I asked children to write a letter to God about what Christmas means to them as part of the Kids’ Christmas Art Contest. Here are excerpts of their letters: “Dear God: Every Christmas Day, I always ge...

Tamora Pierce, American author of young adult fantasy fiction was born Dec. 13, 1954 in South Connellsville, Penn. She has two younger sisters. In 1963, her family moved to California. Tamora began wr...

Cookies are so easy to make and so easy to share. You often only need one or two batches and you have dozens of cookies to go around. When you combine that with 3 or 4 or 6 types of cookies, you have ...

I am writing this on the first day of autumn. This morning when I saw that on the calendar, I had to restrain myself from leaping into the air, clicking my heels together and whooping! Then, I suddenl...

The son was finishing a very successful senior year as quarterback for his high school’s football team. Recruiters from America’s top football programs came to the family’s humble home to make their a...

“It is better to deserve honors and not have them than to have them and not deserve them,” wrote Mark Twain. In heaven, Jesus had the deserved honor and glory of myriads of angelic hosts, yet he enter...

American poet, Emily Dickinson, was born Dec. 10, 1830 in Amherst, Mass. Her father was a lawyer. Not much is known about her mother. Emily had two siblings, one brother and a sister. She attended a o...

It is once again December! Holiday baking season is upon us and it is one of my favorite times of the year. I love the smell of baking spices, cinnamon being my absolute favorite. I love being able to...

Russian cuisine is a little more eclectic than one might think. The foods are heavily influenced by connections to Europe, Asia and the Middle East. They have made it work and while they may have been...

Thanksgiving is next week. Since I have to go shopping for that, I didn’t want to have to add a bunch of other foods for the column. I decided this week I would cook from the pantry and freezer and ju...

The rain sounds cold and foreboding. The music it makes on the tin roof of my little country home, seems to warn me to stay inside. In the distance, I faintly hear the rumble of thunder. As I gaze out...

American author Christopher Paolini was born Nov. 17, 1983 in Los Angeles, Calif. into a family with Italian heritage. Paolini and his younger sister were home-schooled. He loved reading and writing s...

French foods are the epitome of decadence with rich flavors and talent when it comes to plating. French food brings to mind fancy restaurants and a special meal you don’t get every day. For every day ...

The falling leaves drift by my window. The autumn leaves of red and gold. And, soon we will hear old winter’s song. However, before we hear old winter’s song, I’m thinking we must rake up all those fa...

Proverbs 10:14 says, “Wise people store up knowledge, but the mouth of the foolish is near destruction.” What does this mean? “If you have too many questions, you may not have any friends,” says Myles...

We tend to turn to comfort foods as the days get shorter and the chill permeates the air. You want something that sticks to your bones and warms you from the inside out as you eat it. Having the oven ...

If you are reading this, then you have survived Election Day! While there might be states with some issues unresolved with their final count, I hope civility will prevail. Our country must honor and s...

September days are here. With summer’s best of weather and autumn’s best of cheer. – Helen Jackson So happy to turn the calendar to September. So much so, I almost got up and did an old lady’s happy d...

American illustrator and writer, Jim Benton was born Oct. 31, 1960 in Michigan. Raised in Birmingham, Mich., he graduated high school in 1978 and studied Fine Arts at Western Michigan University. Bent...

Candy Corn Cookies Do you cringe at the mere thought or start salivating in anticipation? There doesn’t seem to be much in between. You either love it or hate it. Friday, Oct 30 is National Candy Corn...