The Value of Giving

My favorite time of the year is Christmas because of what it stands for. Christmas is the season of giving because we are celebrating when God gave us the greatest gift of all by sending His Son Jesus to this earth. One of my favorite Christmas songs is "Go Tell It on the Mountain.

Adventures with Allie Enjoy

Go outside. What do you see first? Is it the sky? Is it the grass, or trees? What do you hear first? Is it cars driving down the road? Maybe it’s birds? What about smell? Does it smell like chimney smoke? Or does it just smell fresh?

Travel Bans 2021

Two of the biggest stories in the past couple of months have been about travel and immigration. First, with the fall of Afghanistan, we have opened our borders to refugees escaping the tyranny of the Taliban.

Turkey at 2

How many of you had family in from out of town last week? We did. Wasn’t it blissful? On Monday, our son, our oldest daughter and her hubby both showed up from the ends of the Earth (literally). The next day, a wayward nephew from two states over appeared on our doorstep unannounced.

Beginning to a “Thanksliving” Year!

This year for Thanksgiving, I’ve been thinking about the many people I know who give sacrificially to serve others and often go unnoticed or unrecognized. I think this time of year is a great opportunity to highlight them and let them know their service is appreciated.

Be thankful

Happy Thanksgiving. Lets hijack a phrase from another holiday, “‘Tis the season to be thankful.” Seriously though. No matter how bad it seems, you’ve got lots to be thankful for. I’m thankful.

Redistricting Process Completed

After our final votes on Friday, the Legislature has finished the redistricting process and finalized legislative and congressional district boundaries for the next decade.

Senate Review

On Friday, Nov. 19, we concluded a special session held to complete our work on legislative and congressional redistricting. Every 10 years, following completion of the U.S.

Celebrating Our Veterans

This week, I’ve decided to dedicate my entire column to honoring servicemembers like Terry Hoggatt from Cushing. If not for the sacrifices of our men and women in service, we wouldn’t have the liberties that we enjoy today in America.

What it could have been

The sun shines through the window and I blink; I dread lifting my head off the pillow. The dark circles around my eyes have been ever present since 2012. I hear stomping as the children do their best to sneak around (with four of them “sneaking” is nonexistent).