Designing a life of peace, joy and laughter.
Last Sunday afternoon, we were setting down plates and moving serving dishes from the kitchen to the table. My 8-year-old said, “Mom, why do we only have lunch together on Sundays?” “What do you mean?” I asked. “I mean, like, we don’t eat lunch together on Saturdays or any other day…we just come in and … Continue reading Lunch.
When you’re a little kid, you’re a little bit of everything. Artist, scientist, athlete, scholar. Sometimes it seems like growing up is a process of giving those things up, one by one. I guess we all have one thing we regret giving up, that we really miss, that we gave up because we were too … Continue reading Choose.
On December 21, I went to see Santa. My soon-to-be-8-year-old son wanted to see Santa, so I agreed to wait in line with him. It was so hot. My heavy wool coat was draped over my arm because it was humid in the tropical conservatory at Fredrick Meijer Gardens where Santa was stationed for the … Continue reading In the land of the living.
“No one knows you like they know youAnd no one probably ever will.You can grow up, make new ones,But truth is there’s nothing like old friends.‘Cause you can’t make old friends.”Ben Rector, “You Can’t Make Old Friends” from the album Magic On the first day of school when I was 10, the new girl asked … Continue reading You can’t make old friends.
Is a chapter just about to end for you? For so many of us, the end of another school year is approaching. Perhaps you are not a sentimental person, but most of us get caught up in daily life and forget the essential things that matter most to us. Here are a few things that … Continue reading Celebrate.
Can you picture your childhood house? This was mine from age 0-26, in Villa Park,IL. When my parents bought it, my dad said, “Mary, this is going to be your dream house.” Actually, my mom dreamed of a house with a big front porch like the one she grew up in. But year after year … Continue reading Dream House: 505
Most of you know my dad, Chuck Schipma. Back in February of 1980, Chuck bought two identical books for his two very similar blonde daughters, aged 7 and 5. Our parents often did this, bought us the same things so that life felt fair. Chuck wrote a message in each of these identical books to … Continue reading The Power of Words to a Kid.
It is Christmas morning in the early 1980’s. My older sister Chriss and I are in our long winter nightgowns and bedhead, surrounded by mint-green wrapping paper, halfway through the presents under the tree. Dad’s coffee is steaming in his hands, and Mom walks into the living room with Pillsbury cinnamon rolls and a stack … Continue reading Memory Makers, Part 1.
On December 23, 2013, my dad took me to Meijer. We were due to have our fourth baby in about a week. Dad heard me say that we were ready for the baby, but we just needed one more thing – one of those Velcro swaddle blankets. There was a winter storm going strong outside, … Continue reading Weight.
Jamie and I celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary this week. In July, my parents marked 50 years of marriage, and they found a way to host a small party with siblings, despite COVID-19 restrictions. We played a video of aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews and friends reflecting on my parents’ marriage. Two of my aunts … Continue reading “Each for the Other.”
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