As I write this, our son Jared is attempting to run his first marathon. The reason? It's on his bucket list. He's the type of kid that probably had a bucket list before the term came into vogue. He is always off on some new passion, adventure or quest.
Read MoreFall is in the air, and one sure sign is our church's Chili Cook-off. At Church of the Savior (formerly SBCRC), the cook-off is one of the most highly anticipated meals of the year. We sample wonderful mini-bowls of chili with every conceivable combination of beans, meat and spices.
Read MoreFalling. It starts as soon as we take those first steps in life. Step, step, bump, plop. Goose-eggs from coffee table corners and bruised knees bring comforting hugs from mama. Not long after our first falls, most of us learn pretty well how to avoid them.
Read MoreSeasons have a funny way of bringing back memories and then repeating themselves in a similar, but new and different way. Now that summer has arrived, I catch myself reliving memories of past summers. Working in my garden makes me recall the summers I toiled and sweated to put in the plants that are now fully grown. It motivates me to keep planting new ones for the future.
Read MoreI confess: I didn't come up with this title on my own. I kinda' maybe stole it from my daughters' new t-shirts. But it just seemed appropriate. We're in the middle of what you might call "music week." In this household, for nearly 20 years now a couple weeks before Christmas, and a couple weeks before the end of the school year in May, "music is who we are."
Read MoreSpring is coming. It really is. After all, it's May now, and all the signs of spring are here. Never mind the fact that Friday night my hands were so cold from standing outside taking pictures in the drizzly, 45 degree weather, that I had Tom build me a real live, crackling fire!
Read MoreWriter's block. I guess it was bound to happen.
I've spent the past six weeks feeling guilty about not writing, "thinking" about what to write, mulling ideas around in my head, discounting my ideas as uninteresting, feeling like I'm "forcing" a topic just for the sake of the blog...
Read MoreThe roads have been extremely treacherous this winter, and a couple of weeks ago on our way to school they were at their worst. The highway between here and school was snow-covered with icy patches, and several drifts were sneaking out into the driving lanes…
Read MoreI went shopping with Seth three weeks ago. Leah was enjoying her first college visit (at Calvin), and I was able to sneak away in the afternoon, pick up Seth, and head to Jared. And I'm not talking about his brother Jared here. We're talking the jewelry store...yes, we "went to Jared."
Let me tell you, it's really, really fun to help your son pick out the engagement ring for his intended.
Read MoreA recent visit to Madison made me keenly aware that my role of "mom" is slowly being transformed. While Tom and I have both feet deeply planted in parenting, I can sense movement toward something new.
Read MoreToday, thanks to another blast of winter, I'm enjoying a fourth day in a row of stress-free, non-scheduled, simply delightful freedom. Last Thursday however, the day before this lovely polar vortex lull, I was experiencing the polar opposite. In this crazy family of ours…
Read MoreSo for those who may have missed the last two blog posts, we have been researching, and debating, and trying out insulin pumps. We narrowed the playing field to our top two contenders: the Insulet OmniPod and the Tandem t:slim.
Read MoreWe have gathered info, listened to sales pitches, tried things out, made and received countless phone calls regarding insurance, and.......now we wait. Leah has made her decision, but we await the final answer on insurance.
Read More"When can I get a pump?" That was one of the first questions Leah wanted to ask her endocrinologist a month after her diabetes was diagnosed. She had heard about insulin pumps from friends and nurses within the first days (maybe even hours) of learning that her pancreas had shut down and was no longer producing insulin.
Read MoreThe holidays are over, the blizzard of '14 has come and gone, the polar vortex has settled in...but we're home, safe and warm, enjoying the first snow day of the year. My mind woke up at 5:30 a.m. today...right on schedule, as if it knew that winter break had ended and it was time to go back to school.
Read MoreThe girls got hair cuts yesterday...and Leah's is now just slightly below her chin! We love her new look! Her mini-makeover reminded me of the 3rd part of her story I keep meaning to sit down and write. I don't know why, but I'm finding this one challenging, and have been procrastinating for about two weeks.
Read MoreWe interrupt our story of spinal fusion, to bring you a Type 1 Diabetes intermission. Sorry for those waiting in suspense for part 3 of the spinal saga...it will arrive "straightaway!" Today was our first appointment with Leah's Endocrinologist.
Read MoreI'm sitting here watching the rain fall gently on my windshield, sipping pumpkin latte and using some free Wifi, while my girls are at piano lessons. Two weeks ago, I was doing basically the same thing (although that was a sunny day), when I pulled out my laptop to work on the journal I had started during Leah's back surgery. I
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