Celebrations…your way!

Last night I caught up with one of my best friends, Becky. She was telling me how she spent yesterday with another friend of hers who was celebrating her birthday in a rather unique way. It seems this friend found herself disappointed every year when her birthday...

Living With Less: Affordable transportation

A little over a year ago we had two vehicles we considered “necessities.” One was my 2003 Honda Odyssey minivan.  The other was my husband’s 2002 Chevy truck. In January 2010 my Honda Odyssey died.  The transmission went out.  Mark had just...

A winner and a strategy for talking with teens about purity

Thank you to everyone who shared how they take care of themselves on last Thursday’s post. If you need ideas on how to take care of yourself while you’re caring for your family, you can read all the great ideas HERE! The winner of the drawing from...

Marriage Monday: The Myth of “I don’t love you anymore.”

(Because we had technical difficulties last Monday, and we didn’t want anyone to miss this important communication, we are reposting this Marriage Monday.) It’s happened again. Last week, we learned of another family has been broken up because one person...

Friday’s Quote of the Week

“God loves to take circumstances and situations that you and I may consider a lost cause and redeem them.” ~Julie Barnhill

I’m tired…

So I’ve had my sweet little granddaughter, Rilyn, for the past 4 days.  Her mommy and daddy went to a conference in Atlanta, GA. Can I be honest with you? I’m tired.  Just worn out.  She’s a really good baby…but she’s a baby and...

Hyperparenting Can Stress Out The Kids

Parents often ask me, as a former piano teacher, when they should begin their child in piano lessons. When I recommend no earlier than second grade, they are amazed. Part of my answer comes from my experience teaching young children and finding that second grade is...

To the woman who gave life to my son

To the woman who gave life to my son, It was 17 years ago today, in an obscure town in Russia, you brought a new life into this world. You named him Nicolai, which in Russia, is commonly nicknamed Kolya. We will probably never know all of the reasons you had for...

Friday’s Quote of the Week

“Is there any challenge in your life right now that is large enough that you have no hope of doing it apart from God’s help? If not, consider the possibility that you are seriously under challenged.” ~John Ortberg