When my family goes away for a bit, things fall to pieces. When we got on the cruise ship in March, it was still safe to travel. When we got off the ship, the pandemic had hit, and we barely made it home. Everything had changed. Schools were closing, small businesses were sinking, and nobody […]
"So, Barbara Brown Taylor asks this question, and also Jen Hatmaker closes every podcast episode with it. Here's what I want to know: What is saving your life right now?" There's a pause while he thinks, which isn't surprising since I sprung this question on him while we are live on the air. That's how […]
This is the final week of distance learning, a household term that nobody knew three months ago. This week, we go to the school to pick up what was left behind in their lockers in the Great Middle School Rapture of March 2020. One of the parents commented on the school thread: I'm so sorry […]
Tricia: Okay. So, I want to talk about this. Right before the whole world shut down, we went on a cruise. Rob's family, my family, our parents - the whole crowd. We call ourselves the Great Eight, and we went on a cruise together. When we got on the ship it was safe to cruise, […]
Back when I was navigating the long days with little people, some researchers endeared themselves to me with a released study that indicated that stay-at-home parents have 30+ hours of leisure time each week. They implied there's no reason to complain about busyness or exhaustion, because really, most of it's leisure time. Back then, a […]
"You start this time," he said. I groaned audibly. "OF course you would say that." "I have to confess something to you right from the top... this is the day, maybe like every day, that I think I have nothing to offer to the world. I have nothing. This is it." He bubbles with laughter. […]
My brother and I have been working on a little something during quarantine, and we are excited to set this little bird free to fly today. I could tell you paragraphs about how much fun we hare having, how he makes me laugh in every single episode, how we are exploring endless topics together, things […]
"Tricia, how can I stop living in fear? I’m worried that something will happen to the person I love. How can I keep this fear from paralyzing me?” I posted this dialogue back in October, back when we were all roaming the aisles of grocery stores, like the people next to us were safe […]
"Mom, did you know they make ranch dressing seasoning?" one son says. "I feel like she bought that already," says the other son. "No, not the dressing mix. It's in a shaker. Like parmesan cheese," says one son. "I had a bad experience with ranch dressing," says the other son. "What was it?" "Uncle Rob […]
When I say it's easy and good, then you know it's absolutely going to be BOTH. Probably you have all of these very things in your own little quarantined kitchen, and you can become the Easter Bunny herself by whipping up this deliciousness for the people you love. Ingredients: Cake: 1 сuр buttеr (2 sticks) […]
I wanted to send this story to you on Easter morning or the night before, but things got away from me, what with the glazed ham and the hashbrown potatoes and the early service and hosting all the family and dyeing of inappropriate eggs. (I distinctly recall saying nobody was allowed to draw penises on […]
Every night, we have ice cream at 8:00. And some evenings, we have it at other times, because it's 8:00 somewhere. We are living it up in our locked up condition. Last night, before our evening constitution, Peter brought us all together at the dining room table. There were four cups of fruit punch and […]
So many new things are happening in these crazy times, you guys. Like the fact that I seem to have become a homeschooling mom who bakes pies and walks several miles a day. It's like that game on Facebook where you're supposed to post a status that makes people think you've been abducted. Like if […]
It's been more than a decade since this Good Friday situation, the day Baby Tyler locked Toddler Tucker and me in a second story bedroom for an hour and a half, and our rescue involved three strangers, three firemen, a fire truck, three police officers, several calls to 9-1-1, and a very brave neighbor. An […]
Don't you love when a great podcast pops up in your feed? My friends Juli and Hannah invited me to join them on Authentic Intimacy waaaay back in December. (Hannah was even wearing the most charming Christmas sweater on the day of our dialogue.) But it's crazy how the conversation from so many weeks ago […]
Parents of Preschoolers and Toddlers, this season is the real deal, isn't it? You are in the t-r-e-n-c-h-e-s. When my guys were preschoolers, I had to have them out the door by 9:00am, or the house would surely crumble around us. I was sure of it, and my theory was fairly proven. And now, this […]
Looking through some old journals tonight, I found this dialogue from four-year-old Tucker: "Mommy, let's make a train. Tyler will be the engine and I'll be the caboose. You be the track." I wrote: That feels like the very definition of motherhood. All my love to of you "train tracks" out there. I raise […]
In the writing world, your "Platform" is the broad term for "the people who listen to you." The size of your platform matters quite a lot to publishers. After all, if they're going to invest in your writing and give you a contract, they want to know who's waiting in line to buy this book. […]
Strapp held his wife’s hand as he drove, stealing glances at the photograph she held. This was the only picture they had of their son, a photo they received from their social worker. The boy looked to be about six years old, and he had dark skin, darker eyes, and black hair. Strapp and Julie […]
Have you noticed? We have become people who are counting. We are counting things. We are counting days. We are counting people on the walking trail. Counting people who are sick - and even sweeter, counting the people who have recovered. We have stepped into the forest, and we can literally count the trees. One […]
