the white house at the right time

  Sisters trip 2012. Sedona/Phoenix Arizona.  My always wonderful and CARING mom and my sisters. After I moved to Seattle, I needed to see my sisters more. Sister's Trip Tradition started. This year we combined my youngest sister's baby blessing (so we had a few boy tagalongs  for part of the trip).   That was o.k.   And babies are always invited because we just have to soak up their squishy, baby love. As for the big boys............. Chris shopped and cooked.  Walt helped with the little boys.   And dad well......dad helped out with the moo-lah! We decided we needed a new spot.  Quoting the travel guide,   "the majestic red rock scenery and evergreen vegetation are two reasons for the unique energy of Sedona and its tangible regenerative and inspirational effects.  (We really needed regeneration this year ) in 30 days our family dealt with: mom got cancer. nic had new...

Below I have reposted from Rachel Stafford from Hands Free Mamma.  It was a pointed reminder for me that simple is best! What do you think matters most to your children ? You driving them to lessons and practices, or is it the smile and hug you greet them with after school? If you guessed the latter, you are correct. Sixteen years of teaching and giving the same assignment every Mother’s Day has led me to the exact same conclusion. You see, every Mother’s Day I would ask my students to give me advice on being a mother. They were to think about things their mother or guardian did for or with them that made them feel happy or loved. The classroom would go silent as the students wrote intensely for longer than they had ever written before. Often smiles would appear on their faces as they reflected on the happy experiences they were remembering. After reading their responses I would add to my list all the ideas they mentioned. Surprisingly, many of the responses were the same. Ye...