How to age with grace — FYI NOTE: That’s me in the photo modeling a 1920s swimsuit for my Etsy page. I searched for a photo of an elderly woman having fun — then I remembered I’m a funny old lady. I joked about submitting this photo to Sports Illustrated for the swimsuit issue. Spring means…

Preview our reader’s favorite chapter — The following is an excerpt from our book, “In Spite of Us — A Love Story about Second Chances. Our story is written in dual perspectives with odd chapters in my voice, and even chapters in his. This particular chapter is written from my husband’s perspective. Our readers say it’s…

About My Dog — Cooper In lieu of about me In place of an About Me page, I’ve opted to write About My Dog, Cooper. Eventually I will find the fortitude to write about myself. In the meantime — If Cooper had a dating profile — Chill, Dapper, Dog, Looking…

Back to counting pennies — What happened? It’s as if we were called into the boss’s office, offered a celebratory cigar, handed a promotion with a pay raise, and thanked for a job well done. From what I’ve seen, we all stepped up our game, writing our hearts out as we rode the carousel hoping…

The dormant woman who slumbers in our soul — I can’t say I wanted to grow up to be like Mom. She was tall and beautiful, and when she entered a room, all eyes followed her graceful carriage. Those traits and a few others, I would have loved to inherit. I could choose to serve her to you on…

A reminder that goodness and beauty thrive — Small-town adventures have always been my and hubby’s thing. Our best excursions are the ones we put little to no thought into. One of my favorites took place in Hoquiam, Washington. Although tired after a long day of estate sales and junk stores, we decided to…

A story about our dad — As a rule, rote prayers don’t work for me. The words sing-song out of my mouth without meaning. lalalalala -yada yada yada I know that’s not the case for everyone. In recovery groups, The Lord’s Prayer is said at the end of every meeting. Standing hand in hand with the…

When a certain warden went fishing for trouble — It should have been a cloudy day, gray and gloomy. Instead, the tulips in the flower bed boasted vibrant colors, and a little girl was jumping rope across the street while the sun shone brightly, seemingly mocking our sadness. That morning, Sandy, my husband, had returned home from work early…

Who let the bullies out? — About a year ago I felt led to graduate from teaching the littles in Sunday School to the Middle School group. Those who know me well just grinned and nodded when I told them. I understood their lack of faith in me. Although they’ve never witnessed one of my actual…