The Ways of Her Home

Embracing the homeward call

Snapshot Saturday

Hi, friends! We've been busy around here finishing one month and beginning another. Here are a few snapshots from our week. Birthday Trip! January ended with our son's 12th birthday and a special overnight trip to the Great Wolf Lodge in LaGrange, Georgia to enjoy their indoor water park and slides! More on this adventure next week but here's a sneak peek. We all got complimentary wolf ears at the lodge which my son just had to torment the poor cat with. But I must say, it was pretty hilarious how long Floyd left those ears on Our cats put up with a lot! ***** Blogiversary Also at the end of January was my blog's 4th anniversary! You can read my very first post ... Read more

Creating a Family Identity

Good morning, friends! As a follow-up to my post on the importance of family identity in a child's life, I'd like to share some ideas for creating that identity. I am in no way a trained expert; these are just some ideas that Joel and I have found to work for our family. And although I have given this post a lot of thought, I haven't been able to give it much time in the writing, so it's by no means polished and tidy. I'll just be speaking from the heart as if we're sitting here together over coffee or tea. Back when we went through foster care training, in one of the classes the topic of family identity came up as an important element to carrying your current family through the ... Read more

Snapshot Saturday: January 2023

I did not keep up with my weekly "Snapshot Saturday" posts during January so here's just a quick summary of the whole month. These are in very random order. I'll start with the pets. King Kat Floyd has a way of lounging on our beds with this expression of confident ownership. When he does this Joel calls him "King Kat". If I Fits, I Sits My daughter says this is Pumpkin's life motto because she tries out everything to see how it "sits". I had just emptied this basket in my bedroom, and she did not hesitate to fill it up with herself. Partners in Crime I left the linen cabinet open one morning while I was getting ready, and the cats couldn't resist jumping ... Read more

Winter Lodge Wedding

My nephew and his precious bride got married a few weeks ago and it was one of the sweetest and prettiest weddings I've had the pleasure of attending! Family weddings are just so much fun, and even sweeter when they're for people you've watched grow up. These two are perfect for each other and I believe my nephew was the happiest groom I've ever seen. They chose the Lodge at Monte Sano State Park in Huntsville, Alabama for their wedding venue and it could not have been any dreamier! They had a lovely vision for the wedding and with their ideas plus my sister's event-planning skills, it came together so nicely. My sister, Allison, recruited her friend as director and decorator, and then ... Read more

The Importance of Family Identity in the Life of a Child

As part of my ongoing (yet slow) series on adoption, I'd like to share today some about the idea of FAMILY IDENTITY. And if your children aren’t adopted, this concept applies to your parenting as well! Most of this post is taken from a speech I've given at some events for our adoption agency, so for those of you who may have already heard me speak on this, my apologies. Often when people find out that our son is adopted, a common question my husband and I get asked is, "How long did your adoption take?", meaning the legal process. The paperwork. Well, to answer that question I suppose I would calculate the time from the first day we filed a petition to adopt our son to our day in court ... Read more

Our Ornament Tradition

Having taken a little overnight getaway last week, I've been behind this year in getting my Christmas decorations packed up this year. But I'm almost done--woohoo! As always, I take a little walk down memory lane as I wrap and tuck away each item. This year I'd like to share our ornament tradition. Each year of our children's growing up years, starting with their birthyear, they get a new Christmas ornament for the tree-- something that represents their age, a special interest, or a trip we may have taken that year. After 22 years with our oldest, 18 years with our middle, and 11 years with our youngest, we have a very FULL tree! Plus, my husband and I will get a new ornament some ... Read more

Winter Overnight Getaway

We took a quick overnight getaway to Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Georgia for my husband's birthday. His New Year's Eve birthday has always been a fun family time for us spent at home, but since our married daughter would be gone this year, we decided to do something a little different for everyone to look forward to. We were gone for just about 24 hours, but it was just perfect! Callaway is only an hour and a half away from us, so we usually just make it a day trip, however, last year we stayed in one of their cabins for a weekend and this year we decided to try their Lodge. We loved it! My daughter said this place had serious Hallmark vibes! Wouldn't you agree? It was nice ... Read more

Christmas Memories 2022

Happy New Year!! I can't believe it's 2023! We had a wonderful December, and everyone in our house stayed well this year! Last year we had Covid, so we were home for most of December, which was pretty cozy and a different kind of blessing, but this year we were able to get out, keep all our plans, and enjoy fun activities. I have an embarrassing number of photos, so I'll try and keep my comments brief. We kicked off the beginning of December with our favorite peppermint milkshakes from Chick-Fil-A. Our first Christmas party of the season was with our field trip co-op, and you can read about that here. The next day we moms had a special field trip planned just for our teens ... Read more