I'm just chatty. But I do express my opinion.

That said, my kids are at home right now with my husband and I'm missing something important at my daughter's school which makes me feel sick inside. It's a lot of balance and a lot of really hard decision making.

We each own one car, and we have a reasonable house. It's a lovely place to be, but it's not extravagant.

You hope you're saying the right things - but also, as a kid becomes a teenager, you feel like there's a ticking clock for you to tell them everything they need to know.

I'm just chatty. But I do express my opinion.

When a police officer tells you to stay in the car, you stay in the car.

My kids make me laugh every day. And they're so supportive. As I get older, they understand those things I worried about - the guilt of being gone - in a way that's so healing for me, when they say, "Mom, we know you love what you do. We love to watch you do what you do."