Dear Elli, Today is November 24th.  And this date is a very important and sad one for us.  Ten years ago today we lost Jenny.  Your Aunt...

Dear Elli, I tell you to be good.  Your father tells you to be good.  Your teachers tell you to be good.  Everyone wants everyone else to...

Dear Elli, Today we had a first.  A really big first.  You lied.  Not just a little fib, either.  A real lie. (As real as a 4-year-old...

Dear Elli, I've never worn a dress to a work function.  This is yet another weird neurotic trait of mine.  Kind of like not wearing...

Dear Elli, Today I am hot.  Not "super good looking" kind of hot, but "really pissed off" kind of hot.  You'll never guess what you said...

Dear Elli, Lately, you are a huge fan of both Barbie and all of the Disney Princesses.  That's cool I guess.  But I have one small beef...

Dear Elli, You are a girl.  And I may be stating the obvious, but someday you will be a woman. As such, I feel the need to share with you...

Dear Elli, We live in Ohio.  It snows here.  A lot.  And I hate boots.  In fact, the last time I had a pair of boots, our dog was a puppy...

Dear Elli, I just returned from my last business trip of the year.  And for the first time in my history of business travel, I feel well...

Dear Elli, On Monday, October 7, 2013, I ruined your life. That's what you said.  I'm not shitting you. You were attempting to open a...

Dear Elli, I don't want to go to Disney World.  There is not one single fiber of my soul that finds the idea even slightly appealing. ...

Dear Elli, We talk a lot about what you want to be when you grow up.  And you always ask if you still have time to change your mind if...

Dear Elli, This morning, you came into the bedroom while I was getting dressed.  And you asked, "Mommy, what are those little stripes on...

Dear Elli, I am at the airport right now. Minneapolis/St. Paul.  That's Minnesota in case you don't know.  But you really should know...

Dear Elli, On Sunday, I am going to Oklahoma.  I go every year for business travel.  And while I'm working, I'm also having a freaking...

Dear Elli, Today is September 11th.  That doesn't mean much to you right now.  But it will.  Because it should.  And as you grow, we will...

Dear Elli, I think we've done it.  We've finally cleared the "terrible 3's".  There, I said it.  And now I'm sure you will commemorate...

Dear Elli, We went on vacation last week.  A family vacation to the beach in North Carolina.  This year there were ten of us.  Yes. ...

Dear Elli, Today, I made two terrible mistakes.  I bought a swimsuit without trying it on.  And then, when your father got home, I put it...

Dear Elli, Today you and I went to Chipotle for lunch.  The line was really long, so we were well acquainted with the teenagers behind us...