Who’s afraid of the big, bad…Nutcracker? My daughter, that’s who. But, after a bit of cajoling, she decided to give him a chance. “The nutcracker sits under the holiday tree, a guardian of childhood stories. Feed him walnuts and he will crack open a tale…” ~Vera Nazarian, The Perpetual Calendar of Inspiration Take the road […]
Holiday
Let there be lights! Luminaria light up Seattle’s Green Lake
Every city has its own unique holiday traditions. Three that I love in Seattle are: Christmas Ships, Nutcracker with its Maurice Sendak sets, and The Pathway of Lights. For the past 35 years, on the second Saturday in December, if you add up a hundred volunteers, two thousand candles plus two thousand brown paper bags, […]
Ten ideas for exploring cultural heritage in adoptive families
Exploring heritage is important for all adoptive families, not just those who adopt internationally. Whether a Caucasian family adopts an African-American child domestically or a family of Western European descent adopts a child from Eastern Europe, chances are that your adopted child will have different cultural roots. Exploring heritage is one way to learn about […]
Here comes Mr. Cottontail
Every year since Big Papa and I have been together, the Easter Bunny magically appears on Easter Sunday. We discover chocolate eggs hidden between the chives and peeps perch on the birdbath and birdhouses. Occasionally, a close relative of Mr. Bunny can be found sunning himself on a branch in our plum tree. This year […]
Trick or treat
When I was eight or nine, I experienced a traumatic Halloween in the safety of suburban upstate New York. While I can’t remember my costume, I clearly remember the brand new cute plastic pumpkin that I was carrying to hold my stash of candy. As my evening of ‘trick or treat’ came to a close […]
‘Tis the season
Christmas is more than a month away. Yet while grocery shopping, even several weeks ago, I noticed that nearly every store front is festooned with a holiday theme. I grumbled to myself a bit about the fact that the ‘Christmas’ season seems to begin a bit earlier each year. When I was a kid, stores […]