Dear Maggie

Paige is filling in again today for Maggie – who is off with her friend, Nick, helping him get ready for Christmas.  She has confirmation about an age-old question from one of our little readers that seems to come up every year at this time.  It’s the perfect thing to hear to spread a some holiday cheer!  Merry Christmas!

With all of the sales going on the past few weeks, Maggie is way behind on her emails – but since shopping is on her mind, she takes the opportunity to remind everyone about the easiest way to buy something nice for the teachers and staff for Christmas this year – and you don’t even need to leave your couch to do it. Trust us – she’s not!

Maggie may have a song in her heart, but that does not mean she is musically inclined. This week, she helps out a school mom with a wicked addition – literally! Pink may go with green, yet Maggie is not envious of this poor woman’s plight – but as always, she jumps to the rescue with a confession of her own, and a suggestion to channel her energy towards a different musical venture – and one that’s easy on the pocket-book. In fact, you might say that you can enjoy this particular entertainment treat for Peanuts!

This week a school parent reaches out to Maggie to ask for a sign about the St. Margaret Holiday Market – or more accurately, to clarify what the deal is with all the signs for the Market – and even more importantly, what exactly is being sold here by the School Library?? But have no fear… once again it’s Maggie to the rescue to provide much-needed insight into this parental confusion – must be a sign of the times!

This week, Maggie helps out an election-weary school parent who is potentially looking for greener pastures across the pond. But before this mom takes the plunge, Maggie has a trick up her kilt to suggest – why not try out the Scottish vibe on her Feast Day! All are welcome to join – and after all, the moors, the merrier!

We’re approaching the end of October, so take one guess what topic Maggie’s inbox is flooded with this week? But if you thought it was concerning Maggie’s favorite holiday – you’d be wrong! Maggie puts her saintly spin on the details for next week’s prized holiday… and oh yes, she’ll also talk about Halloween!

Maggie is sending in a column this week on her way to Scotland to fulfill every actor’s dream (and every audience’s nightmare) – a one-woman show! And while her work as a thespian may not make you cry, she gives it her all to put the “tear” into volunt-teer for this post. But have no fear, she will tear herself away to get back in time for Walk-A-Thon Saturday!

This week, Maggie trades her gossip girl hat for that of the town crier to help out a mother who is almost in tears over the prospect of one more day off of school. But have no fear – Maggie channels this panicked parent off the cliff, and onto the (Walk-A-Thon) path of tranquility with her big announcement regarding a special party for the whole school – if the fundraising goal is met this year!

Maggie turns to her trusted assistant, Page, to deliver the latest deets on a favorite upcoming event at St. Margaret’s – and inspired by Maggie’s attempt to prance her way to fitness, Page is ready to get all of you pumped and motivated for the SMOS Walk-A-Thon! Luckily for us, pearls are not required for this outing!

If you’re like Maggie, you might just FALL in love with all of the autumn-y goodness coming up at SMOS in the next couple of weeks! This week, Maggie spills the (coffee) beans on her Favorite Fall Things and presents a list that is sure to please even the most ardent of pumpkin-spice-season detesters among us!

Maggie helps out a confused Papa who is showing his poker face when his daughter insists that he join her for Gaga on the playground during school! Turns out it’s a chance to help out at recess – play soccer, throw a ball, or even learn the latest TikTok craze – and just dance! Luckily for him, Maggie steps in to show him how to get set-up for duty… and avoid a bad romance with the school admin staff!

Maggie is switching gears this week before she jets out the door to hobnob on the red carpet with Chappell Roan. But always thinking of the SMOS community first, she brings us her entry for the parish cookbook with one of her family’s favorites – and with ingredients like this, she might just add, “Good Luck, Babe!”

This week it’s a school grandparent who reaches out to Maggie for some insight on the upcoming Mass In The Grass. Maggie gets into the weed(s) on this one to give some SMOS background on the event, and lead Grandpa out of his haze!

This week Maggie hears from a peppy parent who is looking to add a little spirit into her wear at SMOS events! Maggie helps this parent go from drab to fab with new arrivals from our (local) fashion partner – just in time to show off the latest Fall looks on the soccer sidelines this season!

Maggie has been having one heckuva brat Summer! She’s just getting back into the swing of things now – and she’s ready for her close-up, Mr. Demille! Maggie is here this week to tell you how to put the MORE in glaMOUR!

Maggie’s got big plans over the Summer – and they involve TV. Not watching it – being on it! She plans to be the ultimate game show contestant, and since this is the last official newsletter for this school year, she plans to take full advantage of her early exit. So, this is goodbye until August – or as they say in television, that’s a wrap!

This week, Maggie reaches out to rescue a school Mom with a titanic dilemma – she’s sunk when it comes to handling more in May (and no, it’s not because of all of this rain!) Maggie votes for a little focus on the School Board election, and assures her that she’s not all wet if she just moves onto Summer vacation now, and let’s the rest of it go.

In this week’s column, Maggie promises not to deny service to a parental techie who wants her to download the deets about Dragon’s Grove 2.0. The answer is as simple as ABC, but explaining this alpha-bet soup to a beta-loving dad proves that Maggie can put the AI in sAInt!

Maggie’s column is usurped today by her trusty admin, Gen (as in St. Genesius, the patron saint of secretaries), who has an axe to grind with our Ms. Maggie (which has nothing to do with the rumors of his beheading!) It appears that Gen was all-but-forgotten yesterday for Administrative Professionals Day – and he wants to make sure that we all didn’t lose our heads and forget to thank Chris Stephens & Jennifer Shearer for everything they do around the school!

The hills are alive with the sounds of… Beyonce?!? In this week’s column, Maggie steps in to sashay a Mom confused about the Family Dance into the right tempo. Maggie’s here with all the deets before you can say so long, farewell!

Maggie is back this week with tough love for a SMOS parent whose ability to control her inbox has been eclipsed by Spring Break and a certain solar event.

This week, Maggie consoles a school parent who’s caught up in the lack of a Spring Break grind – by commiserating about her lackluster vacation plans too – all while reminiscing about her younger days… and a Spring Break “Grind” of another sort.

Maggie to the rescue again this week to bail out a mother who, let’s just say, didn’t exactly tell the truth about where she was this Tuesday night. Now she needs Maggie to fill her in on all of the hot scoop from the PTA meeting this week, so her teenage daughter doesn’t find out that she was fibbing and went out for wine with her mom-friends at Sasha’s instead of heading to the School.

This week, Maggie jumps in to help repair the generational divide between a daughter and her mother – over what SMOS activities are appropriate for the granny-set! Of course, being a grandma herself gives Maggie a leg up, as she tries to explain that the answer may just lie in a recess-ive family gene!

It’s always FAIR weather when Maggie comes to the aid of a school parent with a daunting question, and this week is no exception. In this week’s column, Maggie clarifies why a student is looking to extort fifty bucks from his cash-strapped parents for the library.

There’s something fishy going on in Maggie’s column this week – and it’s not the question about who the Feastie Boys really are, but the details about what makes the SMOS Fish Fry so good? Hint, hint – it may not take a lot of cooks in the kitchen, but it is necessary to have 4 Hands!

In this week’s column, Maggie hears from a parent who’s stuck in holiday hell – trying to juggle the indulgences of Valentine’s Day and the restrictions of Ash Wednesday. But as Maggie reminds her, not all is lost – and that there may just be a way to have her King Cake and eat it too!

Today, it’s not a parent, but none other than Ms. Jen Shearer with a request for Maggie – she is getting buried alive by your kids, or rather, by your kids’ stuff! She needs help to dig out of the Lost & Found pile before Mr. Holley files a missing person’s report, and considers her a goner. Have no fear – Ms. Shearer is still on the job, but any unclaimed items that are not “found” by February 20 will soon be “lost” to SVdP. Once again, it’s Maggie to the rescue!

If your oldest child is even less responsible than the US Postal Service is these days when it comes to delivering paperwork, you might not be alone. This week, Maggie helps out a mom who has the registration blues – with just the right note to help fix her document drama.

After a night out with her friends, Maggie is at a loss for words – not because she doesn’t have anything to say – but because she hasn’t a clue where her phone is!?! She’ll be back with answers to your pressing questions next week, but in the meantime, she reminisces this week about her favorite time of year – Catholic Schools Week (what else?)!

This week, Maggie grabs her shovel and digs into the details of the School’s snow day plans, to help an artic-addled mom dig out from the avalanche of weather forecasts brought forth by her doppler-addicted husband.

This week, Maggie is asked to help out a Mom who is desperately seeking sitters during this holiday season! As she explains, trusting the walking dead to watch your kids isn’t the best idea – but Maggie comes to the rescue with the details about the SMOS Babysitters Directory.

This week, Maggie brings in a guest columnist to help her answer a question from a parent who has a dreidel dilemma in his household. Who better than the OG Bubbeh, St. Anne (grandma of Jesus) to help light this menorah!

This week, Maggie helps out a parent who is trying to figure out where all of the religious hype her daughter brings home is coming from. It’s a mystery wrapped up in a retreat – a real who-done-it for Maggie to put on her best Jessica Fletcher sweater and get to the bottom of. But have no fear, she’ll get this mom CLUED in!

Maggie helps out a parent who has committed the ultimate sin – they threw away their child’s artwork! Nothing like back in her day though, when it was off with your head! As she ponders her own visage in the art world, she has some advice on how to redirect that artistic passion into more constructive means to help the school.

Maggie is on the march – literally! No, she was not kidnapped… just relocated from the Rectory to the new Dragon’s Grove 2.0, where she now sits under the newly situated garden dome. Stop by for a visit anytime – she’d love to catch up!

What does Maggie do to honor the Day of the Dead? Well, Alexa may not know, but Maggie does! This week, she shares her personal celebration of Día de los Muertos, and of course, it involves alcohol and hanging out with her two besties. If only we could now answer the question of whether Alexa is a ghost or just an annoying know-it-all.

This week, Maggie is helping to cure everyone’s sweet-tooth on the details for Halloween plans at School this year – no tricks, just treats!

This week, Maggie is getting lyrical about her very NOT secret closet, as she threads the needle about how to find Maggie’s Closet and what all of the hub-bub is about… bub!

This week, Maggie’s puts on her Buzzfeed pants and dishes out some sound advice for a parent who is feeling stressed from all of the Fall activities – too many events, too little time, and not enough Pumpkin Spiced Lattes to go around!

This week, Maggie’s all about the links – but it’s not the school website that has her excited, it’s the annual golf tournament! Check out the advice she has for one SMOS Dad who is worried his game may not be up to par enough to participate.

In this week’s column, Maggie helps out a Mom who’s gone missing in action with school events – and gets her back on track with the Sunday Class Mass schedule – yes, it is a thing, and yes, there is a signup!

In this week’s column, Maggie gives the FACTS on the fast, direct way to email your questions to her at maggie@stmargaretstl.org. You’ve got mail!

In this week’s column, Maggie takes a question from a reader who’s looking to get into the “Act” when it comes to checking out some new choir music!

This week, Maggie has a question from a Nellie superfan – Nellie Hoppman that is – who wonders what social groups Maggie participates in, similar to the SMOS Moms & Dads groups?

This week, Maggie is helping decide the pressing debate of “Team Monday” or “Team Friday” for a laundry weary parent. So what’s it going to be Maggie – which team are you on?!?

This week, Maggie has a very pressing question from a certain “Perplexed Principal” who needs her to spill the tea one of her favorite topics – herself! So, exactly who is Ms. Maggie??

This week, Maggie tackles the age-old SMOS gift-giving conundrum… what do I get my kid’s teacher for Christmas that they really will want, rather than jsut add to their “World’s Greatest Teacher” mug collection?