Just Another Late Night in Bama.

“That’s a strange sound. What is it?” It was 10pm at night. I got up and walked behind Chris, out the screen door of our back porch, and onto the unscreened part. I wondered briefly why I was the one investigating the metallic knocking noise, but I am the nosier one of the two of […]

A Summer of Mourning.

This has been a difficult summer for us. Chris’ Dad passed away on September 5, and My Grandmother, Mammaw, passed away on September 17, three years to the day since my Dad died. Papa with Noah and Ali  Mammaw on her 90th birthday with her family We are grieving, we are tired, and we are […]

Alabama History, in Clumps.

School is officially out. I mean it has been for a while, but if you haven’t noticed, I’ve been having trouble with the writing lately. Noah made our last day of school signs this year, hence his extra-proud self: Wait no. That’s just his first-and-last day of school expression. And yes, 8th grade is done […]

Strange Encounters of the Documentable Kind.

Noah had a doctor’s appointment. A smiling nurse, about my age or maybe a little older, called him back for vitals. She weighed him, then stood him up against the wall ruler to measure his height.  She put her finger above his head. “He’s…right here. What is that? It’s…right between 4’10” and 4’11”.” Noah and […]

A Social Distancing Fail of the Most Fascinating Variety.

Spring has sprung here in Birmingham. Flowers are blooming and trees are filled with pinks and whites and greens. It makes me wistful when we walk around our neighborhood, as seeing the trees around us makes me remember all the trees I can’t see right now at the Botanical Gardens, and Aldridge Gardens, and pretty […]

Homeschooling Tips for the Quarantined.

I’ve had some readers ask me to write a tips post on homeschooling for those of you who very suddenly found yourselves involuntarily in such a situation, thanks to COVID-19, who is apparently homeschooling’s hardest lobbyist. There are a ton of resources already floating around about that, though, so I’m not going to retread a […]

A Proper Fear of Snow.

The thing about living in the south is that we’re kind of…afraid of snow. We don’t handle it well, as I’ve told you many times, and so it’s hard for us to imagine it as a risk-free endeavor. I mean, we LOVE snow, but if we have snow, it’s a “sit at home and enjoy […]

Meant for Making.

A mind meant for making things never finds peace for long. The ache always comes back. But that’s nothing to worry about. The worry is that one day it will go for good. – “The Left-Handed Fate”, Kate Milford 2019 was a creatively quiet year for me. I started the year still mourning my Dad’s death, finding […]

The Right Time for Words.

Today is my dad’s birthday. He would have been 67. Way too young to not be here anymore. I’ve been thinking about him a lot lately, as I just had my second experience with the agony, exhaustion, and honor of end of life care…my second experience with a beloved man dying all too young…my second […]

Too Much Candi In the Pool

We arrived on our vacation three hours before check-in. The reason we’d chosen this particular neighborhood was for the fantastic pool – it was large and decked out like a resort, with rock features and waterfalls in the center of the pool and around the edges, a gorgeous covered area with legit outdoor couches comfortable […]