Darlene Brock | The Grit and Grace Project

5 Tips for Managing the Teen in Your Life

It’s somewhere between middle school and high school that parents become dumb as a rock. That little face that used to look at us adoringly, believing every word we said, often develops deaf ears, rolling eyes, and sighs that last 14 minutes. We used to be so smart, but suddenly that is a thing of the past. At least, according to these growing hormonal humans. What’s a parent to do? 1. Realize that independence is a good thing. You don’t want a 30-year-old living at home. These are the years they need to begin standing on their own. 2. Don’t just make rules; create conversations. Boundaries are important, but understanding their challenges and adapting the rules when necessary is vital. 3. Give […]

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When Dreams Die… Grieving What Should Have Been

By Darlene Brock / Faith

When we speak of grief it’s normally in the context of losing someone we love, but I’ve come to understand that the waves of grief roll over so many different areas of life. We just don’t realize it applies beyond loss, nor do we think it should. A dear friend has reminded me of this recently. She and her husband tried unsuccessfully to have children. They spent years in doctors’ offices exhausting all medical options to become pregnant. They experienced the roller coaster rides of fertilization treatments. When this failed they were told of another route to consider, adoption from within the foster care system. They filled out all the necessary paperwork, had the rooms in their house measured, and waited for children

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5 Tips to Build Healthy Relationships

By Darlene Brock / Relationships

Relationships between humans, with all our messiness, requires effort. Whether it’s with family, friends, or co-workers, it just takes work. It will require a bunch of grit and a boatload of grace. There will be days you will think it’s just not worth it, and in some cases it may not be. Yet, in the grand scheme of life, healthy relationships are indeed worth the effort they require. The treasure gained, life shared, and wisdom earned are wonderful byproducts gleaned from no other source. So here are a few things we can do to build those lasting relationships. 1. Listen. With the intention of hearing what they have to say, not listening to formulate our response. 2. Observe. Take the time to observe their

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Love Remains: Hillary Scott and The Scott Family Video Exclusive

By Darlene Brock / Faith

When hard times hit, women run headlong to the two places that provide strength: our family and our faith. These pillars may be central to our daily life, but it is during these seasons that they become even more significant. This was true of Hillary Scott, a member of the multiplatinum recording group, Lady Antebellum. It was a sudden miscarriage of her second pregnancy in the fall of 2015 that led Hillary to write “Thy Will” a song that offers a universal message of hope. Looking for peace when she felt none, she turned to her faith as well as her musical family: father Lang, mother Linda, sister Rylee, and her husband Chris. This was the beginning of what became so much more

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5 Easy Ways to Maintain Your Health

By Darlene Brock / Health & Beauty

I am not a medical professional, but I have lived long enough to watch ladies, myself included, simply wear themselves out. We’re running and gunning, trying to get all things accomplished, and, as we do, we are almost always neglecting ourselves. Here are 5 things I’ve learned about protecting your health so that you can keep your forward movement, well, moving forward. 1. Eliminate Stress. And you say, “Yeah right, like that’s gonna happen.” You can’t relieve all stressors, but ladies, if we are honest we can relieve the unnecessary ones. You do not have to do everything for everyone with perfection as your goal. Choose the best things, based on your priorities, and give yourself a break. 2. Quit Dieting. I’m not saying we won’t ever find ourselves in a season of life when we need

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Can Your Life Really Make a Difference?

By Darlene Brock / Faith

I am an extremely fortunate mother to have two grown daughters whom I love dearly and go figure, they love me too. What’s even more amazing is that in this tenuous-relationship world in which we live, we like each other as well. They are both equally unique, incredibly strong, and on many days have provided me with a wealth of entertainment. But even more importantly, they are reminders of what’s important in life. My younger daughter has always had a river of emotion that runs deep. Her optimistic and lighthearted temperament at times eclipses the passion she holds deep in her heart. It’s not always obvious, but when it surfaces it comes out like a flood. On her seventh birthday I discovered she

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What Do You Do When Faced With the Impossible?

By Darlene Brock / Purpose, Work & Money

Walt Disney made the statement, “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible” as he was building the incredible company that we now call Disney. Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Disneyland, and Disney World, and every princess that every little girl has ever wanted to be were born of that attitude. He was creating a new industry, one that had never existed before. I can only surmise that imagination, creativity, and sheer fortitude are what led this man to pursue his ideas that resulted in such joy for so many. It’s that same attitude I hope to always possess and encourage others to have as well: when faced with the impossible, to look it straight in the eye and say, “This is gonna

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Do You Travel for Work? 5 Ways to Be Safe as a Woman

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture, Work & Money

My career in the music business often required days out of town. Because I was the artists’ manager, I juggled a workload in the office as well as hitting the road with the bands. When I wasn’t on a tour bus, I usually traveled solo from airport to rental car to auditorium to hotel and back to the airport the following day to trek to the next destination. I not only traveled with my bands but also attended out of town meetings, working with other business partners to achieve our career goals. As a female traveling by myself, I took a few extra precautions. It’s not that I’m not adventuresome, nor am I unnecessarily paranoid. But I had two daughters and a

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Take It Easy—On Yourself

By Darlene Brock / Health & Beauty, Purpose

We work very hard to give others a break, at least most days we do. But when it comes to ourselves—that can be the toughest person to forgive. Not sure why, but we are often the last person who we want to let off the hook. We cling to thoughts like, “I should have known better… What was I thinking?” and, “I can’t believe I forgot that” or, “I must look like the dumbest brick in the room.” Newsflash: we’re are all in the same boat of imperfection, and we just need to take it easy! Next time you want to give yourself a one-woman smack down, remember these 5 things to say to yourself: 1. My best teacher was my last mistake. 2. No one will

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Student Loans and How to Get Out From Under Them

By Darlene Brock / Work & Money

College has ended. You’ve donned the cap and gown, walked the aisle, and now have your degree in hand. You are ready to face the world, get that grown-up job, and build your future… Except for one, small—or oftentimes, very large—thing. You’re exiting that university with a big bill you have to pay: your student loans. You are not alone. According to the credit reporting service, Experian, 40 million people have at least one student loan with the average debt of $29,000.1 Joining the ranks of borrowing in order to get you through college may have seemed like a good idea at the time, but graduation day (or soon after) the debt you face looks daunting. Like any other financial challenge in life, your next

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Is It Really So Bad to Want to Be a Princess?

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture

Disney Princesses have become a much-discussed and polarizing subject in today’s culture. There is the pro-princess group that still believes in Prince Charming and dancing at the ball. Then there are those who want to throw the princess loving ladies to the dragons, believing they have been lied to about real life. Fortunately for all of us, realism has not been a part of the Disney brand for decades. If it had, cars couldn’t talk, magical nannies wouldn’t appear with umbrella in hand, children would never fly, mops couldn’t dance and toys would be left on their shelf…never leaving the house for their own adventure. We don’t usually go to the movies for realism, there’s enough of that outside the theater walls, so

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Would Jesus Unfriend You?

By Darlene Brock / Faith

I don’t know if you realize it, but the WWW in front of every web address stands for World Wide Web. Of course you do, but have you ever thought about the fact that it really is a web? Like the one woven by some unseen creature deviously setting a snare to catch an unsuspecting prey? I recently watched as a small lizard did his best to free himself from the threads created by a minuscule spider that was holding him hostage. Even though this creature was 1,000% larger than his captor, it seemed to be an impossible task (I did free him; I couldn’t continue to watch the struggle). This is particularly true in the world of social media. Not sure about you,

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5 Ways to Rid Your Life of Clutter

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture

I recently helped my mother move from a three bedroom home into a one bedroom apartment. Shortly after that my husband and I also spent several days sorting through his father’s life’s possessions. After returning home from these exhausting endeavors I looked at the things that filled my closets, drawers, and cabinets and realized that as we live life, we accumulate clutter. It’s inevitable. It took about 13 seconds for me to have a complete mental freak out over the future workload I’ve created! This mess would be mine to deal with during the next move we make. Suddenly a new resolution—I will spend the rest of this year tackling this weighty job before it becomes necessary. Here are the 5 things I resolved: 1. If I haven’t used it in two

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Florence Nightingale, Denying Wealth for the Good of Others

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture

Named after the city she was born in—Florence, Italy—Florence Nightingale lived her life in England. Her inspiration crossed oceans and ignited change within the community of nursing throughout the entire world. She was reared in enormous affluence and wealth, an extremely educated young woman.1 Florence’s mother was so enamored with social life that when launching her daughters into society she added six bedrooms to their home to accommodate the entertaining she desired. Maids, footmen, and valets, often traveling between two mansions in England, cared for the two Nightingale daughters. There was nothing Florence either needed or desired that was not provided for her easily, elaborately, and with no consideration of the cost. However, though Florence traveled with all economic opportunity, she found herself fascinated

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Is Disney Creating Minefields for Moms?

By Darlene Brock / Motherhood

Almost every little girl sings the songs from Disney movies. Many have worn their princess gowns to Wal-Mart and even taken spoons from the table to create their own dancing silverware to many of the Disney ditties. You were probably one of those little girls doing the exact same thing to your place setting. Yet today, that same entity, Disney, who has brought much delight to many children, has also chosen to introduce cultural shifts that you may or may not agree with into their story lines. As mothers, we have to acknowledge the changes in our society and educate our children. This is a parent’s responsibility, not an entertainment entity’s. Unfortunately, Disney has joined those in the entertainment world who think their job is something more

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One Woman’s Journey, Why Rebekah Lyons Wrote “You Are Free”

By Darlene Brock / Faith

Women who desire to live their lives demonstrating unshakable faith are frequently found throwing around the anti-anxiety verses: “Be anxious for nothing… I can do all things through Christ… I will never leave you or forsake you…” (Philippians 4:6; Philippians 4:13; Hebrews 13:5). These appear as a quick fix for the swirling emotions that often decry the freedom we are told we find when we enter a relationship with Christ. As wonderful as those verses are, they aren’t a miraculous cure to our many anxious thoughts, or the paralyzing feelings that surround us. This often leads to defeat and discouragement. Surely we must not have enough faith or are in some way an inferior Christian. Even if we conquer one layer of anxiety, embracing

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We Need a Wife—a Working Woman’s Challenge

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture, Work & Money

It was a weeknight and our family was sitting over another thrown-together meal from whatever I could find in an almost empty refrigerator. The laundry was mounting, the house a mess, and my calendar in hand as I reviewed every event scheduled for the next week. Knowing I had to pack that night for yet another week-long business trip, I was on the verge of a meltdown. It was then that I looked across the table at our two daughters and husband when he calmly made this profound statement to me, “We need a wife.” I knew what he meant: we needed help on the home front! It’s not that he was looking to become a polygamist, adding another female to his household. He wasn’t

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