Tag: family

  • Reclaiming Christmas After Domestic Violence

    When the Season Is Still Haunted, but We Keep Going Anyway I still hate Christmas. That feels important to say — not because this year was a failure, but because honesty matters more than appearances. We did many things right this year.We tried hard.We made new memories.And yet, Christmas still carries ghosts. That is the…

  • The Calm Before the Storm?

    After Monday’s court, the rest of this week slipped into quietness. It’s left me wondering—is this the calm before the storm, or is this what life is supposed to feel like? I’ve done a lot of waiting. Nothing new there. But there were bright moments too. My friend celebrated one year of finally having her…

  • Strap In and Buckle Up: I Am on the Rollercoaster of Law

     A relentless ride of injustice and abuse — and there’s no way off. It has been a week. I was served with an “emergency” motion in family court with only three days’ notice. To make it worse, it was filed in such a way that my lawyer had just ten minutes to respond if…

  • When the Court System Finally Tilted My Way – for once.

    It has been a week. I was served with an “emergency” motion in family court with only three days’ notice. To make it worse, it was filed in such a way that my lawyer had just ten minutes to respond if we wanted even the chance of an adjournment. We scrambled and filed in eighteen…

  • One Hour for a Lifetime of Security

    How making my will gave me peace of mind and protection for my kids Today, I checked off one of the biggest items on my bucket list: I made my will. This isn’t about giving up, and it isn’t about dark thoughts. (I know I wrote recently about suicidal thoughts, but this is not that.)…

  • From Calm to Chaos in Five Minutes

    This week I was feeling so positive. I had been tackling things that usually drain me — clearing paperwork, checking items off my list, even completing an online interview. For once, I felt like I was standing on solid ground. I could almost believe in a future where I wasn’t drowning in stress, legal battles,…

  • Cutting Toxic People Out of Your Life: Boundaries, Healing, and True Friendship

    Why You Need to Cut People Out of Your Life We live in a world that tells us more is better—more friends, more connections, more family around you. But the truth is, keeping the wrong people in your life—whether they’re family, close friends, or just acquaintances—can drain your energy, reopen old wounds, and hold you…

  • When Systems Fail Our Children: A Mother’s View

    Yesterday was supposed to be a joyful milestone: my son’s first day back at school after the summer holidays. He had been bouncing with excitement, jumping up and down, thrilled to ride the bus and see his friends. For a child with some social interaction challenges who has been attending counselling during the summer, this…

  • Surviving Back to School Season: Parenting, Health Scares, and Fresh Starts

    This was the year I was going to be organized. I said to myself. Somehow the summer vanished in a blur, and of course the last two weeks were jammed with so many activities that I feel like I now need a vacation from our vacation. Sorry teachers—my kids are being returned half-feral, with mosquito…

  • From French Vanilla to Financial Freedom: Investing After Financial Abuse

    💸 Even If You’re Starting with $10, a Broken Heart and Nothing Left I don’t have a pension. Not because I didn’t work — I did.I raised kids. I managed a household. I helped build businesses from the ground up..But I wasn’t the one with the paycheque. That was by design. And when it all…