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I’ve been procrastinating about this blog and wasn’t sure why. I usually really look forward to this. I realized the level of ambivalence I have about Christmas was holding me back. Then I found a way to talk about it with you that you might find helpful. All in the spirit of a wounded healer,... Read More

As a new mom, I once decided that I would measure my success as a mother by whether my children lied to me. Looking back on this, I want to reach out and give myself a big, reassuring hug and tell my younger self that this was a very unrealistic and ungenerous expectation of myself... Read More

[et_pb_section bb_built="1"][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type="4_4"][et_pb_text _builder_version="3.19.3"] I love it when someone trusts me enough to ask for what they want! My mind reading ain’t what it used to be… Maybe it’s just me but when you were a kid, do you remember thinking that grown-ups knew how to handle everything? Little did I know that, as an... Read More

It is hard to ignore what this pandemic means to me and my family. Certainly, it has changed how we shop for groceries (delivery or curb pick up), how we attend school (Nana as on-line co-teacher but offering no recess with classmates), and how we celebrate (socially distanced small gatherings in the front yard). However,... Read More

The other day my grandson, Max, 4, said, “Nana, when are we going to the Show and Tell House?” We were in the car on the way to Oak Creek Canyon for a change of scenery, beach towels and floaties at the ready.  Max was once enrolled in a preschool class so the reference to... Read More

[et_pb_section bb_built="1"][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type="4_4"][et_pb_gallery _builder_version="3.19.3" gallery_ids="1190,1191,1192,1193,1194" hover_overlay_color="rgba(255,255,255,0.9)" show_title_and_caption="off" orientation="portrait" /][et_pb_text _builder_version="3.19.3"] Premier Members enjoyed the azafap virtual picnic event state-wide at the end of July! Families received a certificate for a free meal for each member of the family. Kids meals came complete with a fire hat! Many families joined the virtual Zoom picnic times to... Read More

I’m thinking a lot about what it means to have a traumatized teen enter my home. I’ve told him that in this home we don’t have sex with kids or hit them.  I’ve told him the household routines he can expect. I’ve made sure that coming to my home was his choice, not exclusively an... Read More

Off my chest Whose journey is this? Who is the traveler and who are the attendants on their journey? We have a responsibility not only to these hurting children and their families but also to the systems and institutions that contributed to their marginalization and dysfunction because that is a real factor in most situations. ... Read More

The longer this stay at home situation is necessary the more likely our coping mechanisms will get stretched thin. AZAFAP Happy Hour happens every Friday at 9 if you need a friendly face or understanding ear. I host them from the comfort of my couch. Watch your email for the Zoom ID and password. Beverage... Read More

There is so much contrast between how each of us is experiencing this COVID19 shut down. I’m sitting at my breakfast table watching my grandchildren play in the backyard now that the weather has turned spring like here in Flagstaff. I have already placed a grocery delivery order his morning before 8 and updated it... Read More