I write about ordinary days wrapped in a faith that keeps me afloat in a world where storms show up without warning.

  • I don’t remember what I was doing on August 3, 2023, but I know what I was doing on August 3, 2008. Starting a blog, that’s what. Fifteen years ago I started a blog called My Own Velvet Room after…

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  • Supper’s simmering (skillet dinner for the win), Gerry’s watching  the Olympics, and baby Molly is napping. I’m taking advantage of a few quiet minutes to write a blog post and share a few things that are on my mind. Thing…

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  • She’s home! Our tiny bundle with a long name. Her full Canadian Kennel Club name is Tweedsmuir Molly Jean Hoye. Tweedsmuir, because that’s the name of our breeder (who we love!). Molly, because that’s her given name and what we’ll…

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  • I’ve been busy at my desk in the woman cave this morning getting things done in preparation for a few days spent mostly offline. I’ve got a couple of balls in the air and want to clear the slate as…

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  • Returning to Moose Jaw was and is about reconnection—to the land, the family left behind when my parents moved us to B.C., and the family I didn’t know I had until I reunited with my birth family many years later.…

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  • At some point, the way some people visit family starts to look different. I was young—in my twenties—when my parents died within 18 months of each other and the shift started for me. Not everyone gets it, but visiting the…

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