Author: nicole

Breaking news: Nice guys DON’T finish last. In fact, people who are kind have more success in the workplace and on the home-front! And like the common cold or that nasty flu that’s going around, kindness spreads like a virus!

Several years ago, I wrote an article for my “Kindness is Contagious” column about a documentary film ... Read More


“Mom, please don’t cheer for the Vikings.”

My seven-year-old son, Ben, was very matter of fact about his request.

In case you missed it, last night the Vikings won in an amazing last second play against the Saints.

Next week, the Vikings will play the Eagles.

Little Ben is a big Carson Wentz fan. Carson plays for the Eagles.

When the Vikings play the Eagles, ... Read More


My purse was stolen when I was in college. A few years later, it happened again. Was it my fault? Absolutely. I had been careless both times.

The grief I felt came from a sense of being personally violated, but it also stemmed from something larger. I had believed in my heart that people were good, but good people didn’t steal ... Read More


You go through a difficult time and someone offers to bring you a meal or pick up your kids. What do you say?

I think our natural instinct is to say no, right? We tell people verbally or through our actions that we’re okay, we’ve got this covered, we can do it ourselves.

But what if their offer of kindness isn’t ... Read More


I’ve decided I have a heart problem. Yes, I know, most people don’t just “decide” they have a problem with a major organ in their body. They go to a doctor and a medical professional doles out that diagnosis.

Call it “January” or “one too many snow days” or “cabin fever,” but I don’t need a doctor to tell me I ... Read More


It’s humbling to realize that while I was sitting on the living room floor watching my kids tear into the colorful assortment of presents under the Christmas tree, other lives were unfolding simultaneously in ways much different than mine.

Jayne Holtgrewe of Moorhead spent her day nursing her husband back to health after he experienced a terrible fall.

But instead of grieving ... Read More


We go about our days sometimes on auto-pilot, don’t we? Or maybe it’s just me.

I can go from meeting to meeting, taking the kids here, stopping at the store there, returning this phone call or that email… and all of a sudden, it’s 9pm.

If you were to ask me if I am a kind person, I’d say, “Sure! Yes! Absolutely!” ... Read More


Do you remember this exact date, January 1st— 18 years ago?

I was living in sin with Saul. He had more hair and my boobs were real. Other than that, it was pretty much the same as it is now.

We partied like it was 1999 (because it was), but there was a definite foreboding in my heart. I worked at a ... Read More