Category: Family & Home

Man Finds Note in a Bottle From 1974 Inside Wall of House—Tracks Down Worker Who Wrote It 50 Years Ago

Peeling back the layers of a home during renovations is a bit like time travel. For one man in New South Wales, Australia, contractors demolishing his wall revealed a time capsule—a glass bottle containing a note—in a wall cavity in his Newcastle home. The home owner, Matt Streatfeild, was looking behind the plaster within the…


Guilty as Charged: Regret and Responsibility

Edith Piaf, the diminutive French singer who could belt out a tune like nobody’s business, won acclaim for her song “Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien,” or “No, I Regret Nothing.” Most of us in adulthood probably don’t share that sentiment. Regret can sit on our shoulders like a paratrooper’s pack, weighing us down by the…


10 Tips for Organizing Your Home Before the Holiday Season

You have just over two weeks to spiff up the house for Thanksgiving—and the December holidays (and fun) can overload anyone. So get going now and have a more relaxing season the next month and a half! If my family was ever expecting company while I was growing up, my mom insisted that the house…


5 Reasons to Try Year-Round Homeschooling

Veteran homeschoolers around the world share a well-kept secret that I’m going to let you in on—year-round homeschooling. I know this might sound challenging, but it can actually revitalize your homeschool. First, let’s define year-round homeschooling. Basically, you do school from January through December, but instead of taking off during the summer months, you take…


Ohio 5th Grader Sees Crossing Guard Getting Wet on Rainy Day, Holds Up Umbrella for Her

A Cleveland fifth grader demonstrated an act of chivalry one rainy, rainy day in September when he held up an umbrella to keep a patrol guard on duty dry, while exposing himself to the wet weather. Ten-year-old Karl West of Garfield Elementary was waiting for his mom, Monique, to pick him up when he saw…


Make a Curved Glass Block Wall for a Shower

Dear James: I want to build a curved glass block wall for a shower stall and a straight one in my kitchen. How do lay a glass block wall so that it will not leak when showering? —Darlene G. Dear Andrea: Glass block walls can give a house a very open look and make smaller…


Alabama Child Breaks Record for Most Premature Infant to Survive

An Alabama boy was announced on Wednesday as the world’s most premature infant to survive, according to Guinness World Records. Curtis Means, now 16 months old, was born nearly 19 weeks early on July 5, 2020, at UAB Hospital at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. His survival after being born at just 132 days…


‘Faith-Based’ Dad Forgives DUI Suspect Who Caused Crash That Killed 11-Year-Old Daughter

A Phoenix dad whose daughter was struck by a car and killed last month says he forgives the suspect who was charged with manslaughter following her death. He is now behind bars, according to police. The family of Daniel Marin around 1 p.m. on Sept. 3 were walking on the sidewalk along 43rd Avenue North…


Honoring the Divine Bond Between Children and Parents: The Virtue of Filial Piety

Ancient cultures and centuries-old traditions around the world believe that heaven has arranged all our relationships—a predestined gift from the divine. Truth is, everyone has a unique situation with their parents and ancestors, and people of faith do acknowledge that we have been made in the image of the Creator. So perhaps our families too…


Is It Just Me or Is It Cold in Here?

The news isn’t good, but better we know so we can get ready for what’s coming rather than to be caught unaware. Due to worldwide events, the U.S. government says it expects households to see their heating bills jump as much as 54 percent compared with last winter. What if I told you there are…