Jesus tells us to love our neighbors as we love ourselves in Matthew 22:39. I read that scripture for the first time when I was nine, but it didn't apply to me in the literal sense. When I was growing up, I lived in the middle of nowhere, West Virginia, and the nearest neighbor lived a mile away. It didn't take long before I learned that, yes, it did indeed apply. Loving your neighbor might look like your next-door neighbor, but it's also friends, coworkers, and anyone you co

Not long ago, I wrote my miscarriage story in a blog post which ended up getting republished on For Every Mom. I detailed some of the events surrounding our miscarriage from my perspective, hoping to help other women going through the same thing. Recently, I've been reading this book called "Grace Like Scarlett: Grieving With Hope After Miscarriage And Loss,"and it's helping me heal from the loss we experienced in November of last year. If I could write the entire book as one

*I share this story here not to bring you a sob story, but to give those going through a miscarriage or still feeling the effects of a miscarriage a resource. My amazing mother-in-law shared a miscarriage story with me when my husband I went through ours, and it was encouraging to know that all the emotions and heartache weren't lost on us alone. And be there any chance of a doctor reading this: I highly respect you people and the work you do. It can't be easy to break tough

Smoke fills my lungs as I near a fire that towers seven feet above me. I watch in terror as the wind shifts, and that fire takes on its own embodiment, turning itself toward our cabin. Mom springs into action, grabbing a nearby towel and wild with rage and fierceness, she beats the fire in front of her. She yells for my brother and sister to do the same and for me to get more water and towels. Throwing the remaining water on the fire, I race back inside to fill the buckets. I

I started writing a review of this year, and with every new thing I wrote, I paused long, shocked. It’s been a hard year. I wrote that in ou

Sadie Robertson has a quote on her website that says, "Let's press past fear and pursue your passion," and I think that sums up the past few weeks for me. You see, it's real hard to pursue passion when fear constantly rears its ugly head. It's also hard when there are so many ways to pursue that passion, but certainly not enough time in the day, and certainly enough people telling you how to make it happen. I have tried to pursue my passion by using all of the "right," "prove

If you are in the process of preparing for a wedding, I think it's just as important to prepare for your marriage. That said, this post

As we go through seasons of change, I think it's important to make sure that we are focusing on family. I hope you find these monthly posts helpful as you live life fully with those in your home. At the bottom of each post, you will find a Pinterest board with several ideas for the month. Take one or two or more (if you are ambitious) and spend quality time with your family. I remember July's as a kid. School was out and everyone I knew was on vacation while I waited for chur

It's hard for many to breathe today. Yesterday was a blur as I mourned for a family who lost a Dad, husband, brother, and son entirely too soon after a fatal automobile accident. There are no words, not enough words. I had planned to share the words from another writer today, something I'll be doing each month, but I didn't realize how much they would resonate. Today, let's be willing to hold the hands of those who can't breathe, even if we are having trouble breathing oursel

Flames curl above me and dance in the wind. They lap like ocean waves against the hillside, spreading over the field. The heat tingles my fa

I know you feel alone sometimes, and I do too. As the happiest moments fade into normalcy and the dreadful losses linger in the distances of my mind, I feel that word in all its isolation. It’s not a depressed kind of alone, where I cave into a state of woe is me in the world, but it’s an acute awareness that the life I once saw as protecting and sacred is threatening and vulnerable. Children are born and placed into my care and its joyous and glorious work, but there are day

As we go through seasons of change, I think it's important to make sure that we are focusing on family. I hope you find these monthly posts helpful as you live life fully with those in your home. At the bottom of each post, you will find a Pinterest board with several ideas for the month. Take one or two or more (if you are ambitious) and spend quality time with your family. June means three things. 1. Summer break has begun. I've included several Pins with fun activities for

1. The phrase, "let me know if you need anything," spoken after loss doesn't put hands and feet to truly being there for someone. This phrase is expounded upon in a Reader's Digest article. I read this shortly after my Grandma passed away, and the words couldn't be more true. There were a few who truly were there in the midst of grief, and words will never express how much their thoughtful gestures meant to me. 2. I don't have loads of time to write. I used to have time to wr

Here's to you, Mom, as you lay on your side and feel those intense kicks that do a number on you when standing, making you nauseous and nervous. Here's to you, Mom, as you your first contractions tighten in the wee hours of the night, and you wonder what the pain will feel like just before giving birth. Here's to you, Mom, as you hear those first cries and lay there exhausted with a piece of your heart swaddled on the outside of your body. Here's to you, Mom, as you spend sle

I don't welcome change. Let the groundhog allude to more snow because even though spring is my favorite, the reality of time passing and buds blooming while my closet is filled with warm sweaters, tall boots, and pretty scarves, items representing the season when I gave birth to my youngest girl, leaves me longing for sameness. And yet, flower buds were noticed when I stepped off my porch on this warmish, windy day. Why exactly do we let groundhogs determine change? Season af

After rest comes restoration, a wholeness that penetrates our weakened souls and brings us life. Life. John 14:6 tells us that Jesus is the life. Jesus restores, makes us whole, and gives us life. We need restored. Life is difficult. The daily hour to hour is hard without considering the whole of life. I wake, attempt stillness, but all too soon the routine begins. Children need tending, breakfast needs made, counters need cleaned, laundry needs washed, and words need written

When I slow down to enjoy every mundane moment, my soul feels better rested. I may be a mess physically. I WILL be a mess physically. As I sit here typing these words, I wear sweat pants, a t-shirt stained with spit-up, and the messiest hair bun "unknown" to man. Physically, I'm a mess and so is the living room and kitchen hiding behind me. We won't even talk about the mountain of dishes covered in chocolate and soaking in water. After waking to feed my baby twice through the

My days blurred together when my first child was born, and the first month of her life was one of the single most difficult months of mine. It required coming to the end of myself in so many ways and in ways I had never experienced before. Those painful feedings throughout the night mixed with the desire to impress my husband with a spotless house, folded laundry, a home-cooked meal, and otherwise left me drained and exhausted. I lived under the false pretense that I could ha

What if I told you that the mundane tasks in your life were instead paintings in the making, every brushstroke on canvas creating a masterpiece? Would you attempt to slow your pace, giving each task your undivided attention, allowing the painting of your day to unfold beauty, to reach the deepest parts of your soul? Washing a plate, a stroke of pink. Folding a towel, a stroke of blue. Walking the dog, a stroke of brown. Changing a diaper, a stroke of purple. Cooking a meal, a

Four years ago, my husband and I started trying to have a baby. He has three children from a previous marriage that I love like my very own, but I wanted a child. I wanted to create a little life and be a part of every aspect of raising him or her. After the first year of trying, we sought medical advice. In 2013, we received the opinion of several doctors that all told me the same thing, my endometriosis prevented me from getting pregnant, and adoption was my only option. I