We don’t have central air conditioning. It’s Montana, so we have many months that require flannel sheets but only a few weeks in each year that require lemonade. I have low tolerance for those hot days in the 80’s and 90’s, though, so when I wake up in the middle of the night (always), I…
For seven months, we powered through a massive life change of leaving our precious church of 30 years and crossing town to a new church job, where we faced the immediate crunch of trying to build structure for over 150 people where there had only been about 30 people before. It was hard and wonderful…
One is four and the other is two. They are brothers. Yesterday, when I had my grandsons over to my house, the eldest asked the youngest sweetly if he could please play with a few of the toy horses. The youngest said a cheerful yes and shared. Then the eldest did a quiet, hostile takeover,…
Forty-five minutes into a baby shower on Saturday, I experienced an overwhelming fatigue and felt almost physically ill because I was so tired. It had been building all day. Thankfully, I was sitting by the back door. I slipped out, drove home, and crawled into bed for the next two hours. Matt and I had…
Work, husband, kids, grandkids, parents, friends, cousins, church family, neighbors? There are just so many people and I’m trying to be perfect in all of these relationships, except I am NOT. Many of these interactions are sticky, some like a big glob of sap stuck to the bottom of your shoe and some like that…
I sat in front of my two counselors, after spending three full days walking back through all of the traumatic events of the last four years, which largely involved a deception at church that caused immeasurable pain and loss for us in every direction. (This is why I haven’t written very much in the last…
Underneath our bedroom window is a large weed bed. For five years I have alternately sprayed and weeded this large area of nicely edged dirt. Prior to us living here, it was where my little nephews were invited to play with excavators and dump trucks. But let me be honest and say I’m not too…
It’s not just the plants that go dormant in cold climates; the people do, too. It’s the beginning of spring, and Matt and I just took a one-mile lap around the neighborhood. As we neared our house, the woman next door came out of her garage dressed in work clothes and carrying a large outdoor…
The 18-month-old has learned to scream, at the top of his lungs, “I want that!” because his 3-year-old brother has modeled that for him. They’re the typical grandkids at that age, and we send a constant barrage of instruction their way. Be kind. Ask him nicely. Can you share, please? Let’s not scream at your…
When I was younger, I devoured books by Grace Livingston Hill. Almost all of her stories were the Cinderella type, except instead of sleeping in the cinders by the fire, the main character was living through the Great Depression. I remember reading about a heroine who was able to make a fashionable hat out of…
Matt and I turned down the lights, curled up underneath a gargantuan fuzzy blanket, and settled in to watch The Boys in the Boat for the first time a few nights ago. I was so deeply moved by this movie. I do NOT endorse it, because it did have some foul moments. But I experienced…
My mother-in-law bought me a beautiful book for my birthday (hello 55). It’s called Teatime Discipleship, by Sally Clarkson. Sally writes about the tea, finger sandwiches, and candle she sets out on her tea cart when she has a friend over. “Beauty is God’s calling card,” she says. Last week we had a few friends…
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