Happy Birthday, Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Today is the 210th anniversary of the birth of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, who was born on November 12, 1815. She was one of the early women suffragists in the United States, and along with Susan B. Anthony, one of the most famous. Elizabeth Cady Stanton grew up in a prosperous family in New York. Her […]
International Stress Awareness Day (and Week)
I learned recently that the first Wednesday of November (which is today, November 5, 2025) is International Stress Awareness Day. In fact, this whole week is International Stress Awareness Week. The purpose of International Stress Awareness Day and Week is to raise awareness about the impact of stress on our physical and mental health and […]
Three Haunting Books for 2025
During the earlier years of this blog, in a nod to Halloween celebrations, my October posts sometimes covered books that “haunted” me—that stayed with me long after I finished them. This year, I’ve read several excellent historical novels that qualify as “haunting” books, and I decided to write about three of those today. All three […]
1840s Guides for Travel on the Oregon Trail
Starting with the Great Migration of 1843, thousands of emigrants set out on the 2000-mile journey to Oregon, but most ventured into the unknown with little reliable information on the route to follow. The guidebooks they carried were often misleading and sometimes downright dangerous. Only a few guidebooks were published before the discovery of gold […]
On Autumn Leaves and Rootedness
It’s mid-October, and for the last couple of weeks I’ve been noticing leaves. Washington State is the Evergreen State, but there are many varieties of deciduous trees in the area that lose their leaves each fall. They turn glorious shades ranging from golden to russet. Autumn has definitely come to the Seattle area. Daylight is […]
WOTS on My Mind
For over fifteen years, I’ve been following the Write on the Sound (WOTS) conference sponsored by the City of Edmonds, Washington. I found WOTS when I searched online for conferences near the Olympic Peninsula where my parents lived at the time. I hoped to plan a trip to visit my parents, then stay an extra […]
What I Miss After a Year
My husband and I moved to a retirement community in Seattle a year ago this week. Every big move brings a lot of gains and losses and starts an adjustment process. Our move was no exception. Although we have had many positive outcomes from this move, I’ve been thinking recently about what I miss in […]
Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851
My new work-in-progress takes place in 1851. It is another story of emigrants traveling from the East to the Pacific Northwest on the Oregon Trail. My earlier series started in 1847 (Lead Me Home and Forever Mine), and as I do the research for my new book, I am surprised by how much changed along […]
On Being a Local Grandma
One of the biggest reasons my husband and I chose to move to Seattle was to be closer to family—especially to our granddaughter. I wanted to watch her grow up, and we had difficulties traveling as frequently as I wanted to see her. Just after we moved, we learned that a second granddaughter was on […]
Memories in a Car Wash
Yesterday I got my car washed. Mind you, many people in Seattle never get their cars washed. After all, it will rain. If not today, then tomorrow. Or later in the week. Soon. Is a car wash worth the money? But my car had been on a long road trip, and bugs had splattered the […]