

Celebrating the Silver Anniversary with Johnny Dogs in the North Woods
We celebrated the silver anniversary – the big two-five milestone – with waterfalls instead of silver, hot dogs in place of a gourmet dinner and bathing suits on a pontoon boat replaced formal wear down a wedding aisle. And, in this ZagZig life, we loved every minute of it. We opted for the low key version of the milestone, 25th wedding anniversary, as we vacationed with three of the four kids, my sister and my dad in the north woods of Michigan, the north coast by the Great


The Silence, the Setting and the Sentimental Dad
So Tuesday will mark Kori and my 25thwedding anniversary. Over the years, my wife has commented that I am not romantic. My response, “What, I made a dinner reservation for the family at a nice restaurant, isn’t that enough?” I joke about it but it can be an issue in any relationship when one spouse chooses not to meet the needs of the other. Sorry, I digress and that is not what this week’s topic is about. It would take way more words than anyone would want to read and we


A day in the life of Parenting….Four Kids, Four States, Foretelling Moments
In the midst of grieving the loss of a parent and all that entails, preparing child Number 3 to go to college and attending a national out-of-state competition for Number 4, I had a moment at about 10 p.m. one night when all felt right with the universe. As a parent we learn to savor the good moments, which make the challenging ones in the young-adult teen years more tolerable. Life happens. It’s not like the movies. Tragedy and loss don’t necessarily follow a clear story lin


Private and For Parents Only: Stop Delaying Your Gratification Today
The July 4thHoliday “oohs and aahs” got delayed this year due some inclement weather, and it reminded me that some times delayed gratification is not as sweet as being in the moment and savoring the emotions that are sparked by good vibes from years past. Let me clarify. This goes for the parents and not the kids. Research shows that delayed gratification has many benefits, including: teaching impulse control, increased gratitude in life, teaching the benefit of hard work an