When I saw my grandson Nico recently, he let me know that turkey meatloaf is what he wants me to make for him for our combination Christmas/January birthday celebration. I have already made and frozen stuffed shells for the big day but will certainly accommodate Nico with turkey meatloaf. I suspect I’ll also make mashed…
Author: lenleatherwood
I am a native Texan who has lived for the past 30 years in Southern California. I am a published author of both short memoir and fiction, a two-time Pushcart nominee, a nationally award-winning writing coach, an editor, as well as a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Texas. In addition, I am the mother of three grown daughters of whom I am extremely proud, a grandmother of four darling children and the wife of a man I still love after 44 years.
Will Our Family Finally Get to Celebrate Christmas Soon?
Covid has been a real pain for our family over the past month. Sarah’s family went down just before Christmas so we postponed our holiday together until January. In the meantime, Rachael and Andrew came down with it as well. Then on Monday, we were due to celebrate Christmas and our January birthday folks, but…
Happy Birthday, Liz!
Today is the birthday of my middle daughter, Elizabeth. Over the past several years, I have had the privilege of working with Liz at Story Circle Network where she is the program director. This has been quite a treat since our skill sets are a bit different. I’m happy to be the front person while…
Happy Birthday to My First Cousin, Lee Leatherwood!
My first cousin Lee is exactly six days older than I am. At the time of our births, our parents lived half a block from each other, and our fathers, who were brothers, were also best friends. Lee and I played together from the time we were able to toddle and were about as polar-opposite…
A Recent Trip to Disney Hall to Experience the Power of Mahler’s 6th Symphony
Recently, Ray and I heard the LA Phil perform Mahler’s 6th Symphony. This is the one with the two hammer blows, the one that some refer to as the “tragic.” We went to the talk before the performance and the speaker was California composer, Paul Gibson. He played different snippets from the symphony and challenged…
Happy Birthday, Nico!
Today is my grandson Nico’s 8th birthday. He celebrated with his friends this afternoon and we will see him soon. Nico is a sweet guy. Sensitive and kind. One time he said, “Grandma, no matter what I do, you never yell at me.” I had not realized that was true. I said, “Well, so far you…
20 Things I’d Like to Get Better At in 2024
I would like to tackle this list in 2024. These are in no particular order and this is certainly not a conclusive list. Just the first 20 things I could think of with grandkids at the top. 1) Spend quality time with my grandkids. 2) Get down to Mexico to enjoy time in Ensenada. 3) Develop a…
The Day a Door Flew Open for Me Regarding My Appreciation of Art
Several years ago, a door opened in my life on a trip to France with my husband Ray when we visited the Pompidou Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Paris. When Ray and I first got together, I understood quickly that he had both a great love for and much knowledge about art. I,…
A Great Recipe for More Nutritious Macaroni and Cheese with a Secret Ingredient
This is a perfect recipe to inject a bit more nutrition into the old family favorite: Mac and Cheese. By simply adding a sweet potato, you’ll get a vegetable in the dish and you won’t even taste it. What you will taste is a creamy and very cheesy sauce with great flavor. On a scale of…
A Few Things I Know From Writing 20 Minutes a Day
Benefits of Writing/Blogging 20 Minutes a Day since 2011: 3249 Posts I have learned the following: If you write daily, you will increase writing fluidity, develop your “voice,” discover who you are and how you think, feel good about yourself by doing something every day related to writing, believe you are closer to being a…
20 Minutes a Day 