For as long as I can remember, reading has been my salvation. In fact, my earliest memory is that of my then eighteen month self sitting in a play pen on a hot summer’s day while looking at the Golden Book “The Poky Little Puppy.” For a shy girl who moved a lot growing up, […]
10 Books You Should Read This Spring Because I Said So
It’s no secret that my favorite pastime in the spring is to lay around with my nose in a book. There’s something about the feel of the warm sun and the sounds of birds chirping after the longest winter EVER as I escape to imaginary places with characters that stay with me long after I […]
Forgiving Your Spouse Means Admitting You’ve Done Stupid Things, Too
Show of hands: Who has a spouse who has committed an Act of Stupid so incredible that you want to scream and yell like a stark raving lunatic? Show of hands: Who has BEEN the spouse to commit the Act of Stupid? I can raise my hand to both. Let’s face it: in the day […]
I Totally Win At Thrift Shopping (and You Can, Too, With These Five Tips)
When Hubby and I first started out, we had nary a pot in which to piddle. Zip. Zero. Zilch. No moolah boolah whatsoever. In fact, in the now outdated VHS of our wedding ceremony, Hubby can be seen giggling, actually giggling, through the “for richer or poorer” section of our vows. The man had to […]
Since Moms Have To Do Everything Anyway, I’m Writing My Eulogy, Too
When you die, what will people say about you? What will the people around you choose to fit into a teeny tiny column in the paper in the midst of their angst over your untimely demise? Will your eulogy be the standard issue “He was born, he was an engineer, he was a Knight of […]
KOTFL Exclusive: Read A Never Before Seen “Sweet Valley High” Chapter!
No, that headline is NOT clickbait, I promise. You will recall that I recently had the mind blowing experience of meeting Sweet Valley High ghost writer and prolific author Eileen Goudge in the most unlikely of ways. Read about that HERE. And, seriously, grab the tissues: the story is a doozy. Eileen is a New […]
I Met My Writing Hero Thirty Years After We Met At Sweet Valley High
When I was ten, my family moved to the Lone Star State. For a Yankee girl like myself, the transition was anything but smooth. My clothes were wrong, my accent sounded foreign to the kids at school and I missed my friends terribly. Throw in glasses, braces and a wicked case of acne and, well, […]
If You Ask Me What I Do All Day, I Will Junk Punch You
When the Fruit Loops were small, I was a stay at home mom. Mostly. By “mostly”, I mean that while yes, I started my blog and worked part time as a nurse, for the most part, my main job was keeping the Fruit Loops from completely spilling out of the box. And, it continued that […]
The Day A Car Accident Made Me Realize I Was A Douchebag
You know how sometimes Life tries to quietly teach you a lesson and you ignore it? And then Life tries a little louder to teach you that lesson and you swat it away like an annoying fly? And THEN Life yells REALLY REALLY loudly and gets all up in your business and you get all […]
My Father Died And My Kids Had Questions I Wasn’t Prepared To Answer
It is often said that to really experience life, you should see it through the eyes of a child. Never is that more true than when there is a death in the family. On October 4, 2012, my father passed away expectedly unexpectedly. He had been battling esophageal cancer for 9 months and while doing […]
The Boston Marathon Bombing Does Not Make Me Afraid To Run
Five years ago today, two terrorists attacked the runners and spectators of the the Boston Marathon. On that day, I was in an airport in Nashville, preparing to return home from a long weekend. As my friend and I proceeded through airport security, we could tell tensions were heightened and we didn’t know why. It […]
It’s Taken Me Twelve Years To Decide Running Doesn’t Suck
Let’s get something straight: until twelve years ago, I only ran when chased. While in high school, I participated in sports and I use that term loosely because by “sports,” I mean Color Guard and spring musicals. In college, exercise came in the form of brisk walks around my campus to work off beer calories […]
My Husband Is Having An Affair and It’s Fine With Me
She’s sleek. She’s sexy. She purrs. When she’s around, he’s got his eyes on her curves and he just can’t help but touch her parts. She takes him places he’s always dreamed about and my husband is just plain smitten. I’m talking, of course, about our, er, HIS, 1966 Mustang convertible. The Pony is his […]
The Phrase I Used To Hate To Hear From Other Mothers
When I was a new mom in 2003, I had the luxury of being able to stay home full time with my son when he arrived. Before he came, I envisioned long afternoons of cuddling and bonding, making gourmet meals for my husband and catching up on all of the books on my night stand […]
Connecticut Has A Free Submarine Museum and Your Kids Will Love It
Traveling is my FAVORITE. And, there’s I love more than sharing my experiences from the road with pretty much anyone who will listen. Which brings me to my new series, Keeper of The Fruit Loops Approved! It’s official AF, I tell you. When I find a restaurant, museum or location that I love, I’m going […]
My Smart Phone Makes Me Feel Like I Can Rule The World
I am fairly certain I could rule the world with my iPhone. From scheduling play dates, to managing Hubby’s schedule, to counting calories, to connecting with my friends, my iPhone is my right hand man. From my kitchen, I can arrange food delivery for a bereaved friend, tweet to Ellen DeGeneres (Hey Ellen, call me, m’kay?), […]
I Had The Birds And The Bees Talk With My Son And It Was Awkward AF
As a parent, there are a few moments that stop you in your tracks and make you want to run screaming from the room: the first time you realize your toddler can reach the top of the stairs in under three seconds, the first time you hear a swear word out of one of your […]
We May Have Kids But Our Marriage Was Here First
Scene: the dinner table, a few years ago. Fruit Loop #2: “How do you KNOW that you should marry a person?” Fruit Loop #1: “When you meet the right person, a spark happens. Then you have to nurture the spark so it becomes a flame and then eventually a bonfire across your marriage. And wick size […]