Family Magazine

Growing Happily Beyond Our Expectations

By Stacy @stacyflutter

I imagine that you, just like me, have dreams, goals and aspirations. However, while striving to fulfill your dream(s), did you ever think that you just might achieve it and actually exceed it? Here at Stacy’s Flutterings, we are doing just that and growing happily beyond our expectations. And I have great news to share with you. In addition to writing my next book, and blogging here on Stacy’s Flutterings, I’m now a contributor over at Lose the Cape, an online magazine for busy modern moms! This is such an important accomplishment for me, and I hope you’ll join me in celebrating this good news.

How joining the Lose the Cape team as a contributor surpasses my expectations.

Years ago, actually the year 2011 to be exact, I started this blog. It all started when I was talking with fellow volunteer Pat at the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition build in Ottawa, Kansas. We had been talking about mental illness which was the theme of that particular build and episode. During our conversation, I had shared with her our family’s story and how bipolar disorder and suicide had become center stage in our lives by then. As we conversed, she shared with me that she thought I should start a blog. Honestly, I hadn’t heard much about blogging up until that moment. My curiosity was peaked though, and I asked her for more details. Once the build was over, and Bill and I headed home, my blogging days began. I did my research, discovered WordPress, built Stacy’s Flutterings blog, and started blogging about how mental illness had impacted my family’s life. In addition to being therapeutic for me as a mom, the blog provided me with the means to reach out to other parents going through a similar experience and a way to advocate for the eradication of stigma. However, it’s now become so much more. It’s become a landing pad for half empty nesters who happen to have an older child, who lives with mental illness, still living at home. Here at Stacy’s Flutterings, parents can find inspiration, credible resources and hope. As you can see, Stacy’s Flutterings has wonderfully exceeded my expectations.

Why being a contributor for Lose the Cape is important to me.

I’m so thankful to Alexa Bigwarfe for bringing me on board as a contributor. This is an important accomplishment for me as a writer but even more so as a mom. She’s given me a voice as a mom of a half empty nest, a nest where mental illness is a part of my story. This is such an important milestone to me because this normalizes me as a mom. It makes me human thus my daughter is human. And you know what? That means that all moms who happen to have a half empty nest, with mental illness as part of the fluff, are normal and human too. We have so far to go in regard to erasing the stigma, but we are making strides, and this is one example! I truly have grown Stacy’s Flutterings happily above the expectations I had for the blog in 2011. I’m thankful for the continued support from my readers here at Stacy’s Flutterings, and I do hope you’ll come visit me on Lose the Cape as well! Until next time…

Growing stronger…


Growing Happily Beyond Our Expectations

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