Day 23--Christmas Eve

This is what I live for ... cooking together, watching a sappy movie together, laughing, joking, eating; I love my family.

Day 22--The Right Thing

Sometimes the right thing isn't the easy thing.

Day 21--How-Not-To Homeschool #1

Don't be swayed by every piece of advice that comes your way, no matter how well intentioned; trust your gut.

Day 20--How Not-To

I've been mulling over the idea of putting together a list of "how not-to" tips on homeschooling ... I have plenty of first-person material.

Day 19--Camelback Mountain

One of my favorite things about Christmas is our decades-long family tradition of giving only gifts that have been made, bought used, or recycled; this allows me an excuse to get a little creative every year.

For my middle sister's family

Made from scraps of fabric, mostly silk

Close-up of the scraps

Another close-up of the sky

Camelback Mountain, 

the mountain by my sister's house,

which is what my gift was supposed to look like 

(heavy on the "supposed to")

Day 18--Renewed appreciation

This exercise of writing a thought in one sentence has given me renewed appreciation for Mark Twain and Yogi Berra.

Day 17--I'm sorry, I was wrong

"I'm sorry, I was wrong" is one of the most powerful statements, and one that frequently raises the speaker in the eyes of those spoken to.

(Posted a day late due to internet problems)

Day 16--Measure of Success

You don't have to help thousands to make a big impact; great successes can be measured on many scales -  one world, one country, one people, one person, one hour, one kind gesture, or even one tender word.

Day 15--Warm Fuzzies

One of my favorite warm activities of the season is staying up late with the kids watching Christmas movies.

Day 14--Group Decisions

One of my least favorite things about making group decisions is that rarely is there any one person who's completely happy.

Day 13

Half the battle is won by just showing up.