Winter sucks the joy from my soul, the marrow from my bones, the glimmer from my eyes.Now that we've been graced with a glimpse of spring, a quiet promise of melting snow and gleaming sunshine, I find myself breathing in a bit of hope I didn't even realize I had lost. It happens every year: spring re-emerges and I come back to life a little. I live in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, where we are lucky enough to experience some of Canada's mildest winter blasts, but I am still such a pansy about the cold. I hate the grey... More »

How often do you open up your home and have people over for dinner?With my return to work this fall came a determination to keep my marriage and my kids at the top of my priority list, and, as such, I have not had the time I would like to devote to friendships and sharing life with others. This has been hard for me because I am a social person, but I really didn't want to have too much on the ol' proverbial plate this fall. Now that I have a better idea of what the work-life balance is looking... More »

After three excruciatingly long weeks, my husband is back from his business trip to South America! It is beyond lovely to have him home again, and while he was away I truly realized all the things he does, both tangible and emotional, to keep our house running, and that it all kind of fell apart when he left.My pride was a little bruised, since I initially thought, "I am often on my own with the kids anyways, while he works all those long hours...how rough could it be?!" but as you know, pride goeth before a fall and I had... More »

I'm pretty sure my three year-old is trying to kill me.I know she looks angelic, but it's a disguise. Beneath that cherubic gaze of adoration lies a calculated plan to dissolve my sanity, and her weapon of choice is night terrors. Do you know much about night terrors? They are not nightmares or bad dreams, but happen when there's a disruption between the stages of sleep as a child moves through them. They are common, and are usually only a phase. My eldest daughter had them regularly for about three months when she was three years old, but hers were... More »

How much money do you spend on birthday presents for your kids' friends? Part of me bristles each time we make the trek to a big box store to find a decent gift for under $15 (that's my usual budget), knowing that it will probably only get played with for a few minutes and eventually end up rotting in a landfill somewhere. Of course, we want to make the birthday girl/boy feel special and loved, and I really enjoy giving gifts; I just kind of hate the consumerism machine we can all get caught up in and I wonder how it... More »

We are just over 1/3 of the way through my husband's South American business trip. (One week down, two more to go.) I'll admit it, I didn't think it would be too hard with him gone. He often works long hours on the orchard and I am used to toting around all three kids on my own. But it has been really, really, REALLY tough not having him here.The day after he left we got hit with head lice (so gross and SO time-consuming and overwhelming to deal with), and now Karenna has a bad cold and high fever, along... More »

We are going to Las Vegas this spring! Wahoo! Strippers and slots, baby! (Or, maybe some shopping and shows instead. That's a little more up my alley.)I have never been there before and I am feeling totally overwhelmed about how to go about booking this trip. I want to get a smokin' good deal, stay in an amazing hotel, get a package that offers discounted rates on attractions, and with a flight included. Where should I look? Expedia? Somewhere else? I haven't ever booked a trip like this online before and need some help. Anyone want to be my virtual... More »

Last night I watched five episodes of one the funniest new shows out there, "Up All Night." Have you seen it? I was honestly laughing out loud, all by myself, and I nearly choked on the wad of wine-gums I was working on. Christina Applegate and Will Arnett and Maya Rudolph are comic GOLD together. Love everything about this show!What about you? How are you whiling away these cold, winter evenings? Any new shows you've grown attached to that I should know about? ... More »

In a couple days my husband leaves for a business trip to Chile, the lucky guy. For three weeks he'll be traveling South America learning all about the new agricultural innovations there, meandering through 30 degree days, dining at fine restaurants and mingling with the people. I am fully in support of him going on this trip, but it's going to be a looooong three weeks with him gone in the dead of winter, with me left alone with our three ill-behaved children. I have already resigned myself to the fact that we are basically going to live off of... More »

My husband and I have BIG plans for New Year's Eve tonight.1. A bottle of bubbly.2. A kiss at 9 pm.3. Happy New Year! Let's go to bed!We all got hit hard with the flu bug this week and are still feeling somewhat wretched as we slowly recover and regain our strength,Do you have truly exciting plans for tonight? A special party? A rousing shin-dig with a new dress to wear?However you celebrate, I hope you are with those you love and that we can all look ahead to 2012 with anticipation.Happy New Year!... More »