The Thankful Game

At a conference I attended this summer, a keynote speaker gave a talk about thankfulness. She referred to a study which found people who meditate on five specific things per day they are grateful for are 25% happier. I’m not exactly sure how happiness is measured (although it’s explained in the full text), but I…

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Suck it, 2016 (Alternate Title: Glass Half Full)

I don’t know about you, but 2016 was a rough year for me. I can’t remember any other time in my life that had so many consecutive days of dry-heave crying. This year I went to Wine Camp for the first time. This year I’ve loved and lost, more than once, and more than one…

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Happiness

Prepping for family pic <3 Sizzling onions Happiness is… [family]…parents visiting for the weekend.…making homemade noodles with your niece.…being an honorary aunt of your best friend’s kid.…missing Grandpa and Grandma at every family event,playing pitch and putting together puzzles Happiness is… [food]…the sizzle of onions when tossed in hot oil.…tomatoes from the vine, fresh from…

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This New Year, on a Personal Note…

Welcome to the world, James This New Year we’ve got big news – in the form of a 7-pound-10-ounce bundle of joy! I’ve never been so happy to write a New Year’s post as I am this year. I’ve written several New Year’s posts since starting my blog-turned-small-business six and a half years ago (six…

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Vignettes of Community

Where I sit typing in this busy coffee shop I watch lives briefly intersect. Coming, going, coming; humans are social creatures, but sometimes we can be so isolated. The more people I encounter the more evident it becomes that people need people. Baking Easter goodies with friends <3 I am a product of my community.…

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Home is Where the Heart Is

Sterling love If home is where the heart is,then I’ve never been alone –State by state, year by yearwhen love’s nearmy heart has always grown. If home is where the heart is,my homes have multiplied;whether foreign sandsor country lands,whenever I’ve left, I’ve cried. KC besties If home is where the heart is,my home’s broken once…

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Sweet Corn Season

Mom and Dad, in the thick of last year’s Sweet corn Season See that photo? That’s what’s going on at my parents’ farm right now. And I wish I was there. Sweet Corn Season. It’s a capital-letter-phrase in our household, and it’s an experience that I’ve been looking forward to sharing. Let me tell you…

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In Memory of Grandpa

My grandfather, Leonard, passed away at age 93 on Thursday. He was a kind, gentle man. A father, a husband, and – as many of the other men in my life – a farmer. Leonard Finger, pictured on the right, holding stalks of milo What a great blessing I had last weekend when I had…

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3 Big Benefits of Family Dinner

The benefits of having mealtime as a family mealtime extend beyond nutrition, helping you to connect with your children and promote healthy eating habits. Growing up on a farm in Kansas, the dinner table was always a special place for my family. During Sweet Corn Season in the summer, my parents, brother, and I would…

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What is Hoppiness? The Origin Story of Peas and Hoppiness

Baby blogger Ann back home on the farm, learning about Nitrogen Fertilizer and Crop Rotation in agriculture Peas and Hoppiness. Yes, it’s a food pun. No, it’s not a typo – it’s spelled with an “O.” As in “hops,” like what’s used to brew beer. Peas and Hoppiness started as a brainstorming session of potential…

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