Home & Family
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Everyday luxuries
“Using fine china, updating bedclothes to something ultra-soft and cozy, framing a favorite photo, or polishing a cherished piece of silver fosters such delight. And it doesn’t have to break your back or the bank.” ~Cheryl Richardson A few years ago, I decided to start using a set of my “good dishes” every day. The set isn’t particularly fine or precious, but it includes several handy serving pieces, mixing bowls, and accessories. Most of these were stored in our basement — until we hosted company for dinner. To make room for the whole set in the kitchen, I sold my old everyday dishes in a garage sale. Using my favorite…
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Empty nesting
“It is not what you do for your children; it’s what you have taught them to do for themselves that will make them successful human beings.” ~Ann Landers It’s hard to believe that autumn officially starts on Sunday — and the new school year is now in full swing. Whether your kids have just started grade school or flown off to college, your parental routines are inevitably changing with the season. Today our son is a married man with a family of his own — yet the topic of launching our kids to adulthood remains close to my heart, especially this time of year. I’m reminded of an essay I wrote…
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Goodbye, Jack B. Nimble
I lost a dear friend on Thursday. During an annual physical last year, the vet told me that Jack, our 19-year-old tuxedo cat, was possibly nearing his final months. He started failing steadily last week, so when he lost control of his back legs and collapsed by his litter box, I knew it was time to let him go. En route to the vet’s office Thursday afternoon, I remembered a small poster I’d purchased a few years ago. Cats are angels with fur, it said. Like most angels — animal or human — Jack arrived on the scene exactly when I needed him. Our only child had gone off to college…
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Believe
“We were dreamers not so long ago. But one by one, we all had to grow up. When it seems the magic slipped away, We find it all again on Christmas day.” ~from “Believe” by Glen Ballard and Alan Silvestri Everything they say about seeing Christmas through a child’s eyes is true — but I’d nearly forgotten. Now that there’s a little boy in my life again, I’ve been rereading The Polar Express aloud at bedtime and rediscovering the magic of flying reindeer and jingling sleigh bells. Chris Van Allsberg’s award-winning picture book was published the year our son was born (1985) and was a holiday hit in our home…
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Riffing on a recipe
“Once you have mastered a technique, you hardly need to look at a recipe again, and can take off on your own.” ~Julia Child One of my favorite cold-weather recipes is a spicy posole that was published in the “Pantry Raid” section of Better Homes and Gardens magazine more than 10 years ago. I’ve made this Mexican stew so often — sometimes trying my own variations — that I don’t need to make a list of the ingredients I’ll need before heading to the grocery store. Mastering any technique takes practice, whether you’re whipping up an omelette, knitting a scarf, or building a house. But as Julia Child advised, there’s…
