I love tater tots. I love, love, love them. They are an amazingly delicious treat and I would eat them all the time if I could. Only…
Today is Independence Day in America; the day we stood up against The Crown to demand self-rule. As a proud American, this is a very important day for me.…
For nearly two years now, I’ve been experiencing an extreme amount of stress. Some days and weeks have been harder than others, but there hasn’t…
It’s day two of Journaling July and I’m running out of time to journal. Worse, I don’t really have anything to journal about. So, I thought I’d…
Regular Just Frances readers may have noticed that I haven’t been writing regularly lately. In fact, they may have noticed that I’ve had a couple…
I want to have adventures. Ideally, I want to have some of those adventures with someone I love. Or at least I’d like to have some…
I went into town yesterday for Edinburgh’s Armed Forces Day parade and celebration. I had put the event in my calendar weeks ago, and intended to…
As part of my desire to create better, healthier routines for my physical and mental well-being, I decided I needed to get back into the habit of enjoying my…
I joined a gym last year intending to improve my overall physical health. At the time, I eschewed the idea of taking any of the classes…
Yesterday was my third running of the Edinburgh Half Marathon. It wasn’t my best showing, but it wasn’t my worst. But I’m actually really pleased with my time…
Ten years ago today, I became Mrs Ryan. I stood there at the altar in front of God, family, and friends – with my beloved Paul beside me – and…
I went to Glasgow for a bit of museum-ing yesterday as part of my efforts to get out of the house a bit more. I didn’t have…
I mentioned a while back that my life was suffering because I was unable (and in some ways, unwilling) to set a few routines for myself. So…
For the last six years, I have experienced a wide variety of what I call “widow dreams”. Some are more upsetting than others, but they…
Clutter is everywhere. It’s in our closets. It’s in our kitchen cupboards. It’s in our bathroom cabinets. It’s in our desk drawers. It’s in our…
I rolled over this morning in a sleepy haze to snuggle up to Paul, sure he would be there lying next to me. But he…
Eight years ago today, my dear friend Joe passed away. And next Sunday will mark the sixth anniversary of my beloved husband, Paul’s, death. And…
I spoke the other day about the higher-than-normal levels of personal stress I’m experiencing, and that I feel I need a break from my current way of…
Life is hard these days and sometimes I wonder what my limits are. Sometimes I wonder how many more disappointments and frustrations I can manage…
I carved out time in my Easter weekend to travel to Stirling for lunch with friends today. Afterwards, we went for a wee wander around…