[Sitting with mom, in the wee hours of the morning, guiltily watching the train wreck known as Toddlers & Tiaras.] Belinda (21): You know what’s scary about this? Mom: What? Belinda: These people can vote.
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for Fun
[Looking up requirements for various Boy Scout merit badges online.] Samson (11): Mom, all of these require explaining. Mom: Yea. Samson: Well, I don’t really like explaining.
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[Overhearing the TV in the other room while studying.] Belinda (21): It’s not even 1:00 am. Why do they have psychic commercial on?
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Monica (14): Mom, who’s Eddy Murphy and Freddie Mac?
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Guest post written by Deborah Cook I love to always have a plethora of holiday cookies in our home for whenever we just want some cookies or when we have a guest in our home to offer to them. Maybe it’s just the inner hostess in me to do that. But that also means that [...]
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When we moved to Eagle Mountain, we thought we were going to do the farm thing. Not a full-fledged, up before dawn, milking the cows kind of farm, just a little gentleman’s ranchette. With a couple of horses, a goat or two, maybe a few mini-cows (OK, so maybe a little milking), and some chickens. [...]
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If you are a fellow American, “letting a flat” might sound like gibberish. Or needing replacement tires. But it’s very simple. In British parlance letting is renting and a flat is an apartment. When we lived in England in 1983, we let a flat in a row of townhouses. Compared to our American digs, it [...]
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When I was 19, my dad took a sabbatical form his professorial duties and he and my mother headed to Europe. The final destination was to be a flat in Leeds, England, but before that would be a whirlwind tour of Germany (where they would pick up a VW Jetta (with American specs)), Portugal, Italy, [...]
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I’m totally into interior decoration. But it’s not what you think. In the context of my life, being “into” home decorating it more like wishing I were into it and realizing I’m clueless. I know what I like when I see it, but I have no idea how to recreate it with my own space, [...]
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People say you shouldn’t buy timeshares. I’m not so sure. When I was a tween, my parents bought two. One in Snowbird, Utah — a ski resort packing some of the greatest snow on earth — the other smack dab on the beach in San Diego. All these decades later, our family still uses them. [...]
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I married a geek. Or is it a nerd? I can never remember. One of them is supposed to be cool and the other one not so much. My husband is definitely on the cool end of science genius. My dad also has a scientific PhD. And my brother-in-law. My sister, a master’s degree. Our [...]
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Alana (18): Caleb, get me a spoon. [Caleb (8) rolls his eyes.] Alana: Where did you learn to do that? Caleb: From yooooooou! Alana: Um. No. Caleb: Yeeeeees! I saw you do it. At the dinner table. At the Harmon’s house! [We rented Harmon's house when Caleb was six.]
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Black Friday has come and gone. (We slept in, decorated the house, and went to a movie.) Cyber Monday is history. (I spent a couple of hours using some of my very best online deals.) But if you think the bargains are gone, you’re wrong. They’ve just begun! I’ve gathered some of the very best, [...]
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Alana (18): Mom, is it true that most college papers are eight to ten pages long? Mom: Sometimes. Some of my blog posts are that long. Alana: Yea, but they’re about things you like to write about! Like, “Hey, I hate cooking. Let’s talk about it.”
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We are seriously into themed birthday parties around here. While I only have two kids under 12 now, even the older kids still get into the mix sometimes. We’ve been doing big birthday parties for over 23 years now (not coincidentally, since Jessica’s first birthday). Considering that we had two children before completing graduate school, [...]
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I love Dave Ramsey. He’s a great inspiration for those who’ve made bad financial decisions and are overwhelmed with debt. But his “beans and rice, rice and beans” mantra sounds so boring and unattractive! If you want to have a life that includes an occasional chopped steak (with a side of beans and rice, of [...]
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The past couple of weeks, my sister and I have been sorting through my parents home, preparing it to be sold. We moved to the house in 1968. My parents home was always neat and clean, but they did not throw away things that might be needed or used. 40+ years is a long to for [...]
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[Caleb sneaks up on his sister and spanks her.] Alana (17): Caleb! [Caleb laughs and runs out of arms' reach.] Alana: Caleb, why did you do that? Caleb (7): You’re just a girl who needs a spanking. Alana: Caleb, you don’t spank girls. In fact, if you spank a girl, she will probably slug you. [...]
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Last week I wrote about RSVP etiquette — a sore spot for me. As I responded to one of the comment on that post, I made a connection between my frustration and a common practice in our online world. One of my kids is hosting a spring break party on Saturday (OK, yes, we like [...]
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My head-banging, screaming at the top of my lungs, non compos mentis pet peeve? People who don’t respond to an RSVP. You know, that crazy acronym you see on just about every invitation ever printed since Gutenberg made his name. They all end with the cryptic message: RSVP. Usually followed by a phone number or [...]
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