I first noticed the survey as I headed down the street while the sun was rising last Sunday morning. A rock painted bright orange with the words “poll of the day” anchored a sheet protector. Inside, a green index card asked: “Would you rather have a lifetime subscription to Netflix…

Families who live with chronic illness have quickly learned to place trust in medical teams to determine the best course of action. If doctors and nurses suggest we quarantine, we may not like it, but we follow the guidelines, believing that the prescribed course of action will deliver the…

I used to be great about determining if my now 14-year-old son Caeleb was having a bleed. Identifying the symptoms of a joint bleed was second nature to me. Swelling of the joint, warmth to the touch, redness in the area, and pain are a few of the telltale signs…

What’s new, month of May? Why hello there, extended coronavirus lockdown!   Our community quarantine was set to end on April 30. In the last few days of April, I felt so excited to go back to how life was before COVID-19. I missed going out, eating…

As the number of Americans infected with COVID-19 surpasses one million, it’s no surprise that people with rare diseases — whose immune systems were generally compromised even before the outbreak — are particularly terrified of this pandemic. That fear is evident in an online survey conducted by the National…

Losing family members is hard. Long-lived lives that come to an end, distance that prevents relatives from remaining close, and estrangements following family squabbles are a few ways to lose family members, and it can be devastating. Yet we manage to pick ourselves up and go on with our lives,…

My husband, Jared, and I recently talked about getting a dog. I’m excited and can’t wait. We spent an entire night flipping through pictures of various dog breeds. We finally managed to narrow down our selection to four possible types. At the top of the list is the Cavalier…

If I had to define my self-quarantine in one word, it would be peace. I live in a peaceful, small, rural town. My street is quiet and my porch has a wonderful view. Three of us are at home — my husband, one of my sons, and me. My…