Published in About Me Stories·PinnedMember-onlyAbout Me — Brynn MahnkeFreelance writer. Distance runner. Reader. Outdoors lover. Useless facts memorizer. — Hi! I’m Brynn. I’ve been writing for years, but just recently started putting my work into the world for others to see. About Me I’m a freelance writer based in the Midwest. I am married and have seven kids, and before you ask — yes, I know what causes that! Five of…Social Media3 min readSocial Media3 min read
Aug 15Member-onlyHow I earned an extra $6,802.50 freelancing this yearIf you want something, ask for it! — I set an income goal for myself last year and barely made it halfway. Some of this was because of projects I accepted, and some of it was because of poor boundaries and low value of myself. So when December rolled around, and the final dollar count for the year…Freelancing4 min readFreelancing4 min read
Mar 1Member-onlyBuilding Habits Over TimeRevisiting your resolutions — If you’re like most Americans you started the year off with a laundry list of things you’d like to improve about yourself. This year you were going to lose 20 pounds, write a novel, snag that promotion, and run your first 5k. And, along with most other Americans, those resolutions…Work3 min readWork3 min read
Feb 14Member-onlyConsidering Kindness: How a Quick Connection Can Shift Your PerceptionAnd someone else’s, too — I walked up to the checkout line with a handful of items for dinner, pleased that only one person stood in front of me. …Kindness4 min readKindness4 min read
Published in MuddyUm·Dec 25, 2021Member-onlyMistakes Made Over Christmas BreakTis the season, or something — Christmas break. Two words that strike terror in the heart of parents everywhere. Two weeks of children at home in the middle of winter while the wind howls outside, company comes and goes, presents are unwrapped and in various stages of being assembled, and siblings argue over who ate the…Humor4 min readHumor4 min read
Published in Yard Couch·Dec 18, 2021Member-only№1 Tip To Avoid Arguing With Your Partner Over FinancesSpending without budgeting doesn’t have to hurt your relationship — Money can be a tender subject. We all have our own ideas about money — how it should be spent or saved, which items receive a top spending priority, and how much (or if!) we’re willing to go into debt to buy the things we want. Money is one of…Philosophy5 min readPhilosophy5 min read
Published in Catness·Dec 16, 2021Member-onlyAn Unlikely FriendshipMy dog cared for my cat in his final years, and I didn’t even know — Our dog Penny is a people dog. She’s not the kind of people dog who wants to sit on my lap or be constantly touching me, though. She’s the kind of people dog who simply wants to be in the same room with me. Whether she’s sprawled on the floor…Friendship5 min readFriendship5 min read
Published in Catness·Nov 27, 2021Member-onlyKitten to Cat, Child to Adult: A Cat’s Journey Comes to an End“I have something to show you. Come over!” I could hear my boyfriend’s smile through the phone but couldn’t guess what this “surprise” might be. Drawing my coat a little closer, I jogged up the steps to his second-floor apartment, the brisk autumn air swirling through my hair as the…Pets9 min readPets9 min read
Nov 4, 2021Member-onlyHow Long Until Chickens Start Laying Eggs?Our girls are finally laying, here’s how long it took! Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Let me just tell you, it was definitely the chicken. By a long shot. We got our chicks on May 23 when they were just a few days old. We managed to…Lifestyle4 min readLifestyle4 min read
Oct 7, 2021Member-onlyTwo of Our Chickens DiedHow it happened and how we’re handling it — When we got chicks I expected they might not all survive. They are livestock, they live outdoors, they’re birds. They are susceptible to illness, predators, even (in terrible circumstances) bullying by members of their own flock — bullying which can even lead to death. But there’s something quite different about…Chicken9 min readChicken9 min read
