Hi Y’all, I’m Beth
I’m Beth Gramling Sanders, an empty nester, married since 1986, and mom of two wonderful grown women.
Way geekier than most women my age, along with my oldest daughter, Elizabeth, I stood in line for 12 hours in 2007 for the very first iPhone.
Hi Y’all, I’m Beth
I’m an empty nester, way geekier than most women my age. I consider myself too old to be a hipster and too young at heart to be a geezer. I’m a Christ follower, life-long St. Louis Cardinals baseball fan, crossword puzzle nerd, wordsmith and all-around technology freak and early adopter.
I was a stay-at-home mom for 14 years, as my husband, Jim, and I raised our two daughters. I enjoy my girls as adults more than I ever dreamed and love being free from enforcing curfew, nagging about homework, and throwing down a four-course dinner every night.
This blog is my personal thoughts and insights on life, family, faith, the expression of experiences and wisdom gained through 60+ years of life, and things I enjoy.
My professional self is on my website, aptly named BethGSanders.com.
Latest Post
Chemo Didn’t Quite Go as Planned
Boy, this sure isn't the post I thought I'd be writing. I didn't think it would be September before I wrote it and I didn't realize it would be this hard to write. This is the toughest one, because it's a different kind of trauma than I've ever experienced. But here...
Change: A Catalyst for Blessings
Jim, my husband of 32 years and I are about to start an adventure. Along with our two dogs, and about half of 28 years' worth of accumulated crap, we're moving to Jonesboro, Arkansas at the end of July. We've rented a small house — and when I say small, it's half the...
Fish: Phase Two
Today we finished what we’re calling Phase Two of our betta fish tank project. We’re not experts, but we managed to get the filter set up, the tank filled, water tested, and decorations added.
Fish: Phase One
We’re setting up a betta fish tank. Come with us as we figure out what we’re doing.
That Time I Talked to Art Garfunkel
And I Did Not Cry Last night I spoke to Art Garfunkel. Now, this was not a private conversation. In fact, about 500 people (by Jim's estimation) bore witness. We were given a generous and special gift from my sister and brother-in-law, which included tickets to an...
How Not to Be a Jerk When a Friend is Grieving
Warning: I'm only a month out from loss and I'm still raw. So this post is pretty unvarnished, and maybe a little angry. That's where I am. Please read with that understanding. You've just lost a loved one. You're in shock, reeling, and numb. Just to put one foot in...
How to Honor Older Relatives Who Have Hearing Loss
At my age (I'm a proud 57), I and many of my contemporaries are dealing with aging parents. With age comes hearing loss, and, although I haven't practiced audiology (MA in audiology, University of Memphis, 1984) in 22 years*, I do still remember a thing or two about...
I Miss Him in The Summertime
I miss him a lot in the summertime. Baseball season. Busch Stadium II. The Bottlecap. Baseball Heaven. The seats were red and they were so hot in July. Yes, St. Louis is north of Arkansas and Tennessee, they get more snow in the winter, but it gets darned scorching...
Small Miracles, Magnificent Gifts
I've always believed in miracles. I've known some really big ones in my family. Big miracles are like the fireworks on the Fourth of July — they make an instant impression amid the ooohs, and ahhhs, and the jaws that drop. Small miracles are different; they give us...
How Important is Milk, Really?
Musings of a Bad First Grader I attended a Catholic school in first and second grade, a perfectly fine school. However, in Jonesboro, Arkansas at that time it was the only private school, and 99 percent of all of the children went to the public schools in town. They...
8 Things I’ve Always Wanted to Say to Young Pastors
As a life-long churchgoer, mother of two adult daughters (22 and 26) who were raised in church, I share my perspective on young pastors and all pastors who work with young people. Most of the pastors who have influenced my girls have been young. Student pastors are...
A Parent’s Paradox
When you become a parent, you sign up for a life of mixed emotions. You want them to sit up, but you know you'll miss holding them. You want them to walk, but you fear they'll fall and hit their head. You want them to go to school, but it means they will leave you. It...
Don’t Teach Them to Hate
I'm not a big movie person. There are not many movies I've seen in a theater in the past 10 years, and only a few that I've seen on DVD. Occasionally a film will come along that I think is worth seeing, and 42 is one of my favorites ever. No, not just because it's a...
Why My Faith Won’t Let Me Be OK With the Death Penalty
I'm taking a deep breath now. The way you would inhale right before you jump out of an airplane (which I'll never do). While I won't take a physical leap at 10,000 feet, I'm taking a bit of a psychological one here, because I'm about to express an opinion on a...
Blue
Just yesterday, I marveled at the fact that I didn’t feel a bit blue this week. The first two weeks in June are always difficult, as the anniversaries of two loved ones lost occur within days of one another; my sister-in-law (killed in a car accident June 9, 1999) and...
The Meaning in the Ink
My mother is an incredible woman (This is not her arm). She's a registered nurse, and was one of the first nursing instructors at Arkansas State University when the program was new. After she left nursing, she was a stay-at-home mother for many years, though active in...
Letting Go — and Letting Go for Real
Throughout our girls' college years, we moved each of them at least three times. From home to dorm, dorm to apartment, and from apartment back home. Today our oldest, Elizabeth, 25, moved again. This one is for real. In fact, as I write this, she's driving a U-Haul,...
RIP Uncle Larry
I was sitting at the hair salon with foils in my hair when I picked up my phone and saw the text message from my cousin letting me know that my uncle had passed away early that morning. After I caught my breath, I texted my girls to let them know that the great uncle...
Being and Becoming
It's weird when my birthday is on Thanksgiving Day. My birthday is the one day each year when I give myself permission to be a little selfish and indulgent. I get control of the remote, choice of meals, and I don't do dishes, laundry, or any other housework. I love...