Laura3 days ago3 minSearching for StoriesI’m always searching for stories. I love to wander through the antique store or vintage shop and imagine all the lives these objects have...
LauraApr 291 minForce of LoveMy children love me with a violent force. Their energizer bunny energy knocks me over, their exuberance bruises. I lean over, they pounce...
LauraApr 222 minUnsolved Mysteries: The Case of the Missing Puzzle PieceRaleigh, NC: The puzzle was in the three-year-old’s possession for less than 48 hours when the piece went missing. After the initial...
LauraMar 231 minThe Antique StoreI walked into an antique store on Friday, spent an hour sorting through the remnants of other people's lives, the pieces someone else...
LauraMar 133 minThe World Keeps TurningThe weather was perfect; an early-spring stretch of seventy degree days with blue skies overhead, the puffy cotton ball clouds in the sky...
LauraFeb 182 minWhat I'm Really SayingDear children— When I put down my book to tuck you in for the seventh time, I’m really saying: I love you. When you want the last bag of...
LauraFeb 13 minThe Artist's WayI made it to page 18 before I decided there was no way the magic this book promised could work for me. I’d heard person after person rave...
LauraJan 213 minLaura, not Lauren.The year I was born, my name landed at 20 on the girls “Top Baby Names” list. For the decade overall, it came in at 23. It’s no surprise...
LauraJan 52 min2022: The Year of SmallI love choosing a word of the year; it helps me be intentional about a focus for the year and is a simple way to keep myself on track. I...
LauraDec 22, 20213 minI Love: Christmas EditionI love real Christmas trees–the fresh, piney scent, walking through rows of them, lined up at the Christmas tree farm, waiting to be...
LauraOct 27, 20213 minAlone, In the WoodsIn honor of Halloween, something a little different on the blog today. Read on for a spooky story... if you dare! A flash of light blinks...
LauraAug 23, 20211 minSummer 2021 in PhotosThe bookbags are packed. The first day of school chalkboards are ready. The alarms are set. Tomorrow morning, it's back to school. But...
LauraJul 23, 20214 minSunflowers + SunrisesI settle into my hot pink desk chair, a mug of hot coffee in my hands, and gaze out the window. Below me, tracing the sidewalk in front...
LauraJun 25, 20212 minPandemic Wind-Down: Game InstructionsObsessively track vaccine information. Sign up for all “leftover dose” opportunities to get vaccinated as soon as possible. Abandon...
LauraMay 25, 20213 minA Space to Call My OwnWe are limping to the end of this crazy school year, where I have done all the things from our kitchen: supervised virtual first grade,...
LauraMar 14, 20214 minSocial Distancing: One YearMost of the last year has faded into an indistinguishable blur—day after day, we do the same things. One virtual school day blends into...
LauraFeb 27, 20215 minAll She CanShe hears footsteps above and pauses, trying to tell which of her children are awake. Throwing the blanket off her lap and pushing her...
LauraFeb 25, 20212 minBook Review: The Girl from BerlinThe Girl from Berlin is a World War II perspective you don’t come across often in historical fiction. The book is told in popular style...
LauraFeb 19, 20212 minIt All Started in a Parking Lot“Do you have a boyfriend?” he asked. “No,” she answered. The football game ended and as the parking lot emptied, they danced. He knelt...
LauraFeb 4, 20214 minThe Top Ten Parking Lots You’ll Find Me in During a PandemicI don’t leave the house much these days. And when I do, it seems like I always find myself sitting in one parking lot or another. So if...