Latest Stories

Most recently published stories in Families.

The Best Laid Dinner Plans
I've been working very hard these past months to answer that old question of "how do you cook delicious, nutritious, economical meals on a strict money- and time-budget." On the days I work, I'm home after 5:30; I don't have time to be scraping and chopping vegetables late into the evening. I'm sorry, Thirty Minute Meals don't cut it. I need something more along the lines of Ten (for prep time at least), for under ten dollars, for a family of five. I know it's a tall order, but it's what I need.
By Sara Kemp5 years ago in Families
Lemonade
Lemonade When the Fletchers decided to move to the small town of Clatskanie, Oregon from Los Angeles, Nia thought her father was crazy. It was a small town of maybe two thousand people; the air was cleaner and while she’d had no indication that people were kinder, they certainly seemed to have more time to talk. The whole town seemed like an uncomfortable sort of place, it looked strange amongst the trees Oregon was known for. Like a dusty town from a western movie--probably one of John Wayne’s, he being the only western actor she knew much about. Her grandfather would have liked the town, but he wasn’t with them to enjoy it. He was back in Anaheim. Her dad insisted that the place wasn’t so bad--there was a castle, even! He’d taken her to see it. It wasn’t actually a castle. The so-called castle was a fourteen roomed house some guy built with two towers on either side of it. There was a huge staircase in the front opening up to the yard like the grand entrance in the Titanic. Nia herself wasn’t so grand: she had straight brown hair pulled up with a spider clip. It stuck up in bent spikes from the clip, giving her a messy look. She had brown eyes, and was in a red casual dress with a white cardigan overtop that reached just past her knees and red Converse sneakers. She had black leggings underneath to face the crisp air of Oregon’s October. It was different than California weather, and she thought it was almost as if her body refused to adjust. She was always freezing. She pulled her cardigan tighter around herself.
By Jennie Demos5 years ago in Families
If Only I Was a Seer
It was 2016 and I was being promoted at work. I can't disclose business names or anything, but we will call the place 'W'. At W I was to become a bakery manager and I was excited to work in bakery. Quickly upon starting the training for my new job, I was informed that I was to be a Bakery and a Deli manager. Two departments for the same amount of pay. This did not sit well with me as I despised everything to do with the Deli department.
By Tayla Bennett5 years ago in Families
Mind Over Matter
I recently submitted a discussion post amongst my peers in Psychology 101 at Strayer University, where we were asked, "Can our personalities change with time throughout our life span, or do we consistently do things similarly throughout our aging process?" An example was included regarding a convicted felon who had committed many murders, but was adamant that his incarceration time had given him the space and opportunity to truly turn over a new leaf and change. Critics argued, saying of course that would be his perception while still inside, as the case study persisted that if paroled his new, exemplary behavior would be his norm moving forward. The question still being, whether or not such a dramatic change in personality and actions was possible?
By Jennifer Brown5 years ago in Families
Going Zero Waste while living with your parents
While studying Urban Sustainability at the University of the District of Columbia, we took an online quiz to check our ecological footprint was. The way it calculates is how many Earths you need if everyone lived the same lifestyle as you do. My results showed that if everyone had my lifestyle, 1.75 Earth would be required to sustain our current population. That's impossible, and I decided to make lifestyle changes to do more for our environment. The catch was, I still live at home, so just me changing my lifestyle wouldn't be as beneficial as my household adapting and evolving.
By Jackie Reyes5 years ago in Families
That Cherry Walnut!
Cozy Corner Dream If I was a home owner my cozy corner would be my customized basement which I would have high ceilings and turn into an arcade bar with a theatre. I dream of Emser Marble Breccia Oniciata tiled heated floors and textured red and beige damask wallpaper. I’d like two red and gold velvet chaise lounges on each side of the stairwell upon entering. However, I don’t want regular stairs I want a spiral escalator. From start to finish when you walk in to reaching the other side of the basement I want installed ceiling speakers with decent bass, maximum sound and the least harmonic distortion. I want LED light to trim the ceiling and the floor and an antique red and brown wooden air hockey, ping pong, pool table with cool floating shelves for sculptures. I want a Samsung 98" Class 8K UHD (4320p) HDR Smart LED-LCD TV with reclining massage chairs with food trays arrayed in three rows of four each elevated more than the next on each side of a hot tub with disco lights. Enough dreaming though, it was nice while it lasted!
By J.G.5 years ago in Families
How to cope being the wife of a Transgender
On a not-so-special day, my husband leaned in to say good-bye to me and whispered something in my ear. All this time later, I can’t remember what it was, but at the time, I agreed excitedly and he went on his way to start his day at work. I had a tubal litigation during my daughter's birth, fathered by my previous husband. My current husband wanted children and I wanted more. We had explored many routes over the decade together, but we were never able begin that adventure. The words he whispered sounded like the beginning of this adventure at the time.
By Mandy5 years ago in Families
Working the Corner
My sister Katie is an excellent cook. She often says she should run a soup kitchen, that she is existentially happiest when she is cooking simple, hearty food for large amounts of people. She says it comes from the days when she worked at The Corner, a now long-extinct hippie restaurant from her college days here in Olympia, Washington.
By Sara Kemp5 years ago in Families
Why I Hate Living; But Why I am Grateful To Survive
I want to share this story since this is how I feel 24/7 living each day in my dysfunctional family home; and if anyone would care about how I feel on a daily basis and maybe is looking to understand, or to relate to my story. I am adopted, and I have two white parents, and a biological brother currently in my bungalow house in Chicago. Prior to being officially adopted, I have lived with my parents at 3.5 years old and I came along with my brother for an original emergency two-week stay, under the custody of DCFS. This time, it was very challenging since I was critically ill, non-verbal, and poorly coordinated due to the severe neglect I had faced by my biological parents who were both addicted to, and sold drugs. The first two weeks were filled with back and forth doctors, and hospital stays and visits. In addition, I was also diagnosed with Autism, and at the time was non-verbal and without any of the proper therapies and interventions, to improve my conditions, I would have been non-verbal, and in a wheelchair. With the hundreds of doctors appointments and back to back hospital stays with intensive therapies I went from being completely immoble and non-verbal to walking, and talking today. However growing up to now be almost-20 years old has been a curse in disguise. Prior to being 20, and to fill everyone in on being adopted; Anyone can say they love you enough just to give up on you. I had to face this at the age of 15 years old. At the time, I was going through an all-time low on both my mental and physical health. The cause of this was being moved from a Catholic high school, to a public school; feelings of guilt and fear when my sister engaged with drugs, and a possible gang initation, and the effects of my parents losing both their coroporate jobs. We also had a lot of family fights.
By Nikolas Taylor5 years ago in Families
Cozy corner of Corona World
In every bad thing that happend something good pops up. And that's something that works on same principles as magnetic force.
By Haris Hadzic5 years ago in Families
5 best short moral stories for kids
Tales that will inspire you by teaching important lessons of your life 1. Ants and worm Once, while an ant was searching for its food, she saw a worm coming out of a cocoon. He was slowly moving his legs out of the box. Seeing that, the ant said, ‘Oh, what is your condition? I can walk wherever I want. But you have to spend days in this cell. So there is a big gap between you and me. 'The worm said nothing. A few days later, when the ant returned, only the shell of the worm had fallen and she saw that the worm had gone somewhere. She saw a beautiful moth fluttering its wings as it fluttered its wings. He said to her, ‘Oh, you were mocking me that day as a prisoner, you were saying that your own condition was better than mine, remember that I am the worm in the box. If you want to brag that you can go wherever you want, feel free to hit. Until then, I can easily walk around in the sky for a while. '
By Yogesh Sawant5 years ago in Families
9 Nigerian Celebrities Who Surprised Their Parents With Very Expensive Gifts.
These are so beautiful! It is the dream of many children all over the world to do their parents proud. In the capitalist world that we’ve created, that often times means that most children desire to gift their parent something good, something expensive.
By Jide Okonjo5 years ago in Families