Tales of the boy, the blonde, the brunette, and the baby
June 21, 2016

The Fathers Day Expedition

When my husband and I were dating, he informed me that he wanted to have six children. Being raised essentially as an only child, with two much older half siblings, I feared his notions of the large family dynamic might be a tad…. ... Keep Reading

Tales of the boy, the blonde, the brunette, and the baby
December 12, 2015

How to Survive a Sharpie Attack

In 2003, Augusten Burroughs’s quasi-memoir Running With Scissors was released. The story was a bestselling account of an ordinary boy’s survival under the most extraordinary familial circumstances. To say that the ... Keep Reading

Short Stories
September 16, 2015

The Legend of the Whispering Wind

William Shakespeare once asked us to consider this question, what is in a name? Shakespeare would argue that a name is just a word, and only we have the power to grant it meaning. However, if you ask any expectant mother the same ... Keep Reading

Technicolor Thoughts
July 20, 2015

The Warren Buffet Invasion

Do you know how young children seem to develop very focalized areas of interest?? Astronomy…..Presidents….dinosaurs…..animals…..whatever it might be. They want to check out books from the library, and ask ... Keep Reading

Tales of the boy, the blonde, the brunette, and the baby
June 12, 2015

The Radio Flyer Stockholm Syndrome

On August 23rd, 1973, two machine-gun carrying criminals entered a bank in Stockholm, Sweden. The two bank robbers held four hostages, three women and one man, for the next 131 hours. The hostages were strapped with dynamite, and ... Keep Reading

Tales of the boy, the blonde, the brunette, and the baby
May 6, 2015

The Coffee Shop MacGyverization Affect

The term to “MacGyver-ize” was first popularized in a Boy Scout training manual by a contributor named George Shockley; following the popularity of the1980’s television series MacGyver. In the series, Angus ... Keep Reading

Tales of the boy, the blonde, the brunette, and the baby
March 25, 2015

The Queen’s Gambit Strategem

In 1956 twenty-six year old Donald Byrne and thirteen year old Bobby Fischer played a chess match that was ultimately referred to as the Game of the Century. At the time, Byrne was one of the leading American chess masters, and ... Keep Reading

Short Stories
February 16, 2015

The Ghost of Canoeing Adventures Past

I have always felt that a river has a soul. It’s a living, moving body shaped over time, and driven by exploration. If you have ever been fortunate enough to visit the waters of Montana then you will understand why I was ... Keep Reading

Tales of the boy, the blonde, the brunette, and the baby
January 26, 2015

The Snow Day Synchronization Mystification

In April of 2011 the British parenting website bounty.com, released an article on the level of harmony in a home having a direct correlation to the gender composition of a family’s offspring. The findings of the harmony ... Keep Reading

Do you remember the time your Captain America costume wearing son slipped off the leather bench in your kitchen, limbs flailing in every direction, while attempting to do his home work journal (70% because he refuses to sit still while doing his assignments and 30% because he was wearing 100% polyester a historically untrustworthy fabric) and then you found yourself laughing an inappropriately hard laugh (which you 70% felt bad about immediately as a mother and 30% would totally do again should the scenario repeat itself because people falling is one of the funniest things ever to you)?? No?? Okay me neither!

Tales of the boy, the blonde, the brunette, and the baby
December 29, 2014

The Toddler Bed Tipping Point Transition

The term tipping point, a physics term used to describe equilibrium displacement, was first popularized as a sociological concept in the 1960’s by a political science professor named Morton Grodzins. The professor altered ... Keep Reading

Short Stories
December 14, 2014

The Cowboy Philosophy of Echoing Scars

As the Cowboy and I made our way down the cold, dimly lit hallway of the coroner’s building, I had no idea what was in store for us that day. My mind was whirling as we walked in perfect rhythm to the distinct clip of his ... Keep Reading

Tales of the boy, the blonde, the brunette, and the baby
December 3, 2014

The Nightmare Navigating Coxwain

The Old English term coxswain literally means boat servant. One of the primary functions of a coxswain is to keep the vessel and its occupants safe towards a destination. In order to do this effectively, the coxswain must control ... Keep Reading

My mother’s gift of courage to me were both large and small. The later are wove in so subtly into the fabric of my psyche that I can hardly distinguish where she stops and I begin. The large lessons are highlighted in my memory like technicolor stars in a midnight sky. –Maya Angelou

Tales from the elephant in the room
October 23, 2014

The Time Mr. Elephant Almost Went Camping

When the brunette was a baby, the mother bought her a stuffed gray elephant. Never in her wildest dreams did she think the brunette would bond with the elephant to such a heightened, irreplaceable level. Seemingly a silent member ... Keep Reading