Seeking practical, finding poignant

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The latch on the door to the cabinet where I keep my kitchen garbage needs repair. It won't stay closed. And though I know it won't stay closed without me fiddling and finagling the broken latch to keep it shut, I open the darn thing each time I need to throw something away.

With Jim still as broken as the door — hobbling about on crutches and currently unable to help with even the smallest home repair — I'm determined to fix the thing myself.

"Why don't you just switch the garbage to the other side?" one of my daughters asked... after she'd opened it when I warned her not to as I had just finagled the thing shut... again.

It doesn't work that way, I told her. I've opened that door a billion times to throw something away. Moving the garbage can to the other side won't change my habit of opening the current side. I have no doubt I would still open the darn broken door out of habit, still have to fiddle and finagle the door to stay shut.

The other night I told Jim I was going to run to Lowe's to get a new latch. "Don't!" he said. "I'm pretty sure I have another in the garage, in one of those drawers."

Unable to go through any of "those drawers" himself, I headed out to the garage yesterday morning to look for the spare cabinet latch.

After an hour or so, I came back with this...

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Wherein Facebook eases Grandma's eyes

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I haven't seen my grandsons in two months and nine days, give or take an hour or two.

I miss the goofballs, to say the least.

With no visits currently on the calendar — neither them to my place nor me to theirs — a social media share such as this one that Megan posted yesterday on Facebook is a...

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Water log: Morro Bay and beyond

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morro bay

I live in Colorado, where majestic mountains are many — and significant bodies of water few and far between. Nearly non-existant, to be honest.

The scarcity of impressive lakes and such in our home state is a big reason why my daughter and I were so enchanted by the sights along California's central coast when we visited together in May. From Cayucos and San Simeon to Cambria...

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Pinterest prize find: Build a Dinosaur

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Pinterest prize find: Build a Dinosaur

What in the world did grandmas do before Pinterest? I'd be half the grandma I am — at least in terms of the eats and activities I share with my grandsons — if not for the food and fun pinned and promoted by folks far more crafty then me.

Take for instance the super simple puzzle fun I shared with my dino-loving middle grandson, Mac. Without my stumbling upon a Pinterest pin leading to this post by a clever mama, Mac would have never had the opportunity to see how a few circles, triangles, and squares can be pieced together to create his favorite creature.

Now, I surely could simply say: Check out that post cuz it's perty darn cool. But then I'd have to come up with a post of some other sort to fill this space today. More importantly, though, I'd have no reason to share the photos of Mac making his dinos, photos that prove how Pinterest-worthy this quick, easy, and inexpensive activity actually is.

With that in mind, here are pics of the day Mac and I created the clever, captivating cutouts during my desert visit in April.

build a dinosaur

What you need:

• 1 sheet of craft foam (green...

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Mactacular moments: Mac is five!

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"The great thing about getting older is that you don't lose all the other ages you've been." ― Madeleine L'Engle

My middle grandson, the goofball I call Mac here on the blog, is five years old today.

F-I-V-E years old!

Unbelievable!

surprised boy

I'm so blessed to have proof that I did in fact witness every age Mac has been, otherwise I wouldn't believe it. Without photos I may not recall that each and every age this incredible...

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