Tag: family

Sharing Cookies & Legacy

My son bought me a gingerbread man. While that may not seem like a big deal to you, for me it represents a generous role-reversal. For close to 20 years, my family joined my mom and nephew for one summer week along the Monterey Bay in what we called our “Cation House.” Because Mom and … Continue reading Sharing Cookies & Legacy

The Ricketts’ Season Greetings

A man [or woman!] practices the art of adventure when he breaks the chain of routine and renews his life through reading new books, traveling to new places, making new friends, taking up new hobbies, and adopting new viewpoints. -Wilfred Peterson By that definition, this pandemic season of life has been an adventure requiring rigorous … Continue reading The Ricketts’ Season Greetings

Super Bowl Service Project

I am not a sports enthusiast. In general, the only sports I enjoy enough to sit through fall in this order: any sport my kids play (especially rugby), the Olympics (mostly for the personal interest stories), World Cup soccer (when we spent a summer in Costa Rica), and figure skating (because grace). Football died for … Continue reading Super Bowl Service Project

2020 Travel: Tahoe

A week ago I began a blog and Instagram series on 2020 Armchair Traveling: My Life in Coffee Mugs. I wrote about New York City, Norway, and the San Francisco Bay Area and on IG posted about each of these destinations as well as San Diego. This is the final post in this series...for now. … Continue reading 2020 Travel: Tahoe

2020 Armchair Traveling: San Francisco

This week I’m armchair traveling on my blog and Instagram to share My Life in Coffee Mugs. I grew up in San Diego. I went away to college and eventually returned. And then we moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, where we’ve lived for almost 15 years. The Bay Area is where our kids … Continue reading 2020 Armchair Traveling: San Francisco

2020 Armchair Traveling: Norway

This week I am sharing on my blog and on Instagram about My Life in Coffee Mugs. On Monday, I wrote on the blog about New York City. On Tuesday on Instagram I posted about my hometown of San Diego. Today I am blogging about Norway... We celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary with two weeks … Continue reading 2020 Armchair Traveling: Norway

2020 Armchair Traveling: My Life in Coffee Mugs

Along with so much else in 2020, travel has been cancelled. Good thing my coffee mugs remind me where I’ve been--exactly what Starbucks intended, right? This week, I’ll let my warm cuppa whisk me away to share a few highlights from my life. Today is my birthday. It’s also an ordinary Monday in an exceptionally … Continue reading 2020 Armchair Traveling: My Life in Coffee Mugs

Family Traditions: Breakfast of Champions

Have you ever surprised yourself with a family tradition you didn’t recognize as such until you discovered yourself in the middle of it for the bazillionth time? Last weekend we got away for a few days in Tahoe. We like to stay in places that have a kitchen so we can prepare at least a … Continue reading Family Traditions: Breakfast of Champions

Hurry, Boys…

Hurry, Boy, she's waiting there for you... --Toto, Africa Click here for a hilarious quick read about how Toto's ode to Africa became such an unlikely and enduring hit.   My Guy, my eldest son, and my brother-in-law are winging their way across the world on an incredible adventure: they are on their way to … Continue reading Hurry, Boys…

NYC, There’s Something About Ya’

The Best Weekend! I told my family that, for my BIG birthday, I wanted to wake up with my loves in a place we’d never adventured together before. We discussed the pros and cons of various locations and landed on: New York City. How does a nature-loving, bookish homebody—easily overwhelmed and edgy in crowded cities … Continue reading NYC, There’s Something About Ya’