Every day I consciously look for moments of magic in the midst of my often busy, sometimes crazy days. I hope my moments inspire you to look for your own…
When I told my dear friend, Libby Barnett that I was reading The Swiss Family Robinson to the kids this summer, her face lit up. “My father read that to me when I was a little girl,” she said. She got a far away look in her eyes and said, “I remember it so clearly. How I loved the … Continue Reading
Ever year when school resumes in the fall, I count down the days ‘til summer vacation begins. I can’t wait to get the kids back in my nest, to allow our days a rhythm without alarm clocks, scheduled activities and homework. To let their sleepy brains awaken over a plate of syrupy pancakes and watch … Continue Reading
The only thing my husband wanted for Father’s Day was my participation in the first annual, mother-daughter end-of-season soccer game. It was our first and only free Sunday in June, and the last thing I wanted to do. But by Sunday, I felt guilty about the complaining I’d done all week and decided to embrace … Continue Reading
My dad’s birthday is on the 4th of July. For years we woke to the mixture of him blasting John Phillip Sousa’s Stars and Stripes Forever and my mother shouts of “Turn that music down, Jerry.” We spent all his birthdays at my aunt, uncle and grandparent’s summer cottages in Henderson Harbor, NY. The only time during the … Continue Reading
After Andie was born nearly four months early, I longed for a woman who had walked in my shoes. I needed someone to hold my hand and nod her head in understanding as I voiced my fears and uncertainty. But that woman never arrived, and my loneliness, grief and fear took up residence just below … Continue Reading
I couldn’t wait for the kids to get out of school for summer. To sleep in late, eat leisurely breakfasts without making lunches at the same time and not have to race to school before the 7:55 bell ran. After the end-of-year ceremony on Friday morning, we had a picnic back at our house for … Continue Reading
As a parent of a premature baby, or the parent of a child facing any sort of challenge, or the parent of, well, any child…there are those moments… those moments that stop you in your tracks, and simply take your breath away. It might be a first…a child’s first word, or step, or lost tooth, … Continue Reading
When Tucker was a little guy, he’d fashion fishing poles out of sticks and string and hang his “rods” over the back of the kitchen sofa. A bite from a big one, would require great effort and lots of groaning until he successfully reeled in his imaginary catch. His first “real” rod was red and … Continue Reading
If you’ve read my blog entry “Getting Dirty” you know I’ve been inspired to become more agriculturally astute. My latest lesson was about rhubarb. I’d never cooked with it and frankly, had no desire. Then my kids and I had the experience of plucking it straight from the field and learning that as an early … Continue Reading
On a recent morning visit with my friend Eleanor, I sat on the loveseat in front of her warm woodstove and picked up a book from the coffee table. The cover was a photo of a woman in jeans and clogs leaning against hay bales in the loft of a big red barn. The Dirty Life: A … Continue Reading
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