Becky
I am a Dayton native who vowed to pack up and leave for bigger sights but never made it further than Centerville. I've been married to a fellow Daytonian for five years, and we currently play house in the Englewood area. I have two bonus kiddos - a daughter (13) and a son (11) - and one daughter (3). When we aren't playing soccer or hockey, our family enjoys checking out our Metroparks and visiting local farms that host family events. To detox from life's stressors, I love running, eating mass quantities of chocolate, and praying -- sometimes all at the same time.
My First Job… As a Mom
After 22 years in the workforce, sometimes working two or three jobs at a time, I quit collecting a paycheck cold turkey and took up full-time humanitarian work - as a mom.
Long after I...
Volunteer Opportunities to do with Kids
January can be one of the most depressing months for anyone - maybe even more so for parents. The whirlwind of holiday sweets turns into grumpy sugar withdrawals. Excited faces on Christmas Day transform...
It’s a Griswold Kind of Christmas
Anyone who has seen National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation knows that Clark Griswold spends the entire holiday season valiantly trying to make Christmas a magical holiday for his family, even while his house literally falls...
I Now Pronounce You… Polar Opposites
Ask anyone, and they’ve probably heard the story of Beauty and the Beast. The cheerful and kind Belle finds love with the unlikely Beast, her total opposite. She sways him to see things her...
The One With an Apology
With the power to say whatever we want, whenever we want, all forms of media show growing toxicity and judgment in the way we seem to interact with people who are different than us....
Pick Up a Book for National Read a Book Day
In our house, we read. A lot. If you walk through our front door, you will see books casually laying - well- everywhere. We read for fun; we read for information; and we read...
The Truth About Kids and Dogs
Long before meeting my husband, I inherited one of my best friends: Snicker. She would meet me at the door every afternoon with whole body wiggles and howls of pure joy.
She was my training...
Training With My Shadow
Recently, I decided to sign up for a 5K with the goal of beating a previous PR. I got creative with hill work training and ran up and down our quiet street while my...
The Do’s and Don’ts of Finding Your Unicorn Swimsuit
Swimsuit season is officially here, and we ladies are having feelings about it one way or another.
Whether you’re displaying the fruits of hard work or trying not to quibble over a jiggly bit...
Once I Was 40 Years Old
It’s no secret that turning 40 comes with a big ole bag of expectations about what your life should look like - who you should “be.” My younger self had specific notions about where...
The Gem City Staycation
Staycations have, up until now, been an unexplored option for our family. Our rationale has been that unfinished projects and to-do lists will haunt us if we try to vacation at home. And, as...
New Year, No Diet
Each New Year brings two camps of people: to resolution or not to resolution.
The resolvers are so hopeful, so determined, mostly so naive. Even while the non-resolvers are standing, toe to the line of...
Thanks to My Favorite Veteran
If you cross paths with my 94-year-old grandfather on one of his 10-mile bike rides, you wouldn’t know that he once trekked the mountains of Italy. Or that he carried supplies up those mountains...
Reformed Beauty Junkie Goes DIY (And You Can Too!)
I’m not sure when it started, but even as a pre-teen, I was obsessed with health and beauty paraphernalia. My mom would probably blame Bath & Body Works as the gateway to all of...