Karen Holder | RealiTeen

Paula Patselas

I have now been blogging for Realiteen for almost two years and have thoroughly enjoyed the experience to share the ebb and flow of life with three teens in the house. I am well seasoned with the teen scene, but learn something new and exciting almost every day still. I am blessed to be the very proud mom of three teens: Kassiane, 17; Austin, 16; and Lydia, 15. Yes, you read correctly – stair step teens. They were once 1, 2 and 3, if you can only imagine. That part seems like a blur now – thank goodness for photos and video. It has all happened so quickly and now they are in 10th, 11th and 12th grades. One of the first thoughts that now comes to mind when I tell someone their ages is that they will graduate from high school three years running; and of course, that means beginning college three years running, too. That means three cars, three more insurance policies, oh the horrors. We will cross those bridges soon enough. For now, the household is bustling; even teaming with activity and commotion and that is putting it politely. The “we” I mention includes my husband, Doctor Tim, who is a general surgeon, and practices with Onslow Surgical Clinic. It goes almost without saying, he is a very busy husband/dad. The great news is that he is a very involved, hands-on kind of dad and always has been. He comes home, rolls up his sleeves and pitches in with whatever needs to be done to manage the group. Early on we realized that we would have our hands full and being that there are three of “them” and two of “us”, the odds were against us. It has been a challenge keeping our ship afloat and keeping the kids steered, but always a joy and we would have never had it any other way. I am a real multi-tasking mom, too, with quite a few irons in the fire. I am a registered nurse, since 1982, with a clinical background in trauma and critical care nursing. In recent years, my focus has been in nursing education at Onslow Memorial Hospital; however, during the past two years, I have also been working PRN(filling in as needed), in out-patient clinics at the Naval Hospital and MCAS. The flexibility of PRN works great with managing the busy schedules of the teens, yet allows me to keep connected with my profession. I also volunteer in their schools and for the past three years have been helping to re-invent the Onslow County Medical Society Alliance, a physician spouses’ organization. I’ve also been a long standing soccer mom, an avid gardener and love to cook. When I say, never a dull moment – it truly means, NEVER a dull moment. I look forward to more blogging and sharing about life with the stair step teens. Stay tuned!

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I’m Karen, a stay-at-home mom of two girls, one 16 and the other 18. While I know it’s unusual for a mom to still be out of the work force with kids these ages (especially when the money would really come in handy!), I think it’s been the right choice for our family. It’s nice to be available to the teens during the day and to be able to keep an eye on things during those afternoon hours. (Can you hear my girls gagging and groaning while they’re reading that?!) I am a constant embarrassment to my kids in so many ways…the things I wear, say, do, like. I am so skilled at embarrassing them that I don’t even have to try hard at it. I’m hoping someday they’ll look back and think of me as fun and spunky and creative rather than just horribly strange. I love all things creative and crafty, spicy food, diet soda (possibly love to the point of addiction?), fresh paint, and casual clothes. I hate doing laundry, attending meetings, and getting dressed up. (If I’m wearing heels and a dress, there’s probably either a wedding or a funeral!) If you’re looking for someone who’s an expert parent who has all the right answers, you might want to read someone else’s posts. But if you’re looking for someone who is out there struggling every day to get it right, I’m your girl.

Celebrating Success

February 7th, 2012 Karen Holder

Katie got her report card last week and it was a good one. It wasn’t straight A’s, but it was close. Way to go, Katie! Of course, I knew long before that piece of paper was in her hands what …
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The High Price of Living With Teens

February 5th, 2012 Karen Holder

I’m pretty sure I am going to have to get rid of my kids. They are simply too expensive to keep.

I was having some stress already about the cost of owning teens lately. For one thing, my cell phone …
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Something New and (P)interesting

February 3rd, 2012 Karen Holder

Oh, my goodness. I did not need another way to waste time on the internet. That’s why I never looked up Pinterest even though I was constantly hearing friends talk about all the interesting things they found on that site. …
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I’m Gonna Miss This

February 1st, 2012 Karen Holder

Someday soon I'm going to miss shopping for things to fill this lunch box.

I have a part-time job as a photographer’s assistant and I love it. We’ve recently been taking lots of pictures of expectant moms …
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The Best Cure

January 30th, 2012 Karen Holder

The other day a friend shared a quote with me that really rang true. It’s an Irish proverb that states, “A good laugh and a long sleep are the two best cures for anything.” Isn’t that the truth?!

I know parents …
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