Tag Archives: Family Traditions

Christmas Lost And Found In America

Born in England, my firstborn son didn’t meet his American grandparents until he was three-years-old. His father, tired of the rain and dismal British economy of the mid 1980s, decided we would have a better life in the land of … Continue reading

Posted in Christmas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 90 Comments

Sunday Lunch Invitation – Sherri Matthews and Michelle Clements James.

A guest post in which I share the story of ‘Crazy Grandma’ and the turkey that never was; a summer story just in time for Thanksgiving…thank you so much Sally Cronin for the invitation!

Posted in Family Life, Family Traditions, Guest Blogs, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 30 Comments

Happy July 4th: Back To Blogging On Monday

Wishing my dear American family and friends a wonderful July 4th.  I hold dear so many happy family memories of picnics, barbeques, and fireworks, joining in with the celebrations on the Central Coast of California. I never expected to be … Continue reading

Posted in Blogging, Family Traditions, My California | Tagged , , , , , | 32 Comments

Compassion: 99 Word Flash Fiction

Gather your eggs and flour, load up on lemons and sprinkle the sugar, for today is Pancake Day! I missed celebrating Pancake Day when living in California. Even though I made my English pancakes (thinner and larger than American pancakes, … Continue reading

Posted in Family Traditions, Flash Fiction, My California | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 87 Comments

A Day Of Thanksgiving

Where has the year gone?  Didn’t I just write about my Thanksgiving memories, an American holiday that I embraced in my adopted home for almost twenty years? Thanksgiving isn’t a holiday here in the UK, but for my family, this … Continue reading

Posted in CATalogue, Family Memoirs, Family Traditions, Friendship | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 80 Comments

Bad Hair Day: Bite Size Memoir

After sharing all those photos of pumpkins and happy memories from a life once lived in California, our Halloween this year turned out to be a very quiet one, with only a handful of trick or treaters. Still, daughter got … Continue reading

Posted in Bite Size Memoir, Family Traditions, Memoir, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 95 Comments

Pumpkin Patch Americana and a Happy Halloween

The first time I set eyes on a pumpkin patch in California, I was utterly mesmerised.  This was my idea of true ‘Americana’. For me, growing up in England, pumpkins belonged to fairy tales and I had certainly never carved … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood Memories, Family Traditions, My California | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 113 Comments

Christmas In All Its Glory

It’s Christmas, the most wonderful time of the year! The time of year when we think of family, hearth and home, the season of peace and goodwill, glad tidings to all men. Like so many of you, I could write … Continue reading

Posted in Alcoholism, CATalogue, Childhood Memories, Christmas, Current Affairs, Family Life, Family Traditions, Memoir, My California, My Dad's Alcoholic Prison | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 75 Comments

A Thanksgiving ‘Happy Birthday’ Baby

Thanksgiving was a non-event for me when we first moved to America.  As a Brit, this holiday isn’t on the calendar and not one that we celebrate since, after all, it was from our country that the pilgrims fled, so … Continue reading

Posted in Family Traditions, Friendship, Mothers & Sons, My California | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 58 Comments

Bonfire Night and A Drive in the Wilds of Wiltshire

 Remember, remember!  The fifth of November,  The Gunpowder treason and plot;  I know of no reason Why the Gunpowder treason Should ever be forgot! (English Folk Verse, c 1870) When we lived in America, the ushering in of November brought … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood Memories, Family Traditions, Friendship, Mothers & Sons | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 88 Comments