Insatiable curiosity and innumerable interests. Tendency to overshare. Never-ending love for telling a damn good story, editorial or brand. Let's tell some stories together.
Romancing the Revival
Sparks flew, doorknobs dropped, and paper peeled, but this writer couldn’t help falling in love with this old house.
Woman Starts Pad Drive After Alleged Sexist Harassment
At dawn on April 24, Jenny Thompson Halverson, the first female mayor of West St. Paul, Minnesota, was getting ready to go for a run. Known for her early-morning neighborhood jaunts, her campaign slogan was “Run Jenny Run." But this particular morning would get off to a violating start. And kicked off a revolution in her local political sphere.
The IUD is back (and better)
Once seen as a fringy alternative to The Pill, today’s intrauterine devices — five types in all! — are winning the hearts of moms (and non-moms) alike
Katie Dohman lives in West St. Paul with her three kids, two dogs and one husband. She loves them a lot, which is good, because she can’t remember the last time she slept a whole night through. (Her columnist photo is by Cadence & Eli Photography.)
In 1960, a prescription drug designed to suppress ovulation and inhibit conception — widely known...
Gun Shy - Minnesota Monthly - November 2013 - Minneapolis, St. Paul, Minnesota
Dad says “sunfish,” daughter says “sunglasses”—how an outdoorsman and a style editor teach each other about the finer things in life.
Parenting (and protesting) during a pandemic
I had been doom-scrolling yet again on Twitter, wherein I saw people arguing over who had it worse — parents or non-parents — during the pandemic. Here’s what I think: You can’t build collective solidarity against the systemic things crushing all of us if we fight amongst ourselves.
My self-employed life: Why Minnesotans like me choose freelancing ...
As a freelancer, I'm working harder than ever. As a parent, I can't imagine my life any other way.
9 Lessons I Want My Kids to Learn from Prince
Prince's singular vision left us with a lot of memories, and a lot of lessons on creativity.
Waiting For Babycakes
When her pregnancy takes an unexpected turn, a mom-to-be learns her first lessons in parenthood.
Why I insist on adopting rescue dogs - StarTribune.com
I can't resist Sarah McLachlan's siren call.
I bought a house one block from my parents. It's the smartest thing I ...
It was the right house at the right time.
Empathy is a superpower
Whew. Well. So here we are. Seemingly overnight, everything’s changed. Like many working families, we’re now mostly sequestered at home, fending off cabin fever, and trying to work from home — something I’ve done for a long time, but never like this — and also supporting our children’s heroic teachers by trying to corral our three-ring circuses in front of iPads and worksheets.
I’m explaining why we can no longer go to the playground or hug our grandparents. (“Viiiiii-rus” or “Ger-rrrms” my c...
Never, ever enough time
Like Jessie Spano of Saved by the Bell memorably sobbed: “There’s never any time!”
There isn’t. I’m constantly fighting the clock. Get kids up, fed, dressed, packed for the day, out the door so I can work, so I can pick them up on time, dinner, nighttime routine forevermore, amen.
They don’t even do any scheduled activities yet! (Another thing I feel I’ve failed on, FYI.)
I’m not a fan of this rinse-repeat cycle in any way whatsoever, and yet any time I’ve tried to change it, I’ve just had to...
Mrs. Quimby, I salute you
I had a moment of realization that I was truly growing up while watching Friday Night Lights (for the first time) a few years back. Coach Twinkle-Eyes was my pick, not the long-haired hunk Tim Riggins.
Look, the rebel with a heart of gold who also happens to be smolderingly handsome — I really get it. But I was so far from scoring a date with that kind of guy in high school that I couldn’t even imagine it.
Nah, if I had to pick a high school character on the show, it would have been sweet Mat...
The nausea is real
You don’t realize how many TV shows and movies feature someone throwing up until you have a pregnancy-induced hair-trigger gag reflex. If I had to hazard a guess, I would say a solid 86 percent of them.
I’m really sorry if you’re reading this and in this position — and just the mention of it sent you running for the bathroom. Really sorry. You may want to stop reading here.
I remember once walking, green-faced, into my boss’s office, and being barely even able to open my mouth to say I needed...
Bourbon in the bathtub
Just like there’s no crying in baseball, is there no crying in motherhood?
I had retreated to the bathroom, as bidden by my husband, after I threw an adult-size temper tantrum about … everything. I ran the bath extra hot, poured in coconut oil Epsom salts and swished it with my hand. I picked out some music on my phone.
I tried my breathing GIF. Nope. Still despairing. Still angry. And still sort of wanting to be righteous and indignant about it anyway, damn it!
My rocks glass — bourbon, simp...