“We need to dust! And wash the curtains. And can somebody please find the other air mattress?” Our house was in a flurry of activity because we had relatives coming to visit. Not just one [read more]
“You got how many totes?” I asked my best friend Rena, a fifth grade teacher. It was the end of the school year, and while she appreciated the generosity of her students and their families, [read more]
What do you get the mom who seems to want for nothing? I find myself pondering this question every year. My mom doesn’t quite have everything, but she certainly seems to think she does, and [read more]
Walking through the halls of my office building one day, I discovered something magnificent. While wandering down a rarely used hallway, I saw a door with a crack of light coming from underneath. I didn’t [read more]
The room let off a golden, cozy glow that, when combined with its hushed atmosphere, quickly made it my favorite room in the school. The first time I saw the new library, I had visions [read more]
“Wow! Ten dollars!” I was in 8th grade when my allowance received a generous boost from $5 to $10. Sure, it came along with extra responsibilities (vacuuming the stairs, how I loathe thee), but with [read more]
“Another one?” I asked my coworker, Jenny, over the phone. “Yup, another one!” she replied, an uncharacteristic pep in her voice. She’d just told me that for the third time that year, my boss was [read more]
I’ll never forget my dad’s 50th birthday. Not because of the party, but rather because my sister and I have never had a better time poking fun at my dad (an incorrigible prankster, jokester, and [read more]
It was Easter. The doorbell rang. My sister and I looked at each other and rolled our eyes, but we still scrambled off the couch to see who was there. Like every year since we [read more]
I raced down the stairs of my apartment building to eagerly check my mailbox for what seemed like the 10th time that day. A gift from my Secret Santa was due any day, and I [read more]
Swat! Swat! I watched rapturously as my sister clicked around the screen. We had just gotten our first computer, a PC that came with a few floppy discs, including our favorite new game, Swat the [read more]
I’ll never forget the first time I got mail. It wasn’t in my family’s actual mailbox; I was at school, and it was Valentine’s Day. The feeling of happiness that washed over me as I [read more]
Every year on January 1st at 12:00 am, I can be found usually wearing some outlandish dress, bright and bold red lipstick, and covered in confetti. It’s my favorite holiday, but it wasn’t until college [read more]
I smelled the burning coffee before I saw it. My coworker Jana looked up from her desk and asked if anyone else smelled something funny; I took a big whiff, then bolted out of my [read more]
Super Bowl Sunday seems like a holiday to most Americans—there are even efforts to get the day after to be a national holiday. Many of my friends don’t even watch football, and they still love [read more]
Every January, as I sweep up balls of wrapping paper and Christmas cookie crumbs, I ponder how I’ll make a positive change in the coming months. Making New Year’s resolution is a fun and inspiring [read more]
I love my brother Sam, but wow, is he a pain to shop for! One year, I bought him a video game, but he never played it. His girlfriend Kelly later told me, in whispers, [read more]
“Jingle Bells, Batman smells, Robin laid an egg!” I screeched as my sister and I dissolved into a pile of giggles at the lyrics. I’ve never been one to take the holidays too seriously, preferring [read more]
We gathered around my mom, anxiously shifting from foot to foot as she shook a red and green bag filled with slips of paper. On each slip was written a name—the name of the person [read more]
“Please tell me! Pleeeease!” my niece begged over the phone. We were two weeks away from Christmas, and she was dying to know who drew her name for our family’s big Secret Santa game. “The [read more]
“Rockin’ around/the Christmas tree,” crooned Brenda Lee. I was making circles in the mall parking lot, and this was the third or fourth rendition of my favorite holiday song I’d heard in the time it [read more]
“They’re here! They’re here!” my kids squealed, running between the just knocked-upon front door and the kitchen, where I was elbow-deep in sugar cookie dough. My sister was slated to arrive for a Christmas visit [read more]
When my daughter told me she wanted “the new Barbie” for Christmas, I should have known there was more to the story than that. I arrived at my local big box retail emporium and asked [read more]
I was in college the first time I was invited to a Kwanzaa celebration. Some girls in my dorm were hosting a Kwanzaa feast in the common room and asked if I wanted to come. [read more]