The holidays are upon us and busy schedules often send us into a panic when looking for the perfect gift for those on our list. No matter your budget, there are affordable gift options your friends and family will love. Tools are always a welcome gift. Most gardeners are reluctant to invest ...

People tend to spend a lot of time planning their holiday travel but not a lot preparing for their return home. But returning to a mess — minor bummers like an empty fridge or stinking garbage can, or major problems like frozen pipes — can make it difficult to savor the good times you had ...

Many people will be traveling during this holiday season when winter weather might make roads hazardous. Winter throws out more than a few weather and travel-related situations. Freezing rain, blinding snow and icy roadways can make even short drives across town hazardous. A traffic accident, ...

My little sister gave birth to her second daughter on Nov. 22. They named her Emma Evangeline, Evangeline for our Gramma Edith’s middle names. See, my grandma Edith had 11 brothers and sisters and at the time of her birth, each of her sisters got to pick out a name for her. And so she was ...

“People have been asking about the squeaking of the ship,” our captain reported, somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic, “but I must tell you, this is nothing to worry about.” He then proceeded to explain how a ship needed to give in heavy swells, just as an airplane had to flex ...

I feel sorry for people who live in warm climates. They never get to experience the incredible kindness that comes in the middle of a massive snowstorm. Over Thanksgiving weekend, my family drove from Aberdeen, S.D., to Moorhead for my husband’s basketball game. A friend let us stay at her ...

I have a confession to make: Despite my love of all things baking, I have yet to master the perfect pie. ‘Tis the season for harvest-y pies and Christmassy pies and all the wonderful fillings that can be baked in a pastry. But homemade pie crust is a true art. It requires delicacy, ...

Homemade gifts are a wonderful way to show you care. Making them from items grown in your garden adds that extra personal touch. And just like the plant, decorations and gifts made from milkweed pods are gaining in popularity. Considered a weed by some, common milkweed is making a comeback as ...

Thanks to AARP and the North Dakota Hospital Association, a new law called the CARE Act is making a difference for family caregivers. Below is information about the new law, shared with permission from AARP North Dakota: “The CARE (Caregiver Advise, Record, Enable) Act helps family ...

Last weekend, I took my 4-year-old daughter to the Moscow Ballet’s performance of “The Nutcracker.” If I hadn’t been raised with grandparents who once took a 5-year-old me in a velvet dress and patent-leather Mary Janes to a performance of “Phantom of the Opera,” it might have ...

aying with you for some part of the holiday. You’ve planned a beautiful, robust holiday dinner. You’ve even been prescient enough to make a big batch of soup and buy a graze board’s supply of cheeses, charcuterie, olives, etc. for a casual midday meal. You’ve made the beds, laid out ...

Snowflakes have been lightly falling and Christmas trees are beginning to be lit up and down the avenues; we know that the season of advent is upon us. Advent is the time for us to prepare for the coming of the Christ Child and Christmas. In our world today, the Christmas season brings lots of ...

I grew up with a second family. The Balkanskys took me in when I was in eighth grade and they still haven’t let me go. I traveled with them on vacations and rolled my eyes like a belligerent teenager when they gave me unsolicited advice. Without fail, I always knew they loved me. I was ...

Dear Carol: My dad lived with me for six months. During the time I was at work, he fell and got hurt twice. He comprehends things just fine, but his memory is bad, probably from years of drinking, though he has since stopped. Dad’s always been a bitter complainer, so something was always ...

When I feel the pressures of creating more or the feelings that others around me have their Christmas season plans more organized, kids’ program outfits planned, gifts purchased and wrapped, homes perfectly decorated and holiday baking complete, I pause. I used to push forward and try to buy, ...

The holiday tree is the center of many family celebrations. Ornaments collected over the years decorate the boughs while brightly wrapped gifts are carefully placed underneath. But the hunt for the perfect tree can be an important part of the tradition. Many try to find the right size and ...

We sold our calves last week. With snow on the ground and our warm breath turned to ice in the crisp morning air, we layered up, saddled up and gathered up our herd of Black Angus and Simmental cattle and loaded up the calves to head toward the sale barn in town. My husband pulled a trailer ...

Wind-driven air and too little precipitation are common wintertime side effects that can damage drought-sensitive trees, lawns and shrubs. You can help remedy that by watering while temperatures are still above freezing and before the ground hardens. Adding mulch also insulates plants, ...

ISO: One 1958 wedding dress, white, tea-length, short-sleeved and cut in the classic “New Look” style (fitted bodice, yards of skirt) of the ’50s. Possibly still in its original box from the dry cleaners. Originally worn by Patricia Hildahl (nee Cox, from Oakes, N.D.), whose family is ...

Dear Carol: I’m worried about the holidays. I want to include my dad who has dementia, but when extended family members visit, they talk around Dad because they don’t know how to talk with him. Those who don’t ignore him try to treat him as they always did, which they mean in a good way, ...