Why is it true of human nature that we put off things we dread, choosing every possible option to busy ourselves until the dreaded thing is upon us? Taxes. Essays. Doctors. Mopping. What is true of trivialities is also true of essentials. We take stock at the start of a new year and resolve to …
All I Want For Christmas
I lose track of my phone more often these days. I check my email less frequently. I scroll social media less often and more quickly, scanning for birthdays and baby pictures. I don’t have dementia (at least I don’t think so!) I have grandchildren! It’s so much easier to put a pause on my devices …
Happy Birthday, Jesus
We’ve decided to celebrate Christmas a little differently this year with our little ones. Christmas is, after all, Jesus’s birthday and our celebrations should reflect truth more than culture, so this is the year we will start a new family tradition. Since our married children have their own families, we’ve settled on the morning of …
Impress Them
My precious sister loves my children well, loves them like her own, even before she had two girls of her own. She and my daughter are very much alike as God designed them. Both taught 5th grade for three years before staying home with children. Both love to bake and their love language is giving …
We Can’t Get Around It- We Need Each Other
“We’re going on a bear hunt. We’re going to catch a big one. What a beautiful day! We’re not scared. Oh-oh! A snowstorm! We can’t go over it. We can’t go under it. Oh, no! We’ve got to go through it!” -Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury Thomas loves a bear hunt. It doesn’t matter if …
Continue reading "We Can’t Get Around It- We Need Each Other"
Where is your Damascus?
The spring of my daughter’s wedding, she asked if we could ride the Virginia Creeper Trail together. We traveled to Damascus, the midpoint of the thirty-five mile trail, rented bikes and chartered a lift to the trailhead seventeen miles up in Whitetop. That first year was perfectly magical! We shared a quaint little room in …
You Owe Me
It gives me pleasure to serve and give to my children and grandchildren. The simple joy I receive is payment enough, but I receive their gratitude and a share of their time as well. Balancing the scales or creating a sense of obligation never crosses my mind. In fact, if anything, we each seek to …
Lead By Example
I’ve been the mother in the grocery store with the screaming baby, just trying to finish and get home with a shred of dignity, or is it sanity?I’ve since seen mothers in the store with little ones who are past the point of no return and I wonder at the varied responses I see to …
When My Fears Meet My God
I may have snoozed my alarm more than once this morning. I set it intentionally early so I can be awake before my son, Thomas. He’s an early riser most days and I am not a morning person. When I can be up with my coffee and spend a few minutes with Jesus before Thomas …
No Matter What
The battle of wills has begun in our house. My son is transitioning from baby to toddler and that means advances in many areas. He crawls and climbs. He’s so close to taking his first steps, and we’re working on communicating with words to get what he wants. He’s grown quite accustomed to simply grunting …
A Fitting Reply 