natalie’s blog

My 11-year old sister, Naomi, enjoys both writing and speaking and has for several years now written a short speech to share with the rest of the family on Christmas Eve. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day this year were both very low-key and relaxing. Following our traditional dinner of hors d’oeuvres and the yearly search [...]

The tree has been transported to the mulch pile, the Christmas CDs have been returned to their sleeves, the leftovers in the refrigerator are being consumed. The Christmas season is quickly coming to an end. Memories of fun times with family and friends abound, but I will share just some of the highlights from the [...]

Alright, so I guess “tagged” is the official term. Either way, Lydia has requested that I post the following information in these Seven categories of Seven items each: Seven things I hope to do before I die: 1. Become fluent in reading New Testament Greek. 2. Go skydiving. 3. There’s a place in the Smoky [...]

Sunday afternoon, Mom and I were privileged to host the ladies of our neighborhood for our second annual Ladies Neighborhood Christmas Tea. Though a number of ladies called and expressed disappointment that other obligations prevented them from attending, we enjoyed a refreshing time of visiting and eating with the few who were able to attend. [...]

This beautifully balanced description of the heroic women of America past is both refreshing and inspiring: “They were courageous without being authoritative. They were sympathetic, compassionate and considerate of the feelings of others without being driven by their emotions or obsessed with their feelings. They enjoyed being feminine and beautiful without being slaves to fashion [...]

Several hours on the road last weekend afforded me the time to finish the book, So Much More – The Remarkable Influence of Visionary Daughters on the Kingdom of God, by sisters Anna Sofia Botkin and Elizabeth Botkin. I was very impressed with both the quality and the content of their writing. They display remarkable [...]

This past weekend our family had the privilege of making our 17th annual trek to Kansas City to do a Volksmarch in the Plaza and spend some time with our long-time friends, the Jeffreys. It has become a favorite family tradition (obviously, since we’ve been doing it for seventeen years now!) and often serves to [...]