Family

My Family Can’t Talk To Each Other; Y’all How About Yours?

My family needs to talk. It’s not so easy. “Ah, yes, raising two teenagers,” you nod in compassion and understanding. Yes, thank you. But that’s not it. Well, it is many days. The problem, I’ve diagnosed this week is something bigger. It starts at the beginning. We don’t speak the same language. Ours is a family with folks raised in California, the Midwest, and the South. The basic problem–no one can agree on how to speak.  I’m talking simple pronunciation.

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Marriage

The Only Wedding Present We Asked For Keeps On Giving

The box awaits. It’s not fancy by any means. A cardboard box from a craft store that my friend’s 10-year-old daughter decorated with decals and quotes about love. It is simply the best wedding gift my husband and I received. It’s one of the very few wedding presents we received. There’s that. It’s how we wanted it. We got married in our late 40’s, already had two households of stuff. Asking our friends for more stuff just seemed silly. To

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Uncategorized

You Could Call This The Worst Anniversary Dinner Ever

You could’ve called it the worst anniversary dinner ever. This week, Husband and I were excited to celebrate our third wedding anniversary. Yes, can you believe it? It’s already been three years since this forever-single lady found a perfectly imperfect man who wanted to spend his life with me. Getting hitched at Silver Run Falls, NC. July 2012. We had reservations at a fancy, new restaurant in town. And sure, we could’ve gone there and had the latest “farm-to-table” dishes. But

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Family, The Hard Stuff

How Can My Friends’ Worst Phone Call Ever Lead To Someone’s Best?

Joy. Today, I’m thinking about joy. Joy, the name of the wife of good friend, Brian. Joy, the emotion instantly drained from Brian’s heart when he received that phone call a couple weeks ago. Maybe you’ve gotten one of those phone calls, Dear Reader. One with the worst news possible. While Brian was working out of town, Joy was involved in a single-car accident. He was on the next plane back home, staying by Joy’s side for 10 days. Stayed

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The Hard Stuff

My Dog’s Getting The Last Laugh; The Chapter I Didn’t See Coming

Let me say, Dear Reader, that you are amazing. Wonderful. Clearly, you’re an over the top dog lover, like myself. The emails have been flooding in ever since I shared the latest chapter of my sweet Darla’s life in the column, “My Dog Is Teaching Me A Final Lesson.” I shared how my dog has been showing signs of slowing down, how she’s preparing me to let her go after more than 15 years together. I know, you can’t even

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Family, The Hard Stuff, Travel

Is It Just Me? Why Do I Always Do This On Airplanes?

I am that lady in Seat 12B. Maybe even stuck in that middle seat of 27D. I’m that lady you’re trying to discreetly poke your travel partner. “Check out the woman over there,” you whisper. “She’s crying her eyes out.” Dear Reader, what is it about airplanes? The altitude? The recycled air? The isolation 36,000 feet above the ground? Whatever it is, I’m a goner. Just say, “Boo,” and I’ll start crying. Watching a movie, that on the ground would

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The Hard Stuff

My Dog Is Teaching Me A Final Lesson

My dog is getting me ready. She knows what’s coming in the way dogs know before we do. About a dangerous stranger, earthquakes, or bacon. She’s gently letting me know it will soon be time for her to go. It’s one of an infinite number of brilliant conversations I’ve had with my best friend. The friend who has never uttered a word in our more than 15 years together, but has taught me so much. “She’s not going anywhere,” Husband

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Husband's Crazy Frequent Flyer Mile Hobby, Travel

Husband Creates Travel Masterpiece: Around The World In First Class For $383.45!

I imagine most husbands’ idea of some time away means a few days at the beach? Couple days at a cabin? I’m not really sure, as I’m very late to the marriage game and Miles Chasing Mad Scientist Husband is my entire husband sample. Beyond family, MCMSH’s passion is collecting frequent flyer miles without flying and cashing them in to travel the world First Class on the fanciest planes, fanciest airlines, which he likes to point out upfront are not

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Husband's Crazy Frequent Flyer Mile Hobby, Travel

My Husband Paid $7 Bucks & All I Got Was A $46,000 Plane Ride

So what does it feel like to fly First Class on one of the fanciest airlines in the world? To experience a level of service no US-based airline even offers? How about I take you along for the ride my husband and I just took? Yes, that husband. The Mad Scientist Miles Chaser, the one who collects millions of frequent flyer points for our family without flying. He tries to wow me once a year with some over-the-top experience. Let’s

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Life Lessons Took Me Long Time To Learn, Marriage

Going Solo: Are You Willing To Do THIS Alone In Public?

My husband is still laughing at this. Well, laughing at me. Story goes back to a few years ago when we were dating, snuggled up on the couch watching “Dancing With The Stars.”  He sweetly asked me, “Would you ever want to take ballroom dance lessons?” I thought about it a second and said, “You mean, together?” He still howls at this because, as he points out, how else do you take ballroom dance lessons? Who takes ballroom dance lessons

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