While decorating my parents’ tree last week, I took a picture of Lol and PJ sitting on the couch together. It may have looked like a normal photo of a mother & son-in-law lounging and having polite conversation, but in reality, they were having an intense, in-depth conversation about Christmas cookies. This is 90% of…

I brought my son to get his senior pictures taken yesterday. I dropped the ball on getting them done earlier in the year at the high school, so we had to drive 40 minutes into Charlotte to the photographer’s studio. I had to do this myself a million years ago and I remember it being…

Today is my 49th birthday. I’ve made it a tradition to write down the things I’m grateful for – the list being equal to the number of years I’m alive. Obviously I’m grateful for my family and all the important stuff, but this is just a list of things I really enjoy. It’s not preconceived…

Theodore Roosevelt gave a speech on April 23, 1910 called, “Citizen in a Republic”. The following is an excerpt from the speech that is often referred to as, “The Man in the Arena.” I have it framed on a wall in my house to remind my kids that they should never, ever listen to the…

I’m going through some, shall we say, unsavory times with my teenage son right now. I can’t go into detail because, like I’ve said before, I don’t care about embarrassing myself or oversharing my experiences, but it’s not my place to do it for others. But I did feel the need to shed some light…

Yesterday I read an excerpt about how George Harrison reacted to John Lennon’s death. He believed John was going to be ok because the body is just a suit you take off when you die, the soul is eternal. This is a Hindu belief called Atman. I thought, “Wow, that’s what I believe too!” It’s…

I came across an old diary from when I was a preteen. Man do I crack myself up. I read it to my family and they got some insight into the way my demented mind works. We laughed the hardest at an entry where my family got stuck on the side of the road in…

When I was around 10 years old, my cousins came over to play. We were upstairs when one of us looked out the bedroom window and saw two unfamiliar people walking down the street. I exclaimed, “Jehovah’s Witnesses, HIDE!!” Everyone I knew had the same reaction when spotting a duo going door-to-door. I never knew…

And when the broken hearted people living in the world agreeThere will be an answer, let it beFor though they may be parted, there is still a chance that they will seeThere will be an answer, let it be Paul McCartney, or as Pa calls him – Paul McCarthy, sang that in the song Let…

Maybe hate is a strong word. But I remember when I was 17, it felt like I hated my parents. Everything they said was stupid. Everything they did was stupid. Even when they agreed with me they were being stupid. I grew out of it, and when I’d think back I’d feel really guilty because…

As much as I love my life now, I miss summers from when I was a kid. Here in North Carolina, every house (at least now) is built with central air; and although that definitely has its perks, it also takes something away. On Long Island in the 80s and 90s, most homes didn’t have…

Religion is such a bone of contention in the world. If everyone just believed what was in their own heart and let others believe what was in theirs, the world would be a MUCH better place. And if you don’t believe in anything, that’s fine too. Live and let live and mind ya damn business!…

Two things happened to me recently that almost made my head explode. I’m talking like, flames… flames on the side of my face (RIP Madeline Kahn ♥️🙏) First: PJ and I recently returned from a much-needed vacation. We did nothing but relax. It was glorious. I felt refreshed and ready to get back to real…

I’m really grateful to be living in a time when there are people like my beloved Drew Barrymore who talk about things like perimenopause. Lord knows no one else ever spoke of it. It’s because every goddamn thing that happens to women has to be seen as embarrassing or — Oh no! Let’s not mention…

I have been married to Peter Joseph Petti for 19 years as of today. We first met when I was working at a gym in Woodbury, NY. Before you get ideas of me as a hard-body babe telling others how to get rock-solid abs, let me stop you. I sat behind a desk and gave…

I used to scream at my kids a lot. Then about 8 years ago, my family of 5 was living in a 3-story walk-up apartment building while our house was being built. One day, we were bringing groceries upstairs and PJ (who I warned was carrying too much) dropped a jar of salsa. It smashed…

One of my favorite shows is Euphoria on HBO. It definitely isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. Definitely not a show I’m recommending to my parents, and definitely not one I’m sitting down to watch with my kids. Tons of sex. Tons of drugs. Tons of violence. And I LOVE it. Zendaya is the star of…

I don’t know why, but when I go to middle school band concerts, I get overly giddy while sitting in the bleachers waiting for the performance to begin. Maybe it’s the extremely close proximity to my family as my children are right behind me and I can hear them acting like jackasses. One minute I…

I watched The Deer Hunter for the first time last night. I have a new trick to watching movies in one night. When I start falling asleep, and PJ yells, “ARE YOU SLEEPING?!” over the pillow baracade I’ve built in order to keep his relentless foot-shaking out of my periphery, instead of perking up and…

Last night we watched Once Upon a Time in Hollywood as a family. My eldest pulled a “me” and promptly fell asleep. When his snoring got so loud that it became a distraction, we sent him to his bed. The other two remained and got treated to the best cinematic ending in all of history.…

Since the world is falling apart all around us, I’ve decided to keep it light and write about The Beatles. And my kids. Two, or should I say, seven things that always make me feel better. This is a proven fact. When my eldest was old enough to talk but young enough to refrain from…

I just realized that I let my 48th birthday pass without my new tradition of listing the things I’m grateful for. So almost a month late, but here it goes. Here’s to another great year ♥️

About a year ago, rumors swirled that Red Lobster was going out of business. Sadly, the rumors were true – they were filing for Chapter 11. But not all heroes wear capes – some wear giant alarm clocks around their necks and gold grills on their teeth. Flavor Flav swooped in screaming Yeah boyeeee and…

I bet you thought this post was going to be me railing against Trump, right? Well haha to the trolls who like to mock us “liberal extremists” — it’s not. Run along and find someone else to make fun of so you can feel better about your small, pathetic life. So unfulfilling that it brings…

When my son was in 4th grade he was doing really well in his “regular” class, so without my knowledge, he was switched to a different “better” class. It was at a time when the bullshit school system was trying to work out some bullshit class system that ultimately failed and they switched to another…

My family and I have been watching home videos we haven’t seen in years. It’s been fun and at times, bittersweet, to walk down memory lane and see all my loved ones who died, or see myself laughing with people I’m not in contact with anymore. But something that has resonated with me since watching…

One of my favorite movies is Old School with Will Ferrell, Luke Wilson, and Vince Vaughn. Side note: We’re watching Bad Monkey with VV and I did not like it AT ALL. Then on the 5th episode, it got SO GOOD! If you’re feeling the same way, hang in there, it’s worth it! Anyway, Old…

No, not the fun parties we had in our youth. I’m talking about the last 2 evenings of my life being spent at high school and middle school open houses. Lord help me. It’s not fair. Back in the day, we were told when school started and then went to school on that day. Labor…

I love Facebook fights. The most fun ones to follow are on the HOA page. Growing up on Long Island, we didn’t have HOAs (Home Owners Associations), everyone just lived on the block and did what they wanted with their own property. I personally prefer living in a neighborhood with an HOA because I like…

Yesterday I was power washing my sidewalk. I enjoy power washing. It gives me great satisfaction to see something go from grimy to good as new. I also like that when I did my driveway, it burned over 1,000 calories according to my watch. I would probably also enjoy mowing the lawn, but PJ won’t…