Is it just me, or does news affect you differently as your life situation changes? I hate to hear bad news stories about children since I’ve had kids. Each summer I avoid the news with the inevitable caught in an overhot car stories, for instance. I just don’t want to hear it.

When I was a kid and in my early twenties, I prided myself on how I could take anything without blinking an eye. I was tougher than dirt.

I was so naive and stupid. Now I just deeply appreciate what I have every day and every moment. Sometimes you have to realize how lucky you are with the life that you live. And let the people you love know it.