultural sea of mixed messaging – inspirational vs. aspirational, real vs. authentic, truth vs. honesty – I fear we’ve run off course. And today, I want us to think deeply about the road we’re walking. From where I stand,

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Thirty-One

Hey. Apologies to anyone who has ever asked my age and has received a variety of numbers in the 30-range. I very rarely know my age (I don’t know; numbers have never meant things to me), so I’m forever counting back to 1983 and my math skills are fuzzy at best. But. I just used

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The Choice

Sometimes, our life circumstances don’t offer many choices. But this mothering gig? It’s littered with choices. And Mama, I think you’re making the right one.

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New-Fashioned Beauty

This morning, may we brush our teeth in gentleness, flossing with a taut line from Plato: “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle.” Rinse in confidence – swish – spit the doubts – splat – and watch them swirl into the sink. Let them go.

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Two, Now

Two is a sudden burst of verbal growth, stringing together sentences like, “Mom! Put down that poop and give me a huuuuuug.” It’s a continuation of hoarding, blocks and snacks and stuffed animals, everything, all at once and right this moment, please and thank you. It’s a newfound love for broccoli and an insistence that

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Image & Identity

When we lived in Los Angeles, friends from far and wide would come “visit us,” which – let’s be honest – meant “enjoy an L.A. vacation with a free couch to sleep on.” We’d cart them around to various trademark posts: Hollywood, Malibu, the hills of Palos Verdes. We’d hear the same phrase, over and

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