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Rodents Ravaged My Toffee: A Christmas Candy Crime

Rodents Ravaged My Toffee: A Christmas Candy Crime

A doctor’s homemade English toffee gets ravaged by a squirrel on her porch. What follows: frantic googling about rabies, consulting multiple physician specialists, and the discovery that chocolate is toxic to squirrels. A funny, relatable tale about when medical training meets real-life kitchen disasters.

Dial 911 for Ducklings

Dial 911 for Ducklings

So I called 911 yesterday. I can count on one hand the number of times I have dialed 911, and every time was a real emergency, including things like, oh, a carbon monoxide leak in the house or my husband collapsing unconscious. This time, however, 

Little Kitty, Big Courage: A Cat vs. Coyotes Story

Little Kitty, Big Courage: A Cat vs. Coyotes Story

I thought my cat was a goner.  I was out early one very cold winter morning a couple weeks ago, walking the dog… and the cat.  Yes, the cat walks with us sometimes. She’s this tiny skinny fluffy former stray. When we got her the 

Pumpkin Splatter, Pumpkin Spice

Pumpkin Splatter, Pumpkin Spice

A tale of smashed pumpkins transforms into a heartfelt reflection on resilience, gratitude, and the sometimes messy—but deeply human—journey of turning life’s disasters into something meaningful… even if it’s not perfect pie.

Día de los Muertos: Flowers, Food, and Fiestas

Día de los Muertos: Flowers, Food, and Fiestas

My favorite description of Día de los Muertos is “like a joyful family reunion where some family members happen to have already passed on to Heaven”. In English it’s Day of the Dead, and it’s one of many examples of the blending of Mesoamerican (Aztec/Mayan) 

We could have died… But we didn’t so I’ll tell you all about it

We could have died… But we didn’t so I’ll tell you all about it

A couple of Tuesdays ago, I was standing at my standing desk like I always do nowadays on a workweek day, when I heard a shrill intermittent beeping from somewhere in the house. It was like every 5 seconds, a beep, not a full-on fire 

Itsy Bitsy Spiders

Itsy Bitsy Spiders

It was after 2 a.m. night before last, when Hubby’s and my phones started dinging. Imagine our joy upon seeing this missive from our 12-year-old daughter: You may ask, why the heck was our daughter awake at 2 a.m.? Right. Let’s address that one first: 

A Mom Memory

A Mom Memory

Here it is the end of May, and I’m again scrambling to get a post up. So I went back in time to see what I was up to 10 years ago. That’s when the kids were 3 and 4 years old, and I was 

Lost, Found, and Remembered

Lost, Found, and Remembered

The afternoon of February 3rd, 2017, my cousin John Vincent Sciaba went for a winter hike on his own land, an eleven-acre expanse of dense Maine forest. He told his longtime girlfriend and soulmate Jen that he needed to clear his head. He packed a 

I Was a Mean, Nasty Person… On Call

I Was a Mean, Nasty Person… On Call

It’s been a crazy time, people, absolutely crazy, and I’ll have to tell you all about it NEXT month. Just now I was digging back in my blog archives for something interesting I can upcycle so that March 2024 doesn’t go by without a post.