family

Vacation Planning On the Mind

As school ends and summer begins, one of the things at the front of my mind is our family vacation.  We are still trying to figure out where we are going to go.  Chatting with my sister-in-law, Julie, she also is unsure of where they family will be traveling this summer.  The planner in me…
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Thirteen

It is official.  We have a teenager in the house.    Thirteen years ago Pat and I became parents.  We had barely been married for a year.  We were still learning about each other and now we were…parents.   Thankfully Patrick was a delightful baby. He was always happy. He was content to snuggle and…
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Love At First Chat….er….Sight

Fifteen years ago, I was working from home on my computer.  I was entering data into a program to keep track of statistics at the homeless shelter I was running.  Over the course of the day, I had gotten several “instant message” requests from strangers wanting to chat on AOL.  Keep in mind, this was…
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A Final Goodbye

Sadly, our last family pet has passed on today.  Last March, we lost our cat Buddy, and today, we had to say goodbye to our cat, Baxter. I got Baxter on a farm just outside of Janesville, Wisconsin in May 1997, and I remember choosing him from the rest because he was the cutest and…
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Romance

I have always been a romantic.  I love flowers and kisses and surprises and the whole gooshy works.  I believe in the fairy tale and being swept off my feet.  But, I also know the real life.  Cooking, cleaning, parenting, running to kids activities, jobs, bills, etc.  So, when a little romance can squeak into…
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Scenes From Our Weeks

I haven’t posted any photos of our life in awhile…putting them mainly on Facebook or Instagram (which you can see my feed below on the right).  So, here are some snippets from our life over the last couple months. Bennett had one of the lead roles in their annual musical at school, playing Mr. Crabby.…
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Snow Day

The snow has arrived.  My summer oasis is now covered in snow.  The wind is howling outside and this morning we were without power for 4 1/2 hours.  Since then it has only flickered a few times.  I hoping the power stays on.  I have several friends in communities near us that have been without…
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Scenes From Our Week

Since October started, it has been quite hectic around here.  I turned 40, left for a trip to California, subbed at school, went on a field trip with Reagan, attended a wonderful Surprise party hosted by my husband, cheered on our son, Patrick at the Middle School State Cross Country meet in Des Moines, attended…
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Scenes From Our Week – Week 52

Well, it has been one year since I started my goal of posting Scenes From Our Week….snippets from our little corner in Iowa.  I’ve been sharing photos of our family, friends, and scenery throughout the last year.  I hope you have enjoyed seeing them as much as I have had taking them.  This project forced…
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Scenes From Our Week – Week 51

Last week I forgot to post a special photo.   We had a double date night with Pat’s sister, Julie and her husband, Bill.   We had such a fun time visiting and enjoying wine at our local winery, John Ernest Vineyard  and then a delicious Chinese meal in a neighboring town. Last week was busy…
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Stacie's bookshelf: read-in-2023

The Lazy Genius Kitchen: Have What You Need, Use What You Have, and Enjoy It Like Never Before
Your Table Is Ready: Tales of a New York City Maître D'
The Royal Governess: A Novel of Queen Elizabeth II's Childhood
Food Fight
Spare
Foster
This Time Tomorrow
To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings
Kiss Me in the Coral Lounge: Intimate Confessions from a Happy Marriage
Save What's Left
Remarkably Bright Creatures
The Galveston Diet: The Doctor-Developed, Patient-Proven Plan to Burn Fat and Tame Your Hormonal Symptoms
Golden Hills
The Girl with the Louding Voice
The Favor
Small Things Like These
This Is How I Lied
Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital
Audrey L and Audrey W: Best Friends-ish: Book 1
Audrey L and Audrey W: True Creative Talents: Book 2
Chasing Giants: In Search of the World's Largest Freshwater Fish
The Puzzler: One Man's Quest to Solve the Most Baffling Puzzles Ever, from Crosswords to Jigsaws to the Meaning of Life
In Conclusion, Don't Worry About It
It Is Well With My Soul: My Story
Have I Told You This Already?: Stories I Don’t Want to Forget to Remember
Book Lovers
A Girl Called Samson
Finn and the Feline Frenemy
The Levee
The Golden Spoon
Only the Beautiful
Live Wire: Long-Winded Short Stories
The Sisters Sweet
Fish in a Tree
This Tender Land
Intermittent Fasting Transformation: The 45-Day Program for Women to Lose Stubborn Weight, Improve Hormonal Health, and Slow Aging
The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise
Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice from Dear Sugar
Ben Y and the Ghost in the Machine
The Great Gilly Hopkins
BenBee and the Teacher Griefer
We Should Not Be Friends: The Story of a Friendship
Blue Highways: A Journey into America
Beyond the Point
The Family
Hamnet
The Bookstore Sisters
And Finally: Matters of Life and Death
The Cactus
Black Cake
Ban This Book
Passing
I'm Glad My Mom Died
These Precious Days: Essays
Evidence of the Affair
The Night Travelers
Out of the Corner
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
One Day in December

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