Dear fellow parent, Today I want to share a letter with you for those days when the weight of your heart feels heavy for your children. For the days when you can’t help but feel like their life is turning out in heartbreaking ways. For the days when the...
One of my favorite summer activities is gardening! It’s become one of my favorite empty nest hobbies to watch the plants and flowers bloom and grow. They make the perfect backdrop while enjoying summer evenings on our porch. Now that the seasons are changing,...
As our kids launch into adulthood and start taking control over their own life decisions, it can be tempting to “open the wisdom floodgates” and try to cram for their entrance into the world. We start thinking of all the things we haven’t taught them yet. Are they...
What goes on between our ears can cause us more problems than we even realize. There’s a very good reason the Bible tells us to take every thought captive (2 Corinthians 10:5). Too often, we let our thoughts go out of control, fueling a wildfire of fear and anxiety,...
Dear mama, Thinking back, I remember the days each of my children joined our family like it was yesterday. The excitement. The fear. The love. The anxiousness. The unknown. I’m sure you do as well. For our biological children, I remember the hospital. I remember...
In the past, we have shared about some shifts we have made to our evening routine to feel better connected in our marriage. We thought it’s about time we talk about better connecting in the morning as well! The mornings are such an important part of the day for...
We mamas are all about nest-building. Once the stick turned blue or the adoption papers were filed, most of us started getting ready for our new family member. We assemble the nursery, fill dresser drawers, start scrapbooking, and adjust nearly every aspect of our...
I was recently reading an article stating that 45% of people in the United States would prefer to skip out on the holidays rather than deal with the stress of it all. Seems crazy, right? But if we think about it, it’s not all that surprising. From family...
Parenting can be tough, plain and simple. Your kids go through unique challenges. The hard days can add up into exhaustion. Juggling everything can be overwhelming. Whew! At the same time, if you are a parent in any capacity, it’s such a special role to be in....
Several years ago, I had the opportunity to travel to London, England. While there, I used the Underground (subway) for all my transportation. Every time I would get on or off the Underground, a voice would come on and say, “Mind the gap. Mind the gap.” I soon...
It is possible to live a healthy lifestyle, and I want to share my journey with you today. In 2013, a breast cancer diagnosis turned my world upside down. Surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation did a number on my body. So when I got to the other side of my treatment, I...
What do you talk to yourself about the most? Do you feel like you’re internally comparing your kids with others in their class? Do you reflect on frustrations with your spouse? Do you just try to mentally “check out” after days that feel too busy?...
Adjusting to having adult children, and eventually adjusting to a fully-empty nest, was a journey for me. It is for most of us. I’ve now had the opportunity to launch children into adulthood five times. Watching each of our little birds fly out of the nest has been a...
Life is better lived together in community with others. In fact, that’s a principle that we are taught in the Bible: Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Galatians 6:2 says, “Carry each other’s...
Are you an empty nester, or are you preparing to be soon? One of the hardest parts of transitioning well into the empty nest season is intentionally releasing expectations of our children. Today I’m sharing an excerpt from my Empty Nest, Full Life book. I want...
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