Inspired by my daily writing challenge around "a funny incident." My mom didn’t iron. And I have absolutely followed in her footsteps. As children, we went shopping. A lot. In fact, it was likely my mom’s biggest hobby – happily taking a mini road trip the 45-60 minutes to get to a mall and browsing … Continue reading Mini-Slice: Kitchen Hockey
Family
Mini-Slice: My 14-Year-Old Little Girl
My daughter, Emaline, is fourteen years and 5 months old today. She is a smart, healthy, 9th grader. Honestly, high school has been a breeze as compared with the transition to middle school. Augmented by the ongoing pandemic and the desperate desire to feel alive and push boundaries, she and her friends made some unwise … Continue reading Mini-Slice: My 14-Year-Old Little Girl
Mini-Slice: Friends-giving
Inspired by my 20-minute writing exercise around a "memorable holiday." Friends-giving. This is a term that has been adopted by the masses but especially those celebrating a harvest holiday either in a new place or seeking ways to build their own traditions, with a chosen family. When we first relocated to Toronto, Ontario, we learned … Continue reading Mini-Slice: Friends-giving
Bearing Witness
Inspired by a writing challenge around the topic of: “a spiritual or religious experience” and also aligned to the theme of the Moth Radio Hour episode from 4/25/23, entitled “Bearing Witness.” My aunt Jill was a fascinating woman. My mom’s only sister, she abandoned her Wisconsin homeland for the Arizona desert, so I didn’t really … Continue reading Bearing Witness
20 Minutes: My Childhood Room
#1, Eisenhower Street: The first thing I recall about my bedroom is the wallpaper. It’s a vintage, nursery print with sepia brown tones that remind you of those old time photographs you can pay to get taken in tourist traps like Wisconsin Dells or Niagara Falls. The pattern features a rocking horse, a teddy bear, … Continue reading 20 Minutes: My Childhood Room
Christmas in the City
In August, 2016 we moved our family from central Wisconsin to Toronto, Ontario. The preparations for the move were stressful on our marriage and our family. We were leaving a community we had built over the last 10+ years: our first house, the birth of our first child (and 2nd, and 3rd), our church and … Continue reading Christmas in the City
Traditions
I love the holiday season. And part of what I love are the many traditions our family has shared and passed on. And most of traditions included my grandmother, Gigi. From early on, my family would spend the weekend before Christmas at a hotel in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, where my sister and I performed in The … Continue reading Traditions
My Little Canadian
It’s the early morning hours on the Saturday following the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, and we’re back in Wisconsin at my in-laws after a chaotic few days. I’m nursing a bit of a hangover and feeling thankful I passed out while putting our 3 kids to bed, instead of continuing in the revelry with my husband, … Continue reading My Little Canadian
Concerts from the Van
I had a bit of a love|hate relationship with my ballet school. My competitive nature and eagerness to please could leave me feeling either on cloud 9 – like the day I was the first in my age group to be tapped for the esteemed upgrade to pointe shoes… or in the gutter, like the … Continue reading Concerts from the Van
Kid Detective
I have a podcast problem. I often spend hours each week with my headphones on, tuning out the world, immersed in a podcast. And, if I’m honest, Crime Junkie was my gateway drug. At a time when I was drowning in the non-stop backlog of dishes and laundry and meal prep and cleaning that tends … Continue reading Kid Detective
The [Unofficial] Moth Blog 