Children
You dropped the bomb on me, baby
My 17-year-old son Joseph, had cleaned the kitchen, taken out the trash and was finally sprawled across the furniture in the family room, arms and legs going every-which-way, while he played on his phone. My husband was out of town, and I busied myself here and there with all the mom-things. The TV was on,…
Read MoreThe miracle of the mother
Even though there’s no maternal element mentioned, the Bible story about the loaves and fishes has always made me think of mothers. I’ve never had a problem believing the small lunch was multiplied to feed thousands, but what’s difficult to accept is that out of all the people at the gathering that day, the only…
Read MoreOh, to be young and on spring break!
My son Harrison went on a big adventure for spring break with five other college friends. Actually, all of them knew at least one other person on the trip, but none of them knew everyone. They basically said, “Hey, who wants to drive cross-country, camp in national parks, then turn around and come home?” (my…
Read MoreWhat’s the point of decorating for boys?
I guess it’s a Kindergarten teacher gene still in me that makes me love decorating for holidays. Not just Christmas or Easter, but I really do have boxes of St. Patrick’s Day decorations as well as a box labeled, “Groundhog’s Day” that is full of fluffy little rodents in top hats. Every year, I’ve pulled…
Read MoreSweet home of perfection
Other than a lap full of puppies and dirty feet, my favorite thing to play was, “house.” An incomplete set of chipped Wedgewood dishes, an old orange rug, one small table and two little chairs were in the playhouse I loved. The house was absolutely perfect as far as I was concerned, and I knew…
Read MoreSouthern manners serve a larger purpose
Yes ma’am, there actually are rational, common-sense reasons we teach our children manners here in the South. It has nothing to do with tradition and everything to do with making society a more civilized place. And before you think I equate “civilized” with “moonlight and magnolias,” hold your horses — please and thank you. You…
Read MoreThe power of the car keys
Someone needs to have a little chat with the smarty pants engineers who are designing the self- driving cars of the very near future. These brainiacs may have solved the problem of traffic jams and the stress associated with them, but they haven’t given one thought to the new problem they’re creating for parents. Sure,…
Read MoreWho’s the boss on Thanksgiving?
As Cousin Rosie Belle from Robertsdale was finalizing her Thanksgiving menu, she received a call from her husband’s 3rd cousin in Prattville who informed her that little Brooklyn-Savannah wouldn’t be eating the turkey or dressing, or for that matter, any pumpkin pie at this year’s family get-together. “Oh no!” exclaimed Rosie Belle, “Does she have…
Read MoreBaby Buford doesn’t need a computer
“Oh darling, I can’t wait until we have adorable children so we can plop them in front of a giant TV, shove a screen in front of their faces while we drive through picturesque countryside and let them drool on our phones while the two of us have lively dinner conversation.” — said no one…
Read MoreThe bigger the bow, the more mama loves you
If our hair is our crowning glory, then a big fluffy hair bow is the jewel in the crown of all little girls in the South. Boiled down to the bare bones truth, a hair bow represents how much love a mama has for her precious darlin’ lamb. Matching every outfit, with special editions for…
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