Growing Up

Lessons Learned Through A Year Of Grief 2023 will always be the year that my mom passed away. I’ve never experienced a loss as great as this, and I’ve never experienced this level of grief. Although 2023 was the hardest year of my life, through this first year of grieving my mother's passing, I have actually grown and learned so much. Lesson #1: I am stronger than I thought. The mere thought of losing my mom seemed unbearable. I figured I would be inconsolable and not be able to go on with my life. But once I was faced with the reality of her death, the opposite was true. I was able to plan a beautiful service for my mother. I was able...

The Most Remarkable And Unlikely Things I Learned At Church As a family, we’ve talked about God. My son Jack has gone over the people and places in the Bible. He has millions of great questions, but I can’t answer them all. I usually send the questions to my dad or friends. My mom and I even made the boys their own children’s Bible. Last Sunday, while I was at church, I started thinking about what going to church is teaching my little boys, Jack and Jacob. Then I started thinking about what the church has taught me. We have learned a great deal about God by going to church, but here are some unlikely things that I learned at church: ...

Mothering Through Grief During The Holidays As the holiday season approaches, I feel a sense of dread come over me. Seeing all of the Halloween and Thanksgiving decorations fill the store shelves is not giving me the same excitement that it has in the past. And instead of excitement about Christmas, I feel anxiety. This year is different. You see, my mom passed away earlier this year so this will be my first holiday season without her. Grief is funny because I didn’t always spend the holidays with my mom, so that's not really what has me feeling down. In fact, since I moved away from my hometown and started my own family, we often choose to make memories in our...

My husband was on his way home with both our girls. I had just arrived home from work, and I began my daily routine of feeding pets and changing into my workout clothes. I sat on the sofa and put on my socks and shoes. I wonder if my bonus-daughter’s phone is in her room, randomly popped into my head. I have never snooped at her phone before, so this thought was new and definitely random for me. But my brain could not let go. Starting to stretch for my evening run, I kept marinating on the idea. So, I said a little prayer, asking God for His wisdom, and I felt an even stronger urge to put my secret...

4 Reasons To Give A Kid A Camera Last Christmas I was talking with some friends about Christmas gifts for our kids when one recommended a toddler camera. I loved the idea! I remember getting my first "real camera." It was a purple Minnie Mouse camera that used 110 film and needed flash cubes. I'm sure it could get costly to buy film, flash cubes and pay for processing. Then there was the wait the time to get those photos developed. While all of that is probably a foreign concept to some, the prevalence of digital cameras makes getting one for a toddler, preschooler or young child much more reasonable and accessible. My kiddo was 3 that Christmas and it seemed like...