It was well before sunrise on a December morning in Orlando, Florida.We were at the front of the line at the gates of Universal’s Islands of Adventure theme park, along with several hundred other early risers to be the day’s…
We live in a world where our kids get programmed to worry more about what they look like than about character and academic success. According to national statistics, 81 percent of 10-year-olds are afraid of being fat; 42 percent of…
You may be teaching your kids to stay on the straight and narrow, but you'll be surprised how much fun you'll have traveling together, down the Crooked Road… The musical heritage trail highlights Southwest Virginia's entertaining mountain culture, with old-time,…
My mother tried desperately - for my own good - to force me into a teaching career that the very thought of gave me migraines. That experience compelled me to say to my own two sons: Whatever you want, I'll…
My daughter is a third generation Girl Scout. Just like Annabelle, my mother and I made the Girl Scout pledge, promising to serve God and country, helping others at all times. While, as Girl Scouts, we share similar memories of…
Boats flooded Rudee Inlet thanks to the Rock Shout Out, an annual fishing competition at Virginia Beach, but I watched them diminish in the distance as the Virginia Aquarium’s vessel headed toward Cape Henry Lighthouse. An earlier tour had spotted…
She may be the author of two books and the past host of the PBS television series “Hannah, Help Me!” but those noteworthy accomplishments take a backseat to Hannah Keeley’s family. The mother of seven made a definitive choice years…
Since I started blogging at Parenting by the Book for Richmond Family Magazine, I have read twenty-four titles from experts on everything from our kids’ disconnect with nature to the importance of putting your marriage first. While trying to stay…
Yes, it’s about two hours from Richmond to Portsmouth, Virginia. Yes, road-tripping to the beach with the kids in the dead of winter seems a little crazy. But the good news is once you arrive at the Children’s Museum of…
To this day, my son will watch me as I raise a vodka martini to my lips and say, “Mom, you realize you are killing off your brain cells every time you do that?” He’s 30, but he learned this…
