Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been tagged as “Ozarks”
Since my July blog giveaway was a $15 Barnes & Noble gift card, I wanted to do something a little different for the month of August. This month’s giveaway will feature two fun (and creative) items. Many of you know I dig coffee, chocolate, and music. What better way is there to unwind? I was at T.J. Maxx recently and found …
Where I’m from, we’re known as a friendly bunch. We wave at folks we don’t know, we smile for no apparent reason, and we might call you “neighbor” even if we’ve just met you. That’s life in the Ozarks. Living in the buckle of the “Bible Belt” affords many intimate and unique worship opportunities. Since denominations are manmade and not God-created, I’ve always been less …
When we’re children, I don’t know that we can fully appreciate our roots. In fact, I’m sure we can’t. Things like culture, heritage, family history, and geographic locale aren’t on our “life in the moment” radar. Children live in the now. A child’s world is immediacy. It’s Mama’s smile at breakfast; Daddy’s hug as he leaves for work. It’s macaroni …
When selecting a book to read or buy, like most folks, my eyes automatically scan the cover for telltale clues as to what the book’s about. Many times, if the cover art is intriguing, it’ll cause me to give the book a second glance and I’ll at least peruse the book a little longer. I’ll probably read the back cover …
This weekend marked the opening of National Kid’s Fest at Silver Dollar City in Branson, Missouri. Since it’s a great idea for families to get away now and then to regroup, that’s exactly what we did. It was hot–about 87 degrees hot–but there was a light breeze, and we had our trusty mondo-sized water jug and, of course, our little …
I’ve always told my husband, “I want to retire on the beach.” There’s just something about the sound of the incoming tide and living on island time that holds great appeal. Fewer tornadoes, no sudden temperature drops, and sunshine aplenty even in winter sound pretty sweet, too. Yep, I could definitely go for life on the water. I wonder, though, …
Some professions are more taxing than others. No matter how much we adore what we do, any career will leave us emotionally and physically spent if we don’t take a break from time to time. For those of us who write, all work and no play can also be creativity-killers. I know from my own experience, spending endless days planted …
Today I wanted to talk a little about balance. Whether you write or not, more than likely you spend much of the day wearing several hats and juggling many balls. There may be fires to put out and others to start. There are appointments to keep, deadlines to meet, places to be, and e-mails to answer. Now, if …
This is a re-post from several months ago. The long-ago memory is still bittersweet… It wasn’t anything especially fancy–a simple, two-story, native-stone home, bedecked by majestic scotch pines. Stone pillars stood at each corner of the property, as if guarding the inanimate, century-old gem. As the auctioneer took his place on the flatbed trailer, he nodded toward a silver-haired gentleman …
I grew up writing letters. The old-fashioned way. Sometimes I’d pen long, drawn out missives on pretty stationery, and when that ran out, I’d use notebook paper decorated with magic markers, pencils, or crayons. Personal computers were unheard of, and of course, e-mail wasn’t even on the radar yet. In many ways life was more of a challenge then. It took deliberate effort to …
