The Beginning Seven years ago, in the middle of January, I was sitting on our very squishy and oversized couch in our living room in Indiana with some friends. As we sat and watched TV, I distinctly remember feeling like someone was repeatedly poking me with a stick into my upper back. I shifted in… Read More Witnessing a miracle
Recently I took both of my kids to get their flu shots. My daughter volunteered to go first, but as soon as the alcohol wipe touched her skin, she started screaming and writhing in my arms. I tried to tell her it would be ok. I even got my flu shot first to show her… Read More Entrusting Your Dream One Day At a Time
In December of 2005, my husband and I were finally ready to make our dream of having a family a reality. We had just moved to MI, closer to our families, and bought a large colonial house in a good school district. It seemed like the perfect time to start building a family of our… Read More Grieving the Loss of a Dream
On the eve of my 40th birthday, my husband surprised me with a kid-free trip to San Diego for a few days. Our only plans were to sit by the beach and read as many books as we could. We were eager to live without an agenda for a few days. Once we were in… Read More Remembering God’s Faithfulness
When I was little, I dreamed of having a family of my own. I would get married in my early twenties, and we would have at least three kids by the time I turned 30. My husband and I would live close to my family, and my mom would have an active role in my… Read More When You Find Yourself Avoiding Mother’s Day
Over the past several months, I have experienced a lot of headaches. I’ve begged God for healing, but instead, I’ve been ushered into a season of waiting. During these seasons, I tend to compare myself to those around me. I look around and wonder what I’m doing wrong and why I’m still waiting, when it… Read More Quieting the Voice of Comparison
I had the privilege of always having a piano in the house when I was growing up and I had taken lessons from a young age. When I was in high school, my parents replaced our upright piano with a baby grand piano. My mom and I were ecstatic and eager to play the piano… Read More When A Piano Offers A Lesson in Grief
A few nights ago, I awoke in the middle of the night. I had a headache, so I got up to eat and take medicine. After being awake several hours, I noticed my pain from postherpetic neuralgia (pain from shingles) was elevated, but I attempted to go back to sleep. My sleep was fitful at… Read More Dancing between faith and reality
When my husband and I moved to the Midwest, we bought a large colonial. It was white with red trim and red brick. At over 2,600 square feet, it was too much house for just us, but we envisioned filling it with little ones. Two months later, however, my mom passed away from pancreatic cancer.… Read More Finding your worth as you wait
I remember our first Thanksgiving without my mom 11 years ago. We invited her family like we did every year, and we tried to keep the celebration the same. My dad and I were asked to make the mashed potatoes. We peeled ten pounds of potatoes and started boiling them in hot water. But after… Read More Navigating the Holiday Season While Missing the Ones You Love
