Has the sneezing season started for you? You know the one. The Adirondack season that follows blackfly, mushroom and slug seasons. With the jolt of that first sneeze, I know autumn is on its way. For any fellow allergy sufferers, please don’t blame your symptoms on the goldenrods. Those ...

I made a pact that I wouldn’t save stuff “only for good.” I mentioned it to my kids and both shook their heads. They told me that no one said that. I looked confused. Did I misconstrue what my grandmother had told me? There were so many items off-limits when visiting my grandmother’s ...

A friend asked why we don’t teach children to say “yes, please” and “no, thank you.” I didn’t know what she meant. Don’t we try to be good parents and teach our kids manners? She waved her hand and explained that she was referring to consistently using the words please and thank ...

I recently went hiking with friends, and while they continued to the summit, I stayed on the false top to pick blueberries. We all have our own goals. While I maneuvered around the fragile alpine growth, I could hear a large group of hikers walking along the tree line. I nestled among the ...

I was recently speaking to a friend whose middle child was going to get engaged over the weekend. She will receive a proposal, but whether she accepts could be the topic of another discussion. There were numerous people around the table, each sharing their engagement moments. Growing up, I ...

Both of the children called me bro, and I thought my head was going to explode. They have tossed out various non-Mom names in my direction over the years. Most of the time, those names were anger-related and not able to be addressed in a family column. Let your imagination go wild. I ...