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  • About Me
  • Organization
  • Personal Finance
  • The Widow Life
  • Resources
    • The Fine Print
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  • Reflections on Turning 40: Shaking Off the Dust of the Last Decade

    • August 5, 2017
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    • The Widow Life
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    • 2 Comments

    As I write this, I am midway through my final day as a thirty-something. Tomorrow, I turn 40 and part of me wants to complain about getting old. But I…

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    Until Every Little Piece of You is Gone

    • July 28, 2017
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    • Uncategorized
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    • 2 Comments

    Note: Amazon links on this site are affiliate links.   After my dad died unexpectedly, I distinctly remember sitting with my mom between visitations as she shoved his clothes into…

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    The Privilege of Parenting an 18-Year Old

    • July 10, 2017
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    • The Widow Life
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    • 2 Comments

    We’ve been a bit off-topic here lately. However, with my daughter’s graduation from high school this spring, my mind has been elsewhere. More specifically, it’s been thinking about how unexpectedly…

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    Here’s to Being Average and Getting the Job Done

    • June 6, 2017
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    • Personal Finances
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    • 6 Comments

    My daughter graduated from high school a few weeks ago. She’s my oldest, and it’s the first time we’ve been through all the pomp and circumstance. The day before graduation,…

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    What I’ve Learned in Four Years as a Widow

    • May 31, 2017
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    • The Widow Life
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    • 3 Comments

    Here we are. We come to this place every year. An anniversary. There are plenty of anniversaries to be had – job anniversaries, wedding anniversaries, home-buying anniversaries – but this…

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    Surround Yourself with Good People (And Where to Find Them)

    • May 13, 2017
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    • The Widow Life
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    • 1 Comment

    I had yesterday planned with precision. There would be a Senior Mass and luncheon for my oldest daughter. Muffins with Mom with my youngest son. Then some quick shopping, packing…

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    Is your life an adventure or a tragedy? You get to decide.

    • April 17, 2017
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    • The Widow Life
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    • Comments Off on Is your life an adventure or a tragedy? You get to decide.

    I hope you all had a blessed Easter. We had a beautiful day here. It was a little wet in the morning, but eventually it warmed up and a pleasant…

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About Me

about-me

Maryalene LaPonsie

In a former life, I was a legislative staffer. Now, I am a personal finance writer, mother of five and keeper of memories for my late husband.




Top Posts & Pages

  • 5 Reasons I Still Wear My Wedding Ring
  • 5 Things to Say to a Widow
  • Pros and Cons of the Living Well Planner
  • 5 Things Widows Need to Know About Income Taxes

What I’m Currently Reading

A Peek Inside My Life
  • It's just a matter of time before the clouds and snow arrive so we're soaking up the sun while we can.
  • It's their lucky day. I try not to buy ice cream too often, but Meijer had a ton of toppings and cones on the clearance cart so who am I to deny fate?
  • Morning ambition: make this paperwork disappear from my desk by afternoon.
  • Was back on old stomping grounds yesterday. Man, I miss working here.
  • Every year, our local community turns pink to support those impacted by cancer. Our team didn't win the big football game, but I like to think we all came out ahead last night.
  • It's not pretty, but it's not supposed to be...Hagrid's wasn't! My son saw this cookbook by @dinahbucholz in the library and just had to borrow it. I told him to pick a recipe and, of course, he picked the birthday cake that Hagrid made in Harry Potter and the Socerer's Stone. Took two hours, but Mom gets props for only losing her temper once. ;-)
  • I am all for the natural look, but my yard is looking a bit ridiculous. Our lawn service hasn't been out to mow for a month since a dry July burned up all the grass. Now that the rain has returned, the weeds are taller than the dog. Left what I hope sounded like a rather desperate message on Monday for them to come mow this week. Here's to hoping they show up today!
  • So our dear Mr. Fish died about two weeks ago. I think a stretch of very hot weather + an un-air conditioned house did him in but maybe he had some injury from when all the water leaked out of his tank. However, my daughter decided it was time to resurrect the empty tank and brought home some new fish. That ended up being a rather traumatic experience that has resulted in a pictus catfish swimming around the tank with some netting in his fin. She also bought what I believe must have been the ugliest fish in the store but shhhh...don't tell her I said that. She said it didn't have a label, but I think this is goldfish??

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