I am the youngest of 50 cousins on my dad’s side of the family. I have several hundred second-cousins, but please don’t ask me to name more than 10 of them.
The last family reunion was held at a park in Wisconsin and was a bit of a community event. It’s always hard to tell who is really part of the ... Read More
Have you ever noticed that when you get something stuck in your mind you start seeing it everywhere?
When I gave up drinking, every billboard I drove past for at least a month was advertising some sort of alcoholic beverage.When Saul and I started thinking about getting a security system for the new house, it seemed like we had a non-stop ... Read MoreHave you ever had a life experience in which you thought to yourself, “If I can just live through this, it’ll all be OK?”
I have had several, and I’m a little embarrassed to say they weren’t caused by the bad things in my life. They were caused by the good things. Those moments of acute anxiety were caused by things ... Read MoreSeventeen years ago this very weekend, I competed in the Miss America pageant representing my home state of Wisconsin.
When the pageant was over, I came home with an interview award, $10,000 in scholarship money and a whole bunch of sparkly earrings (some of which are still in my jewelry box).When people ask how I did, I like to tell them ... Read More
There is a unique solidarity among coaches’ wives.
Coaches’ wives get the fact that our husbands watch tape until 2 a.m., and that they are on recruiting calls while we are on vacation, and that they walk around a little grumpy the day after a big loss.Coaches’ wives who are also moms understand something else: We often parent alone.
I pride myself ... Read More
Several months ago, when we left North Dakota for Ohio, we moved into a lovely home tucked into a quiet, wooded neighborhood in the city of Athens.
Just before you turn to go up the hill into our subdivision, you pass a little log cabin. On first glance, it’s beautiful. Very shabby-chic. On second glance, it’s a whole lot more shabby ... Read More
I never wanted to get married. I didn’t believe in the institution of marriage. I honestly thought it was impossible for a man and a woman to remain faithful to each other for a lifetime.
I dated. I eventually wanted children. I hadn’t worked out all the details, but I was certain marriage would not be part of the equation.
I’m not ... Read More
I remember the first time I saw a $2 bill. I was about 5 or 6 years old, and I thought someone was playing a joke on me.
It looked real, but that 2 in the corner, where the 1 or the 5 or the 10 should have been just seemed so odd.I’ve run into a few other $2 bills in ... Read MoreI recently talked to the father of a Minnesota boy who could very well capture the attention of the nation and change the way the medical world uses marijuana.
Brett Solum is a 13-year-old boy who, in many ways, is like a lot of other teenagers. He goes to Moorhead Middle School where he’ll soon be starting seventh grade. He likes ... Read More
Nothing scares me more than the thought of losing a child. And yet, tragically, it happens.
I have never been able to grasp how parents get through an experience like that. And yet, miraculously, they do.Jeanette Maré lost her son, Ben, when he was just 3 years old. His airways constricted, and he was gone in moments.
“The depth of pain we ... Read More
