So I was reading this article about holiday stress and thinking I’d like to have some normal holiday stress instead of this berserker holiday stress…

A holiday tradition can be comforting, something to cherish and anticipate. Or they can be dreadful. Take Martha Stewart. She, like most of us, bakes…

Under normal circumstances, I need very little prep to go to our cabin. Long ago, I stocked the cabin with necessities, to minimize how much…

I took to heart those news articles about global supply chain issues affecting Christmas after I was lectured about the tilapia. My parents eat tilapia…

Last year, I gave you a list of Thanksgiving activities. That Thanksgiving list was heavy on turkeys, light on Pilgrims. That’s because I was rejected…

It’s Halloween weekend. So the holiday season begins on Monday, right? Let’s pull out our festive throw pillows. Bake cookies. Start shopping. Tell Burl Ives…

My husband looked over my shoulder at exactly the wrong moment. When pandemic lockdowns began, I wanted to connect with my kids. So I did…

I bought the pumpkin. Its official name is “Medium Dark Woven Pumpkin by Threshold.” I bought it at Target because Target is a Siren, singing…

We have to talk about apple picking for a minute. We’re suburban parents. Apple picking is as much a requirement for fall as pretending to…

I was reading this month’s Real Simple magazine – that thing is just a little pocket of joy in your day, let me tell you…

I was in pre-school when my mom took a new job. Her schedule was erratic. An evening here. A weekend there. I was erratic too.…

A few months ago, I wrote about my parents’ friendship with the man I now call my future stepdad. Neither he nor my actual dad…

I’m not a dog person. We should just get that out of the way right now. We’ve been together in this column, you and I,…

I’m in love. It’s a terrible kind of love, the kind you know will be lost – like watching Jack and Rose in Titanic or…

I still feel dirty. I cleaned the bathrooms yesterday. Stem to stern. Head to toe. Every nook and cranny. Pick your idiom, because I did…

I once had a boyfriend who borrowed $400. He broke up with me before it occurred to him I had more paychecks coming. Months later,…

I am writing to you from vacation. Not our normal vacation, the kind I call “Rank Working Vacations.” Rank Working Vacations are not for those…