North Dakota Nice

No sleep till Scottsdale | March 22, 2023

My boys and I recently returned from a vacation in Scottsdale, Arizona. We were gone the exact amount of time it takes a human body to decide, “Hear ye hear ye, pull out yer flip flops…
Wild Kingdom presents: The father-son hockey game | March 15, 2023

My eleven-year-old’s hockey team had its wrap-up party, and I was absolutely set against writing about it because 1) I don’t want people to avoid spending time with me for fear they will end up as…
Better let you go | March 8, 2023

If you are a North Dakotan, you know there’s a darker – but not like “Darth Vader” dark, more like “grumpy Death Star janitor” grey – side to the concept of “North Dakota Nice.” Specifically, North…
Dad Island | March 1, 2023

My eleven-year-old’s winter hockey season came to a close this past weekend, and after what was either three or three hundred months of hockey, I’m TIRED. T-I-R-E-D. I’m so tired that I came down with a…
Cinema North Dakota: “Shotgun Wedding” with Minot’s Josh Duhamel (and also Jennifer Lopez) | February 22, 2023

First of all, you should know that Josh Duhamel doesn’t take his shirt off at all in Shotgun Wedding (Prime Video), not once. Despite being wet for approximately 20% of the movie – it takes place…
A mom recaps Super Bowl LVII | February 15, 2023

For the sake of transparency, I should tell you that I was rooting for the Chiefs. I didn’t have any particular feeling for the Chiefs, but when I asked my sons who they wanted to win…
Amanda and the Snowmobile | February 8, 2023

I don’t know about you, but we have reached the point in the year when I have decided it’s spring. It’s spring. It’s spring even though this is North Dakota and last week we had thirty-below…
Profiles in Profile: Kyle Kosior Live | February 1, 2023

We are now in the thick, THE THICK, of the winter hockey season. Between our eleven-year-old’s travel team, our seven-year-old’s league and fun skates, and Kyle’s job with the hockey agency, we spend so much time…
The birthday gift | January 25, 2023

It’s my birthday on January 29; and a month or so ago Kyle told me he was busy organizing my gift, “which would be a surprise.” This was an unnecessary statement, as 100% of my presents…
Ye olde puberty | January 17, 2023

My son’s fifth-grade class recently had the Ye Olde Puberty Talk. As far as I can tell, my eleven-year-old’s takeaway is that they said the proper word for the male anatomy SIX TIMES. That’s fine. As…