Sasee Magazine

“Your balance is $24.86,” the grocery store clerk said. The woman’s mouth dropped open. “But I just slid my card through. I shouldn’t owe anything.” She put her hand on her hip and said, “I need to see a manager.” I fought the urge to sigh. I was the next one in line, and I [...]

My husband Eric and I spent last week in Hawaii. Our children stayed at home with Grandma. We spent the week relaxing on some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. We drove around the island in a cute little convertible, a far-cry from the seven-passenger SUV I usually drive. We sipped drinks with [...]

“Mom, can I have some money for the Santa Shop at school?” My seven-year-old son, Jordan, asked. I sighed. As a single mom, money for non-essentials was pretty much non-existent. “Please, Mom? The Santa Shop is where all the kids go to buy Christmas presents for their families,” Jordan added hopefully. “And there’s something I [...]

“Nathan did something today that neither one of my kids ever did,” my sister-in-law, Lori, said when I picked up my two-year-old son from her care. I sighed. “Oh, no, what did he do?” Lori chuckled. “It’s nothing bad, just the opposite actually. Nathan thanked me for changing his diaper.” I smiled. “Yes, he does [...]

It hadn’t been a good day, and there was no sign of it getting better any time soon. As a first-year kindergarten teacher, I was scheduled to have my performance evaluation that day. Some time that day, but I didn’t know when. The principal was simply going to walk in, sit down and watch me [...]

“Mom, I’m hungry,” says a child who got up from the dinner table precisely 16 minutes ago. “You can’t be hungry. You just ate,” mutters the overworked, overtired mother of five. “But I am hungry,” the aforementioned child insists. “New rule,” says Mom of Five. “You are not allowed to be hungry again until I’ve [...]

My To Do List and I have a love-hate relationship. Without it, I forget things. Phone calls don’t get made, and birthday cards don’t get sent. Things – sometimes important things – fall through the cracks. So I write the List because I don’t function well without it. But the truth is that I really [...]

Is it weird to tell people – even strangers – how much your outfit costs? I hope not because I’ve never been able to refrain from doing it. Something inside me keeps me from simply accepting a compliment. When I was a teen, I saw the need to explain that the compliment was, in fact, [...]

“Diane, why haven’t you brought the kids over yet?” My mother-in-law said into the phone. “I’m waiting to watch them so you and Eric can go out.” “Eric isn’t home from work yet,” I said, fighting tears “He’s late on your anniversary?” I tried to respond, but my tears took over. “All right, I’m calling [...]

“OK, Diane, you’re doing well,” my obstetrician said, snapping off her rubber gloves. “You’re dilated to eight centimeters, so it shouldn’t be much longer.” As a first-time mom, I didn’t know that “not much longer” meant another seven hours. But on that day, I was clueless about more than just the birth process. My husband [...]