We remodeled bathrooms last winter, taking out an upstairs hall and adding its space to one bathroom, gutting a second, and updating a third. It was a project Alejandro promised to finish by late February, just in time for a women's retreat scheduled to be here. But February came and went and the retreat got…
I don’t like to admit it, partly because it feels shameful and partly because I was raised not to notice it, much less confess it. I was taught to do exactly the opposite—to cover up weakness by becoming competent. (And if I couldn’t genuinely excel, I learned to lie about it.) As a mother, I…
Hardly churchy, much less Presbyterian, our pastor steps aside the Sunday after Thanksgiving rather than preaching and lets anyone who wants to, step up and tell what they're thankful for. David, age 8, thanked God this morning for getting to watch anime on his computer and for cars, "just for lots of cars," he said…
My phone dinged, “How about a hike?" came from daughter in law, Lollie. They picked me up a few minutes later, and we were off for The Pocket Trail in Chickamauga, GA. The boys were strapped in back when they arrived, listening to Harry Potter. Lollie seemed different--serious and quiet. Once we were on our…
I like imaginin’ praise comin’ outta my house, loud enough to wake up the sun and bring it runnin’ up my mountain, just to see what all the shoutin’s about. Inspired by Psalm 108:1-5 “My heart is steadfast, O God;I will sing and make music with all my soul. Awake harp and lyre! I will awaken the…
My phone dinged, “How about a hike?" came from daughter in law, Lollie. They picked me up a few minutes later, and we were off for The Pocket Trail in Chickamauga, GA. The boys were strapped in back when they arrived, listening to Harry Potter. Lollie seemed different--serious and quiet. Once we were on our…
The nest is empty. Our last fledgling is settled into college dorm life and has already slept through his first test, while his mama-bird, blissfully unaware, awoke to her to-do-or-not-to-do list, none of it involving him. I've been preparing Stone his whole life--and myself all year--for when he would be washing his own socks and…
It looked like the perfect spot for our family's vacation: a rambling lakefront home in an out-of-the-way cove with covered dock, lots of porches, and plenty of bedrooms for our growing family of 15 with two more on-the-way. It's a challenge to find a house nice enough that merits dropping everything to be together for a week, but not…
The ache in my chest was a tight knot, a familiar feeling. I tried to tell myself I didn’t care, to push it down as I always had. I went for a bike ride on our trails, straining hard against the pedals to climb pasture hills as I pushed hard on the knot to force…
It never occurred to me to check my passport status. At least, not until 20 hours before our flight took off. I'd checked Stone's passport details thoroughly when I booked a trip with friends for spring break. He was 19 now; would his passport from age 16 still be accepted? As it turned out, it…
I’m heading to New Jersey, writing as I fly. It was cold and gray in Atlanta when I left, and it is colder and grayer where I’m going. According to my weather app, Princeton will have snow tomorrow. Right now, I’m looking forward to breaking through the clouds outside my window to the sunshiny blue…
I was feeling out of sorts because I hadn't really wanted to come. I didn't want to go to church last Sunday either, and I didn't. I've realized over the last few nights that I haven't been listening to what I've read in the Bible. I've read hurriedly, just to get through it. I’ve…
He had been seeing a little boy’s head floating above the door in the hotel room. And they had flown in an airplane they piloted across the mountain to attend Sadie’s wedding in our backyard. Both of these stories gave us something to chuckle about at the reception. Grammy drives a respectable Buick, and there…
