Category Archives: parenting

Swimming with Dolphins on Sanibel Island

Just back from Spring Break in south Ft. Myers, where we spent a day out on Sanibel Island. Around dusk, several pods of dolphin showed up for dinner, chasing fish around and generally making a spectacle of themselves. They spent … Continue reading

Posted in life, parenting, video | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

This is what joy looks like

You know, there are enough things going on in this world to be depressed about. Earthquakes, winter storms, unemployment, health care premiums. Oh, and my property taxes are due today (and again in two months.) But I saw this photo … Continue reading

Posted in parenting, photos | Tagged | Leave a comment

Eight cardinal virtues from G. W. Carver

In 1922, George Washington Carver penned a thank you note to one of his students who had given him a fountain pen as a Christmas present. In the note, Carver offered hope “that each of you will rise to the … Continue reading

Posted in parenting, thinking | Tagged , | Leave a comment

God Bless Mr. Stroup

Some time ago, I lamented that too many blogs were full of stories and comments that focused a laser beam on all the things wrong with this world. I, too, fell into the trap; using these pages as an opportunity … Continue reading

Posted in life, parenting, thinking | Leave a comment

Parents of the Year, Two Years Running

So tonight I was going through iPhoto looking to cull some images that weren’t useful and hopefully post a new update to the Cota family album. During this exercise, I came across this picture and, after a brief moment of … Continue reading

Posted in funny, parenting | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Lily’s Creek

After hiking through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on Thursday, we stopped on the way back out of the park and walked down to a clear (and very cold) mountain stream. The kids had changed out of their boots … Continue reading

Posted in funny, kids, life, parenting, photos | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

“I want my kids to know you…”

On Saturday, we were driving through Great Smoky Mountains National Park on one of the ‘motor tours’ and stopped at one of the old Ogle farmsteads. Beautiful place, unbelievable setting. We walked around a bit, shooting video, taking pictures. At … Continue reading

Posted in funny, parenting | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

"Happiness is not a function of what we have…"

While reading an article in the Saturday Evening Post written by Russell Wild, I came across the following: “Happiness is not a function of what we have, but rather a function of what we appreciate. Studies show that people who … Continue reading

Posted in observations, parenting, thinking | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

A note to Jack

At Lily and Jack’s school, if a student gets in trouble for something, the administrators send home a notice to the parents to let them know what happened. These are called “Ram Forms” after the school mascot. (It’s also possible … Continue reading

Posted in parenting | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

"Living in Heaven will be fun…"

The kids took the news of Granddad’s death pretty well. We had prepared them, somewhat, for what was to come and, truthfully, their ability to cope with news and events of this sort dwarfs mine. So it was really no … Continue reading

Posted in parenting, thinking | Tagged , | 1 Comment