Every morning, come rain or shine or rain (we do live in almost-tropical Tampa, after all), I walk our dog, Jedi. I don’t drink coffee, so my morning walk is like a large cup of caffeine. It’s a perfect time to get outside, get some exercise, and get with the Lord in quiet prayer as I enjoy His creation. Christmas morning? Just another morning to Jedi, so after presents were opened and cinnamon rolls and scrambled eggs were devoured, our eager pointer/boxer mix and I took off for a one-mile loop around our neighborhood. Silence is not my usual walking companion. Our subdivision is ... Read the Post
Throwing Around Thankfulness
“Throw it to me!” Cole’s hands reached eagerly for the football his brother held. Cole and Chase tossed the football back and forth for nearly an hour that cool fall evening. They had been asking for a football for weeks because our old football had met its end under the scorching rays of last summer’s sun. I kept forgetting to get one; by the time I finally picked the green and purple football up at Walmart, our boys were overcome by gratefulness. “Thanks, mom!” “This is awesome! Thanks, Mom! Let’s throw it around the trampoline.” Later the same evening, before we prayed and ... Read the Post
Keep Your Eyes on Me
It was field trip day! My third grader, Chase, and his classmates filed onto the school bus, chatting and talking, thrilled to be out of the confines of the classroom. Chase and his friend Joshua climbed aboard the bus and headed to the back while the rest of the class sat elsewhere. I was driving separately in my SUV with the cooler full of sack lunches and drinks for the students and chaperones. Our destination was the Florida State Fairgrounds for Ag-Venture, where we would learn firsthand about Florida Agriculture (and taste yummy food). Eight-year old Chase knew beforehand I was ... Read the Post
Killer Kudzu
“Is that a vine?” My older son inquired. We were in our backyard on a muggy summer evening. Our two boys were jumping on the trampoline and I had just tugged another handful of unwelcome weeds from the yard when I heard Cole’s question. I knew the exact plant he was asking about. It reached like long green arms through the top of the medium-sized oak trees behind our home. I had recently noticed that particular vine invader all over the place - not just in our backyard - its relentless green fingers growing through the tops of the trees, peeking above even the tallest of the tall. If ... Read the Post
Unwanted Echoes
I pulled into our neighborhood pool, parked, and glanced up. A few clouds dotted the evening sky, harmless remnants from an afternoon thunderstorm that had blown through Tampa Bay. The rumbling, lightning-forked thunderheads were now long gone. With two rambunctious boys in the backseat, I hoped we would be able to swim. I tried not to think of last summer and the few times we came to swim, only to have the pool attendant shake his head and point to the sky. Thunder. Lightning. Pool’s closed this evening. As a former lifeguard and swimmer, concerned mom, and weather nerd, I’m fairly ... Read the Post