15 years of hiccups
Tonight, after a birthday dinner ending with a hot fudge sundae topped with a candle, I sat on the sofa next to Jack, our middle child who just turned 15. He wanted to watch a…
Letter to High School Juniors and Seniors
Dear High School Juniors and Seniors, It’s that time of year when graduation caps all over the country are tossed skyward in celebration. While those caps and tassels fly wildly up in the air, most…
Can you go home again?
I went home last weekend – not my current home but the first place I ever knew as home – a little town in southern Arkansas called Stuttgart. I’d planned to make the trip with…
Nap flashback
A wonderful thing happened Sunday afternoon. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I’d carried my laptop to the sofa with every intention of working and trying to get a jump on the week’s long to-do list. But then…
Sound of sirens
Last night I put three kids, two dogs and one highly annoyed cat into a small closet under the stairs in our house. Then Tom and I stood a few feet away by the television,…
Middle-of-the-night misery math
Last night was miserable – one of the longest I can remember. I made the mistake of thinking I could take an over-the-counter medicine that helps with allergy congestion before I went to bed. It…
The little tree that could
The fall season gets a ton of attention around here. The leaves put on quite a colorful show before they drop off for winter – going out in a blaze of fiery reds, oranges and…
Life After Diana
When I look around the house, I miss her. It’s been a few months now since she left, and this place is not the same. I met Diana at exactly the right time. I was…
Lessons learned from a streak and a shadow
In our house, we have a doggie dynamic duo. Charlie, who is a rescued mixed breed of beagle and Italian greyhound, is part sighthound and part scent hound. Cooper (the Corgi) is a herding dog.…
Academic speed dating
Twelve years ago, I sat down at this keyboard and wrote a column about the day Tom and I took our son to his first day of Kindergarten. And here I am back at the…