Kristin Ruthstrom
Top 5 Festive, Secular Events to Get You Jazzed for the Holidays in KC
After 2020 provided a less than ideal (read: sad and abysmal) holiday season, 2021 is making up for all of the merry that was lost last year. The holiday season is back, baby, and...
COVID-Safe Destinations in KC for Young Children
With the recent announcement of children ages 5-11 now being eligible for a vaccine, there seems to be a collective therapeutic exhale from parents that we, as a community and country, might just be...
Weston, Missouri — the One-Tank Trip You Must Take
Looking for a one-tank kind of trip, that is COVID-friendly and all family members will find a reason to enjoy? Need a destination that is charming and picturesque, has small town charm, but offers...
Best Places for Fall Family Photos in Kansas City
The first yellow leaves have begun to fall. The smell of pumpkin spice and apple cider donuts can be detected around every street corner. This can only mean one thing; to the delight of...
It’s a Hot Girl Summer for Obvious Reasons
Coined by the queen, Megan Thee Stallion, “hot girl summer” means embracing a lifestyle that many of us moms feel as though we left behind many moons ago. The term, for those stuck under...
Third Grade is When it All Changes
My boy is growing up. A friend who was once a third grade teacher warned me it would be coming. It is the collision of worlds, where they still seem so tiny, but want...
Cheers to Us: It’s International Women’s Day!
Today, March 8th, is International Women’s Day! The theme for 2021 is #ChoosetoChallenge. It is a call to action, asking us to think critically in order to overcome gender inequality while also celebrating all...
Celebrating Love and Valentine’s Day with Our Children in 2021
Here we are. We have made it to February, the time of year jam-packed with candy conversation hearts and romantic love. Who could have imagined last year, as we perused the pink teddy bear...
21 Realistic Resolutions for 2021
After the backyard bonfires have sufficiently burned all of the well-meaning 2020 calendars into a pile of forgotten ashes, it will be time to jot down (only in pencil, mind you) our hopes, dreams...
Creative Ways to Celebrate Thanksgiving 2020
Thanksgiving is going to feel different this year. It has to. Despite an entire world willing 2020 to take a much-needed detour away from Dumpster-fire-ville, she is proving to be relentless. She is forging...
Decision Fatigue Is Real and It Is Weighing Us Down
I sat in front of my computer for two days, trying to figure out how to put my thoughts in to coherent sentences regarding decision fatigue. Alas, here it is, and I can’t decide...
A Letter of Appreciation to Teachers
For months, debates have raged on regarding school re-opening plans. Everyone seems to have an opinion, and a strong one at that.
The implications of the decisions are astonishingly profound. Administrators and school board officials...
Maybe This is the Reality Check We All Needed
It’s been a long six months. What began as fear of the unknown, with a mysterious virus lurking in the air has morphed into a different kind of dread and trepidation. Now, we must...
Pass the Sunny D, It’s Time to Reclaim Our Pandemic Summer
Spring and summer 2020, what an absolute dumpster fire, a complete failure of epic proportions. What is supposed to be a time of rebirth with flowers abloom and milestones to celebrate as communities reemerge...
Just Wear the Mask, Please!
Just wear the mask, please! It’s a simple form of self-preservation and human decency, an act that takes very little time, money, and exertion. And yet I continue to be baffled as to why,...