Settling the Family Estate Without a Family Feud

“Out of clutter, find simplicity. From discord, find harmony. In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.” — Albert Einstein We grown children will not be able to control the exact experience we encounter when it comes to the passing of our parents. What we can control is how we handle it. My father and mother…

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Our Prayer Bowl

I have had a decorative glass bowl in our living room for a long time.  It has been an empty vessel for many of these years.  It was simply used to grace our home, adding some color to the room. I’m not exactly sure when it happened, but I do know why we began to…

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Blessing of a Kitchen

Writing always starts with a desire for knowledge about a subject, and then the need to share it with others. At least that is why I enjoy writing! I chuckle now when I think that my first idea for this blog was to write about the history of kitchens in America.  In my research, I…

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A Thyme of Thanksgiving

At this wonderful time of Thanksgiving, it’s good to check your pantry and make sure you have all the seasonings you need to spice up these special days together with family and friends. There are so many special herbs and spices that remind me of the Thanksgiving holiday. When I think of the cinnamon and…

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Holy Guacamole

A great guacamole recipe was always a bit of a mystery to me until a dear friend Sandy Cohen shared her secret with me.  Now I’m going to make your next guacamole a holy experience! INGREDIENTS: 4 ripe Avocado  1 Lime, zest, and juice 1/2 cup white Spanish Onion, chopped fine 1-2  Jalapeños, remove seeds…

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A New Kind of New Year’s Resolutions

How many years have we made our resolutions, well-meaning though they may be, only to break them, to forget them, to let them slip away from our minds, or just rebelliously change our minds, to change at all? This year I’ve got a great idea. Why don’t we try making some new kinds of resolutions…

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Podcast with Kendall Chamberlain & Barbara Maxwell

I was most honored and pleased this past year when my niece, Kendall Chamberlain, approached me to do an interview. Kendall’s final college Journalism project required her to interview a published author – in this case me. What an honor to be asked, being a first time author. I was thrilled to have this chance…

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Ever Changing Ways

Have you thought about how much the ways we communicate have changed over the years? Take for example my husband’s birth in Louisiana, in 1952.  His parents living in Miami, would not choose to make a long distance call. Rather they would send a Western Union telegram to announce this event. I value this very…

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Heritage of a Recipe

Two of my favorite salad dressing recipes are Sheila’s Best Balsamic Dressing, and Bob’s Salad Dressing. I wondered about Sheila and Bob. Were they the ones who actually created the recipe, or were they the conduit of seeing that the recipe survived until I could discover it? Mike’s Grandmother Edy’s Chocolate Buttercrunch candy recipe, that…

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Tower of Stones

Traveling, when we were still able to, we would notice these curious stacked stone towers whenever our visits took us near oceans, rivers, or mountains with their beautiful vistas. I’ve wondered, what are people trying to say when they stack those stones? Are they saying, ” I was here, too”, or “I want to be…

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