When is the last time you did something that made you say “wow”? This morning? Last week? Last year? Not sure? I’m Stephanie, and I’m on a mission to put more wow moments into my life. Want to join me?
Big announcement: my son and daughter-in-law are having a baby!! Which means I’m going to be a grandmother! Nolan (working title) is due in February, and while the rest of the family is busy being excited, I have a serious decision to make: What is this child going...
Lately, I’ve been thinking about my high school bedroom. My parents were house flippers before house flipping became entertainment TV. They’d find a fixer-upper in a good neighborhood, move our family in, make cosmetic changes, and sell it about a year later. Each...
Newsweek recently published an essay I wrote about the trip I took to Paris after David died. I'd always dreamed of visiting the City of Lights, and when I finally made it there, one thing wasn't as I'd imagined: I was traveling alone…as a widow. I called the trip...
Over the past three years, I’ve been on a path of healing and self-discovery. I think many of us are. At the beginning of my journey, I consciously avoided talking too much about widowhood. I didn’t want to make other people uncomfortable. But I’ve come to realize...
A couple of years ago, I took an online improv class from Second City. People were surprised. Improv? Steff? It seemed like something a bold, extroverted person would do, and I’m neither bold nor extroverted. At least not historically. But here’s the thing, I’d...
I often say that my dad is my hero. But if we’re being honest? There’s someone else who deserves a little more credit: 20-year-old me. I know it sounds like a lost track from Mariah Carey, but stay with me. Because a disastrous calculus exam, a rock concert, and...
My son Nick is on a grand adventure. He recently quit his job in finance to backpack across Europe. Solo. No firm agenda, no backup plan. Just a passport, a train schedule, some really good socks, and a sense of curiosity. At 26, with no wife, no kids, no mortgage,...
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you may have noticed a subtle shift over the past two and a half years. Or not. Honestly, I didn’t notice it myself until I went back and reread old posts, starting from the very beginning. While you're welcome to do...
At the end of the year, I love to look back and savor the WOW! Moments I've had over the past 12 months. I recently looked through my photos and discovered that 2025 was chock-full. Here's a quick rundown of some highlights. I went to see Rascal Flatts with my...
When I was little, I was terrified of the Grinch. Specifically, the part in the animated special where they show this totally realistic, wildly unnecessary X-ray proving his heart was two sizes too small. What were you thinking, Seuss??!! We were just kids. Not...