I’ve found that running with friends is less expensive than therapy.  Having a whole hour to vent while your friends puffs along beside you nodding because she’s too out of breath to form complete sentences in response to you is a beautiful thing.

If you have a long weekend ahead of you that has yet to be booked with travel, seriously consider Niagara Falls, NY. Three days, three nights is ideal for the family getaway you need. Plus, NY is the perfect place to experience the Falls. It provides the perfect family background for fun, adventure, and reflection when it comes to the Falls.

I read an incredible article in the newspaper last week about success. The author was giving a speech to yet another graduating class and chose to speak on the importance of kindness rather than striving to be number one. Being a general cynic and overall smart ass, I ignored the article them first time I saw it (be nice, play nice, blah, blah blah).

When I was a kid, I thought that I'd be a grown up at 18. At 16, I believed that I would be "old" at 21. In my early 20's, the number shifted to 35. By the time I hit my late 30's, I no longer wished to contemplate the matter of age.

A few days ago I turned 40. The Hubs and I celebrated with a ridiculously decadent tropical trip sans children (thanks, Nanni and Poppi!). I slept in, ate incredible meals, drank way more than I should have, took long walks by the beach and relaxed by the pool with a Kindle full of books for days on end. It was delicious. Every single moment.

How many times have you moved? Since my hubby and I were married in 2000, we moved about 10 or more times. Back and forth to Arizona plus several moves around the Bay Area. All without kids.

Most work travel isn't glamorous or fun despite what non-work travelers think. You commute by planes, trains and automobiles and sometimes all three and then check in, go to meetings day and night and crash before doing it all again the next day or traveling back home. Prior to having a child, it was easy to do this, come home, eat take out, sleep in and recover, and sometimes, even spend an extra day traveling as a tourist when visiting a new city.

Sheevon would hate to hear that I call her a miracle worker. And yet, after meeting her last week in Uganda, I could not help but conjure up the image of Anne Sullivan working diligently with Helen Keller, who was both blind and deaf. Instead of working with one student, Sheevon opens her home twice a week to many. On a sunny day, she has the capacity to teach 60 in the outdoor space she and her husband built for the purpose of teaching. When it rains, she can only accommodate 10-20 inside her home.

Let me start by saying that as a Boston resident, I am very lucky that my family and friends were not physically harmed in the recent marathon bombings. I'm also very appreciative and understanding of the fact that although I travel more than the average mom, I don't travel as much as some other working moms out there.

“Mommy, can you take me to the Mother/Daughter thing at school?”

“Sure, Lexi, that sounds fun. Wait…when is it?”

I’ve never gone to a mother/daughter banquet either as a mother or daughter. I’ve seen it on television. I’ve heard about it from friends, but I have always longed to accompany my daughter to one so she can experience it, but my dream will have to be placed on hold.

Remarkable experiences are said to be uncommon and extraordinary. And after spending so much time planning a family vacation -- not to mention a good chunk of cash to pull it off -- we all want our vacations to be just that.

But think back on your family vacations. Alas, young and old alike will forget many of them as the years pass by. All those trips to the beach begin to merge together. So do the grueling hours spent in line at theme parks.