Little Merry Sunshine

Category: #CelebrateLife

Mister Rogers is the neighbor we still need

I cried seeing the trailer for Won’t You Be My Neighbor? in the theater a couple of months ago, so I knew I’d be emotional when I saw the documentary. I had no idea what I was in for though. I loved Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood when I was a kid. To say he was my one... Read more »

By Jessica Gardner,
June 14, 2018 at 2:33 pm •

Sammy Gardner: February 24, 2012 - July 4, 2017

Sammy Gardner was born in Chicago on February 24, 2012. He was one of three kittens, two boys and a girl, born that day to a mom I’ve never known anything about. When he and his siblings were found by volunteers from the Illinois Animal Rescue within a few days of their birth, their mom... Read more »

By Jessica Gardner,
July 4, 2017 at 10:59 pm •

Hey! Hey! What do you say! The Cubs are gonna win today!

Shannon and me with 5 million of our closest friends at the Cubs' World Series Championship Parade!

Today is Opening Day for the 2017 Major League Baseball Season and it finds the World Series Championship Cubs playing against their perennial rival the St. Louis Cardinals. The truth is that I have no idea whether the Cubs will win tonight. I certainly hope they do because like any good lifelong Cubs fan, I... Read more »

By Jessica Gardner,
April 2, 2017 at 5:51 pm •

2017 is the Year of Kindness

After a tumultuous 2016, it’s time to get back to basics. And, in my opinion, nothing is more basic than kindness. Kindness to others. Kindness to ourselves. Kindness to our pets. Kindness to our planet. I am making a new personal commitment to kindness and I invite you to join me. Can you imagine the... Read more »

By Jessica Gardner,
January 2, 2017 at 2:07 pm •

My top 10 favorite experiences of 2016

#1 The year began with the Totally Fabulous Jessica party thrown by Tim and <a href="http://www.norpieswalltowall.com">Michael</a>. Yes, it was simply a party to celebrate ME! Joining in on the fun were Christopher, Wendy and Geoff, and <a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/organizing-with-erin">Erin</a>. Thank you all for spending an evening honoring me! Y'all have no idea how the memory of this evening carried me through some dark moments this year.

As 2016 quickly draws to a close, I need to stop and reflect upon the joy I felt this year. In fact, especially this year. By just about every measure, 2016 was a difficult year for many people. Generation X lost many of our pop culture idols; a presidential election went wonky at the last... Read more »

By Jessica Gardner,
December 31, 2016 at 3:13 pm •

My next chapter is at Bernie's Book Bank

After a long and winding search, I have officially begun the next chapter of my life as the new Event Manager at Bernie’s Book Bank in Lake Bluff. If you’re not familiar with Bernie’s Book Bank, its mission is to “collect, process, and distribute new and gently used children’s books to significantly increase book ownership among at-risk... Read more »

By Jessica Gardner,
January 19, 2016 at 9:23 pm •

The Gardner Family Cookbook: The best Christmas gift I've ever given

This photo was taken at our 1987 family reunion on Sanibel Island. I'm in the back row, fourth from the right in a green dress.

I love Christmas. I love the traditions. I love going to church at Christmas. I love the family time. I love the holiday parties. I love sending Christmas cards. I love receiving Christmas cards. I love picking out the perfect gifts for the people I love. And I love receiving gifts. When it comes to... Read more »

By Jessica Gardner,
January 14, 2016 at 8:45 am •

Like every Friday night of my childhood, I hung out with Sue Ellen Ewing, um, Linda Gray

If you’re a Gen Xer, you grew up on a Friday night of Dukes of Hazzard, Dallas, and Falcon Crest, even if it was against your parents’ wishes or explicit instructions. I was lucky. My parents would often go out on Friday evenings, ironically to church group functions, leaving Dave and me with a babysitter... Read more »

By Jessica Gardner,
October 4, 2015 at 1:13 pm •

Watch LMS TODAY on Huffington Post Live discussing mammograms

Do you remember last fall when my first mammogram turned into a lumpectomy? I’m sure you do because I (over) shared the whole thing right here on these pages. Today I have some exciting updates: First, after a mostly positive 6-month follow-up diagnostic mammogram and ultrasound in May, I was referred for genetic counseling and... Read more »

By Jessica Gardner,
July 13, 2015 at 9:55 am •

Love won. Gay marriage is now law of the land.

On June 25, 2015, 37 of 50 states had marriage equality. States without marriage equality included: North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Texas, Missouri, Arkansas, Mississippi, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, and Michigan. Map from <a href="http://planetmundus.com/dichotomous-america/">PlanetMundus.com</a>

Unless you’ve been living in an underground bunker with zero modern conveniences, you’ve certainly heard about Friday’s Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, No. 14-556, slip op. (U.S. June 26, 2015) (dissenting opinions by Roberts, Scalia, Thomas, and Alito) legalizing gay marriage throughout the country by a 5-4 margin. In writing the opinion of... Read more »

By Jessica Gardner,
June 28, 2015 at 4:47 pm •

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