Packing Jammies

The worst part of any vacation is the packing. The worst part of vacation packing is the packing you do when you are heading home. The bags never pack as neatly on the way home as they did on the way out the door. You have to sort through the dirty clothes, the could-be-worn-again clothes, and the clothes still in the suitcase untouched. The leaving suitcase smells like dryer sheets and the going-home suitcase has...

The Nativity

My favorite part of Christmas is setting out the Nativity. My mother-in-law bought me all the pieces to our Fontanni set over the course of a few years. The style is very classic, but the pieces are made of resin and won’t break when little people insist on rearranging the figures to suit. Several years ago Jesse insisted on a very particular arrangment: all figures facing the Baby Jesus in concentric circles...

Do You Still Work Here?

I once edited a review on a book that examined the need for margins in a person’s life. The idea is that you need to build margins into your day to help you avoid stress and burn-out. 9:00 class run late? No problem, since you built in a 30 minute margin before your next appointment you won’t be tardy. You get the idea. I remember thinking, how wise. How very smart. What a great way to say that. But, I...

A Rare Find: Advent Conspiracy

This interdenominational group gives specifically to fresh water projects, but you could follow the principles and give to the mission of your choice. Our family is definitely scaling down Christmas this year but probably not for all the right reasons. Still, thinking about giving gifts of presence instead of just giving presents is inspiring. Check it...

Appropriate Smallness

Sometimes it is good to remember the smallness of my place in this world. It is good to remember that my problems are relatively small and proportionately easy to solve. On Sunday night at church I was reminded of this by the simple act of the man sitting in the row behind me. He didn’t say anything to me. In fact, I’m sure we’ve never exchanged more than a few words. He is from India and is still...