Sunday Scroll #102

We Do Not Care Club, how kids really feel about phones, Slow Cooker Mississippi Chicken, + ideas to survive (maybe thrive??) in August

Good morning, and Happy Sunday! How are you today? Depending on where you live, the vibes are pretty different. Northern US? Still in Summer Mode. Southern US? Time to buckle down for Back to School.

(Western US/Canada/across the globe, what are y’all up to? Do you go back to school this early, too?? Seriously, tell me in the comments, I want to know!)

This week I dropped off Brady for freshman orientation at his new high school (I cannot believe I just wrote that sentence — weren’t we just watching Paw Patrol and having pizza parties on the floor?). As I watched him walk in, I wasn’t prepared for the flood of feelings that filled me up and started to spill down my cheeks.

Pride. Nerves. Longing for the days when I could fix every little problem of his. And so much gratitude for this boy who, somehow, has the shoe size of a grown man.

This holding on and letting go thing is no joke. Plus, it all feels like it’s going by fast. I’m going to try to savor this season, having a ninth grader and two fifth graders, as much as I can.

Giving a big hug to all you mamas out there in the same boat. ❤️

1. Hello, I am a perimenopausal mom during Back to School season, and I am a new member of the We Do Not Care Club. There are rules, and I agree with each and every one of them, thank you. Please read the comments section if you want to be uplifted by your fellow members, who share even more things we are just not caring about anymore.

2. This was the most fascinating thing I read all week: “What kids told us about how to get them off their phones.” If you click on anything this week, click on this. You’re not ready.

3. Also intriguing was this article on the pain of perfectionism.

4. When I travel and tell someone, “I’m from Florida!” it’s fun to watch their reaction. Which Florida do they think I’m from? Disney World? Tropical South Florida, like Miami or Tampa? The white, sandy beaches of the Panhandle, where I’m actually from? This state holds many truths at once — and so does the South, in general. That’s why this “true map of the South” made me lol. Because that’s exactly how I think of it!!! Fellow Southerners, am I wrong?? (West Virginia feels WAY TOO NORTH to be part of the same region I’m from!)