The notices had been coming home in my son’s folder for weeks. His school was having its first-ever Spelling Bee and the entire fourth grade — the top dogs at his elementary school — would participate. In preparation, word lists were sent home. E-mails were sent out. Flyers were distributed. My son’s teacher even showed Akeelah and the Bee one […]

I’m riding in a car beside my husband in peaceful, contented silence when suddenly, without any sort of warning, he emits an ear-splitting noise that resembles the panicked sound a bull elephant might make when surrounded by a tribe of hungry lions. In that moment, I instinctively duck as every muscle in my body tenses and my heart threatens to leap out […]

I happen to be married to a Manly Man, which I’m coming to appreciate more and more now that the Manly Man is slowly becoming extinct in our society. The Manly Man, once revered in westerns and pioneer sagas, now is more likely to be connected to inane TV sitcoms featuring beer-drinking rednecks. These days, […]

  My family has been on the road a LOT this year– When my husband lost his job, I decided there was no time like the present to pursue more travel writing jobs — It’s the direction I’ve always wanted go with my professional writing. Consequently, we’ve found ourselves this year on beaches and prairies, […]

Back in 2012, I covered the Presidential election for CafeMom and YouTube. It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience — I traveled the country interviewing moms and reporting on issues that mattered most to them in the election. I moderated forums between the Republican presidential candidates and rooms full of mothers. I reported for Headline News […]