We write to taste life twice, in the moment and in retrospection. ~Anais Nin

I recently returned from a quick and dirty fun-filled trip to Nashville to see Peter, Brianna and my two precious grandsons- Bear and Boe. It had been a while, so this Sitti (Arabic for Grandmother) was itching to get as many hugs and kisses in as possible during the…

  ..so is he. These are the words of James Allen. I inherited this little book of wisdom from my father. As you can see he felt comfortable enough to scrawl his name across the front of it… Edmund F. Shaheen. I suppose that was his stamp of approval…

I recently traveled to Pendleton, Oregon via Portland to attend a wedding with my manfriend, Dale. Driving along the Columbia River, I requested to stop at Multnomah Falls, a place that I hiked often with my little family when we lived in Portland almost 18 years ago. I was…

This is a portion of my extended family gathered at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery to celebrate my step mother Adele Pearl Shaheen’s 100 years of life and love. My siblings, their spouses, their children and their children’s children. We are a force to be reckoned with. Adele inherited us…

I was at the supermarket balancing 6 month old Peter on my hip and purchasing groceries for a Mother’s Day Brunch for a small army, my shopping cart overflowing. At 30 years old it wasn’t unusual for me to put on a feast for 30-40 people. Doing…

I’ve had this bumper sticker posted on my electrical box for a couple years now. New stainless steel refrigerators are no longer magnetized, sadly. It’s been a motto for me in my personal life and in my work life as well. I have one on the door of…