There are days the book's title overwhelms me: Only One Life: How A Woman's Every Day Shapes An Eternal Legacy. With three, soon to be four, little ones ages six and under, my “typical” days don’t often look impressive.My head knows what I’m doing is valuable, even if I’m not accomplishing ... read more
How to Plant Seeds of Christmas Anticipation
Anticipation has always been my favorite part of Christmas. Even as a small child, I remember Christmas morning being vaguely disappointing, regardless of how wonderful the gifts were. The season was over. There was nothing more to look forward to, no further excitement, no more whispered secrets ... read more
Investing in Hospitality as a Family
Our home wasn't fancy, and there were ten of us. My mom loves decorating, but despite her best efforts, there was always a pair of barn boots somewhere they shouldn't be. My dad is incredibly organized, but he has a back condition that requires him to lie flat at intervals several times a day.It ... read more
Long Days of Small Things: Motherhood as a Spiritual Discipline
Forget meditating (I can’t remember what I’m looking for in the fridge, much less what I read three days ago), fasting (I’ve been pregnant or nursing or both for the past six years), or silence (does that even exist anymore? I’ve forgotten). As much as I miss spiritual disciplines, I just . . . ... read more
how to catch your breath when you can’t stop running
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.” (1 Corinthians 9:24) I’m no stranger to hard work. As the oldest, Type-A child growing up on a farm with seven siblings, I learned early that self-discipline and diligence are ... read more
Do You Need A Mentor-In-A-Box?
You will always hear me advocating for a real-life mentor: someone who knows you, who sees you on a regular basis, who can cheer you on in your struggles, and call you out on your sins. A mentorship is a relationship, and a good one takes time and trust to develop. I have been blessed to have ... read more
Discipline That Connects With Your Child’s Heart
I have long wanted to be the parent who doesn’t just dole out punishments when my children disobey. My goal isn’t to produce a little army of “yes men” who blindly obey anyone in authority. I want to raise confident, competent adults who have the inner strength to honor God regardless of what the ... read more
The Circle of Homemaking
“What do you want to be when you grow up?”It’s a question most children hear at some point during their growing-up years. My plan wasn’t much, by some standards. I just wanted to be a wife, a stay-at-home mother, and by extension, a full-time homemaker.Making a home isn’t just the “career” I ... read more
Beyond the Hope Chest: Preparing for Marriage (Or Not)
I sat looking glumly at my overflowing hope chest. Once the darling storehouse of my dreams – or at least the place where I stored things for my dream life someday – it seemed to mock me now. How many years had some of those items slept in the chest? I was 27, and after a rough breakup, marriage ... read more
Giving Grace to My Parents
My parents were not perfect parents.I am not a perfect parent.Every day that I parent, I am humbled as I face my own failures.Every day that I parent, I am more able to grant grace to my own parents for what I so often perceived as their failures.I was raised in a very conservative ... read more
