In my last column I mentioned an advice book I wanted to write for my older son, Davis, titled, “Quantity Over Quality: The College Years.”  It’s a guide to navigating your years in higher education, featuring practical advice about dating, partying...

It’s been said that God gives her toughest battles to her strongest soldiers. Parents sending their kids off to college are training in boot camp, prepping to march on the front lines of an emotional combat zone. We need the strength of a full platoon...

I have a lot of random ideas swimming around in my head. They’re doing laps, jumping off the high dive and frankly just taking up space. It’s time to purge my flooded brain.   • Charcuterie boards can be so impressive, elaborate and inviting....

There are three judgments I will make with conviction and confidence that I am right, and you won’t ever be able to change my mind: 1. Listening to music selected by today’s teenagers makes me feel like I’m being drugged for surgery. 2. Nothing...

Is it difficult to concentrate on reading this right now because of the distracting noise across the St. Louis area? It’s a constant buzz with crescendos and rhythms in unison that get so loud you lose focus on your task at hand. Oy with the freakin’...

By press time, my oldest child will officially be a high school graduate. Also by press time, I will be swimming in deep waves of emotion, texting and calling all of the other parents who are stranded at sea with me. What do we do now? How did this happen...

When I cook dinner for my family, I tend to announce what each dish is. There’s really no need because it’s usually pretty obvious with foods like chicken that look like chicken, broccoli that looks like broccoli, and noodles that look like noodles....

Recently I read an article about home organization. The expert suggested vacuuming in natural light to really be able to see dirt and debris, so you won’t have to go back and do touch ups. Until that moment, I had no idea going back and doing touch...

My family and I just experienced a bummer of a milestone: my dad’s 10-year yahrzeit. Ugh.  After a stroke and some cardiac issues, my dad, Ron Fenster,  lived a handicapped life for many years but managed to keep his sense of humor. Frankly, I never...

Cute story — a few months ago we were on a family trip, driving from Flagstaff, Ariz., to the Grand Canyon when the following scene played out between my teenage sons. AAANNNDDD ACTION! Leo – Will there be signs saying we are at the Grand Canyon? Davis...

Kids these days. The older mine get the less I understand what they’re saying. I hear the words and I know they are words, but when strung together and spoken, they just don’t make sense.  In the past, I’ve helped you de-code what in tarnation...

(Starting this week, you now listen to Amy's column on YouTube or click the link above) Journaling is all the rage. That’s why I’m starting a Rage Journal. It’ll be healthy to get the anger out.  Life always needs new coping strategies, so when...