Q. I have been married to my husband for four years. My husband’s ex has an annoying habit of texting him on his birthday every year. They are flirty texts, not just “Happy birthday” and I find them way out of line. My husband and his ex have been divorced for more than 10 years and the kids are in college, so they have very few co-...Read more

Dear Kid Whisperer,

My question has to do with family plans. If our 9-year-old doesn’t want to do what the family is doing (going to visit grandparents, going out to eat, etc.) he complains and argues, or asks for constant explanations for any plans that are not exactly what he wants to do. My wife feels that he needs to have input on our ...Read more

I was one of the first to complete the family NCAA bracket this year. There’s not a chance I’ll win and I’m good with that.

Our son-in-law started the family bracket challenge, which includes his side of the family and our side, 15 years ago.

His side of the family loves sports. His dad even refereed for years.

When you love sports, you...Read more

You can make book on the fact that I’m not a guy to sweep things under the rug. But you may be floored to know that I brought the hammer down on our latest home improvement project.

That’s why I had to clean my office of enough books to bury Moby-Dick so new flooring could be installed with the help of yours truly and my trusty hammer.

...Read more

LOS ANGELES -- Four weeks after the Eaton fire claimed his home, bladesmith Nicholas Berkofsky was back at work in his East Los Angeles studio. His first project? A hand-forged pizza cutter to benefit his neighborhood pizzeria, Pizza Venice, which was destroyed in the fire that swept through Altadena.

As he walked back and forth between the ...Read more

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Beneath the towering concrete trunks of the Rockridge BART station in Oakland, Pleasanton resident Dr. Robert Holland dons chain mail and plated armor as he takes up his alter-ego, Prince of the Mists, a title he’s claimed through combat.

Holland is one of the longest-tenured members of the Society for Creative Anachronism,...Read more

Playing music for plants can help them to grow, and it turns out that the same might be true for humans.

In a new study published in the peer-reviewed science journal Chaos, researchers played classical music for third-trimester fetuses using headphones on the mothers' stomachs and measured the fetuses' heart rates.

They found that the ...Read more

Ethan Kross grew up under the loving, watchful gaze of his Polish grandparents, who lived a few blocks from his childhood home in Brooklyn. His grandmother greeted him after school with elaborate meals and generous helpings, which, Kross jokes now, kept his grandfather — a tailor — busy catching up with his grandson’s expanding waistline. ...Read more

ST. PAUL, Minn. — In Hastings, Minnesota, you’ll find a built-to-scale replica of the original Dakota County courthouse made from about 5,000 perfectly placed toothpicks. The artist? 85-year-old Jerry Hackett.

The courthouse, which took about three months to create, is the latest in a line of impressive sculptures from Hackett, who ...Read more

CHICAGO — People often arrive at juvenile court with their guard up. Danielle Moore and Denise Gonzalez-Avila can understand why.

As “family navigators” based out of the Cook County Juvenile Center, Moore, 26, and Gonzalez-Avila, 41, meet waves of parents and loved ones of minors charged with crimes in the difficult moments just before or...Read more

Thirty years ago, I started trialing verbenas as part of the Mississippi Medallion award program for outstanding plants. I’ve been an avid verbena promoter and gardener ever since. I can tell you the Superbena Whiteout verbena is the best white variety I have ever grown.

Superbena Whiteout verbena has been around for about seven years, which ...Read more

Starting an emergency fund is often highlighted as a crucial aspect of personal finance, but we don’t talk as much about when you should tap into that money.

For example, if someone faces an unexpected car repair bill, should they dip into their emergency fund or explore other financial avenues? It’s a dilemma that many individuals grapple ...Read more

CHICAGO -- At the sprawling South Shore Cultural Center, the early-morning sun casts a golden glow on the stables nestled just beyond the gated entrance. On this 20-degree Thursday, the waves of nearby Lake Michigan are frozen into tiny peaks, and 2 inches of snow covers the ground.

At about 7 a.m., Sgt. Rishi Desai, an 18-year veteran of the ...Read more

When I was visiting my parents for Thanksgiving last year, I thought it would be fun, both as a dating coach and as their daughter, to interview them about how they met and how their relationship progressed. This month marks their 45th wedding anniversary, so I would like to give tribute to them in this article.

The main two questions I wanted ...Read more

Q. I have two sons, 5 and 7. I do not allow my children more than a half hour a day on their iPad. My partner uses screen time as a way to appease his son, who is turning 8. Recently my bonus son lost his temper and yelled at me in front of my sons. I took away his iPad believing if I did nothing it might set a precedent. My partner came home ...Read more

Nearly one-third of American adults (30%) who looked for financial advice in 2023 turned to social media, according to Bankrate’s Financial Security Survey. Younger Americans are even more likely than the average to seek out financial advice from social media, potentially setting them off in the wrong direction during their crucial early ...Read more

Dear Kid Whisperer,

My question has to do with family plans. If our 9-year-old doesn’t want to do what the family is doing (going to visit grandparents, going out to eat, etc.) he complains and argues, or asks for constant explanations for any plans that are not exactly what he wants to do. My wife feels that he needs to have input on our ...Read more

I can’t call heads or tails on whether we should stop minting the penny. There are two sides to every coin, right?

Zinc and copper used to make a penny are worth almost four times the value of the coin. Bottom line: The penny is not cost-efficient. I empathize. Some days I’m not terribly cost-efficient either.

It’s hard to imagine life ...Read more

When it comes to becoming a millionaire, your mindset is an important factor, maybe the key factor, in getting you there. Yes, earning a higher income can help you build your net worth — let’s not pretend a high income isn’t important — but poor financial habits can destroy any amount of income. However, even modest earners with the ...Read more

Dear Anna,

I need advice about a sexual situation I can't discuss with anyone else. My wife and I have been together for nine years (married for four) with a good relationship and great sex life. We've always explored fantasies through dirty talk during intimacy. I've always found the idea of seeing my wife with another man arousing. Early in ...Read more