Well, here we are – the day after Thanksgiving – and the clock is ticking, people.  Gifts to make, food to eat, homes to decorate, yet I have nothing to offer you from your peers this week.
Thank God I’m creative (insert peels of laughter).
Which brings us to this week’s craft. Note that “craft” is singular because for reasons that I’m sure can only be attributed to the internet not delivering, I’ve yet to receive your emails and comments for this week’s craft, festive food or to-die-for decoration. I am sure …

Well, here we are. Week one of Crafting down to Christmas. And I already feel like deckin’ the ol’ halls. Note to crafty readers at this point: I’m looking for ideas for magic fairy/Tinkerbell dust. I would prefer nothing with sparkles. Any thoughts?? That said, I’m gonna start things off here, and share one of my favorite crafts: salt dough ornaments.
This is one I’ve shared with all of my children (25, 17, and 8), so with the great age difference, you know it has to be a winner. When we …

Witches’ Night Out
Our family picked up a new Halloween tradition a few years ago – attending the Witches’ Night Out event at Gardner Village near Salt Lake City.
Gardner Village is one of our required fall outings. It is a collection of historical buildings, a mill and some pioneer homes, which have been made into shops, a restaurant, and a petting zoo. They also have a venue for dinner theater.
We stumbled into the whole Witches’ Night Out spectacle accidentally. A few years ago we ventured there on …

It’s almost Halloween, and the stores are full of candy, costumes, and decorations. Of course, next to the isles of plastic pumpkins and bats, there is usually a single row of red and green, which will expand slowly until it takes over the entire store by the middle of November.
This is the part where you expect to hear me complain about the importance of keeping the holidays separate or the evils of consumerism. However, that is not where I’m going. I’m sure there are those who claim to disagree, but …

Today’s rant comes to you courtesy of a reader named Jesse who got all hot and bothered when he read my article about Kanye West at MTV’s VMA Awards show. See Kate’s Escapade – Kanye West is an IDIOT!
Here is Jesse’s reply to that article…
Jesse said:  I completely disagree. What Kanye West did was unnecessary but nothing to be crucified over. This news should have gone no farther than simple water cooler talk but narrow minded people and the media continue to let it escalate. How come Kanye’s interruption is …

One day Baby’s friend from across the street, Z, started pounding on our front door. I opened it, my first mistake.
“Where’s Baby? There’s a hurt bird out here he has to see!” Z exclaimed.
I thought ‘Boys and their desire for the Horrific.’
While Baby went outside to inspect the injured bird, I put Boomer the Basset Hound in the backyard, his Kingdom, and went out to start the truck. We had errands to run. I pulled around the corner to grab that child of mine. He and Z were watching the …

Hello, dear Coffee Break readers! Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Dr. Fruit E. Fly. Some of you might remember me from the school lab.
In fact, I’m still there – constantly experimenting with everyday household items, finding new ways to make your life easier. Oh, it’s a thankless job, alright. But it’s the only job I have.
Oh well, I’ll save the rest of my troubles for my daily therapy session. Meanwhile, I thought you might enjoy some of these ingenious uses for Coca Cola. Sometimes I surprise myself …

Let me begin by telling you a bit about my personality. I am the kind of person who always eats two same colored M&Ms at a time. I have my closet coordinated not only by color, but also by degree of warmth. I am a firm believer that everything should have a place. Suffice it to say, I am a very particular person.
Of course, such a meticulous temperament is accompanied by several bizarre pet peeves. Almost every time I tell someone about one of my pet peeves, they reply, “I …

Did you know that procrastination is rising to the level of a mental health issue? That procrastination is causing us to be poorer and fatter? And that men are worse than women? Duh – of course you did. We all do. But just in case your jury was still out, here’s an article that might help.
Or not.
Until recently, I thought procrastination was bad, bad, bad.  Below are a “few” of my validating bullet points:

A link to a non-profit organization determined to stamp out Procrastination.
“O, The Oprah Magazine life …

RoadTrip Soundtrack

Once the weather starts to warm up and the sky is bright blue with big fluffy, Simpson’s-like clouds… that’s when I start to think about vacations. My favorite type of vacation is going anywhere near an ocean, but to me, the most fun part of vacationing is getting there.
The thing about roadtrips is that it doesn’t matter if you’re going to another part of your state or across the country. What makes a roadtrip a roadtrip, is who you’re with and THE MUSIC. The perfect music and the long …