I'm just trying to walk myself home.
A Story about Reading Children’s Christmas Books Thursday night after yoga I went to a bookstore and sat in the children’s section for a long time with a pile of newly published Christmas books for children. I do this every year. Well, every year since I worked in a bookstore in Deerfield, Illinois while Taido …
today i want to tell you about my very favorite novel of all times. resurrection, by leo tolstoy. i have given it away like twice in my life for a gift because i just cannot bear for it to not be read. and let’s face it. not everyone is going to read a 600 page …
Oven Baked Three Grain Oatmeal This is my new favorite (and easy) hot cereal: Three Grain Oatmeal. I’ve added it to my breakfast arsenal, especially for when guests are in town. You put it all in a casserole dish (or in my case, a cast iron skillet) the night before and set your oven timer …
Here are all the reasons I can think of that I am currently making a vichyssoise. It’s simmering on Anna’s stove as I write. 1. It’s cold here in Chicago. 2. I’ve been reading Barefoot in Paris, which is the book in which this recipe is found, and it’s cheaper than actually going to Paris. …
A Story About Teaching A Child Not To Throw Food My youngest son, Simon, and I spent an hour today learning not to throw our food. Of course I already know how to not throw food, except for maybe the occasional flinging from vigorous stirring. But Simon. He throws food at every meal. So we …
Lately, I have been defying the 90 degree weather by making soup. I mean, it’s OCTOBER for crying out loud. It is supposed to be fall. I am forcing my children (and friends) to eat soup while sweating in my kitchen, made hotter by turning on the oven to make bread. Cruel really. but I …
i have been reading eat, pray, love by elizabeth gilbert for several weeks. i started it because hello, anne lamott has the endorsement on the cover, and i love her. i would love to loan it to you, but it’s overdue at the library and someone else has it on reserve, thereby blocking my ability to …
My newest yoga instructor’s name is Jeanie. She is precious, I tell you. But honestly, I think I have yet to meet a yoga instructor I didn’t like. Jeanie has blond hair, the usual yoga body and, get this, she’s had seven children. You heard me. Seven. They are all grown, and so now …
Last night Taido warned us all that he would be waking us up very early for the final adventure of our Crested Butte vacation: Climbing Mt. Crested Butte. He and the kids made a list of everything we would need to take for our climb. The big kids (ages 6, 8 and 10) picked out …
my sister has been in town this week with her kids, which makes nine cousins at my parent’s house when you add four chinos and peter and whitney’s two. we have crammed a lot into nine days with nine kids. and i am tired. but i love the whole family all together. i love to …
while sitting in church on sunday morning, i played a game with myself to try to get the pit in my stomach to settle down. i had already cried through our pastor’s prayer for a family who lost their 19 year old daughter in a car accident on saturday, and i was driven to distraction …
Taido is the star breakfast cook at our house, and his breakfast crepes are the favorite for sure! His waffles and pancakes make weekly appearances on our table, but the crepes on an occasional Saturday morning are a special treat. Incidentally, my favorite breakfast growing up was crepes. My mom made them on Saturday mornings …
I’m wading into dangerous ground today. I spent this morning re-reading the first chapter of Good and Angry by Scott Turansky. I started this book last fall but i didn’t get very far. I was in a bad place as far as parenting goes, and I was struggling with anger, especially with one particular child…not …
We went to the Memphis Zoo on for the day on Monday. I am telling you. This zoo is worth the drive from Little Rock. We belonged to the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle when we lived there and what I loved about joining was that once I joined, the zoo became a completely free …
Middle schoolers. Pre-adolescents. Jr. highers. Whatever you want to call them. They are a rare breed. The crazy thing about middle schoolers (well, of course we all know there is more than one crazy thing) is that the range of heights and developmental stages is so wide among them. The group Taido works with ranges …
We had such a classic summer in Arkansas weekend. I have been kind of dazed and sleepy for the last day or so, just soaking it all in. My kids went to the lake last week for the blue moon. I love for them to camp on an island at the lake in the summertime, …
Here is my fresh pesto recipe in honor of the bunch of basil in this month’s basket from the farm. I use my food processor to make this, but i’m sure you could use a blender too. You can serve this on pasta or on sandwiches made with homemade bread. Fresh Pesto Recipe (for about …
For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief. ecclesiastes 1:18 i think that in heaven, solomon and i will be great friends. i feel him when he writes these words. so often i will read something or hear something and immediately think, “i wish i didn’t know about that…” because …
A Story About A Science Fair Project Oh my goodness I’m so glad we’re out of school! I have always loved summer. We are having a pool break today because it’s rainy and my kids are slightly sunburned, but we have had several glorious days of pretty much changing from our pajamas to our …
last night we honored the graduating senior class at our wednesday night church service. we do this at church every may and i always look forward to it. the students lead the service with their own brand of worship, which is a taste of the world they inhabit…a world that despite being married to a …