life. faithful.

Okay, so this is the third time I've started a post for today. There are so many thoughts and emotions flying around in my head, but I can't seem to get them to hold still long enough to name them, let alone to get them nailed down on paper. On one hand, I'm as excited as everyone else about the "unofficial" start to summer. I'm looking forward to an extra long weekend, sunshine, family, and grilling out. We've got ribs ready for the smoker and all the goodies to go with them. We spent Saturday and Sunday with family and are doing the same thing today. On the other hand, I'm having a really hard time with Memorial Day this year. It's been 17 years without Michael, so logically things shouldn't be so hard. 17 years is a long time--I should be used to it by now. This year, though, I've just been a bit off all week. I always miss my brother. Most of the time it's not a dramatic thing, just little things that I wish I could talk to him abou...

I'm not an "anti-vaxer"--you know, just to get that out there. I'm a science nerd. Growing up I loved TLC because they showed surgeries; I loved watching science documentaries and shows like Nova; my bachelor's degree is in physics with a minor in biology; I studied medical physics in grad school before adding in education. I am thankful for the knowledge and wisdom God granted those who developed vaccines and am incredible thankful that we have them in place to ward off what used to be common childhood diseases like mumps and measles. I'm thankful the polio vaccine has resulted in so much less heartbreak. But... If you know me, you probably knew that was coming. There is a huge governmental push for everyone to receive a Covid vaccine. Now that push has extended down to 12-year olds and to be honest with you, that thought terrifies me. As of May 12th, the CDC shows a provisional count of 2,139 deaths attributed to Covid for those under 17 (1). That's a th...