daylerogers

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What's In A Name?

My friends Emily and Alex had their little girl three months ago, and because of a crazy busy schedule, I hadn’t had the chance to meet this delightful little bundle of joy. Meeting her was a treat. Even at three months of age, she smiles freely and effortlessly, finding great joy in everyone and everything around her. What makes her even more special is her name–Isley. Her name is the same as…

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End Well; Begin Fresh

Graduation season is upon us, and many are finishing up well, whether it be pre-school with caps and gowns for the littles (just a tad overkill if you ask me), finishing up high school, to graduating from college or doing post-grad work. It’s all about ending well and preparing to move on to the next part of the journey. I don’t think the transition from where these grads are now to where they…

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Remember

photo courtesy of Chad Madden on Unsplash Growing up, my sisters and I were part of our local Brownie and Girl Scout troops. It was something Mom encouraged us to do, and being obedient little girls, we entered the scouting program, with weekly meetings, and learning the rules and pledges of the organization. And every year, we marched in the Memorial Day parade. The route was about two miles,…

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Stamp Of Approval

Several of my kids and friends have gotten tattoos. These pieces of body art are significant in what they’ve chosen to permanently ink onto their bodies. I’ve considered getting one in the past; the kids and I have thrown around the idea of a family tattoo. That’s probably not going to happen. What amazes me is how much the younger kids love putting on colorful tattoos of their choice…

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A Flower By Any Other Name

I’ve had the privilege this year of working with a gal who was not only incredibly bright and talented, but she also had a knack with flowers. At her home in Ohio, she has gardens full of perennials and annuals, brimming with color and shapes that boggle the mind. Her enjoyment of gardening is her resting space, her way of dealing with stress. And it brings her joy. She came into the office…

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Lounge Lizard?

This time of year in Florida, we’re embracing rainy, muggy weather that makes you feel the need for a shower the minute you leave your front door. In Colorado, however, you can have 80-degree weather one day and snow drifts the next. When I’m feeling sticky and sweaty, the snow sounds amazing. Beck, at six years old, has enjoyed hiking with his folks since he was little, following different…

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Stage Presence

He’s typically very animated and bubbly around people. He’s never at a loss for words, and his grins are contagious. Seeing him onstage, however, had me wondering what happened to the four-year-old Nolan I know and love. He and his preschool classmates were doing an end-of-the-year program, with singing and hand motions that were upbeat and fun to watch. Most of them were fun to watch. Nolan…

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Messy Mind; Messy Life

I have a passion for candles. Not the overly floral types, nor the ones that smell like cookies or fruit. My favorites are those that smell like pine trees, meadows, or the ocean. And the wood wicks are the best because they crackle when you light them. I’ve had this candle for over five months, and I’ve been lighting it every morning for an hour and a half. It’s my quiet time, an opportunity…

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Let There Be Light!

When I was younger, I’d be mesmerized by fireworks on any holiday that would choose to use them. Independence Day was a win, but other times, I could watch the colorful lights in the sky, like a magic kaleidoscope. It was always an awe and wonder-filled experience. I recently had the joy of going to Disney World with some dear friends to see the fireworks display, a phenomenon I’d never…

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Squirm

What happens when you get a stage full of bats, worms, snakes, and spiders? You get a corporate “Eww,” reflecting all things that make us squirm. Seven-year-old Cal and his fellow students put on a production that emphasized all things that cause our stomachs to twitch and our phobias to rise to the surface. A play entitled “Squirm” isn’t something I’d have thought to produce, but something…

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Sing A Song

We have the unique privilege of having the Central Florida Community Arts in our area, with the largest community choir and orchestra in the country. They have a plethora of programs for every segment of society, from choirs to theater groups to particular programs for special needs individuals. When several friends performed in a concert with CFCArts, I went with a group of friends to watch…

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Not Good Enough!

Broken bones need to be treated with respect. If a doctor is involved in adjusting the break so the bone can mend fully and well, it’s something that needs to be taken seriously. Over two weeks ago, Sloane broke both bones in her left arm attempting trapeze-quality jumping from a swing. She received a soft cast at first, after some manipulation of the bones to correct their position. A week…

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Who Helps You?

Several reels are going around lately that show a man driving a car, responding with a sense of forced gratitude to his wife, who is telling him to drive faster, put on his signals, slow down, or park right there. The wife is always referred to as “his little helper”, as if he can’t imagine driving without her help–a comment dripping with sarcasm. I’m that little helper. John drives too slow for…

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Tattle Tale/Betrayal

photo courtesy of Birmingham Museum Trust on Unsplash “Mom, she hit me first!” “No, she started it!” “Did not! She started it!” I’m grateful my kids have grown old enough to not tattle on one another anymore. But when they were little, somebody was always crabbing about somebody else. On long car drives, there would be the ubiquitous, “She touched me, Mom. Make her stay on her side.” Or,…

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It's Not Fair!

picture courtesy of Claudio Schwarz on Unsplash Two months ago, I was in a car accident where a large black truck turned into my lane and broadsided me on the passenger side. It was pouring rain, and I was shaken so much that I couldn’t stop the tears. The young man who hit me didn’t speak much English; when I went up to him to get his information, he used Google Translate and told me, “This is…

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Bold; Brave; Brash

She looked a little less brave in the middle of a big hospital bed, her dad holding tightly to her hand. The soft cast the doctor fit on her left arm reflected the break to both the ulna and radius. But getting there was fearlessness. Sloane loves to move, whether it’s singing, dancing, playing, or participating in sports. On this day, she occupied herself with a friend while her brother was at…

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Is It Me I See?

We have a plethora of sandhill cranes in central Florida, and their hatching season is now. They strut all over our headquarters with an arrogance tantamount to their size. They’re annoying. They don’t seem to fear anything human. If you get too close to their chicks, they stretch out their wings, which extend six to seven feet wide, and flap them as they squawk at you. If you appear…