As readers may recall, I have dealt with chronic back pain for many years. (Read more about it here).

My mom, known as Nonie, is coming to visit the kids next week for Spring Break, and it's a good excuse as any to get the house shipshape.

I spent the weekend in a frenzy of spring cleaning. The warm air awakened the need to sweep away winter's dust and air out the house. So it was a hard slog through a lot of trash and grime.

No matter how many times I hear them, I just can't get used to the screams that come from my children's bedrooms at night.

My son and I were getting him ready for bed the other night when he picked a booger out of his nose and handed it to me. Apparently, he thinks one of my job titles is Chief Booger-Holder.

I hope nobody ever steals my purse. For one thing, they wouldn't get any money, because apart from some loose change covered with lint at the bottom of the bag, there's no cash in it anyways.

I'm two generations off the farm and have a fairly green thumb. That's why one of my family's favorite places in Fort Wayne is the Foellinger-Freiman Botanical Conservatory.

I fear I am a bad mother. I have been slack in the personal hygiene department. Not me — I shower regularly and occasionally brush my hair. It's the children.

It's rare that I have a lot of one-on-one time with my daughter.