How I became dessert curious (and I’m not mad about it) — Cutting alcohol out of my life was surprisingly easy. It started with a 30-day Dry June challenge, followed by a public declaration of identifying as sober curious. In this article on VeryWellMind, Sara Sheppard says being sober curious is the option to choose, question, or change your drinking habits for…

A Guide to Navigating Life 2.0 — “I feel like I’m going to puke.” My head whipped around to peep the third row of our boat-sized Yukon XL. We had purchased this vehicle only days before to accommodate our family of six, specifically for this long weekend road trip. I could only see the Oldest Child (OC)…

Three ways you can transform red flags. — “I’ve done it again.” I thought to myself. I let my projections of the future wash away the reality of today. I’ve fallen in love, and maybe — just maybe — I’ve been ignoring the red flags again. It’s easier to do than you think, especially for a storyteller like…

Here’s What Happened When The Mountains Called Me … Again — “We’ve got what you’d call a poop pyramid situation,” my loving boyfriend thoughtfully explained the engineering feat of the pyramid as I tuned out and shuddered in disgust. Despite literally visualizing the happy-faced poop emoji, I somehow couldn’t reconcile that this was a laughable situation on our first camping trip…

Reparenting and recovering from perfectionism. — You could die. She whispered in my ear. My breath caught in my throat. My thoughts raced. You’ll be going faster than ever while navigating winding turns. Plus, you’ll have to beware of cars behind you. They might hit you or come so close to you when passing that you…

I had a reverse Grinch experience. — “Jesus is the reason for the season,” my Mom always said. Unlike Forest Gump’s mama, this wasn’t a nugget of wisdom for me to ponder for the rest of my life. No, this was my mother’s response when I asked her why my brothers could open presents on my birthday…

5 Steps to prep for the Big D conversation. — “For an overachiever like myself, letting go of that final piece was the hardest. But even as I uttered the words, “I’d rather be alone and happy than in a house full of people and feel lonely,” I knew there’d be lonely days ahead. I just prayed that self love…

How I learned to ride the waves of each season. — I stopped buying soft fruits a year ago. As I type that, it feels like I’m stating some sort of sobriety milestone. That’s certainly not the case. It’s more of a recognition that when I moved out on my own for the very first time in my life last September…

How I realized my relationship with food was f’d up. — Sometimes I fantasize about peanut butter. There, I finally got that off my chest. I’ve been too ashamed to talk about my bizarre food cravings — like my longing for peanut butter — until now. I’m coming forward with this story because I’m determined to establish a healthy relationship with…