Today, I’m finding out how to be a nurse to a dog. Our puppy, Molly, was spayed yesterday. She is doing well but is still getting used to having a cone around her head. Her favorite things are nearly impossible with the cone – chewing, playing by holding a toy in her paws, and of…
Exploring Haiku Poems when I taught Writer’s Circle was one of my favorite activities. Some of the Haiku I offer today (the first and last) are examples from those lessons, as I would write alongside my students. The others are those Haiku that were inspired today by my previous writing. Although Haiku is meant to…
Do you have perfect grammar and conventions? No, and no. Do you write every day? Yes. Do you feel you write well? Yes. I am writing today’s blog after taking a simple grammar test online. I knew I missed a few correct answers and still, the results gave me a 25/25. Even though the test…
Occasionally, it is beneficial to look at one’s blog stats to see how it is performing. I’ve been writing The Apples in My Orchard for almost three years now. My writing continues to grow followers and regular readers from all over the world! I am humbled by the comments I receive as well as the…
Although this is a Silent Sunday post, I’d like to do something fun with the next few days. Through the end of the year, I will post 10-15 of my favorite photos. Each day, vote on the one you like best for that day’s group in the comments. Just tell me the photo that speaks…
Last night, for the first time in many years, I went to church for a Christmas Eve service. It was to a church I once went to regularly, just up the street from my house. It was a church that I had served, doing “good deeds” by hanging bulletin boards and helping in Sunday School…
Yesterday, I had coffee with a friend. This is something I do with some regularity with a few close friends. But, yesterday was different. I had not seen this friend in several years. This person is one of those people with whom I am very fortunate to be able to pick right up where we…
I know this will sound weird but I think our new puppy (6mos.) is helping to curb my insomnia. The reason I think this is simple. She wasn’t home last night and I was once again awake for a couple of hours in the middle of the night. I was up to my old routine…
Towards the end of my schooling in Environmental Education and Interpretation, we had to take a 3 credit course in interpretive media design. It was not an easy course. The technicalities of the chosen software program, InDesign, part of the Adobe Creative Suite, were intricate and time-consuming to learn and use. However, that said, I…
Last Thursday I was lucky enough to go on a field trip to the Science Museum of Minnesota in St. Paul with my son’s art class. The high school anatomy class students were also in tow. For about 45 kids, mostly in grades 11-12, there were three teachers and two parent chaperones. I had not…