Recently, my Mom mentioned that her dear friend had dropped off pages from old photo albums of skiing trips they had taken together over the years. As I was looking through the yellowed pages covered in plastic, I began to reflect about my Mom’s love of traveling and her independent spirit. She was fierce, in the best possible way.

Do you have people in your life that you depend on no matter what? They support you through both the good times and bad, hard times and sad. For me that was always my Dad. He loved me unconditionally; he was my rock. A few weeks ago I was at my brother and sister-in-law’s cabin and the first thing that’s noticed is a beautiful and very large sedimentary rock that is known as “Chuck’s rock.”

Growing up on a farm the saying, “knee-high by the fourth of July,” meant the farmer could measure the success of the crops, and the odds for a high crop yield were good. Although now, according to some, the saying doesn’t resonate much any more due to the advancement in agriculture and growing techniques. However, it still does to this farm girl. Each year my brother Jeff and I start taking bets on whether the sweet corn is gonna reach knee-high by July fourth.

The past weekend for three nights and four days, I dog-sat for my son and daughter-in-law while they were out of town. Normally, my weeks fly, however, those four days seemed like forever … haha! My initial thought when asked if I would watch Barley was “ugh” …. I really wanted to say no since I had flashbacks of last year’s stay when she was very young.

As a young child, birthdays were everything! It was your day to be celebrated without having to share it with anyone, well, at least in my case it was. I remember one particular birthday of my brother’s, I was sad it wasn’t my birthday, which completely showed in the photos of my older siblings lined up with big smiles on their faces and then mine; standing a foot shorter, looking miserable in my pigtails and tears. I didn’t understand I had to wait three months before it was my turn.

Like many of you, I’m guessing over the last few months your normally scheduled appointments had been cancelled, postponed or rescheduled which left most frustrated over the state of their hair, nails, body, etc.

It’s been nine weeks of isolation, nine weeks of not seeing friends and family, nine weeks of missing appointments, and nine weeks of not being able to do what I want to do…….ugh. However, some states are starting to open up which is, on one hand freaking fantastic and on the other hand a little scary.

During this time while everyone remains isolated, I’ve been generously sprinkled with acts of kindness. Friends and family have gone out of their way to make me feel loved, which inspired me to pay it forward and spread a pocketful of sunshine myself. While spreading mulch at my Mom’s house a few weeks ago, my brother and sister-in-law were commenting on a recipe they found for the “famous” Double Tree chocolate chip cookies.

This week happened to be my Dad’s birthday and is hard to believe it’s the third year we’ve celebrated without him. He was a man that loved his country, being patriotic, and served in the United States Army. This week’s post is dedicated to the story of my Dad and his flag.

Do you ever feel like you’re climbing an uphill battle of sorts? Looking ahead all you see is a difficult, seemingly impossible climb to the top. You can’t predict what’s waiting for you, so you must trust in the process. Lately, I’m feeling like I’ve been climbing and climbing with the top of the mountain just out of sight. Frustration, fear, uncertainty and vulnerability have plagued my view.

My brother Jeff and I talk on a regular basis and one thing about him that always makes me laugh is the man is prepared for just about anything. I don’t mean because we are in week three of isolating at home due to COVID19 but just because! He has spares of just about anything you can think of.

It's hard to believe the end of another year is just around the corner and within a few short days it'll be the end of 2019 and the start of a new year and new decade. As you look back and reflect on the year, what comes to mind? What's been most important to you? 

I had been staying at my parents house once we brought my Dad home to Hospice. It was a Sunday morning and I could hear lots of voices and activity going on. I headed downstairs and not surprisingly the house was filled with people. It was bustling with friends and family that had gathered to spend time with my Dad. The word had gotten around he didn't have much time and they flocked to say goodbye and spend precious moments with him one last time.

Every year since I can remember, we've always worn pajama pants or "jammie pants" as we call them, for Christmas Day. Wherever Christmas Day dinner was held, the order of the day was wear your jammie pants......and the crazier the better. It was always such a fun and comfortable holiday being able to wear your pajamas.

My heart is full when we're together as a family and I'm thankful for a son that is kind, smart, funny and humble. I'm grateful for a daughter-in-law that is determined, creative, happy and loves my son fiercely. I'm blessed to have a daughter who is sassy, spicy and knows exactly what she wants and won't give up until she succeeds.

When my cousin reached out to me, she was leery and afraid I wouldn't want anything to do with her or her search. She wrote a little about her life, her fiancé and a few bits and pieces I could connect with. She even went as far to explain she wasn't a weirdo, which made me chuckle. All she wanted was to connect to her past and the legacy of her father and his family. She made mention how much my Dad meant to her grandfather's family.

Long before September 11, I had made plans with a few girlfriends that included travel to New York City in November of 2001.. We weren’t sure until closer to the date if we’d be able to safely travel or if we still wanted to travel but as it turned out we were able to go. Even though the trip was sprinkled with happy events, 9/11 still loomed over the city and the hearts of the world.

Two of my girlfriends decided they didn’t want me to bring them sweet corn, they wanted to learn how to select and pick their own. I loved they wanted to learn a little bit about the farm. I had been in the field picking the day before, just after a good rain and needless to say, have a new pair, now old pair, of shoes for mowing and picking corn….haha. I mentioned to the girls it’s best they bring their boots.