By Brandy Black The Next Family: Tell me about your family. Mugs: My family consists of my wife Mary, our 19-month-old son, Emerson, an orange tabby cat named Cheetoh, our dog, Blaze, and myself, Mugs. We live in Seattle, WA with loving, doting grandparents close by. Seattle is a very liberal and progressive city. We chose to […]
By: Katherine Ellis My sister missed my niece’s potty training window; at least, that’s what she suspected. They were too busy; they waited past the pinnacle of Lulu’s potty excitement. She was on the downhill slide, totally over the potty, when my sister decided it was time. By then three year-old Lulu didn’t care, she […]
By: Brandy Black We got in a fight before our wedding. On the ferry ride over. I can’t remember why. Could it have been the make up? Things were tense. We had been planning a wedding for a year from another state and it was all happening on this overcast day after waiting 2 years […]
By: Danny Thomas A couple weeks ago I went to Seattle to visit my parents with my girls. Their mother had just wrapped up her dissertation defense and all, so we left her at home to unwind in peace. The visit was amazing. The girls are getting to the age where Gramma and Grampa can […]
By: Caren Gillespie When The Next Family approached me to write an article about a special mother, my first thought was, “how do I choose just one?” I know some pretty phenomenal moms, but here is one who really stands out. Krista is a full-time working mother of three children: Mercer, (almost) 7, Haley, 4, […]
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By: Caren Gillespie If you met me in person, you might think I’m pretty eco friendly. Compared to many people in this country, I am! I’m a former Dead-head, long haired, yuppie hippie who started caring about what was happening to the earth from early on. I was very into Earth Day in the 90s. […]
By: Caren Gillespie In the not too distant past, going to a Spa for a pampering session was considered only a luxury for the very wealthy or if you were lucky, someone bought you a gift certificate for an occasion. Well, as a stay at home mom, sometimes the only pampering I receive is my […]
By: Tom Butts So, I’ve read the news today, about the fact that Michael Steele (head of the Republican Party) had expenses paid by the GOP at a “titty” bar in West Hollywood. First off, I’m still trying to get past “titty” bar in West Hollywood… Anyway, I love the satire that Huffington Post listed: […]
By: Jillian Lauren We had a few days off before the Seattle show, so we decided to try to get away from it all and rent a house out on Bainbridge Island. Here is what I learned: 1. Bainbridge Island is quaint and lovely and has a charming indie bookstore. 2. It is wonderful to […]
By: Brandy Black We drove down the hill in search of our hotel, Inn At The Market for our weekend getaway in Seattle. Our bags were light and the car toddler-free. We pulled up to the valet and were literally a stone’s throw away from the famous men in orange rubber suits tossing fish and […]