As I write, I am bundled and enjoying the peace of the newly instituted quiet hour at the Theisen house. As temps have plummeted to negative 45 with wind chill, all five of the kids are under our new roof. Joe is taking a J-term course and needs a quiet place. The house has plenty of space with nooks and crannies, and when the construction is done, I may be hard-pressed to even find the kids. It’s likely that quiet hour could be lifted. But for now, our scarce outlets and meager 60 watts of electricity have driven the Theisen …

Our mission is simple, yet carefully designed for these complex times. 5ive for Women will genuinely connect with today’s intelligent, confident, go-getter woman through insightful articles and thought-provoking features. We will empower and uplift—addressing the not-so-simple balance between faith, family, friends, fitness, and finance.

Our mission is simple, yet carefully designed for these complex times. 5ive for Women will genuinely connect with today’s intelligent, confident, go-getter woman through insightful articles and thought-provoking features. We will empower and uplift—addressing the not-so-simple balance between faith, family, friends, fitness, and finance.

Our mission is simple, yet carefully designed for these complex times. 5ive for Women will genuinely connect with today’s intelligent, confident, go-getter woman through insightful articles and thought-provoking features. We will empower and uplift—addressing the not-so-simple balance between faith, family, friends, fitness, and finance.

Our mission is simple, yet carefully designed for these complex times. 5ive for Women will genuinely connect with today’s intelligent, confident, go-getter woman through insightful articles and thought-provoking features. We will empower and uplift—addressing the not-so-simple balance between faith, family, friends, fitness, and finance.

Our mission is simple, yet carefully designed for these complex times. 5ive for Women will genuinely connect with today’s intelligent, confident, go-getter woman through insightful articles and thought-provoking features. We will empower and uplift—addressing the not-so-simple balance between faith, family, friends, fitness, and finance.

My wish for each of you this Christmas season is to be present in the kitchen, making or enjoying food with the ones you love. I know I plan to. One of our family traditions is baking Christmas sugar cookies. I have made the same cookies every single year of the 24 years my husband and I have been married. I have so many fond memories of decorating those cookies with our children and various friends over the years. You can find our family cookie recipe on the 5ive for Women Facebook page. Here are a couple of savory recipes to help you enjoy time with your family. Happy Thanksgiving and …

By Dori Pulse True enough, as I make my way through various retail establishments this week, Halloween has not yet arrived and Christmas lights and fixtures sparkle in the aisles. Why are we all in such a rush, reaching out, extending past what we have for today? Holidays are stressful for many people—what to buy, how many to buy for, will they like it—and then January’s credit card statements roll in, and we stress over how we are going to pay for it all. There is tangible “electricity” in the air that begins about mid-November and dissipates after the first …