stories about family

A year is a solid chunk of time for learning new things. This is what I know after 2017 . . . 1. If your niece, who is like a little sister to you, asks you to officiate at her wedding, always say yes. And then be honest and heartfelt in what you say…

My son, Max, is almost 9. He’s a great kid, with swooping hair like his dad and a cheeky smile like me. He’s also a smart ass. I’m talking smart ass of the A+ plus sort, the won-the-award-for-class-comedian, has-a-comeback-for-everything,…

My family put up the Christmas tree this past Sunday. I noticed, as I do every year, that my Christmas tree ornaments are the very definition of eclectic. While the mother in me loves best the ornaments my children have made, with their clumsy motor…

Dear Dad, Man, you look handsome and bad-ass in this picture. (Note to impressionable teens: this was 1952 and the tobacco companies were deceiving everyone about smoking: go watch The Insider.) Anyway, you smoked your cigarettes and made your…

Six summers ago, I had an assignment from Midwest Living to scout some state parks in Ohio. The last morning of my trip, it was storming. Torrential quality stuff. I wanted to be done already (I had a one-year-old at home waiting for me), but I had one…