How to be patriotic

When I sat down to write this column, I tried to think of something patriotic. But I couldn’t think of anything. I don’t have a lot of veterans in my family, and my memories of the holiday consisted of the small business my dad and I had selling glow-sticks at firework events. He would walk […]

The Dad Friend

I think most of my friends would describe me as the “mom friend”. For those that don’t know, Urban Dictionary defines the mom friend as “That one friend in your squad that’s super responsible and almost over-protective of them” and “That one friend that’s pretty much just a small version of a mom, you know, […]

The not photographed moments

This past week, I was trying to fill out empty picture frames, and I said to my husband that we don’t take enough pictures with our friends. The last time we got a group photo that wasn’t a wedding picture was five years ago at my husband’s college graduation. We don’t really have a good […]

Mother’s Day traditions

My mom and I have a Mother’s Day tradition that we’ve had for over 10 years now. Every Mother’s Day morning, we go to the cemetery and plant a red geranium for her mom, my Mimi. And despite it being a sad place, it’s not a sad tradition. In fact, I think my Mimi would […]

Self-promotion is my kryptonite

I’m usually the first person to tell myself I’m good at writing. I’ve been writing since I could hold a pencil, and I still have a mountain of notebooks from middle and high school full of barely-legible stories that no one else has ever read. To be honest, not sure if I could even read […]

You’re only as old as you feel and I feel old

A few weeks ago, I threw my back out putting my shoes on, which I think qualifies me as an old person. Now, I am 27 years old. I know that, technically, I’m still young. But someone needs to tell that to my body. I originally injured my back when I still worked retail. I […]

Child Abuse Prevention and Autism Awareness Month

Well, April is here. Somehow, time keeps moving at an unreasonably fast pace. But with April comes two very important things that you may or may not know about: Autism Acceptance Month and Child Abuse Prevention Month. While April is many things, Alcohol Awareness Month, Earth Month, National Frog Month (didn’t know that until I […]

The annoying little sister

My puppy is jealous. Not of our other dog. Of me. I’m an only child so maybe someone with siblings can explain this to me. Our lab, Cosmo, is a sweet, sensitive boy. He needs attention all the time. If we’re home, he’s asking for attention. On the flip side, our golden, Wanda, wants nothing […]

When did I get school spirit?

A few weeks ago I did something that I will probably regret later: I volunteered to plan my high school reunion. It has been almost 10 years since me, my husband, and our friends were students at Richmond High School, home of the Blue Devils. Our graduating class was about 150 people, a majority of […]

When the sun never sets on news

I didn’t sleep Monday night. I’m sure many of you were the same. I’ve always said that news doesn’t take a holiday or a day off. Apparently it doesn’t sleep either. The violent acts at Michigan State University aren’t the first time I’ve been unable to turn off breaking news coverage. When Damar Hamlin collapsed […]