I’m in full-on puzzle mode, and have been since December! I’ve discovered a few things about having a puzzle in progress: Thus, puzzles. I’ve got four puzzles on tap here at the beginning of …
Gratitude in the Present
I don’t know about you, but my January is typically a “down” month. Not as in “I’m depressed”, more as in “I’m not busy”! And frankly, I love a slower paced January after two months worth of holiday activities. I want to …
December Reads
December reading finished out 2025 with a bang. Some really good Christmas books, and a couple at the end of the month that were not Christmas-themed! Let’s get started! Historical fiction: My Christmas …
Why do we buy gifts?
I’ve been thinking about Christmas and gift-giving this year. I love giving gifts. And since I became a Marmee in 2019, I’ve loved that part of Christmas even more! Now that I have two—and soon, …
A Wiggy Christmas
Our Community Group from church decided to forgo the traditional White Elephant gift exchange this year and make way for . . . wigs! Yep, we had a wig exchange. The rules? Whatever wig you opened, you had to wear the …
Wait–I Read HOW Many Books???
I checked my Goodreads 2025 Reading Challenge goal the other day. I knew I’d gone over my goal of 95 books, but then I saw this: Whoa! What in the world? Yes, I’ve read some novellas this year, but not that …
Advent: Expecting the Unexpected
In the lead up to Advent, things have upended several friends’ worlds in the blink of an eye. The return of cancer. Death of a spouse. A horrific accident. Every single instance has changed what that family thought they were …
November Reads
I love that November reading is such a mix between Christmas books and regular books. So many good ones in each category! Let’s start with Christmas-set stories! A Very Barrie Christmas by Rachael …
Early Christmas Decorating
I did a thing this weekend—I decorated for Christmas! Now, mind you, I have never, ever decorated this early before, mostly because I usually wait until after Jeff’s birthday in early December. But since …
One story, three forms
We recently saw the musical The Outsiders. Of course, I knew it started as a book, then became a movie, but it had been decades since I’d read or seen it. So, a couple of weeks in advance of the play, I re-read the book. I’d …