Soon after starting a family, we moved into our first house in Montclair, which was across the street from a park. And although the playground was in need of a facelift back then, the park had a paved path, a climbing tree, a baseball diamond, a big pond, a fountain and a few weeping bushes that kids could tuck themselves into for [...]

It needs to be said: we all had a very long winter. Even as recently as last week, I was tempted to turn my heat back on.

But now, everyone seems energized by the warm weather, especially since it's been such a long time coming. Since moving here, spring feels even more magical to me. Early on, when barely anything was in bloom, I'd walk [...]

A few years ago I rode my bike to the local farmers' market to get some Swiss chard for dinner. PAWS (Pound Animal Welfare Society) had a booth set up with orphaned cats and dogs. I did not come home with chard that day, but instead with a beautiful Siamese kitten. (Too little to ride safely in my bike basket, I pedaled home so I could [...]

There are a couple of places in Montclair that feel like happy secrets and when I'm reminded of them I always feel the need to share.

One such secret is Kip's Castle. Sitting high atop First Mountain, this majestic structure offers an equally majestic view. There are no lords or ladies living there - in fact it's actually part of the county [...]

I think the scariest thing for those of us that hail from the city is that the suburbs can't possibly provide that same level of excitement - that feeling that anything could happen at any moment. And, in a way, that's true. Montclair is not, and never will be, [...]