60 Feet 6 Inches To Home

Flowers from my Valentine Today is Valentine's Day, a holiday dating back the 496 A.D. when Pope Gelasius proclaimed February 14th St. Valentine's day. People world wide go on dates and exchange tokens of their love and affection.  It is estimated that 19.7 billion dollars will be spent on gifts in the United States alone this year. That is a lot of flowers and chocolates. Now don't get me wrong, I think Valentine's Day can be fun, but I also see where for some it may be a source of stress. There can be a lot of pressure to pick the right card, gift or place for dinner, especially now with the invention of social media. Comparisons are bound to happen. Like most people, especially us girls, I appreciate gifts and think flowers are sweet, I received some today in fact. But I never want to allow my expectations of this one day to over shadow what happens on the other 364. For me the little things that happen on a daily basis  mean more than any orchestrated...

Kellan on his first team the Dragons Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard. This is a phrase used around baseball to motivate even the best players to keep improving. It reminds those players that skill is not always enough and that if someone else is willing to work harder they may pass you by. This has definitely been the case for our oldest son, Kellan. High School Ball Growing up he participated in a variety of sports, soccer, basketball, flag football and baseball. Although he found a certain level of success in all of them, at times it was apparent his athletic ability was not equal to some of his peers. But,while he was seldom the best player on the team, he always made the best of every team. Around the 4th grade Kellan gave up playing other sports in order to focus solely on baseball. Knowing that he had not been blessed with the strength or speed of his teammates he quickly learned to play to his strengths. He was smart, he knew the game. He...

Kansas City Fire Fighter Memorial I have been a part of a fire service family for more that 30 years.  My husband started out as a volunteer before being hired as a paid fire fighter 27 years ago. We have been married for 25 of those years.  When I was in high school my mom, dad, aunt and uncle were also volunteer fire fighters in the community were we lived. My dad now works for a full time department and I also have a brother in law in the fire service. I am extremely proud of all of them. Tim and I at at Fire Department awards banquet Because of the nature of their work and the schedule that it requires, this job is unlike any other. The men and women who choose this profession must except a lifestyle and risk that comes a long with it, and so do their families. Much like the military, the fire service is a family business.  Fire fighters spend a third of their time at the station working, training, sharing meals and building camaraderie among their shift mat...

I started writing this post several weeks ago after my uncle Mark passed away. I have had a hard time finishing it, in part because this is not the kind of subject I usually write about. But the thoughts kept coming and I felt the need to finish it. Over the past few months we have seen more than a half dozen people we know leave this world. Some had lived long full lives, served their country in WWII, had wonderful careers, enjoyed retirement and their grandchildren. Others not yet 40, with young children, some middle aged with kids in college or new grand babies on the way. Several had battled illness and lost their fight, while others died suddenly. They all had plans, goals, dreams and people that loved them. I have experienced death, loss and grief before, but these recent events have reminded me of something I have known all along...life is short and how we spend it matters. My uncle's memorial service was standing room only. The chapel was filled with family and fri...

                                             Over the last week or so my Facebook feed has been full of posts as kids we know head off to college for the first time. Seeing the pictures and reading the teary eyed comments bring back the memories of last year at this time, when we were in the exact same situation. I remember how it felt as if it happened yesterday, watching our son walk into his dorm, his new home, as we drove away. I still get emotional when I think about it. For me, the next several days were the hardest. Sadness and tears would hit me at the most unexpected times and as hard as I tried I could not prevent that. I felt like I was grieving and celebrating all at same time. I was so excited and proud of my son,  but my heart hurt. I missed his physical presence, but it was more than that. It was all the little things that came along with him being...

Our world is more connected than ever with the invention of the Internet followed by, email, X-Box Live ,  Facebook , Facetime,  Instagram ,  Twitter , Snapchat ,  Beme , Periscope and of course texting. We are able to reach out to individuals or large groups without leaving our coach. We can reconnect with old friends, keep in touch with family who live far away, see how others are spending their summer and even witness life changing events in real time. And while I appreciate and use a lot of this technology, I worry that it may be having a negative effect on how we relate to each other. I have seen couples or families out to dinner who instead of having conversations with the living, breathing people sitting across the table from them, they are on their phones. I see kids of all ages out on errands with their face buried in a screen of some kind instead of interacting with the people around them.  I feel like adults are losing some of our social skills a...

Last weekend families all over took time out of their busy schedules to celebrate Father's Day. Facebook and Instagram posts were full of sweet pictures with captions expressing gratitude and love for dads and husbands a like.  Gifts were bought and given. Meals were shared and memories were made. Our family was no different. I too posted something on social media in honor of my husband, who is an amazing father to our boys. We enjoyed church, a baseball game and dinner as a family. We also spent some rare time with my extended family. It was a good day. I love that we devote a special day to show the father's in our lives just how much we love and appreciate them, but to be honest I am not sure that is enough. Sadly I have noticed, that fathers and men in general are not always represented in the best way. Advertising and entertainment industries often portray them as incompetent, shallow and disconnected. Showing them to be more committed to their jobs, hobbies,...