I'm just trying to walk myself home.
We are about 10 pages from finishing our current read-aloud at the Chino House. Here’s what I love about being at this point in a book with my kids. When they get home from school tomorrow I could ask them if they would rather finish Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry or watch TV and …
Eleanor Roosevelt wrote the introduction to Daisy Bates’ memoir, The Long Shadow of Little Rock, about the Little Rock Nine, which was first published in 1962. In it, she boldly states, Every American should read this book. I could not agree more. In fact, I think it is …
Last Friday I accompanied the fourth graders at Pike View on a field trip that included stops at Little Rock Central High School, the Old State House and the Arkansas State Capitol. The trip came on the heels of units for Black History month and a social studies unit on the federal, state and local …
We have a class at our church called Talk It Out that attempts to provide a place for education and discussion of racial issues over the span of four weekly sessions. For me, the class has really served as a jumping off place for other learning. I believe all good classes do this actually, and …
The trees do this in February.
I have been trying to practice the daily offices with more regularity since last summer. I was shooting for three or four, but I usually only hit one or two. I’m looking at Lent as a new beginning with the hopes that more frequent repetition will help me to assimilate some of these prayers into …
I love the fresh ginger dressing that comes on top of some lettuce and shredded carrots at the beginning of your meal at sushi bars and Japanese steakhouses. I don’t get to get out and eat sushi as often as I would like, but I can now at least have the salad because I have …
My favorite valentine is a book of course. And because the outpouring of sweets is abundant at school, I give my kiddos books for valentine’s as well. This year Cole is getting Inkheart, Mary Polly a new Ivy and Bean, Ben a new My Weird School and Simon a new Mr. Putter. In case you …
Mushroom and Wild Rice Soup I saw Slumdog Millionaire this weekend. Everyone should see this movie. I would love to see it sweep the academy awards. However, two days after seeing it, my thoughts are a little too raw to be coherent so instead of talking about this film, I am giving you a recipe …
Ina Garten’s Cheddar Dill Scones I made Ina Garten’s cheddar dill scones this week, and I have grounded myself from making them again because I ate them all. They are so flaky, cheesy yummy that I just couldn’t resist. Even the next day after a minute or two in the toaster oven I was burning …
This week I’ve been getting ready for our boxed lunch book club that we do once a month at church. This month’s book is I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou. For several days I’ve been rereading my favorite parts of this book and am amazed anew at the way Maya Angelou …
My aunt gave my children the Jesus Storybook BIble for Christmas and it is my new favorite Bible for children. The illustrations by Jago are the best I’ve ever seen in a children’s Bible, but beyond that, the whole book is tied together by this idea on the front cover, that every story whispers his name. …
I finished this book by Nancy Ortberg yesterday. Another Christmas gift from another sweet friend. I was trying to savor it, because each vignette was worthy of contemplation, but I ended up gulping down the remaining chapters yesterday morning. I have said before that I love to read stories of people finding faith, and this …
Ida B…and her plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World. by Katharine Hannigan Last night we finished this little gem of a book, and though I’ve mentioned it several times, I thought it deserved its very own post. The power of a treasure like Ida B is that reading a couple …
I’ve been fighting the crazy Christmas machine this week. Not the one that jumps out of advertisements. The one that lives inside my head. It tells me that I’ll never ever get away from being in bondage to the Christmas frenzy, no matter what I do. There are two current lines of thought in my …
I made these muffins for Taido to take to work this week and I have had several requests for the recipe, so here it is! You probably have everything you need to make these for breakfast tomorrow! Enjoy! Cinnamon Muffins 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted 1 cup sugar 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cinnamon …
Gingered Carrot Cookies I made these gingered carrot cookies a few weeks ago, and I think they just look like autumn. Plus they remind me of carrot cake, which I like a lot. They are from Dorie Greenspan’s monstrous cookbook on baking, which has proved to be a very delectable purchase. My love for ginger …
I am so thankful for the house on Eagle Creek Road and for the couple that lives there. This year Taido and I have had many discussions about buying a bigger house. We have even tried raising our house payment on our current house to see if we can afford a bigger house. We can’t. …
We are having a pretty low key Thanksgiving this year as opposed to the super crazy years we go to Chicago and pile like 40 of us in my sister’s house, cooking and eating until we all explode. I will miss the greater gathering, but the relative calm of this year allows me the time …
Sometimes I go to church and I am just there. Some Sundays I soak up little bits and pieces, trying to grasp with my hands the fleeting, holy moments as they pass me by. And then some precious Sunday mornings are so full that I feel like if Jesus gave me the Holy Spirit to …