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Merry Christmas from Maywood!
“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning… In him was life and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.” (John 1: 1-2,4) Merry Christmas to… Continue reading
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‘Twas the week before Christmas
‘Twas the week before Christmas and all through the house No one was ready, least of all my spouse. Stockings are ready to hang in a few, But what will go in them, I haven’t a clue. Hubby’s off on his errands with traffic to battle In our ’99 Jeep with a muffler rattle. And… Continue reading
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Traditions define a family…how weird are yours?
“Please come to the party prepared to share about a Christmas tradition in your family.” Requests like that put a knot in my stomach. What if my traditions are dumb? Lame? Lacking in spirituality/deep meaning/ sensitivity/creativity/all or any of the above? There’s something about sitting in a circle doing that kind of activity that weirds… Continue reading
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Cleaning the Chocolate Fountain
A chocolate fountain really adds “wow” factor to a party. We’ve included a chocolate fountain in our holiday parties for several years now. If you acknowledge up front that the massive amounts of chocolate are mostly going to be tossed out and that you ought to have an empty dishwasher when you put chocolate-coated parts… Continue reading
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Busy Beavers
We have recently discovered beavers on the property. Consequently, instead of researching Black Friday and Cyber Monday online sales, I’ve been browsing the Internet for information on beavers. I could be trotting over the stream and through the woods to visit the beavers myself, but I choose to feign a nap and let John lead the woodland tour. (It’s… Continue reading
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Heirloom Mashed Potatoes
I have asked daughter Shelley to make the mashed potato casserole for Thanksgiving. Her response was: “You want me to make your mashed potato casserole?” Um…yeah. My hip hurts, and I dread the thought of standing at the sink peeling ten pounds of potatoes and then standing at the counter mashing them. And for those… Continue reading
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Countdown to Thanksgiving
For some people the upcoming days count down to serious Christmas shopping. Others are counting the days to shotgun season. For me, multiple checklists focus me toward the annual Thanksgiving crowd at my house. With about forty guests expected, the checklists–my marching orders–keep me from total panic. I used to spend a whole weekend making… Continue reading
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Where’s the @#$% ice scraper?
Trick or treat? Snow for Halloween is quirky cool. The juxtaposition of vibrant leaves with snowy groundcover is a good photo op. But, really, I’m not ready to deal with the morning exit routine. Sunday morning, I’m all ready for church, attired in appropriately autumnal colors. I’m even reasonably on time. Before dashing out the door… Continue reading
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Friday Night at the Hunting Lodge
I must begin by saying that we do not run a hunting lodge, bed-and-breakfast, boarding house, retreat center, target practice range, catering service, or wedding reception venue. It just feels that way. If we really were doing all those things I would not have to limp into work everyday and deal with sleepy teenagers who are completely… Continue reading
Slightly Off the Grid 