“Lookit Those Baby Blues…”

This tiny girl makes me an utter fool for her. I sit there for hours, playing with her fingers and toes, kissing her soft little forehead, and talking to her in goofy voices that I usually reserve for puppies. I watch her sleep like it’s a feature film that I’ve waited years to see. Something [...]

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A Letter to My Niece, Addison Elizabeth, on Her Very First “Birthday”

To my niece, Addison Elizabeth, on her very first “birthday,” November 1, 2009.
I slept curled up with my phone last night, next to a brightly burning lamp, so if I had to wake up and go to the hospital in the middle of the night, I wouldn’t be too out of sorts. I might have [...]

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Beautiful Moments

::: 1 :::

I was driving home from work yesterday, and was waiting at a busy intersection near my office when I saw a woman handing a man grocery bags from the trunk of her car. At first, I was trying to figure out what in the world these two were doing in a dry cleaner’s [...]

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Yes, I Know. We Look Exactly Alike.

Even though I am almost kissing the edge of Mother’s Day, I just must say:
I have a pretty fantastic mother. Nutty, worrisome, kooky, and at times overly-loving as she is, I wouldn’t change a thing about her and love her just as she is.

Happy Mama’s Day, Mom.

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Opening My Eyes and Realizing I’m Still Hanging On

Sometimes I have to remind myself that I’m living my own life. Looking back through photographs or get caught in reflections of memories gone by, I have to kick-start my brain to remember that that was and is my life.
(I hope this doesn’t sound too strange.)
(Does anyone else ever feel this way?)
I went to drop [...]

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Just One of My Grandpa’s Girls

I was thinking about my Grandpa yesterday. My father’s father, he worked in factories all his life, sweating and making and producing. He was a pretty quiet guy, and only began to get chattier as he got older, as the onset of dimensia clouded over. He would tell stories about his life, usually the same [...]

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Memories of My Father’s Workshop

One of my favorite memories from my childhood is my dad’s workshop. He’s an amateur carpenter and handyman, who is always working on some project or another (usually with a little gentle nudging from my mom). When I was a little kid, I used to sneak down the basement steps and sit there, arms entwined [...]

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My Christmas List of Stuff I Already Have

Johnny Cash is singing on my Pandora radio about fried chicken and it’s making me hungry.
That’s not the point though.
The point is that it is a whirlwind of snowflakes and frigid air outside, which is becoming slightly depressing, so I am going to make a list of things that make me happy in order to [...]

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C’est Noel! C’est Noel!

I work at a nonprofit and our local arena often gives us tickets for events that aren’t sold out, to distribute to our employees and volunteers. So last night, I had the enjoyable opportunity to take my sister and parents to “Christmas with Amy Grant and Vince Gill.” Before the snickering and middle-aged references commence, [...]

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Give Thanks in All Circumstances.

When I say I love Thanksgiving, I mean I really LOVE Thanksgiving.
I think it’s because it’s the least pressured of the wintery holidays.
At Christmas, everyone gets wrapped up (both literally and figuratively) in gifts and holiday parties and family — for those of us with weak nerves (like my dear mother), this is a mental [...]

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