Processing Your Parenting Legacy
I have a friend whose parents are very involved in her family’s life. They are helpful and attentive grandparents, and I tell her how lucky she is all the time. Not only are my parents not very active in my…
10 Things to Know About State Parks
Over the years, our family has visited every single Virginia State Park (that’s forty parks!) and stayed in a wide variety of cabins, ranging from one-room log cabins built in the 1930s by the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) to six-bedroom…
The One About Breastfeeding
When our firstborn was just shy of eleven months, my husband was hit with a sudden and scary viral infection that landed him in intensive care. In an instant, everything about our little family’s life changed and for about a…
So Long, Old Hoop
I remember when we got it, of course, back in that long-ago December when I decided that it was time for my boy to have a basketball hoop of his own standing tall in the driveway. He had already begun…
Rebranding the Twos
Parenting a two-year-old is not for the faint of heart. Two-year-olds are fiercely independent one moment and incredibly needy the next. The highs are higher and the lows are lower. Despite this, I find myself almost looking forward to my…
Summer Jobs and Dismantling Racism in Your Family
My 14-year-old son has been wanting to work a real job since he was in elementary school. He could apply for a special work permit and find a job this summer, but I think he should wait until next year.…
Pandemics and Wedding Planning
When it comes to planning a wedding, there are lots of moving parts. Add a pandemic to the mix, and it can be overwhelming. These days, even attending a wedding can be complicated for some of us. Many couples have…
Mother Earth and Her Day
In the seventies, my friends and I played near a trickle of a creek in a ravine everyone called “Bloody Bones.” The water was copper-colored from what we always assumed was factory runoff. It might have been toxic, but I’m…
First Time Caller
I’ll start running,” my son announced during dinner. “Really… why?” “Three miles, three days a week – for a phone.” A few hours before this declaration, I shared the story of a student who recently ran five miles a day…
Send Lovingkindness into the World
Mindfulness is simply the practice of being present in the moment, intentionally and without judgment. We could all use a little more mindfulness in our lives right now. Whether you’ve experienced hardships and heartbreak due to the pandemic or are…
