Alison Johnson

Alison Johnson is a freelance writer living in Yorktown, Va. She has written for newspapers and magazines for about 20 years, specializing in parenting and health features for many of them. She and her husband David, a sportswriter, are raising two hyper boys -- Tommy, 10, and Sam, 8 -- one very friendly beagle-like mutt and an orange cat named Dorito who likes to attack feet early in the morning.