My Journey Between Christmas and Hanukkah
Click here to read article on NEWSDAY This year, Christmas Eve and the first night of Hanukkah coincide, which is very rare. My family is excited. The moment I kissed Jeff’s freckled mouth on the dance floor of a Washington, D.C., club, I was electrified. He was a...
I Worked with Jennifer Hudson’s Weight Loss Coach. Here’s What I Learned.
CLICK HERE TO READ ARTICLE ON RACHAEL RAY EVERY DAY “I’ve struggled with weight my whole life,” Liz Josefsberg said while opening her laptop to show me photos of herself 65 pounds heavier. It was my first appointment with the celebrity health and wellness expert and...
My Marinara Sauce Helps Bridge My Family’s Easter-Passover Gap
CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE ON RACHAEL RAY EVERY DAY Although I’m an Italian-Catholic, I’m very aware that Passover is just around the corner. Since I married my husband and we decided to raise our children in his religion, I’ve embraced celebrating the...
A Horrible Mother
Click here to read the article on Brain, Child Summer camp had just begun and it was the first hot day of the year. The air outside looked wavy. I strapped my child into her car seat and kissed her chubby cheeks. She was my third so I’d learned to take the time to do...
Interview with Jessica Strawser
Click here to read the full interview for Literary Mama Jessica Strawser works literary magic from two distinct angles. As an author, her debut novel, Almost Missed You, was recently named to the shortlist of Best New Fiction by Barnes and Noble and is a PopSugar...
A Letter to My Daughter as She Enters Middle School
Click here to read the piece in full on Sammiches and Psych Meds Important Notes for Middle School “How was middle school orientation?” you asked the other day when I returned. The look of hope in your eager eyes, my sweet girl, was so pure that I had to...
Don’t Miss Almost Missed You – Q & A with Jessica Strawser, author
Click here to read Q & A in Brain, Child Mag Holly Rizzuto Palker Interviews Jessica Strawser on her debut novel, Almost Missed You. ALMOST MISSED YOU by Jessica Strawser, is an intriguing novel involving a husband and two-year-old son disappearing while on a...
Article published in Kveller
When I learned my husband’s company was relocating us from New Jersey to London during my energy-filled second trimester, I was elated. We made a bucket list and travelled nearly every weekend to dramatic places like Venice. I was due in December so once mid-October...
He Wasn’t Just a Dog, He Was a Family Member
Read article on Huffington Post here “Please keep calm,” said our British pet sitter, “Quigley has run off in the wood but we’ll find him.” We were American expats living in the UK and we were visiting home for the holidays. We hated leaving him behind for the same...
My Life is Full
Please click here to read on Sammiches and Psych Meds I am a mom. A wife. A friend. A daughter. A teacher. A writer. I try to be so many things to so many people that when I stop to think, I sometimes come up feeling like I am nothing much to anyone. My life is full....
My Writing Retreat
The Scenario My family sent me for a writing retreat as a gift for Mother’s Day last year and it was a total hit. I had such a fulfilling adventure that I indirectly reminded my husband how much I appreciated the gift again this year as Mother’s Day drew near. Since I...
One in One Hundred – February is Heart Month
guest post by Christa Frankos Duggan In my heart, I thought what happened to us was one in a million. But, we are much less unique than that. We are one in one hundred. I realized my life had changed after I was in the recovery room from having an emergency C-section....
