Have you ever moved into a house to find the previous owner left everything they didn’t want? — In 2005, my husband and I bought a house in Upstate, New York from a guy named Dan. Dan was a widower who lost his wife Shirley to breast cancer. Rumor has it, Shirley was granted the house in a nasty divorce from her first husband. Newly divorced, she met…

Important questions to ask your boomeranger before they move back into the nest. — Children grow up and leave the nest. Sometimes failing or returning for whatever reason, and then leave again. And we hope they find their way. But often, they can’t. Or won’t. Sometimes, when adult children request to return home, it isn’t an easy “yes.” Sometimes, there are circumstances or situations…

It made my blood run cold. — Parenting is tough. Making sure my kids were safe as they grew up was one of the most important things to me as a mom. Recently, my son (I’ll call him John) who is now 25 told me something that made my blood run cold and shook the foundational belief…

Sometimes great things happen just as you are about to give up. — Every day comes with a choice. Every day we open our eyes comes with a new chance. A new choice. Is today going to be productive or will I make excuses or let other things get in the way of my goals? Natalie Goldberg explains distraction perfectly in her book, Writing Down the Bones that when…

WARNING: Contains sexually explicit language. — “Mom, mom. Mom, I need help. I did something really stupid.” He was shaking and pacing around my bed in a terrible panic. I glanced at my phone. It was 2:32 a.m. It was my 15-year-old. He is the last of six boys, the child with whom I’ve had more…

Randall, Leo & Missy Bennett — I believe every farm needs a cat. I’m not big on having hundreds of them, three is my limit. Living in the country, you have no idea how many folks just up and drop their litters off at the end of the driveway thinking “Hey, there’s a bunch of barns…

Sometimes the value is what I learn during my research. — Have you ever seen something sitting on the curb ready for garbage pickup and thought, “Hey, I could use that?” It’s shocking what some people throw out. But none so much as people cleaning out their parent’s homes, thinking everything their parents accumulated was junk. So sad. Boxes of antiques…

If you like them, you should read this. — Picked some fresh sprouts and thought of a PSA I could share about these delicious veggies that you may not know. I made roasted Brussel sprouts yesterday and as I was cutting them in half, I spotted a hole. A little blackened area deep inside of the sprout.