• Family

    Pandemic Anniversary

    March 5, 2021 - By 

    We are approaching the 1-year mark that our nation has been in the throes of the Coronavirus pandemic. And this one is for the teachers. My oldest son has a framed picture of his elementary class last year. The one that was normal, until it just – wasn’t. When he was dismissed for spring break and never returned that school year. He loved that class. In fact, sitting at the kitchen table for the start of the following school year – the first one in which his younger brother will be joining him as a kindergartner – he professed to…

  • Family - Marriage - Parenting

    Confusion then Chagrin

    January 6, 2021 - By 

    Everywhere our children go, they turn on lights. And don’t turn them off. Whenever we are getting ready to leave the house, I have to build in an extra five minutes just to go around turning off lights that they’ve left on. Last night, before bed, Chris went downstairs and noticed that our youngest child (the last one to set foot down there) had left EVERY SINGLE light on. Chris turned them off and we had an exasperated laugh together about it. This morning, after I’ve gotten the boys off to school and long after Chris has left for work,…

  • Fun - Marriage - Throwback

    How We Met

    December 22, 2020 - By 

    The boring version is that Chris and I met at work in Arizona, in the early months of 2006, dated for about three years and then got married. The more interesting version is that a guy I barely knew from work randomly asked me to fly out to Iowa with him as his date for his 10-year high school reunion. And I’d meet my future-mother-in-law when I stayed at her house for an extended weekend, where I’d also meet all of his siblings and attend his brother’s college graduation. And the first time I’d meet my future father-in-law it would…

  • Family - Parenting

    Perfectly Imperfect

    December 7, 2020 - By 

    As a child, I would accompany my parents and brother to the Christmas Tree farm, looking for the perfect specimen to cut down. Despite the hassle, there is nothing more wonderous than the smell of fresh pine. My husband also prefers pines to plastic. So it was a very easy decision that, as a couple, we would have real trees. Over the years we’ve had some beauties — aaaand some Charlie Brown trees. Our ornaments are a hodge-podge of gifts, acquisitions, and well-intentioned Target purchases. At one point, my parents gave me a box of ornaments that they had used…

  • Family

    A Full Moon in October

    October 31, 2020 - By 

    We lucked out with the weather this year; almost 60 degrees and clear skies. Were it not for the complete pandemic disaster that is this year, 2020’s Halloween would have been amazing: Full moon, Saturday night, and beautiful crisp fall air. We played it low-key this year. I managed to convince both boys to wear costumes that my mom had hand-made for my brother and I when we were kids. Aiden opted for a “spider” and Conner was Tigger the tiger. Who knew that masks could actually come in so handy? We had a delightful time regardless. We visited a…

  • Family - Fun - Marriage

    Who am I?

    October 28, 2020 - By 

    If you’ve been reading this blog at all, you might have an idea. I mean, it spans over a decade of my life, and I’d like to think I share a balanced view of the highs and lows that life gives me. But here’s the current TL;DR in case you want to be my friend. Because I like friends. But I’m socially awkward. So here we are. A random list of things about me: I love this life I’ve built. I’m a born introvert. A shy book nerd who was bullied in school for being “too nice.” I’m an overthinker…

  • Fun

    New Home Decor

    October 20, 2020 - By 

    My previous cat Maia used to relax very strangely on chairs. Visit this post to see the pictures then pop on back here: Home Decor I thought this was weird. But apparently, all cats are weird? Or maybe just mine. Because Phoebe does the exact same thing: Forget the cat beds or fancy cat houses, give her a people chair and she’s all set. (If you look closely at the image above, you’ll see the china dishes – the ones that survived the bowling ball incident – safely stowed away.

  • Family

    This is 40

    September 22, 2020 - By 

    I turned four decades old today. I don’t feel 40. Mostly. I’m still the same person I was at twenty only I’m not interested in after-hours nightclubs and my knees pop every time I sit down. But you know, same. This is my forty, in all its brutal honesty: I wear wrist braces at night to keep my carpel tunnel at bay. I need compression socks and blood thinning medication. I wear contact lenses and slather on wrinkle creams. I consider Netflix and a glass of wine to be a fun Friday night. But here’s the thing. This is also…

  • Family

    Crickets

    September 18, 2020 - By 

    My oldest boy has a white noise machine in his room, to help him sleep. It has a large selection of sounds that can be played as background noise: static, ocean waves, frogs, music, etc. The one and only sound that he will let me play is: crickets. So he goes to sleep listening to the soothing chirps of crickets every night. Well, it’s late summer in the Midwest, and the actual crickets are EVERYWHERE. Last night, the kid came into my room at 4am. “Mom,” he says, rubbing his eyes, “I can’t sleep.” “Why?” “There’s a cricket in my…

  • Family - Parenting

    Be a Good Human

    September 1, 2020 - By 

    When we lived in Arizona, Chris was often out of town for work, so the boys and I managed on our own. At the time that I wrote this post (below), I was just grateful for the act of kindness. And now, with a few years’ reflection, I also hope that I set the same example of kindness for my sons that this lady did for hers. Be a good human. Raise good humans. That is all. Here is the story: This evening I walked out of the Costco with my 3 year old, my 1 year old, and a…