So it all started with a dead pine tree. Our yard is bordered by these giant conifers, and one of them up and died. We had a couple of...

When our older son Knox was around 4-years old, he was given my husband’s vast collection of Matchbox cars. Included in the throng were...

When we get a chance to get away, my husband Brent and I enjoy finding new places to hike. Considering that he was born near the Great...

Other than your regular holidays—ones like Christmas, Thanksgiving, Mother’s Day, Arbor Day—there are some pretty crazy celebrations that...

A few weeks ago I washed the inside and outside of most of the windows in our house. This is worth mentioning because I often feel like I...

I always wanted a canopy bed, a canopy bed with a frilly dust ruffle and tons of fabric draping over me as I dreamed perfect, happy...

On a cold evening, a few weeks ago, I turned on the television and was pleasantly surprised to find there’s a whole channel devoted to...

When I was in high school, our drama group put on the play The Miracle Worker. As was the case for most productions, I was a backstage...

I work at a preschool a couple of days a week. I know that these kids ranging from one to five-years old will eventually grow up to be...

We got a taxi to the hospital and after what felt like forever—if you’ve spent time in the waiting room with a sick loved one you know...

If you’ve been inside any stores since Christmas, you know that Valentine’s Day must be just around the corner. Heart-shaped candy boxes...

I’ve published a few books over the last eight or nine years, and something I’ve noticed when a person has read one of my books is her...

“They don’t know that it isn’t real.” This was the reply from Rodrigo, the man who took our family snorkeling on his little boat, the...

When our girls were little, one of their favorite games to play was hide-and-seek. They would tell me or my husband Brent to hide our...

Last weekend, our youngest son’s soccer team played in a tournament in Gatlinburg. Back in August, when they first listed it among the...

I have a sign in my kitchen which has been there for more than a decade. It reads: “GIVE THANKS: Oh Thou, who has given us so much,...

Last week, I sat in a chair facing a group of four-year olds as they sat “crisscross applesauce” and waited for me to read a book to...

A few weeks ago, I heard an unmistakable chirping sound as I walked through the basement to the laundry room. We had recently changed the...

Twenty years ago I had the shock of my life. After a year of unsuccessful attempts to have a baby, I had finally seen the coveted two...

As I was sitting on the sidelines of one of my sons’ soccer games recently, I heard a familiar question, “A little help?” It was part...

For the most part, my husband and I were raised as city people. A half-acre lot was plenty for our folks. They had their vegetable...

Our two sons are both on travel soccer teams. This means that they seem to be playing ball all the time. In the winter, we’ve watched...

When I was 6-years old, my dad bought our family’s first microwave oven. It was a giant behemoth with its own designated piece of...

I had a friend in elementary school named Jill who was allergic to chocolate. I knew she tried to avoid it, but I didn’t know exactly why...