Every Monday night for a half hour or so we have Family Home Evening, where the family gets together and one of us gives a gospel-centered lesson while the rest of us torture the cat, gaze at the ceiling, tell Sarah to GO SIT DOWN every twelve seconds, etc. Last night Mom helped Natalie (age …

I have a bad habit of splitting my kindling on the hearthstone, and occasionally the hatchet dives clear through the wood and bounces off the hard flat stone. This is not very friendly to the blade, so every now and then I have to sharpen the hatchet. (The last time I did so was probably …

A friend invited me to go snowshoeing with him yesterday, and to my legs’ consternation I agreed. Also brought Emma along, who is shown here looking south over Lake Pend Oreille from about 3.5 miles into the hike. We had to quit at about four miles because I was too tired to continue, and we …

Two years ago today, while we were struggling to finish the plumbing in the house (we ended up calling in the professionals, $2400) the snow was waist deep on the level. By mid-February, our driveway looked like a white hallway. I have pictures where the snow berms were above my head. We had so much …

Well, I’m back. It’s been a fantabulous holiday; 10 days off for the price of four. I spent every day working and checking things off my list (not a big believer in sittin’ around), but the biggest news (for me) is that I finished my first novel and completed the first draft of my second. …

Well, here we are hanging yesterday’s popcorn strings on the tree. This was a hard shot to get; the kids were bouncing back and forth between Mom, The Dispenser of All Correct Ornaments, and the tree, tripping over each other in the process. So they’re a little blurry. But the tree is done, the rooms …

From left: Katie, Natalie (sorry about your head, Nat), Becca, and Abby string popcorn for the tree Well as you might have guessed, I took a few days off of work last week for the Thanksgiving holiday (as you might have done too). My parents were visiting for the last time before they leave for …

I was so proud of the work I got done this sunny Saturday (to be duly noted in coming days), and so proud that I had all that wood dried out and ready to go, and so proud of my kids’ hard work loading up the old woodshed, that I didn’t notice their woodpile starting …

I got home late last night, and was relaxing in my cushy chair with Fast Company, possibly my favorite magazine (tech, innovation, business, great graphics, what’s not to love?) when here came Abby in her jammies. Sometimes the kids have trouble staying in their beds at night so I was preparing to respond when she …

I just can’t stand it. I withstood posting all day long, saying, No, I said I’ve already posted thrice this week and I have to be as good as my word. But I enjoy writing about our wacky lives, and since I’m the king of my own domain I can change my decrees on a …