Family

The Old Sewing Machine

The other day, my mom and dad spent quite some time getting my mom’s old sewing machine back up and running. My mother used to be quite the seamstress. She made all of our clothes when we were kids and made her’s as well. She even took new classes when they were available. The old […]

Mom Made It Too

Today was my mom’s 87th birthday. She and my dad laughed about how she “made it too” referring to my dad’s comment on his birthday. To celebrate, I started by making her favorite breakfast – which I actually do every morning, so it wasn’t really that special. In the afternoon, we went to the movie, […]

He Made It

Today was my dad’s 89th birthday. When I wished him happy birthday when he got up this morning, his response was, “I made it!” After church we went to the symphony and heard Beethoven. He had been wanting to go and it happened to land on his birthday so that worked well. It was a […]

Have Your Cake

Our season of celebrations actually started on Good Friday this year with my parents’ 67th wedding anniversary. Since it was on Good Friday, we decided to celebrate on Easter Sunday instead with German cuisine. I made a black forest cake that I tried once before and was a little disappointing. I tweaked the recipe a […]

Prodigal Son

As I said yesterday, my travelling brother returned and will be staying in the area now for a while. We enjoyed having his company and hearing more stories about his adventures in person. I also appreciated his help and conversation in the kitchen. And we forgot how much fun it was to have his dog […]

Love Invites

Today was a beautiful day getting together with the family. My brother who was travelling has returned and was able to join in the festivities once again. We decided to make a German meal as we were celebrating my parents’ anniversary and birthdays all together along with Easter. Every person made something to contribute – […]

Bittersweet

My parents celebrated their 67th wedding anniversary today. They said several times that they couldn’t believe how much time has gone by and that they are still here to celebrate. It just happened to also be Good Friday. The weather outside was just about perfect, so we decided to pack a picnic lunch and head […]

Holy Thursday Experiences

Holy Thursday Mass tonight was beautiful. It was pretty traditional with chanting and moving hymns. As I watched the priest wash the feet of 12 people, I remembered when I had my feet washed and what an incredible moment that was. I remembered inviting some youth to have their feet washed and watching their reactions. […]

Weight Lifted

When my mom got up this morning, she said she was feeling really good – better than she has in a few months. She said she felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off of her. When my dad got up he exclaimed that it was a beautiful day, and a beautiful life. […]

Excellent Health News

A while ago, during my dad’s unexpected hospital visit one of the tests discovered a tumor on my dad’s pancreas. Since then, we have been praying to Our Lady of Lourdes and blessing ourselves with holy water. My dad has been putting his share on his stomach where the pancreas is located. He has had […]