I wrote last time about Marshall, Missouri. Marshall does have one claim to fame—it was the home of Jim the Wonder Dog. Owned by Sam Van Arsdale of Marshall, Jim was a Llewellin setter (an English setter) that lived from 1925 to 1937. Jim could allegedly understand human speech and […]
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Celebrate Children’s Book Week
The 95th celebration of Children’s Book Week begins May 12, 2014. Children’s Book Week is designed to foster the love of reading in children. It is the longest-running literary initiative in the United States, and is administered by Every Child A Reader, a 501(c)(3) literacy organization. I’ve written before about […]
Continue readingA Valentine’s Day Charm
On my last trip to visit my parents, my father and I were sorting through some of my mother’s belongings. She no longer needs her fancy clothes and jewelry, now that she lives in an assisted living facility because of her dementia. My father wanted my help in deciding what […]
Continue readingMy Grandfather’s Quest for Sulfa
I didn’t know my grandfathers as well as my grandmothers. Maybe it’s natural for a girl to spend more time with her grandmothers. Maybe it’s because both my grandmothers had more forceful personalities than their husbands, my grandfathers. My maternal grandfather died when I was not quite ten, but I […]
Continue readingWhat a Difference a Year Makes!
A year ago I was suffering from the worst stomach flu I’d had in a decade. And within days, my daughter would break her leg skiing, requiring me to leave my sick bed and fly to Vancouver, British Columbia, to care for her. Plus, my mother had just moved out […]
Continue readingDragons and Clinkers in the B House
When I first saw the scene in the movie Home Alone where poor little Kevin tiptoes down to the basement and confronts the fiery maw of the furnace, everyone in the theatre laughed at his fear. Except me. Because I remembered a similar furnace from the house where my family […]
Continue readingPercy Murray’s Peppermint Ice Cream
One of the things I love about winter is peppermint ice cream. I’m not a big fan of ice cream generally, but I do have a few favorite flavors—peach in the summer, peppermint in the winter, and rich chocolate any time. These days, I typically buy the low-fat versions, but […]
Continue readingTo Grandmother’s House We Go
In all the years we’ve been married, my husband and I have never spent Christmas at home. We’ve been responsible for a few Thanksgivings, but never a Christmas. This is primarily my daughter’s fault. She does not believe that I am capable of “doing” Christmas. Oh, my husband and I […]
Continue readingRocking Through the Ages
I mentioned my pint-sized rocking chair in a recent post. I received the rocker for Christmas when I was a toddler. During my preschool years, the chair sat in the living room of our home. In those years, my father and grandfather often posed me in it for pictures. The […]
Continue readingCelebrate the Fourth Annual “Take Your Kids to a Bookstore Day” on December 7, 2013
My parents never paid money for good grades, but they did pay books. At the end of every quarter, when our report cards came out, my brother and I got to go to the local bookstore and buy a book. I typically chose the latest Bobbsey Twins or Nancy Drew […]
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