I'm just trying to walk myself home.
While we were traveling this summer, almost every time I posted a picture of Switzerland, someone would tell us that we HAD to ride a certain cable car or take a certain train. All the guidebooks and blog posts say the same thing. But here’s the thing. They are really expensive. A lot of them …
Our first walk in Switzerland was to a waterfall. All the signs said “Wasservall” so we kept saying we were walking to a “Wasservall.” Which reminded us of The Willoughbys. The Willoughbys is a favorite book of ours that we’ve listened to over and over again, and a little boy in the book pretends he …
As I have been recapping my summer travels, you might have noticed that I skipped something when I went from Paris to our trip home through the Lake District. I skipped about four weeks that we spent in Switzerland. I have been saving it, holding it in my hands and heart like a precious gem, …
Y’all this week we mark a year of being in Scotland. I have some fun “retrospective” posts coming up next week because I think it’s important to remember the good and the bad from our first year here. I was just reading my first post from our new home town and it seems like yesterday …
So, Mary Polly and I went to Paris for two days and nights with our dear friends, Sarabeth and Elizabeth. They were stopping over on their way to Kenya, so we jumped at the chance to stopover with them. To Paris! Because Paris is always a good idea. We were positively giddy to be in …
Day 3 of St Cuthbert’s Way: Morebattle to Kirk Yetholm On our third day of walking we confirmed one thing for certain. When it came to estimating how long it would take us to finish a day’s walking, we were absolute rubbish. On our first day, we’d predicted 5:30pm and were two hours off. The …
Day 1 of St Cuthbert’s Way: Melrose to Harestanes We laid our waterproof pants out the night before in anticipation of the rain, which was still falling when we woke up in Melrose. We pulled on all our gear, packed up our bag and left our comfortable room a little reluctantly. However, Sheila had made …
Snapshots of Durham, England for Instagram Travel Thursday Whenever someone mentions Durham in a room full of people in the UK, at least one person makes a reverent oohing sound. Ahh, Durham. Yes, you must see Durham. So when we heard that Taido was slated to speak at a conference at Durham University, the rest …
Happy Friday, friends! How has your week been? Mine has been full of writing and photo editing from my walk along St Cuthbert’s Way. In fact Macs Adventure has compiled some of the social media from the week on their site already. Super fun! This weekend I am going to try to get up one …
I mentioned a while back how much we are loving Jamie Oliver’s cookbooks since we moved to the UK. Save with Jamie is my current obsession, as we are eating mostly vegetarian these days and are always trying to save money on groceries. This is really a breakfast meal, but we have been serving it …
A Story about Simon Simon is growing up so fast that sometimes I forget how much he still has to learn. Being the youngest means he is constantly trying to keep up with the older three. In fact, even though he is almost eight, he has just discovered all the Disney movies. He fell in …
How’s your week been? Mine has been catch up from being gone and prep to leave soon on my first long walk! My sister and I head out next week to walk St Cuthbert’s Way with Macs Adventure. It is sixty miles of Scottish + English countryside because it’s right on the border. I have …
A Story about Cole Hello, Mom? I’m in trouble and I need you to come pick me up. As a mom, you know you might get this phone call one day, but it still surprises you that first time it happens. Cole is my first child. I have strong memories of his nights as a …
Y’all! I am beyond excited to announce that I am going to be going on a couple of long walks times this year with Macs Adventure. In just a few weeks I am going to walk St Cuthbert’s Way in Scotland with my sister! This path wanders through several ancient abbeys, beginning with Melrose Abbey …
Here’s my last January walk! After six straight days of rain in Aberdeen, I decided to get out by myself in the area last Thursday. I have been trying to go for longer walks when I’m alone because I’m hoping to go on a really long walk in the not too distant future. Plus I …
Fractures of light on the edges of the clouds. I’m always watching for it. The light. Watching my boys taste tiramisu for the first time. Getting a letter in the mail. Light. I’ve been meditating on the idea of light in the darkness this week. For me, often darkness = depression + despair. Which is …
Who does not love a stack of brand new school supplies? Or the smell of freshly sharpened pencils? I love to hold a new notebook in my hands, one with no creases in the cover, and to open it up to the first blank page. It is as full of possibility as the sun coming …
Friends! How these first days of January have flown by! Confession: I have not left the house this week except to go to church and to walk to and from school. And I am still not caught up! But it’s time to throw off the PJ pants and head out into the world because it …
The twelfth and final story of my Twelve Days of Stories is actually the beginning of a story. It is a draft of the first chapter of the book I have been writing. I hope that one day these words will take shape in print form that you can hold in your hands. Thank you …
In 2010, my husband and son, Taido and Cole, had a trip planned to go hiking in Switzerland for Cole’s 13th birthday. The night before the trip, there was a small problem. This was first published on my blog that same autumn. A Story about A Passport We were all leaving town on Friday morning, …