Kids

I received a great Christmas present from my best friend. It’s a book called PostSecret, which is the collected results of an ongoing community art project where people mail in their secrets anonymously on one side of a postcard. Confessions have included “I don’t care about recycling (but I pretend …

My Mom went to a wedding recently where on the gift table was a beautiful basket filled with small papers rolled up as scrolls with tiny ribbons. After taking one and opening it, she read the small words that said something to the effect of, “Thanks for your gift.” And …

This entry is part 2 of 5 in the series Dad's Man CaveWelcome back to “Dad’s Man Cave,” a monthly series from dads we know and love, sharing parenting perspectives, humor and advice. Today’s post is from Chris McFarland, husband to co-founder Annie and dad to their spitfire three-year-old daughter. …

Nothing is easy with kids. I know this. So you can imagine my reluctance when my husband suggested that we cut our own Christmas tree this year. “It’s only $10 for a permit, and the kids will have so much fun in the woods!” my dear hubby claimed. (Isn’t he …

One of my favorite memories from my childhood is my 11th birthday.  I woke up that day to our house decked out in streamers and balloons.  I had a sleepover party with some of my best friends, and we spent the night giggling away over the silliest of things.  For …

As our kiddo grows, the Christmas season gets even more fun and meaningful for our family each year. We share her joy seeing Christmas lights appear around the neighborhood, and of course we adore her off-key renditions of Christmas carols sung loudly. We’ve also noticed this year a new and …

It’s that time of year again; a time to give thanks for everything in which we are grateful. As I reflect on this last year – how much I’ve grown, all that I’ve accomplished, and the many storms I’ve weathered – I realized that this is something should not be …

Three nights a week, I get a glimpse of the future. And I’m disheartened by what I see. I teach two classes in the University of Nevada, Reno English Department—freshman-level writing classes—and I have taught there for 12 years. For the most part, I enjoy sharing my expertise with students, …

I completely, and inadvertently, embarrassed my nine-year-old son recently. The infraction wasn’t kissing him and saying “I love you” at school drop-off (that happened last week). Nor was it wearing my skiing polar bear pajama bottoms when he had a friend over (that was last weekend). This infraction involved embarrassing …

I recently returned from a work trip to London; I’m fortunate to have a job that sends me around the world on occasion, and around my own state fairly often. I love my job, and I LOVE to travel. The hard part is that my job takes me away from …