Winter In

I save 1 week of vacation each year so I can take off between Christmas and New Years. That is my own winter break! It's also the time I enjoy my tree (and all of the hundreds of decorations...
As we are preparing for Christmas, I want to share one of my favorite Christmas stories. This happened four years ago and it still makes me smile when I think about it. It’s a story of love and magic and...

Sanity in Times of Snow

I have always loved the first snow, it’s magical. My kids and I make hot chocolate, and listen to music, and cut out snow flakes to place on our sliding glass door. But by about mid- January I have...

Day of the Dead

As a Mexican American, I have struggled with feeling like I don't belong.  I get this feeling of being out of place occasionally but, as an adult, I have felt it more around the holidays. With Halloween around the corner,...

Third Trimester of Summer

I am convinced that summer for moms with school-age children is pretty much just like pregnancy.  You start the first trimester all full of hope, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. How exciting! You’ll get to wake up whenever you want and not...
Back in January, I wrote a piece about how I pick a Word of the Year to serve as an overarching theme for the year instead of a specific New Year’s Resolution. Now that it’s July, I want to...
The first Valentine's Day that I can remember was when I was in first grade. We made big, heart-shaped Valentine Mailboxes and passed out Valentine's and candy. For some reason, we also had sack lunches with ham and cheese...
Hands outreached at a party, to which red lights make the background red. A sign above the hands reads 'Community'.

Word of the Year

I have an alternative to New Years Resolutions for you.  Instead of coming up with a (possibly unrealistic) goal, you come up with a Word of the Year.  This word will be an overarching theme and guide for the...
A person is making a heart with their hands against white clouds in the sky.

A Light in the Darkness

As the holiday season ends and the Idaho winter sets in, I cannot help but think it is simply the worst time of the year. I struggle with our winters. It feels like everlasting darkness and cold. I long...
Christmas is upon us, and this is my first year with a child old enough to be excited about and understand the holiday. I figured it was time to really solidify what our traditions would be. Truth be told,...

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In + Around East Idaho

Befriend the Bats

My family had the chance to do Bat Night at the zoo in Idaho Falls this year, something that we had been looking forward...