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Columns

Hurting for my son

Dear Annie: I’m a mother of four, and a few years ago, during a difficult time, my former in-laws generously fostered my two youngest children, now 13 and 9. They’ve remained involved and caring, and I’m truly grateful. The problem is my 13-year-old son often feels left out. He has ADHD ...

Enjoying summertime celebrations

Call us wild and crazy, but my wife and I enjoy attending small-town summertime celebrations. The most recent such event was Arlington Days, held — brace yourself! — in Arlington. There are approximately a hundred municipalities and locales named Arlington in the United States, so we ...

More than a gut feeling

Dear Annie: I am a 43-year-old woman with a 6-year-old daughter. Her father is 50. We were never in a serious relationship, just friends with benefits, until I became pregnant. At first, he wanted nothing to do with the baby and even pushed for an abortion. I chose to continue the pregnancy, ...

Lip balm gets thrown in laundry

Dear Heloise: I love your column and all the great hints that I read daily. I accidentally washed and dried a small tube of lip balm in a load of my colored clothes. I have spots all over two T-shirts and a pair of knit pants. I need help getting the spots out. I’ve tried a couple of things ...

Does your well water have nitrate?

If your family drinks from a private well, there’s one stop you can’t afford to miss at this year’s Farmfest: the Minnesota Department of Agriculture’s free nitrate water testing booth. Bring a sample of your well water to booth #517S, and we’ll test it for nitrate — on the spot, ...

Boundaries under one roof

Dear Annie: My husband and I live in a three-bedroom house with our two grown children. Recently, our youngest daughter had a baby and moved back home -- bringing her boyfriend with her. We told her beforehand that he couldn’t stay here, but they moved him in anyway. Now, the two of them -- ...