Emulation of Gardening: Priceless
Wednesday, I received a text from my eldest son who is in graduate school in Iowa. He was letting me know that he applied for a piece of a community garden plot near his apartment building. Besides letting me know this, he was also asking advice on plants. Little did he know, this was a…
Word Press Weekly Photo Challenge: Awakening
The WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge is for this week is to represent the word Awakening. The first photo that sprung to mind is the eruption of milkweed in my monarch habitat garden in the spring. Usually, the itch gets too much to bear and forces me to go looking for this sign of spring. It…
The Fate of PTO: Are all Parent Teacher Organizations the Same?
Last night I went to a TEAM meeting at the school where I serve as Garden Club Advisor. TEAM is their version of the PTO association. I do not know and could not find what that acronym stands for. I went to the meeting to introduce myself to the parents and briefly explain what we…
Investments in Home Maker Spaces
About a year ago, we got a 3-D printer. As parents, we try to support our children’s interests. Outside of school, each of our sons have some self-cultivated abilities that seem to be serving them well to complete their well-roundedness and sense of accomplishment. To a very large extent, they are innate talents, supported by…
Silent Sunday: Some Cactus
WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge: Smile
The WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge for this week is to post on your interpretation of the word, Smile! My post is brief but the smile(s) are lasting! Enjoy! Who doesn’t love a good amusement park? Pictured here is one of my boys when he was much littler than he is now. We were at Cedar…
System Change: What Does It Take?
Yesterday, I followed through on what I have been complaining about other people saying they were going to do but have not. I took action. I let someone, in a position of authority, know that I was not happy about a number of issues. I gave concrete, specific examples of things that all happened recently,…
Loss: We Do Not Talk About Everything
This past weekend was Easter Sunday. As my husband was texting his sister (in New York State) and brother (in Pennsylvania), he looked up and asked me – “How long has it been now? When did the twins die?” Of course, I immediately knew what he was talking about. His brother and sister-in-law had twins…
Working with Young Writers & National Poetry Month
As I gave up my long-term volunteer positions at one of our local elementary schools this year, one of the things I have missed most is having Third Grade Writer’s Circle. Once a week for the last six years, I was fortunate enough to teach a group of third grade students, two from each of…