Coparenting

It's that time again. To set our New Year's resolutions, our words for the year, and plan all the things that we probably won't stick to. But what does that mean for our same old stepmom problems? Kicking 2021 To The Curb If you're anything like me, you're probably not sorry to see 2021 draw [...]

There are many things I was not prepared for when I became a stepmom. But one topic that's glaringly at the front of my mind these days is how to talk to and teach my white kids about race and social injustice. Talking About Race Is Hard. And I'll Probably Say The Wrong Thing. [...]

Well, life sure does have a way of changing quickly, doesn't it? This time last week, we knew the Coronavirus threat was emerging, but who could have thought that things would be so different in the span of a few short days? And that it would continue to change by the hour.  I'm guessing you [...]

A DIY Christmas Ornament? Made By ME? I love making crafts. I've always loved to walk the aisles at Michael's, imagining the amazing wreath I would make, or painted birdhouse. Or perfectly iced cake. The problem is crafts don't really love me. And by that, I mean, have you ever perused the #pinterestfail hashtag? Or [...]

Ah, Black Friday. The one day a year that sales are almost overwhelming in number. Well, except now there's Cyber Monday right after. Whatever - Black Friday and Cyber Monday (or BFCM, as some call the combined holidays - yes. I'm serious.) crowd my inbox every year. And ever year there's some sale that I [...]

Do you worry about how to instill mindfulness in your teen? Or about his/her anxiety? How about their reliance on social media? Or all of the above? Today's Teens Face Complicated Challenges Teen suicide rates are the highest since 2000 and in today's fast-paced world, teens experience more anxiety than ever before. They're under social [...]

Did you know Savannah, Georgia is known for its shopping? I didn't either! But on a recent long weekend there, which you can read about here, I got to know this charming southern city. And took a first-hand look at the amazing Savannah boutique scene. Unlike many other cute cities (including my home in Old [...]

I start looking forward to Halloween decorating in about August. If you follow me on social media, y'all know by now that I love getting ready for the holidays. But there are definitely years when procrastination rules and I'm scrambling to throw together some last-minute pumpkins or ghosts. Or years where I put everything up only [...]

Have you ever considered spending a long weekend in Savannah, Georgia? If you haven't, you should. Having grown up just a couple of hours to the south, I've spent time in Savannah over the years. But most of that time was for weddings, parties, or holiday weekends like St. Patrick's Day, which is not exactly [...]

How do you decide whether you need to evacuate or shelter in place? I've written about how to develop your emergency plan. Whether making sure your finances are in order or that you have your important documents organized in a grab and go binder, it's important to think through how you'd handle an emergency. And [...]

Halloween kicks off our holiday season. But coming up with family Halloween activities can be hard. Ours is a blended family with complicated dynamics - but what's uncomplicated is that we are always looking for fun things to do with the kids. Whether it's for Christmas, Halloween, Thanksgiving, or Valentine's Day, holidays are a great [...]

Although I'm not the neatest person on record (my husband Craig will attest to that), I have always been fairly organized with my files. But it didn't occur to me until we started building our family emergency plan that we should also have a "grab and go" binder. That is, a binder filled with all [...]