Leeks are one of the oldest Irish vegetables, and they combine well with other foods of the Emerald Isle, including cheese, potatoes and fish.

No matter what is affecting your son, you can help him find a reason to smile each day, starting first thing in the morning.

This week’s suggestions: Watch the X Paralympic Winter Games, check out one of the new movies, get ready for the time change, prepare for Selection Sunday and start celebrating St. Patrick’s Day.

Did you know that we recently celebrated National Blueberry Popover Day, Oatmeal Nut Waffles Day and National Crabmeat Day? Just about every type of food has a commemorative day, week or month.

Weekly family rail, with tips on holding a frugal family night, a review of “Alice in Wonderland” and more. 

Weekly home rail, with tips on spring cleaning digital devices, how to update your decor for spring, what to know before painting the exterior of your home, and more.

Once so lightly regarded it was relegated to the backyard, bathrooms have come a long way since the days of outhouses and rain barrel tubs. Today the bathroom — especially the master bath — is treated as a coveted living space, and perhaps the most indispensable room in the home.

All of her life, Carri Weller had struggled with her weight. With food. With all of things that go into making lifestyles healthy. On the cusp of her 30th birthday, though, Weller had decided she had seen enough.

It’s not every day that a person can put the words “Atari 2600” and “education” together.

Call them sunshine ladies, the entertainment committee or the coffee lady. Title or not, almost every company and organization has a small group or individual who makes coffee for morning breaks, fills the candy dishes, organizes birthday parties and gives a whole lot extra of themselves without expecting anything in return.

For Sally Schierer, baking is no different than sewing a purse, by hand, from scrap material, growing a lemon tree from seed or stroking paint on a canvas. "I'm a creative person. I like to take something and make something else out of it," she says. "I do it all through the house, the garden and the yard."

After Eric Knowlton's promotion, he started thinking about his shoes. At 300-plus pounds, tying his shoes in the morning was a challenge.

Weekly food rail, with tips on soaking dry beans, an easy recipe for Dorito casserole, the latest from The Beer Nut, and more.

Most of us take speaking skills for granted. For some, learning to communicate is hard-earned. In his nine years, Cole Bennett hasn’t been able to verbalize his thoughts. But he is learning now, thanks to a speech-generating device. He is learning to communicate with Tobii Assistive Technology.

Tori Michaels' work in life is often misunderstood, feared even. "There were people who actually grabbed their children and ran away. They said I was working with the devil," said Michaels, a feng shui consultant who moved to the Peoria, Ill., area from St. Louis a couple years ago.