By Lisa Bertrand

This sweet little face? His name is Cody. He’s a feisty little guy. And while he’s ruined the carpets by refusing to be housetrained (a post for another day) he is teaching my son some very important life lessons.

Back in January we adopted this itty bitty Daschsund/Beagle mix in need of a home. The deal was “the boy” would be the main caretaker. My son immediately latched on to the idea. The Star Wars buff named his pup “Commander Cody” and began referring to Cody as his “son”.

We at StLFamilyLife.com would like to wish you a wonderful, safe Memorial Day. Our normal posting schedule will resume tomorrow.

Thanks so much for reading. It means the world to us. And in the meantime, go hug a veteran!

(By Lisa Bertrand)

It is 8 a.m. As I sit in the breakfast nook answering emails, readying a boy for school and writing this, the hubby has hit the snooze on his alarm clock at least six times. Six times, people!

He’s been doing this for years, setting the alarm at some ungodly early hour and then hitting the snooze button repeatedly. Why doesn’t he just set his alarm to a later time? Because each night as he sets the alarm, he has every intention of getting up early. But then morning comes…

By Lisa Bertrand

You’ve just learned of your friend’s miscarriage. Your heart aches for her. You struggle to convey a message of comfort and support. But if you’ve never been through the experience, you’re probably at a loss as to what to do and say.

The first step is trying to understand how this person might be feeling. No matter how much time has elapsed, a miscarriage is a loss that those who experience never forget.

“I had a miscarriage with my first pregnancy. It was devastating. I felt like you spent so much time…

Work from home? If you don’t odds are you know plenty of people who do! I’ve been working from home for years. My husband? Is set to start working from home soon too.

As we readied a workspace for him, I began wondering about office safety. (Children seem to view a home office as being some sort of paperclip, magic marker wonderland — especially if they discover you’ve been hiding yummy snacks in one of your desk drawers!) I dug up some great tips worth a mention.

Kepp your work space off-limits to children unless supervised by an adult…

Punxsuawnie Phil saw his shadow today. You know what that means! Six more weeks of winter. (If you’d like to visit Phil’s official website and become a member of his club, here’s a site you might want to check out this site.)

So if, according to the lore, spring isn’t on the immediate horizon, we’re be spending more time indoors. What to do? Here are a few quick ideas if you’ve got a quiet Saturday or Sunday.

How about ice skating? There are several indoor ice skating rinks in the area. Ice Zone is one. And don’t forget about the Kirkwood skating rink as well as the one in Brentwood.

The U.S. Census is gearing up in an effort to count all of those in the United States. (Insert a lame “Hey, you count!” joke here.)

Eventually, more than 140,000 U.S. Census workers will count every person in the United States and will gather information including name, age, gender, race, and other relevant data. But of course be on the lookout for con-artists posing as Census workers. Keep these tips from the Better Business Bureau in mind.

* A U.S. Census worker knocking on your door will have a badge, a hand held device, a Census Bureau canvas bag, and a confidentiality notice.

Happy Holidays to you and your loved ones. May 2010 bring you (and your families) much joy, peace, happiness and fun!

And p.s. If you’re looking for something fun to do on New Year’s Eve? Check out the feature column for a very cool idea!

A recent study showed that 61% of the US population is worried about having enough money to deal with the holidays, while 42% is worried about gift giving. Thirty-four percent are stressing over not having enough time to get things done, while an additional 23% are anxious about running up their credit card debt!

Let’s face it, while this is supposed to be a season of joy and socializing, not many people have the extra money to spend or time to nurture themselves.

Nine years ago I was badly injured on Halloween night due to a broken manhole cover, bad lighting and a lack of hazard tape. Talk about scarey! Take a few minutes to read these safety tips. They could save you or your little one a scraped knee or (in my case) a trek to the local emergency room!

Check sidewalks. Look for tripping hazards (created by cracks or uneven pavement) as well as missing chunks of sidewalk. Also, are cars or other objects (utility poles, newspaper racks, etc.) blocking the sidewalk? Gauge the traffic. Does the speed or amount of traffic make this location feel uncomfortable? Do you have personal safety concerns walking in this location?