“How do you refer to your husband when talking to other people?” Note: This post was originally shared on my “widowhood” blog, “Frances 3.0: Still…
I moved the bed around in my room yesterday. It’s the first “big” change since Paul died more than a year ago. I suppose I…
It’s been a year since Paul died; a year since I became Just Frances again. I made the drive to his grave in Cle Elum…
The last few weeks have been really hard. It seems that the closer I get to the anniversary of Paul’s death, the more memories I…
I finally filed my taxes. I say finally because I normally have mine completed and filed the first week of February – based on the…
Today is Ash Wednesday and the first time I’ve gone to church since Paul died, other than his funeral and memorial service and a wedding.…
It dawned on me today that it’s been nine months since I buried Paul. I just don’t know how that’s possible. I still have trouble…
My new year’s resolution was simple this year, or so I thought. I resolved to find a bit of joy in each day. The idea…
I wrote not long ago about finally getting around to making arrangements for Paul’s headstone. At the time, I was maybe a little sad because…
Science has proven time and time again that scents are the biggest human memory triggers. Of course, most of us don’t need to read boring…
The last few days have been bitter-sweet for me. I’m trying to move forward with life; trying to continue doing all of the things I…
In the hours and days after Paul died, I received countless emails, Facebook messages, and sympathy cards. Everywhere I went I was bombarded with the…
I spend a lot of time here complaining about things that I find upsetting and frustrating, but there are many things that I find comforting…
I had my first doctor visit of the new year today as a follow-up after becoming quite ill on Christmas day. Sadly, a new year…
It’s the first new year of this new life and I wish I knew what it had in store for me. For possibly the first…
Several weeks ago I decided that the best way to deal with Christmas was to avoid it. I figured that if I treated it as…
For nearly eight months, I’ve been putting off ordering a headstone for Paul. Even after I knew what I wanted, I still couldn’t bring myself…
Before I met Paul, I was one of those habitually single people and quite happy that way. I did what I wanted when I wanted.…
I spent nearly two weeks in the UK with family and friends, and have returned feeling refreshed and relaxed. A break was just what I…
I’ve gotten quite good at forgetting that I’m a widow at times. I can be rather comfortable laughing and joking and just being “in the…