I find great joy in giving. And following my recent surgery, I acknowledged how great it felt when friends delivered food to my back door. But there was more to that story. An uncomfortable more that made me stop and access my behavior. The third bearer of gifts sat down at the table and chatted with me as I scarffed down … Read More
Scouting Tomorrow’s Leaders
It’s that time of year, again. Cabin fever. Spring fever. Daylight savings time. Girl Scout cookies. Several weeks ago I passed a group of young girls standing at the edge of a parking lot, waving brightly decorated signs “GIRL SCOUT COOKIES!” The air outside was bitterly cold and snow blew wildly on the wind. I made a U-Turn and headed … Read More
The Joys of Giving
Breakfast for a group of growing boys I love preparing special little gifts, special occasions, everyday events, and surprises for the people in my life. I recently put together fun packages for my college kids and their companions. I felt so much joy baking the goodies, wrapping other little wintry whatnots, and writing a personal note to each of … Read More
Parents of Well-Behaved Children Rewarded – Good or Bad Practice?
I recently stumbled across Circle of Mom’s blog entry about a restaurant discount one family received because their children were well-behaved. The comment boards were lit up with parents and non-parents, alike, arguing both sides of whether or not this bill reduction is fair and/or moral. As of this writing, the HuffingtonPost piece that originated the discussion had 732 responses. … Read More
Admitting to the Martyr in Me
Warren and I will soon be traveling south to watch SS compete in a national event. I can’t wait to be in a little warmer climate after the harsh winter we’re having in the northeast. I’m also looking forward to spending a couple of days with my family who live only about five hours from the venue. As I was … Read More
Homework Humor
“Ha! That’s part of the paper I used for my project,” Big Guy said as we sat watching television.“That’d be a new one, wouldn’t it?” he continued, “The cat ate my homework.” As if she knew what he was saying, she put on a little show. The proof is in the paper! What about you? What … Read More
The (Negative) Affects of our Actions
We’ve all heard the expression, “Shit flows downhill.” The boss’ freshly dry-cleaned shirt is stained, his car won’t start, and the taxi driver is not only late, he’s rude. The boss barks at his secretary, who yells at her associate, who snaps at the intern, who goes home and hollers at her son, who, in turn, kicks the dog because … Read More
Road Trip Amusement
On one of my recent trips I crested this hillside and was transported back to one of our family vacations. We were heading home from a trip to North Carolina, years before GPS became a household name. After realizing we’d somehow taken a wrong turn, Warren consulted the giant Rand McNally we kept in our car. There he … Read More
The Five Love Languages
Home from college, Fave Son introduced me to Gary D. Chapman’s philosophy on love, The 5 Love Languages. We have many common traits, me and that boy of mine. Needless to say, we tend to butt heads and rub each other the wrong way. We had one such heated discussion the other night, but then—by some astounding feat—we settled … Read More
An Imprint Reprinted
Homemade sugar cookies for my college kids;complete with my signature smiley face It’s that time of year, again… Holiday preparations. Care packages filled with a little love for my college kids to have during their exams. Catching up on paperwork I let go whilst I spent the summer playing and vacationing…. In my queue of story ideas, I have been … Read More