Why Create Another Blog

I'm new to blog writing, but I'm not new to blogs. I read several blogs from people who have chosen to take the time to share their lives. I've learned about new places, small restaurants, and local festivals while also getting a peek into another way of putting a life together. There's something inspiring and comforting about following another person's struggle to create a luscious life—one that is distinctive and unique to them and their place in the world. I have been trying to create a unique and luscious life through the development of family traditions and connecting to our community. I feel it's only fair to share my efforts with those who may find it similarly helpful or inspiring or at least a welcome break from the harder news in the world.

A Little About Me

I grew up in southeast Missouri. My father was a wildlife biologist who managed state-owned wildlife areas. My mom was a teacher. I have one sister. We were a family who read books, took walks to look for elderberries or deer sheds, and watched Disney and Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom on Sunday night.

Yearly Rhythms & Family Connections

While growing up, my family had a flow to our year. Easter usually coincided with the beginning of turkey season, so we would take our camper to a local state park and spend the weekend walking the woods to hear the first gobblers. We also went to church on Easter morning. Thinking back, I'm not entirely certain how my mom pulled those two events off.

Memorial Day week was spent with my dad's siblings camping and fishing at some small state park. It always rained.

Summers were about growing a huge garden. I can still remember my mom standing in the kitchen canner humming away with jars of green beans inside.

In the fall, we showed vegetables, jelly, rabbits, sheep, and horses at the district and county fairs. Throughout the year, we were active with the local 4-H club. In September, all of that work came to fruition with ribbons and trophies won and money received for selling our market lambs at auction. Unbelievably, I was given two weeks of excused absence from school each year.

We always traveled to western Missouri at Thanksgiving to be with my dad's siblings. I'm the youngest cousin so I got to sneak the first bit of turkey and load my plate first. I remember so many laughs, late nights of storytelling, and long walks with aunts and cousins. I'm not sure what the uncles were doing besides eating the last of the pie.

At Christmas, we were always at home - just the four of us. Christmas was a big thing for our family. December was filled with making cookies and candies and listening to stacks of Christmas albums on the hi-fi. We decorated the tree early and left it up for many days after Christmas Day. We drove the gravel county roads to pick holly and mistletoe for decorations. We exchanged handmade Christmas ornaments with our cousins in Colorado. I never saw Santa's presents being put under the tree, yet they were always there on Christmas morning even during my visits from college and later as an adult. It was magical.

And Now?

It is grounding to have a rhythm to the year and relationships through which to share them, but what happens when you leave the place where you grew up?

In 1995, I moved to Alaska. I married a funny, caring man in 2001 and had children in 2006 and 2008. My life in Anchorage, Alaska, is so different than what I had growing up, but that just means we have a grand opportunity to create our own unique and luscious life filled with new and rediscovered traditions. These are what I hope to share with you.

Welcome to This Blueberry Life.