Dec 2009
25
Courtesy of tamurello. My gift to you is this small story about a miracle. I wish you a joyful Christmas spent with those you love. The Slow-Cooked Sentence will return January 11th. -Rachael I originally created this story during my summer children’s writing workshop, Let’s Write! I used it to challenge the kids to write [...]
Dec 2009
23
From top: Sam and Max, 2. Christmas, 2003 I discover my 2-year-old twin boys unscrewing bulbs from the string of lights, “sawing” at the wires with a butter knife and drowning ornaments in the Christmas tree basin. What else is there to do but un-decorate the tree? In the weeks that followed, the bare tree [...]
Dec 2009
21
I spent a sweet day with my mom and sister Cheyenne. For six hours we scooped, rolled, dipped and pressed dough, ending up with 336 cookies, minus those eaten for quality control!
Dec 2009
18
A school lesson. More than a week of snow, bitter temperatures, ankle-deep slush and freezing fog forced a new routine on my family: At 8:30 a.m., the six of us pile into our one car and I make a giant loop — kids at school, husband at work, milk or eggs at the grocery store [...]
Dec 2009
16
Courtesy of bcostin. Do you ever plan something and then its execution turns into fiasco, leaving you to wonder if you’re trying too hard or whether the fates are intent on foiling you? This is how it’s been this week as my family tries out a new tradition. (I kind of view traditions like shoes: [...]
Dec 2009
14
Sunday evening. Dad: What’s today’s date? Max: December slash thirteen slash two thousand nine.
Dec 2009
11
Frozen blossoms fall on the bare arms of the neighbor’s tree, reminding me to be grateful for its summer plums that became jelly earlier this week. All this snow makes me want to curl up in a blanket with tea and toast, but my toddler’s napping and there’s so much to do.
Dec 2009
9
… a mountain can be moved. Chaja balances Max on the mountain’s peak. The phone rang with a message that school was canceled, a text arrived that work was canceled, and email announced the evening’s commitments to Cub Scouts and 4-H were canceled. And so the house awakened under a blanket of snow. How did [...]
Dec 2009
7
gal-uh-maw-freenoun From the top: Max and Sam sing, Chaja walks and the Big I enjoys his chocolate. All photos by Dance in the Kitchen. The weekend was a gallimaufry of holiday happenings that included caroling, a parade and chocolate letters from Sinterklaas. I, for one, am happy for Monday! 1. A hodgepodge, jumble, a confused [...]
Dec 2009
2
Courtesy of Scott Roberts. The excuses to avoid church were easy to find: Summer was too beautiful to spend indoors, then the soccer schedule tested our sanity, and last month I just needed to sleep after waking at 4 a.m. all week to write, but this past Sunday I realized we’d been gone for too [...]
