An Article in Edible Sacramento Summer 2026

A couple of days ago, I wrote here (at my own blog that I've had for about seventeen years) about the latest edition, Summer 2026, of a local magazine called Edible Sacramento, and how I have an article in it. (Yay!)

I'm insanely happy about it. This article is a part of me that needed to be seen, and when I came upon this outlet, it seemed like the perfect fit.

But for reasons I can't explain, that post never made it to anyone's email inbox. That part, I'm not insanely happy about. This has never happened to me, so I'm perplexed.

To remediate this problem, I'm posting a small blog here about it (again), hoping you see it this time and that the internet agrees to work with me. After all, glitches do happen. 

Here's the previous post ◄that the World Wide Web decided wasn't going to happen. Click the highlighted words to get to my first post about my grandparents. And once there, feel free to click on the pictures to enlarge and read them.

And now here I am, ► happy to have a little article about my grandparents and their organic gardening lifestyle when they moved to the Sacramento Valley decades ago. Living a slow living lifestyle because that was all they knew, and all that mattered.

I'm honored that Edible Sacramento took my little story. Thank you, my readers, for taking the time to read it. This article truly consists of a little part of my heart and soul.

-Heather

Little Miracles are Big Miracles

A few years ago, I was blessed to become part of the Guideposts staff of devotion writers. It was always something I wanted to attain, especially after being rejected by them a year earlier. And now that it's happened, I feel like I'm living my mission. Finally.

Well, I still am living my mission. Because as a writer of devotions for them, I also am a part of their staff as a writer for their other wonderful books they release yearly, dozens of them. One such series of books they produce is all about miracles. And the series is titled Too Amazing for Coincidence.

I submitted a story about my obsession with lip balm and the lack of having it when I really needed it, more specifically, Lip Smackers, several years ago. Let me explain. I've literally had a lip smacker in my pocket for the last, oh, forty years. It's been a lifelong addiction, and I know what you're thinking. Really? A miracle story about lip balm? Yep. God provided me with some I needed when I didn't have that precious balm in my pocket, needed it, and had no way of getting some.

It was a miracle for me. A small one, but a very needed one. And it came unexpectedly in a way that only God could've done; miraculously. Little miracles, particularly when we need that answer to our prayers, are big miracles. There is no such thing as a small miracle. They're all huge and wonderful.

And these books, filled with stories just like mine, are all about the miracles everyday people need in everyday circumstances. 

If you're looking for some goosebump-inducing encouragement, the latest release, book eight in Too Amazing for Coincidence, is available today, June 23rd. Click here to get the book and get a 15% discount! Use code AUTHOR15 at checkout. This is the hardback.

You can also get it via Amazon if that's your preferred outlet, but this is the paperback edition. You can order it here.◄

If you're like me, we all need a little encouragement. And when that encouragement is a little miracle, well, that's a big deal. And in my writing world, it's a miracle that everyone needs to know about.

-Heather

My Grandparents: Their Story Became My Story with their Organic Gardening

The summer edition of my local Edible Magazine, Edible Sacramento, is now out. And I'm happy to report that I have an article in it.

Over a year ago, I had an idea to write about my grandparents and their way of organic gardening in the Sacramento Valley in the early '80s. I miss them and think of them all the time, and when I realized my paltry little garden in the same Sacramento Valley would never measure up to theirs, even though I wanted it to, I knew there was an article in there. 

It helped that I had photo albums full of photos of them and their gardening lifestyle. My grandfather had even been the president of his local Organic Gardening Club.

I was also privy to our local version of Edible Magazine and thought maybe the twain should meet? So I found some photos, wrote up an article, and voila: they decided they could use it. After over a year of thinking about it, writing it, and submitting it, it's finally printed.

Am I a master gardener like my grandfather? No. 

Can I cook every vegetable as good as my grandmother? No.

Will my body even allow me to eat the same vegetables as them because of my dumb autoimmune disease? Again, no. Which is why I have a humble herb garden these days.

But their love for the garden, their ability to create an awesome Garden of Eden out of nothing and into something so divine that I dream about their garden still, is what inspired me to write the article.

I realize only local Sacramentans will be able to find this around town for the next few months (starting June 26th), so here are some photos of the inside spread.  (If you click on the photos and zoom in, I think you can read the article!) I'm honored and humbled, and hope my grandparents know how much of an influence they were on me and my family. 

They're still missed, but in a way, having my own garden keeps me close to them. It's as if they're still here.♥

-Heather  

Mini Book Review of Theo of Golden

I don't do a lot of book reviews, but when I read one that's better than normal, if not superior, I want to tell others about it. It's good news that needs to be shared.

A friend of mine gifted me the book called Theo of Golden.  While I won't give the book's thematic elements away, because you really do need to read this and be so immersed in it that you don't come up for air for a day or two, I will give you a couple of highlights as to why you should read it.

It's heart-warming. -  I read a lot. I think I read almost a hundred books last year. So when I say a book is heart-warming, you're getting a book that doesn't fit the usual mold. Books can be cute, quirky, mysterious, and adventurous, but heart-warming? That's a hard one. And this book is that. I walked away from it questioning my everyday choices.

It's well-written. - I suppose it sounds ridiculous, if not redundant, to say that the book is well-written. After all, if the book is published, it has to have been written (and edited) well, right? Yeah, actually that would be one of the biggest misconceptions in the book world. Just because it's published doesn't mean it's well-written. I just read a cozy mystery that was cute and very Murder, She Wrote, but some of the author's writing elements made me roll my eyes and groan in pain. Writing is hard. And getting your readers to like your story is harder. I didn't roll my eyes or groan in pain with Theo. I devoured the book and wanted more.

The main character is unique. - The protagonist of the book, Theo, is an older man who gifts portrait photographs (from a photographer, whom we meet in the story), to the very people in the photographs. Why he does this, what his past is, and who the people he chooses to give the photos to are. That's what we don't understand, and that's all uncovered, chapter by chapter, forcing you to read. It's not your typical protagonist, and the narrator only gives us enough information to go on to squeak on to the next chapter, leaving us constantly wondering, why is he doing this? For whom? What? How? He's not this young, attractive character, flying through the story with his youth and good looks. Instead, he is an older - but very charismatic - gentleman who cares about people, and happens to be extremely secretive - which is the crux of the whole story. 

And that's all I'm going to say.

Read it, and you won't be disappointed. You might feel just a little bit like I do: that this is one of the best books you've ever read. If you only read one book this year, make it this one, Theo of Golden. And Author Allen Levi? Thank you for writing it.

Death, Taxes, and the AARP

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I’m having a milestone birthday soon. You know, the one that rhymes with shifty. (It also rhymes with nifty, but shifty is just a touch more appropriate.)

And while I’m ready for it, even if I don’t want to admit that this is even more “over the hill” than what I was ten years ago, what I’m not so happy with is that even if I try to ignore the looming birthday, there are those who never forget.

Death and taxes, they say, are the constants of our lives. 

But really, those two words uttered together should be amended, if we're being honest. We really need to add AARP to that little dynamic duo because two weeks from my birthday, I received a nice little notice in the mail - with my maiden name, of course, because that’s when they found me, as a child happily oblivious to death and taxes heading my way - that congratulated me on my joyous arrival.

"You're eligible for AARP! Won't you join us?"

I stood there when I got the mail, just looking at the envelope, unable to fully grasp that they found me. Two things occurred to me: One: they have known about me for decades. This, in and of itself, is remarkable and scary, and I firmly believe that the government and AARP are working together. (This is not a political statement, but it could be...) 

And two, they used actual mail to get hold of me, because they knew full well I'd delete an email (and I do) that looks like that. And in a small way, maybe I'm just a touch flattered? After all, they took the time to add me to their list! By golly, I'm eligible. I'm so honored.

Even worse, instead of just throwing the mail away, I opened it. I did! I looked at how much money they wanted per year, and then I looked at the handy dandy plastic card I'd get if I accepted to partner with them while my hair grows grayer and my bones just a little more frailer.

Then, I did what a lot of people do: I threw it away in the recycling bin so it would be recycled into more paper for future card-carrying AARP members.

While I gest, the truth is, aging isn't a bad thing. It's what we're all doing. I just wish it wasn't thrown in my face like confetti. I just wish we got some certificate for making it to fifty - or a gift card or something (and not have to pay to be in AARP). Because life truly is a gift! I noted several high-profile people who passed away last week, all under 50. And it happens all the time. I'm blessed to get this far. 

So if you're like me and approaching this decade, or perhaps another significant decade, just remember: the government hasn't forgotten you. Nope, death and taxes are a constant, and they know where you are. (The grim reaper and the government). But, never fear... so does AARP.

And maybe that brings a smile to your face, just like it did to mine.

Anyone there?

So, to simplify my life - to get the life I want, really - I'm always looking for ways to make complicated things simpler. I'm looking for ways to omit old activities that don't further my slow living, even if it means giving up something I thought would be helpful.

Isn't it funny how we add things in our lives that we think will help us, but instead only drag us down or force us to do "one more thing?"

One of those things that came to me was, Did I want to renew my domain name for this blog? In all honesty, I did. Who doesn't want a blog with their name in it? But I wasn't using it the way I thought I would... a personal dot com is helpful if I'm selling a lot of books! 

Alas, I'm not. I write a lot of articles, blog posts, and devotions. I'm always writing something (including books that may or may not see the light of day). So it isn't that I'm not published or that I don't feel successful in some small way. I do! But, this domain isn't necessary for where I'm at right now. So, I'm giving up my domain, which means I don't have to pay for it. It came up for renewal, and I declined.

Except that I forgot it affects my posts coming to your inbox.

So, this is a test post of sorts. Hopefully, it shows up in your inbox. Otherwise, I'll have to work on the technical side of this blog until I figure it out. Yikes.

Now, yesterday I posted about approaching 50. Here's the post, assuming you missed it.◄ 

Hopefully, all will be back to normal. Thanks for following along with me and my writing, reading, and slow living all these years. It hones my writing skills and, hopefully, helps you in some small way.

-Heather

Approaching Change: Turning 50

In a few weeks, I will officially become "middle-aged," or at least, in my view, I no longer will be "young."

It's all relative, of course. I can't tell you how often people (older than me) who find out I'm turning 50 tell me, "Wow, you're so young. You've got your whole life ahead of you." Yet, surely, my own children look at me turning 50 and think, "Wow, mom is old." Because I am. I remember my own parents turning 50. And I definitely didn't think they were young. Maybe not ancient, but definitely not like the youthful 20-year-old I was.

My goal ♥

Even though I feel young, even though nothing in my mind about me has changed (minus those blasted wrinkles), even though I don't feel different, there's just something about turning 50 that wasn't there for me when I was turning 40. 40 was great. It was freeing, I was happy, probably in the best shape of my life, had my closest friends near me, and I was doing what I loved.

Maybe it's because I have a decade more experience, happiness, sadness, and general life to look at and ponder, but it feels like everything is different only ten years later. 

I'm still feeling free (more than ever now that both of my boys flew the coop), and I'm happy, and I'm still doing what I love, writing and vintage, but my closest friends are not living near me anymore, and I'm not in the best shape of my life.

I just started running again after only a few years off, and wow, if you ever want to feel old, look at your personal best results before you stopped running and compare them to your current ones after you start again. Pure chaos, wonderment, and depression. Sure, I'm being a touch sarcastic, but not really. How could I have become so slow? It wasn't like I stopped going to the gym. What in the world has happened?

Aging, that's what happened. We lose muscle, and we lose it fast. Fighting decay all over and inside my body is what I'm doing these days. I heard a funny social media personality say, "Getting enough protein in my diet is a full-time job!" Truer words have never been spoken. 

Regardless of all the physical changes, the best thing about turning fifty is not caring much anymore about what people think. I've heard this one for years, but it's true. It goes hand in hand with doing what needs to be done before I leave this earth, too. Tomorrow is not promised. Am I doing what I've been called to do? Am I loving and helping those who truly need it? 

I wrote about it in a guest post at No Sidebar, which is a huge minimalism community I'm a part of (and partly why I've been a little absent here.) It encompasses living a minimalist life in our wardrobe, home, activities, and absolutely connects with the slow living lifestyle I've been drawn to over the last decade: slowing down, living with purpose, and connecting with the creative and true side of living that our busy world has forgotten about.

But, now that I'm turning 50, some of the things I strived for in my forties don't pull as much of a draw; I want to do more of what I've been called to do and do them right so that I can give a "job well done" account of my time to God when I leave this earth.

Aging isn't easy, but if I try to do what I need to do - staying healthy, doing things that really matter, and living as simply and slowly as possible - then the next ten years may be the best yet. 

Bring 'em on!