I have a Grandma Barb. I think everyone should have a grandma just like her. Not related by blood but a grandma by choice, not by chance. I grew up with her being close by and always watching over my brother and me. Back then I didn’t call her Grandma because her mother was my “adopted” grandma. Her name was... READ MORE >
It’s that time of year… graduation. I love getting all the beautiful announcements in the mail. Unlike those sent in 1982, a standard printed card from Jostens, these announcements are colorful and filled with pictures of hopeful, shining faces. Graduates of 2015! I know that face. I was just like them. I thought graduating meant that I was now an... READ MORE >
If you tell me that I am “your everything,” I am not going to know what that means. Everything could be all the good things and all the bad things in your life rolled into one. In that case “being everything” might not necessarily be a good thing. How about if you tell me that I am your “wheels”? That... READ MORE >
I have a new little niece! My brother-in-law Stephen and his wife Heather named her Lyla Marie but because we share a middle name I decided she was my little Lyla Bean…kind of rhymes with Lima Bean don’t you think? Thus the theme of today’s delicious recipes. This is the first Holthaus nephew or niece born in more than 14... READ MORE >
I felt it… just for a few days but it was almost here… spring! The weather turned to a balmy 60 degrees, the snow left the ground and the house was warm. But it was only Mother Nature tricking me into thinking I could now turn off the furnace… it was as if she was giving us a “house warming”... READ MORE >
Our daughter Zoe came home for the weekend to pack up her clothes and clean out her closet. She hasn’t used most of them since she left for college in 2011. It was time. High on a shelf she found a long forgotten camcorder and some 8mm movie cassettes. There was also a smaller Sony camcorder with a bag of... READ MORE >
When I was young my mom would wash clothes and hang them out on a clothesline in the front yard. Some days the weather would turn cold before we brought them in off the line and they would feel like they could break if you accidentally dropped them on the ground. Brittle Britches! I think about this whenever the weather... READ MORE >
Lately my favorite flower should be the forget me not…. my short-term memory has gone south for the winter and shows no signs of returning any time soon. Please tell me I am not the only one! Two days ago while talking to my mom on the phone I spent five full minutes looking for my cell phone. True story…in... READ MORE >
My life was recently touched by two very special people; one I never met and the other I’ve known my entire life. The first is a sweet little boy born January 9, 2015. On this day he answered the hopes and dreams of a young woman, he made her a mom. The mom she always wanted to be. The mom... READ MORE >
I just had the pleasure of spending two weeks in Mexico—Cabo San Lucas to be precise. This is my third trip to this city and it is the most beautiful place I have ever been. Of course I haven’t been everywhere, yet. The weather is perfect in January. The temperature is about 75 to 80 degrees and cools down to... READ MORE >
