Stepping Back

May 01, 2019

I found the process amusing - admirable even. And as I soaked in the hot tub with my happy children, I couldn’t help but see the parallel of the very lesson the Lord was teaching me…

We, as mothers, can so easily become engrossed in our work. When days turn into weeks - that turn into months and years - we can mistakingly believe that all we do is paint trees!

The Wash, Rinse, and Repeat cycle of Motherhood is all-consumptive. And cleaning everything from dirty dishes to dirty diapers and wiping everything from runny noses to runny bottoms is less than romantic. But with each day, week, month, and year that passes - we paint trees. A little green mixed with a little blue - one evergreen after another, after another……

Resolve for the Mess

April 24, 2019

Life isn’t fair. Bad things happen. Things get messy. Sometimes the storm seems perfect and the cards that are dealt aren’t always good. And it shouldn’t come as a surprise when it happens since Jesus gave us the head’s up in John 16:33 - "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble.”

Experiencing trouble is oftentimes out of our control, but what we do in response to it is absolutely in our control……

The First Week of April

April 12, 2019

It’s April and spring has finally sprung! Bright, yellow Daffodils and “Naked Ladies” (as my husband’s Grandpa loved to call them) have pushed themselves through the soil next to my front steps.

I love April.

Seemingly, the songbirds that stayed all winter long do too. They are happier - now that their robin friends have returned - and you can hear it in their extra-sweet songs they sing at dawn.

I especially love the first week of April, and I’ll tell you why……

It Called for a Bow Tie and a Bell

April 06, 2019

He was invited into the pain when his older brother came up with the idea.

I was invited into the pain when I heard the scream……

The Flat White That Grew My Faith

March 13, 2019

It was an ordinary Grande Starbucks Flat White. But it was the most special one I had ever had - one that came with an unforgettable message.

One that I heard loud and clear……

Praying for Rachel

February 16, 2019

As I opened my Bible and thumbed through my journal to find the entry, it suddenly all made sense.

All along I had been praying for her womb - without even processing that perhaps her womb was in need of prayer.

They were staring at Barren and her friend, Infertile, in the face and were experiencing the raw, emotional pain that it brings……

Sitting with Sadness

February 08, 2019

Sadness is an emotion that we oftentimes avoid - like going to the Dentist or getting our annual physical. It’s not as exciting as Joy, doesn’t worry as much as Fear, and doesn’t say as many bad words as Anger. (And Disney’s Inside Out did a brilliant job of exploring these characters.)

Not too many of us enjoy when Sadness come around. Because, when Sadness shows up, it can be a real downer……

Maddening Moments of Bedtime

February 02, 2019

My choice of the word “maddening” reveals my honest feelings regarding bedtime. Because if I’m being transparent, some nights the adjective that Merriam-Webster defines as “tending to craze; tending to infuriate” seems all too fitting.

There are certain movies and TV shows that can set us up for thoughts of inadequacy and feelings of failure regarding this subject. Because in the movies, children go to bed at bedtime, fall asleep with minimal effort on their parent’s end, and sleep peacefully all through the night……

When the Dust Settles

January 18, 2019

Two years ago, I remember being convicted in my Re-Entry. We had stayed, traveled, and then came home much like this year. I had piles and messes and toys to deal with. I remember being stressed about where to put it all! I found myself holding a new toy and realized that I was more concerned about where to put it then I was with wanting to engage my son with it. I looked around the living room and noticed that I hadn’t played with any of the toys with the children - I had just put them away. It crushed me……

At the Sink Again

January 13, 2019

Doing my dishes every night in 2013 instilled in me a discipline that the work doesn’t get done until you get the work done. Redundant, yes I know.

And as the homemaker, I didn’t expect my husband to do them and my two-year-old and baby were certainly not jumping up to help me wash, dry, and put away either.

Those dishes were left for me. Me.

In the process of washing cup after cup and spoon after spoon, my negative attitude of missing my dishwasher from our previous house changed. Spending a minimum of an hour over that sink every single day forged in me an awareness and an appreciation - even a joy - that I was the one who got to create an orderly and clean home. Me……