• Holidays

    Seeing is believing, but sometimes the most real things in the world are the things we can’t see. The Polar ExpressChris Van Allsburg The Polar Express, a Caldecott Medal winner, is one of my favorite children’s books and I often give it as a baby gift. At it’s core, it’s about keeping the belief we…

  • Lists

    Organizing is what you do before you do something, so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up. A.A.Milne I confess to being a note maker. I keep a daily planner and looking at it is one of the first things I do in the morning. I tried keeping it on my desktop…

  • Winter is Coming

    They who sing through the summer must dance through the winter. Italian Proverb I admit to not being a fan of winter. I grew up in the north woods of Wisconsin where the season is long and takes no prisoners. The cold seeps through bulky sweaters, heavy wool coats, layers of gloves. It doesn’t matter.…

  • Our Best Friend

    A dog wags its tail with its heart. Martin Buxbaum We have had a lot of dogs through the years and each one stole our hearts. Rex, the Irish Setter, would catch mice and leave them by the door as a gift. Our poodle, Melody would go downstairs and jump on the bed when our…

  • Positivity

    In the province of the mind, what one believes to be true either is true or becomes true. John Lilly One person will look at this photo and focus on the bent post in the wrought iron gate, while another will focus on the beautiful colors of the tree. Is it a beautiful photo or…

  • Integrity Defined

    Definition of integrity – the quality of being honest and having strong moral principals. Oxford Dictionaries Integrity sounds like a high – minded and pretentious ideal. Something many may aspire to and few achieve Maybe not, maybe it can be demonstrated in something as easily achieved as following the rules in sports. For example, my…

  • Better with Age

    I’ve always liked things that got better with age. Ralph Lauren    The folding bridge table in the photo is around eighty years old. I’ve owned it for over 20 years. During that time, it has served as an additional serving table, lunch table or a fire screen. The reason I have it is that…

  • Perfection

    If I waited for perfection, I would never write a word. Margaret Atwood I just finished reading, The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. I read it because I decided I should understand the true significance of women protesting in red capes and white bonnets. I can tell you that I feel fortunate Ms. Atwood did…

  • Appearances

    In all aspects of life, we take on a part and appear to be what we wish to be —and thus the world is composed of actors. Francois La Rochefoucauld I am not sure if we all appear what we wish to be. I think some of us appear as what we are, unable to…