Hi friends! It’s me, just checking…checking to see if anyone is out there, checking to see if I still remember how to tell stories, checking to see if I still know how to log in to the admin section of this blog. No. As a matter of fact, I do not. I am going to… Continue reading Just Checking

Busy: “Sweet, Sweet! Come play with us! We are playing Chase Hug With Scissors!!” Sweet: “Um, really Busy, that is not even a thing.” We’re fine! We’re fine, honest! I’ve promoted Sweet and she’s in charge of everything now. It’s great. Way better than when I was running things and someone thought Chase Hug With… Continue reading Mrs Pickwick’s Confession

It’s taken a few years, but the Blessings have Mother’s Day down pat. Homemade cards: Thoughtfully gathered bouquet, left in the bathroom for my enjoyment: A tidy house means a happy Mrs P! They made sure everything was put away, even the popcorn: They decorated: They even did a little gardening: Anyone can make one… Continue reading Mother’s Day Quintessentials

So, as I hinted yesterday, there is a global crisis at the moment and perhaps you feel as if your life has been upended and is in more chaos than the Pickwickian abode on a good day. Perhaps you have been devouring news articles, social media, letters from your pastors and bishops, helpful quotes, inspiring… Continue reading Mrs. Pickwick’s Promise

“Or, maybe it was a Pirate!!” –Carols, with Feisty

Thank heavens. It rained. We walk to church now, even when it rains. On Mother’s Day. In the rain. Divine Liturgy: A litany from the choir loft Lord have mercy (No, stop. You can’t. I don’t understand you when you talk like that. That is actually just one long continuous whine and I understand it even… Continue reading Mother’s Day Comes but Once a Year

With summer on the wane, and the school year rapidly closing in upon us like a church service (I used to say “freight train” in this sort of context, but at this point in my mothering career getting hit with a church service is actually more traumatic than being hit by a freight train), I… Continue reading Child Inside, Child Outside

An event of some moment has taken place in the Pickwickian domicile. A new little Pickwick has joined the ranks and Fr Pickwick finds in this new recruit not another lovely young lady, but rather an ally for himself and possibly even a bass. Well, in a few years. The Pickwicks find themselves rather puzzled,… Continue reading The Pickwicks are Pleasantly Puzzled, and Baby P Gets a Promotion

Fr. P: “Why are the roses I bought you for Mother’s Day hiding on top of our dresser? They look nice, but wouldn’t you be able to enjoy them more out here in the open, where you can see them?” Mrs. P: “So that they will be the first thing I see when I open… Continue reading Mrs. Pickwick does Mother’s Day