The end of summer always feels too abrupt. I’m never ready for the transition to cooler temperatures and shorter, busier days, but this time it’s going to be an even bigger adjustment: my oldest child will be starting kindergarten. I’m not sure she’s ready. I’m not...
There are lots of ways to improve your mental health. There’s the traditional method of going to a counselor. The unhealthy method of drinking a bottle of wine. Or the expensive method, indulging in some retail/shopping therapy. But the best things in life are...
I am a pretty finicky runner—I will only run on mountain trails or the occasional dirt road. Never pavement. My husband says that this makes me “high maintenance.” He’s probably right, but I don’t care what he thinks. I don’t care about much of...
Do you know how many U.S. soldiers have been killed in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq? No idea? Well, it’s Memorial Day, the long weekend that is meant for commemorating our fallen soldiers. And even though the holiday has come to signify other things...
A crowd of about 100 people was gathered for a surprise birthday party, whispering in hushed voices, waiting for the guest of honor to arrive. There were dozens of iPhones held aloft, waiting to capture the moment, and one exasperated woman said, “C’mon, put...
We all have our dirty little secrets. My friend Amy was dismayed when she got the notice from her son’s elementary school teacher: she was supposed to bring in her old cereal boxes for an art project. “What? I don’t want everyone at school to...
I don’t know anyone who loathes Daylight Saving Time as much as I do, but I suspect there are some other people out there with similar feelings. “Don’t forget to set you clocks ahead,” people say cheerily every spring. But what I really want to...
It was my father who taught me to be independent. When I turned 16, he instructed me on how to change a tire and check my oil. He showed me how to take a fish off the hook. He took me on adventures, walking through...
After getting both of them dressed in long underwear, ski bibs, jackets, mittens and helmets, loading up their skis, driving 40 minutes to town, and getting them out of their car seats, the 2-year-old lay down on the asphalt of the parking lot. “I don’t...
We show up at a holiday party, and run into people we haven’t seen in months. Instead of just saying hello, I dive right in, saying how beautiful the photos of their vacation were. My husband looks at me incredulously. How did you know where...
