Youngest on his first Mother’s Day with us. We had just adopted him. I think I have bought my last shopping cart of sports drinks. Only youngest gulps them to rehydrate after basketball or a hard day at work. And the day for youngest to move out is around the corner. It seems like months since I felt my insides gnawed and ripped apart as youngest announced his decision to move out, become independent, experience life free from … Continue reading →
Mother’s Day Brunch by the Guys My heart is full today as I watch my guys outside shooting baskets. What could make a mother’s heart more grateful than to see her family together, happy, playing around, glad to be there. My heart swelled with joy as all my men goofed around (even Chip, the wonder dog played ball). This was celebration. For this my heart longed. For this my heart rejoiced. Temperate breezes whispered through wind chimes while … Continue reading →
When Oldest was in kindergarten, the students made a Mother’s Day present that included their handprints and part of a little one’s poem. I still have those handprints framed and hanging on the wall that leads up to our bedroom. It was a special reminder today of pudgy loving hands, warm hugs, and bedtime stories that never seemed to end. Cuddling up with my memories. My little hands reach up to you for hugs before I sleep … And … Continue reading →
Each year on Holy Saturday, we have a family tradition. The making of Italian Easter Bread. This mildy sweet breakfast bread with its creamy, sweet glaze and five colored eggs poking up is a symbol of the Risen Christ. For our family, for my parents before me, and for my grandparents before them, it was a sacred Holy Saturday tradition to prepare the bread for Easter morning. Much like Christ’s body was prepared for burial–only to rise on that … Continue reading →
Our Oldest had been requesting Apricot Chicken for nearly a year. Yes, that very same son who said that if he was engaged to a girl and she served chicken–the wedding was off. However, this chicken dish topped his favorites list. So, after a year of putting off frying chicken (with little oil) in the deep frying pan, I made the time for one of Oldest’s delectable dishes. Approved by the American Heart Association and listed in their cookbook, … Continue reading →
Mom’s Orange Loaf Rich aromas wafted from the kitchen up to the computer area and I suddenly became aware of the tasty orange loaf I had baking in the oven. This was one of my mother’s favorite recipes that we make each year with orange juice squeezed from fresh-picked fruit in our backyard. This year we are especially blessed to have this pound-cake style treat as our citrus were damaged severely by freezing temperatures. The aromas carry … Continue reading →
Image from Google I knew it was coming but I couldn’t stop it. It’s that pain every mother feels. That gut-wrenching, ripping, tearing when one of her children is yanked out from her covering pinions. The culprit. Independence. A time to prove myself. A time to cut the apron strings, the hovering. The lure. Adventure. Excitement. Freedom. The reality. It takes more than just an age on a driver’s license. More than just a need to spread one’s own … Continue reading →
I tucked him in the baby car seat, snuggled in a warm blanket on a chilly fall night. We were making the trek from the San Fernando Valley to the Los Angeles International Airport area about 25 miles away. Hubby’s Aunt Mary was making enchiladas and had invited us for dinner. Even better, she was going to teach me how to make this family’s most requested dish for the holidays. Hubby was away on business so just little one, my mother, … Continue reading →
When Bonnie at “Faith Barista” decided to ask us to write on, “What I wish someone told me about Marriage” or “Thoughts on Love and Marriage,” I recalled the hard lessons I’ve learned throughout our 34 years of marriage and the ones I still keep learning. I’m an independent thinker who usually believes she has the right answer for most situations. I’m also an only child who went to college, has a stubborn streak, wasn’t afraid … Continue reading →
It’s the season of harvest here at our home. We have waited longingly for the time to come when we could pick the sweet, juicy oranges and the tart lemons. We have waited for this moment for 12 months. The time of the last picking of fruit. It seems like an eternity since we inhaled the first blush of promised fruit from the trees. Fragrant white blossoms filled the air with their heady scent. Enthralled, we hope-counted how … Continue reading →
