Gaining a heart of wisdom
The email landed in my inbox from a total stranger, and it arrived with an almost audible thud so heavy were the emotions it carried. It came from the heart of an expectant mother who had just received the news that the baby she was carrying was a boy. She had been hoping for a… Continue reading Mother-Son Relationships | How to Build a Love that Lasts
Over time, a family with four sons develops a unique tone, a guy culture with a certain decibel level and a distinct way of doing life. As a mother of some now-married sons, it has been a joy to welcome other women into this circle — women who love my sons well and also have… Continue reading Happy Mother’s Day to all the Great Mothers-in-Law!
Sunday Scripture Some of my happiest mothering memories are set in a blue mini-van on the open road as our family traveled cross-country for five weeks back in the summer of 2010. With very few distractions, our time together was focused on the beauty around us and the many sights we all shared for the… Continue reading Wishing a Refreshing Mother’s Day to You!
A worn banister sits at the center of a colonial-era farmhouse in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. There, the winter of 1777-78 brought deep suffering, privation, and grueling labor in freezing cold with the goal of building adequate housing for the Colonial Army--two thousand small cabins. Once his men were settled, George Washington took up residence--along with… Continue reading Musings: April 2019
Some of my happiest mothering memories are set in a blue mini-van on the open road as our family traveled cross country for five weeks back in the summer of 2010. With very few distractions, our time together was focused on the beauty around us and the many sights we all shared for the first… Continue reading Happy Mother’s Day!
In 1914, when Woodrow Wilson signed the proclamation designating the second Sunday in May as a national holiday to celebrate mothers, there's no way he could have predicted the century of retail hoopla and family angst that would ride on the coattails of his intention to simply honor mothers and their role in the family.… Continue reading A Collection of Books for a Grace-Filled Mother’s Day
Motherhood, for me, started out like a tightrope walk. To keep my balance and maintain my place on the tightly stretched wire, I read all the books, analyzed all the angles, second guessed all the decisions, and the only thing that saved my sanity is that Google had not been invented yet. I'm still in… Continue reading Motherhood: Learning the Ropes of Joy
The corn's not as "high as an elephant's eye" here on this country hill in Maine, but it's shoulder-high, and I'm sure the raccoons are already planning a picnic. The tomatoes are in blossom and I picked two big bags of green beans today, so canning season has officially begun. And . . . the… Continue reading Musings — July 2017
“Wait a minute, ” I interrupted. “Read that again. Is that really in Isaiah?” My husband and I are reading through the Bible again this year — together and out loud. Aside from the challenge of actually being in the same room (or the same vehicle) at the same time for this daily discipline and delight,… Continue reading Can Busy Mums Really Find Time to Spend with God? (Part 2)
Long lashes against his pale cheeks, my youngest son was sleeping soundly despite the beeping and whirring backdrop of the children’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU). The ambulance ride, the endless testing and probing, and the grim diagnosis were secondary now to my boy’s constant pain, his fear, and the question marks that persisted hour after… Continue reading Declaration of Dependence
Living Our Days 