My houseguest is gone. She came for two weeks and I asked her to stay for six months. And another six months. One year. My houseguest was more than just a houseguest. She was my friend, my daughter, my playmate and often my confidant. She had to return to The Netherlands. We are both sad. And though I am sad she is gone – and gone so far away – I am grateful my husband and I were able to have her here for a year. She wasn’t our first long-term houseguest. We also invited a young man into our Keep Reading...
Snow Biking – Really, that is a “Thing”
Okay, just the title, Snow Biking, tells you this will be a ridiculous story (with a good ending so keep reading.) Snow and biking should never be in the same sentence. Seriously. But I learned that the hard way. Yes, I went snow biking. For my fellow Southerners, let me explain what the heck snow biking is. Snow biking is when you get on what southerners would call a mountain bike except it has super fat tires with super thick tread – for the snow! I was at a resort somewhere in Keep Reading...
The Day I Rescued A Turtle – I Mean – A College Boy
My three girls were used to me slamming on my brakes, backing up, jumping out of the car, dashing into the road, snatching up a turtle and carrying it to the safety of the nearby ditch. They weren’t always happy about my turtle rescues (especially as teenagers) but they were not surprised when it happened. Last weekend, I was hurrying to meet one of my daughters two hours away for a grandbaby handoff. I passed a sign saying something about a road closed ahead. I kept driving because who Keep Reading...
My “not word” for 2019
It’s January 1st so my Facebook feed is full of “words for the year.” A lot of people like to choose a word for the year to focus on. Some take time to pray about what their word will be. Some post about it on social media. Some take surveys of what others’ words are for the year. Well, I’ve decided on a word I’m going to try NOT to use this year. And that word is BUSY. Busy is my “not word” of 2019. I’m not going to say “I’m busy” when someone asks me what’s going on in my life. I’m Keep Reading...
Oh, Great!
Recently, there have been a few head scratching, jaw dropping, “are you kidding me?” stories in the news that reminded me of a time when... I hurriedly backed out of the driveway. Late, again, to get the girls to dance lessons. “Oh, great!” I mumbled as I put the car into park. “I forgot something.” My seven-year-old daughter in the back seat asked, “Mommy, why do you always say, “Oh, great!” when things aren’t great at all? Well, that stopped me in my tracks. I realized I exclaimed, Keep Reading...
Going and Coming and Coming and Going
Today's bike ride reminded me of something I wrote a few years ago. When I ride my bike, there is a two-mile stretch as I leave my neighborhood that is it relatively flat. By Northerner’s standards it would most definitely be considered flat. But in Texas, our guidelines for flatness are a little different. In Texas, anything with an elevation is a hill. On this two-mile stretch ~ with only a slight hill ~ the road is flanked by pastures most of the way. If there is any sort of a breeze, it Keep Reading...
It’s Never Too Late
Do you remember the “Highlights” magazine? When I was a kid, I wanted to be the first one to get the magazine when it came to my house so I could beat my siblings to the hidden pictures puzzle. Highlight magazine was full of puzzles, riddles, games and other pages created to make learning fun. I believe pediatrician waiting rooms are still scattered with Highlight magazines. I wouldn’t actually know since it’s been, ahem, years since I’ve visited one. I also had a subscription to another Keep Reading...
The Day of “And then…”
As I sipped my coffee one morning this week, I contemplated all the tasks I needed to complete. And then... My houseguest from The Netherlands came out from her bedroom on the other side of the house and gently let me know that it was really hot and the heat wouldn’t stop blowing. A few weeks ago, the thermostat - that is now part of our “smart home” package - malfunctioned and it was freezing in her room. Now we had the opposite problem. I walked toward her room and about threw up because it Keep Reading...
The Woman Behind the Man Billy Graham
This past week the world learned the famous evangelist, Billy Graham, died. My Facebook feed was full of odes to his life and legacy – mine included. Billy Graham’s life changed a generation. And that generation is changing the next generation. But there is another story about the success of Billy Graham that is intriguing to me. The story of Ruth Bell Graham. Billy’s wife. The mother of his five children. As I young girl in my bedroom during the tumultuous and often lonely junior high Keep Reading...
Pool Gone Rogue
It’s unseasonably cold where I live. We're getting snow, sleet and freezing rain. That is such a rarity in South Texas so people are bundling up, going outside to play in the dusting of snow and trying to build a snowman with a fistful of the cold, white stuff. It is craziness. Last night as I went out in the backyard with the dogs “one last time” before bed, all was quiet - except for the roar from my neighbors’ pools. And the sound took me back. Back to another cold Texas night... My Keep Reading...
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