Finding Joy on the Journey in Faith, Family, and all Things in Between.
To my darling Kaia, This is my last letter to you this birthday. I know it's a lot to take in and after I read you these words, we will journey through the meanings together. This is the final thing I have to share for now. Be humble. Humility will allow you rest. It will free you from striving to be perfect. It will keep you from masquerading as something other. It will dismiss imposters from … [Read more...]
To my beautiful girl on her 7th birthday. My sweet Kaia, This week, you will be seven. Burning in my heart are the things I long for you to know as you get older and blossom into a young woman. My hope is that you will return to these birthday letters as you grow and it will remind you of your mother's love and desires for her most precious little girl. These are my words to you this year as … [Read more...]
My sister-in-law Sarah turned 30 something yesterday. I wasn't there to celebrate with her because, you guessed it, still sick. And the last thing anyone wants at a party is a coughing, hacking, wheezy mess. After 13 years of marriage into our strange family, she has become part of my heart. She is a dear friend and confidante. We watch our kids grow up together. We share our trials … [Read more...]
The first step of any introduction is always the hardest. Ok, well maybe that's not always true because I have had some stellar awkward moments after the, "Hello, my name is Alia…," but usually it's true. To avoid awkward moments in my middle school years, and ok, I admit it, even more recently than that, I appear distracted. This is the key to not seeming alone in an unfamiliar group or … [Read more...]
I am leaving to go to a women's blogging conference today. Blissdom will commence Thursday, after 700 women of all different backgrounds, writing styles, blog niches, and outfits converge on Nashville,Tennessee. The twitter boards are alive and jumping with nervous anticipation and excitement. And fear. So much fear. Many of the women in my #Blissdomnewbies group have never been to a … [Read more...]
Write for 5 minutes flat-no editing, no overthinking, no backtracking. This weeks word is Delight: Go Judah's been doing a grammar program with Classical Conversations this year and we have pondered and classified and diagrammed the complexities of the English language. Which line does the object compliment noun go on? Is this a subject, verb transitive, direct object, object compliment … [Read more...]
The awkward silence descends. Everyone fidgets and I begin to hear crickets in the background. The question volleyed into this space of women is "What is your element, how did God make you?" No one wants to go first. For some it may be that they truly don't know. Don't see the worth buried in them, placed there by their maker. For others it may be the awkwardness of listing all your qualities … [Read more...]
I have tried in vain for years to prioritize my life. I pursue interests and ideals with an almost manic passion. But like any mania, the fall from the mounting anticipation and excitement is almost always depression, exhaustion, and the cry of the perpetually overwhelmed. It all seems worthy of my attention and energy. I am an eager volunteer joining ranks with all the other overcommitted moms … [Read more...]
I love to check the boxes, fill in the little bubbles, circle the numbers or letters. I love to compile the answers and read the definition of who I am. You are an INFJ, an introvert, a melancholic sanguine, an emotional eater, an authoritative parent. Your spiritual gifts are discernment, teaching, exhortation, and you don't even register on the hospitality column. *I am working on this. … [Read more...]
She hands me the check as I'm headed out the door. Just slips it nonchalantly into my hand. It's for you, she says. I nod. Take it. A need is being met. The winter drags long and slow and work has been hard this winter. Every winter. New houses are not being built, old houses are not being painted. Bills are stacking up. This dear friend wanted to bless. We give thanks. We praise hard during … [Read more...]
I don't make friends easily. Before you get images of me not playing nice with the other moms or as some socially awkward no- sense- of- personal -space kind of person, it's not so much that I can't. I can, I really can. Not that I don't have my awkward moments, but it's not lack of ability, it's more a lack of desire. It's just that it's so hard. There's a reason my sisters-in-law are … [Read more...]
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