I wanted to do something special for the kids and their friends for the holidays. What better than to host a Christmas cookie decorating party!

My mom thought I was brave inviting ten children over to play with icing and sprinkles, but I was prepared for the chaos and new that the carpet cleaners could always be called the next day if necessary.

We held it on a Sunday afternoon. It was tricky finding a time that was appropriate to fill the children… Read More

When we moved last year there was lots of stuff that we had to leave behind. We were moving across the country from a 2500 square foot house with a huge back yard to a 1400 square foot townhouse with no yard. We knew that it was a small price to pay when you are chasing your dreams, and we were cool with that.

Half of our house remains in a 20 by 10 storage unit back home. There really isn't… Read More

Back home in Oklahoma this week, most of my family has been under the weather--under a thick sheet of ice.

A massive ice storm left my parents without power for five whole days. They have a minimum of $1,000 worth of tree limb removal in their yard and their home phone isn't working. My mom had to throw out everything in her refrigerator, but was afraid to replace it with too much since a snow storm was on its way. … Read More

A friend of mine called herself a "tradition junkie" the other day. I laughed when she said it because I can so relate to the phrase.

I love traditions. I love the traditions that I grew up with, and I especially love creating new ones with my husband and kids. When I was growing up, one of my favorite things was to go and pick out our Christmas tree. My mom and I would bring it home and decorate it with our special ornaments,… Read More

At a playdate this morning, a friend of mine was telling me how this would probably be the last Christmas that her 9-year-old would believe in Santa. I made a pouty face, commenting on how sad it was that her oldest would no longer believe.

But I quickly remembered that it was around that same age that I learned the truth about Santa. On Christmas Eve, circa 1980, unable to sleep I wondered into my mother's bedroom only to find her standing… Read More

So I woke up last Friday--Black Friday--with an itch to redecorate our bedroom. This is not unusual, as I have to stratch this kind of an itch quite often.

"I wanna go shopping today," I told the Golfer.

"You. Have. Got. To. Be. Kidding," he dramatically replied.

"No, I'm not. I want new stuff for our bedroom."

Now, I knew that this would get him. He hasn't liked our bedroom either for quite some time. For a long time I had used… Read More