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Mentorship in Marriage
39 years ago today, I wasn’t but a sparkle in my mom’s eye as she walked down the aisle in her beautiful white dress on her dad’s arm. Her focus, my dad, her future! My future. My children’s future. I have been blessed. Since that wedding day the Lt. and Mrs. became Mom and Dad to three children, me and my two younger brothers. They took their family where the military sent them, far from their own families. They relied on each other, friends around them and the grace of God. Their three children grew up, got married and had children. Dad has retired from the Air Force after thirty-years…
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Seasonal Light Disorder
“Seasonal Light Disorder”. Winter is tough. Winter in northeast Ohio is dark, dreary, cloudy. My mood can plumit into depths of darkness in an instant. Today at the grocery store I picked up a fresh basil plant. I came home, washed my kitchen window, put my new little ray of sunshine on a little plate. I BREATHED in the fresh spring air, the aroma of fresh gardens, sunshine and so much more all in a tiny little pot. What do you do to help with the dark dreary winter days? When we were stationed in Iceland we put lights on timers to help keep our ‘clocks’ on cycle. As those…
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Roots That Matter
Roots. Not so great when the side walk pops up. Pain in the neck when they approach the garden and the rotor tiler jumps and jerks. Dare I say when the hair line goes multi colored… dark strips appearing and or white blazing. HOWEVER Roots. Fantastic when talking to children about heritage. Smile grabbers when Bases, Posts, Stations, Aux Fields are mentioned on FaceBook. Over the top when pictures crash in on emotions and you are reminded of loved ones who have gone on before us. And tangible root/heritage articles of art, clothing or holiday are just plain fun to have! Have any Scandinavian in you? Ja sure you betcha!…
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A World of Emotion
I must admit it has been a very long couple of weeks. BabyBoy *L* just turned 4-months and since around Thanksgiving learned how to *really* make his opinions known. He wants to be held. 24 hours. He wants to see the world around him. No time for sitting! He wants to play. Even when he is eating. In becoming more aware of the world around him he is sending me into a sleepless haze. I love all the parenting-articles out there … oh sure at 4-months you can get them into a routine. This momma has tried. *L*’s routine is his routine. There will be no ‘undue-influence’ he tells me.…
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Creamy Pepper Pot Soup – Tasty Tuesday
Magic ingredients can turn a overflow of peppers into a tasty filling lunch that can be cooked up from scratch in 30 minutes. The magic isn’t quite Disney, or David Copperfield, but still transforming from counter top or refrigerator extras to steamy bowl full of goodness! And, this soup is for two, not twenty! Substitutions are allowed and encouraged when making your very own homemade from scratch: as you know where the senses are! Should you have the urge for some extra heat, use hotter peppers. A child sharing that pot with you… mild jalapenos and NO Hungarian Wax peppers are the key. I like to walk the fence… just…
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A Walk in the Shoes of a Wounded Warrior
Have you ever been confined to a wheel chair? Recently, I had to have surgery on a foot and the doctor prescribed no weight on the foot for a month. Easy enough, let me have those crutches and I will move around I thought! Then came the devastating news! I just didn’t have a lump removed from my foot it was cancer. I visited a couple of doctors for care and one took the cake for lack of patient comfort and bedside manner! Ok, this is an almost exact quote if not the exact words. I have to say I was in a bit of shock but I did have…
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Would you like a bouquet?
Recently we traveled to Fort Riley and participated in the Army Wife Network (AWN) “Priceless Package”. When this event comes to your post, be FIRST in line to sign up for a seat. It is an unbelievable time of relaxing, laughing, learning and sharing. All attendees walk out of that room with a greater understanding of military pride. They are armed with battle buddies, recognize that normal is WONDERFUL and gripping a piece of normalcy and holding on to that with flexed fingers is all important. Like my Aunt used to say… “whatever doesn’t make you stronger kills ya.” She had a way with words! This time is a must…
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Down and Dreary … What is your message?
It is a rainy, cold, dark day here in northeast Ohio. I was just scanning my friends’ feed on Facebook and couldn’t help but chuckle a little bit about how irritated most people were this morning. People are just feeling a little down… lacking motivation… ready to throw in the towel… at 10am! Isn’t it a little humorous what the weather does to our mood?! (I know it sure affects mine.) The other thought I had was, most of these friends doing all this grumbling are usually pretty positive. Do you surround yourself with positive people?! I think it is very important to (a) be positive and (b) surround yourself…
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Tasty Tuesday: Great Snack Bits
After a great late lunch in a touristy type town in Florida, evening had a way of showing up. Dinner promised to be as good as the long walk, the shops and laughter. This was not going to be a heavy sit down affair, as we were ready to nibble. Mary and Ed had it all planned. We picked out a movie to watch, Mary served up a chilled bowl of gazpacho and then filled up snazzy serving bowls of Great Snack Bits. Perfect food, wonderful fun and memories that I will hold dear. Isn’t that the way it is when you visit good USAF folk! The snack mix is…
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What is in your Garden? – Military Family Life Question of the Week
There is stress relief for me found in getting down and getting my hands dirty. It starts in very early-Spring and extends through the beginning of Fall. I feel capable. I feel healthy. Wielding a shovel makes me even feel *a little* stronger as I work arm and leg muscles. I swear at the weeds and talk baby-talk to the very-capable vegetable plants. (I’m quite certain that’s why they ‘produce’ for us!) Summer time equals a small (yet growing every year) garden for us. This year we have: Cucumbers in abundance Peas, their season has passed, but blessed us with lots of early Spring munching Carrots that need to be…
