I announced last night to my almost 15-year-old son D. that I had great plans for us for Mother’s Day.

“There is something we are going to do together tomorrow, and we are going to have a lot of fun, and we are going to do it without a single complaint… Read full post »

There has been a war going on in my house. Well, maybe not so much a war, but a major disagreement.

If you ask my 14-year-old son, he would say things are just fine. He’s in perfect alignment with the adolescent that he is and has great clarity on what he wants.… Read full post »

I was leaving work a few weeks ago, walking down the block, when I heard a car alarm going off. “Gee, I hope that’s not mine,” I said, half joking. But as I walked toward the parking garage, I saw the taillights of my Nissan Murano were lit. “That’s weird,” I… Read full post »

My mother’s Pyrex 508 one-cup measuring cup has been loved. The once-red writing has faded to white, and the 1/4 cup measure mark on the glass has completely disappeared. You can still see the 1-cup mark pretty clearly, and have a hint of the 2/3. But I use the cup anyway because I've/… Read full post »

I hope I touch the bottom of my mega-sized holiday peanut M&M bag. I know I won’t find happiness there, so all I can wish is that my fingers will soon touch plastic and I’ll find only tiny bits of chocolate shell remaining. At that moment, I’ll start my new-year eating regi… Read full post »

It’s quite convenient that my son D. no longer believes in Santa Claus. He’s 14, and eventually it came time for him to face the reality of the brutal, responsibility-laden life of being an adult. Might as well start the training now.

Sure, some of the holiday magic went out with… Read full post »

My sister took the call from the Veteran’s Home. Our father wasn’t cooperating in taking his medications; he was outright refusing them at times. Shocking.

Our dad has always been a bit stubborn—he has a righteous sense of justice, and a clear idea of what he will do and not do.… Read full post »

Dear Hives:

What are you thinking? Here I have been battling with you for over a year and you seem to be back with a vengeance. What the heck are you doing to me? Trying to get my attention? You have it!

Dear Kellie:

Please don’t yell at us. We are all… Read full post »

It had been three weeks since a hot pink splint was put on Tuna’s broken leg. She needed to wear the cast for a month and had to be confined to a crate in order for her to heal properly. We followed the doctor’s orders—for the most part. Unfortunately, this wasn’t… Read full post »

I have a black tiger cat that is eight months old. Her name is Tuna.

Somehow, the rambunctious little thing managed to break her ankle a week ago. I didn’t even realize catshad ankles. And have you ever heard of a cat breaking its leg? Tuna is not even an outdoor cat.… Read full post »

I used to have two Labrador mutts. One tan, one black. Their names were Toast and Flapjack.

They lived up to their rambunctious names—boomeranging across the living room every morning and meeting me with their damp tongues. Their claws desperately scratched the wide pine floorboards as they&rsq… Read full post »

My loyalty to Dunkin’ Donuts goes way back. My mother took me to a shop on Railroad Street in St. Johnsbury, VT in the late ’70s. We’d swivel in hard stools at a long counter shaped like a U, drinking coffee and hot chocolate from thick, white ceramic mugs. The waitress—in… Read full post »

Thirty classes. Thirty days. One room, heated to 105 degrees Fahrenheit. A bunch of crazy, obsessed fitness-fanatic people. At least six percent of the water in the body evaporated during each class. One Bikram Yoga Challenge? Check.

Sounds like fun, huh? 90-minute classes, with a few simple requirem… Read full post »

I had three exciting bits of news to share with my father on Father’s Day. I like it when I have news. His days at the Veteran’s Home run together—there’s not much to distinguish a Tuesday from a Saturday unless the Elk’s Lodge is singing their slightly-off-key tunes in… Read full post »

My son D. promised tonight, while looking at me sincerely and responsibly, “Yes, I’m going to finish my science homework.”

But then he started working on it while watching game 5 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. At the same time, he was listening to YouTube through one ear bud on his… Read full post »

I will admit it. I’ve completely lost it here and there over the years with you. There were those temper tantrums at Stop & Shop in the cereal aisle because I wouldn’t buy the Pop-Tarts you wanted, the ones with frosting and sprinkles. Or that time you said some girl kicked… Read full post »

I learned how to play SCRABBLE when I was about 10 years old. When I visited my grandmother Inez on Stinson Beach, we’d play almost every night after dinner. She’d make herself a cup of tea and we’d eat gingersnaps and chocolate cookies spread with butter and sit with furr/… Read full post »

Ever wish you had the power to shift time?

Many of us are respectfully quiet this week, contemplating the massive destruction in Japan from the earthquake. Over 400,000 people homeless and a death toll that could hit 25,000. Exposed radioactive fuel rods that they can’t cool down. It’s al… Read full post »

I come from a long line of gift-givers. We learned as kids that giving presents was one vital way to show love. My mother was generous—for Easter, we didn’t just get one basket—we got two. One was from the Bunny and one from her. When we opened an enormous gift box… Read full post »

My great-great-grandfather Francis Sollom died over a hundred years ago. He left behind a leather diary that we found when cleaning out my parents’ garage. On the first page, Francis had written, Extracts that pleased me. F.S., Nov. 1892, Bohemia Road, St. Leonards-on-Sea.

The book is comp… Read full post »

I took my son out to dinner at Carrabas the other night, during a big snowstorm. After we ate, as we were leaving the restaurant, the hostess opened the door. “Drive safe!” she called after us, and we headed out into the snow. 

Once we were in the car, I asked… Read full post »

My sister-in-law S. texted me recently, asking how to make my mother’s cauliflower dip. Pretty easy: ketchup, mayonnaise, and a little Worcestershire…should be a bit runny. Sounds yummy, huh? If you’re not a fan of cauliflower, and most people aren’t, you have to tr/… Read full post »