A few weeks before my son left for college, he pulled me aside and said, “I’ve been thinking about getting a tattoo.” I was shocked and surprised. I used to believe that tattoos were bad. I used to believe our bodies were sacred and getting a tattoo was like putting graffiti on a beautiful building.… Read More The Astronaut Tattoo
Is anger bad? Two years ago, when my son told me that he wanted to commit suicide, I was confused. When he told me that he hated the fact that he was gay, I was sad. When I understood that his impetus for suicide came from our religion’s teachings about homosexuals, I was angry. I… Read More Anger
I like camping… sort-of. I like being out in nature, smelling the pine trees and cooking over a crackling fire. I like relaxing in a camp chair, away from computers, phones, traffic and to-do lists. I like spending the entire day outside, watching my kids explore rivers, rocks and trails. I like making foil dinners… Read More Camping
I hated my high school graduation. I didn’t hate the actual ceremony, that part was great. What bothered me, was the lack of something amazing afterwards. I wanted to celebrate my graduation. I had just completed four years of high school; going to class, learning, studying and taking tests. I had played sports, worked out… Read More Senior Trips
My life has been undergoing a metamorphosis ever since I decided to leave my religion. I have had to reevaluate what I think and believe. I have had to strip away what someone else taught me and discover for myself, what I believe is right and wrong. Learning about the ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ of sexuality… Read More Sexuality
I grew up in a big family. (Side note: There is an extra person in our family picture. My brother’s friend came to live with us for over a year and earned a place in our family picture) I loved growing up in a big family. I loved going on long road trips in our… Read More My big family
I recently stumbled across this beautiful picture of Audrey Hepburn. The words that accompanied the photo moved me… Audrey Hepburn was the granddaughter of a baron, the daughter of a Nazi sympathizer, spent her teens doing ballet to secretly raise money for the dutch resistance against the Nazis, and spent her post-film career as a… Read More The value of beauty
How the middle school running club ruined my dream- I love to run. I grew up running with my father. He was a long distance runner, who completed several marathons (26 miles) and ultra marathons (50 to 100 mile races). Growing up, I admired him and wanted to be like him. When… Read More Running Club and Ruined Dreams
One of my very favorite books is called, It is a book about a mother’s love for her son. It details the numerous messy stages from childhood to adulthood. Throughout the book, despite the child’s total disregard for cleanliness and order, the mother still loves her son. I admire this mother. I am currently in… Read More 11 year old boys
Because I love to share things that make me happy, I have decided to share my family’s pepperoni roll recipe. These little pillows of warmth, love, and flavor are delicious. There are two ways these can be made… the easy way or the really easy way. I will share both. The ingredient list 2… Read More Pepperoni Rolls
Parenting is really fun, but also very challenging. One of the most challenging things, is figuring out how to teach my kids all of the important information that they need to know to be happy, successful, well-adjusted adults. I compiled a short list of the basic conversations that I have had (or still need to… Read More Parenting Conversations
My family likes to ski. It’s how we enjoy the winter and get our exercise. Everyone has learned to ski quite well… except my youngest. I have been trying to teach her to ski since she was three (two winters ago). At first, she wasn’t very good because she lacked stamina. Her tiny muscles weren’t… Read More Facing Fear
Twenty years ago, I got married to my favorite person. It was a bitter cold day in Saint Louis, but I wasn’t cold at all. I was madly in love. The first time I saw Joel, was at church. Everything about him was impressive. I could hardly wait for the meeting to be over, so… Read More 20 years
It’s cold. It’s winter. Soup is good. After eating waaay too many sugar cookies, gingerbread, and candy, I decided to make soup. This is our families favorite… and I imagine it’s going to be your favorite too. I promise. It is easy, it is hearty, and you probably already have most of the ingredients. So… Read More Winter noodle soup
My husband comes from a very large Mormon family (he has 84 first cousins- just on his dad’s side). They are like a giant group of friends that love each other and enjoy getting together. I worked very hard to get to know them and they made me feel like a part of the family. Over… Read More Real friendships