Lynne stood near a pile of horse manure, leaning on a fence post, flies zooming around her in the late-afternoon sun. She squinted her eyes and watched the creatures before her, a lump in her throat and tears threatening to overflow her eye sockets. She sighed away the feeling of being consumed, which had come [...]

A search for open adoption is scary turns up 91,400 entries. That’s a lot of terror!
What is open adoption? Wikipedia says “Open adoption means that the birth mother and adopted family know who each other are. Even in an open adoption, the birth parents’ legal rights of guardianship are terminated, and [...]

When you need help, you run across two different types of people.

People like me, who have to figure out a path from here to helping you before they can say, “Sure! I’ll be right there!”
People like my sister, Tami, who say “Sure!” first and then figure out the how.

Three years ago, Tami called me when [...]

Lola (pictured below) is the newest member of our family. She’s expected to be a workhorse — to lug our bikes and skis, make possible simultaneous playdates for Tessa and Reed, and make me downright happy to be in the chauffeur stage of parenting.
We plan to rely on Lola for years to come. She’ll be [...]

I’m pondering three quotes on a day when my children are back in school, leaving me wondering time.
People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within.
— Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

Everyone has a [...]

I’m going to show you my new Brazilian. Every step of the way.
Why did I get one? Why might you want one?
Some are lucky to have gorgeous curls. Some are fortunate to have shiny sleek hair. And some are blessed with well-behaved waves.
And some of us deal with the Dennis the Menace of tresses, like [...]

Obviously, a community called Mile High Mamas appeals to moms and not crones. Otherwise the URL above might be ColoradoCrones.com.
Because of infertility and other factors, I arrived at motherhood late. I am an older mom who never gave birth. So I have already begun thinking of what comes after Motherhood, and I come up with [...]

**This post was originally published in May after Governor Ritter signed the new car seat law SB10-110. The law went into effect today. Please keep reading to find out how your children may be impacted.
This was said as we got in the car on my daughter’s recent birthday. I countered with, “Sorry, Tessa. That’s not [...]

If you revel in being a scout leader on craft day, this post isn’t for you. If you find joy in helping Vacation Bible Schoolers turn crepe paper and rocks into Father’s Day presents, click away now. If your house is known by the neighborhood kids as the place to go when they have the [...]

Does anyone have a Dad who says the same things over and over?
I do. So about 20 years ago for my Dad’s birthday, my sisters and I put together an ENTIRE BOOK of his repeatisms. I will spare you the insider ones such as “I always carry a garlic shaker” and leave you [...]