A year ago, after a great disappointment of the soul, I wrote these words: Sometimes small hopes die. And there is a grief that comes to us that cannot be measured by reason. A future that has lived in the illuminated imagination of the mind is set backward in time and exists only in shadowy…
Tag: faith
Life in a Big Family (Podcast #45)
“How do you do it?” I have been asked this question so. many. times. When people learn that we have eight children ages 1-15, I think they are genuinely curious what our life looks like. Today I am sharing a bit about life as a mother of a large family, as well as some thoughts…
Moving into a Year with No Fear and No Regrets (Podcast #44)
On the last day of the year, I reflect on 2022, thinking about how this year has been different, what I have learned and some of the milestones of this year. I share some of our own family rhythms that we’ve established this year that have been making home in a family with eight children…
Homeschool and Creative Family Culture (Podcast #41)
I don’t want my children to be simply entertained through life. I want them to show up for the purposes for which God has created them. I want them to do the things that only they can do. I want them to have the living conversations that can only come from their hearts and mouths….
My Book Now Available!
UPDATE MARCH 29, 2023: At the time I wrote this post, there was no physical copy of this book (only a read-aloud of an earlier version via podcast). But now the book, complete with text and illustrations, exists! You can find it here: ORIGINAL POST: *At this time, there is no hard copy of this…
One Small Garden (Ch. 7 Read Aloud of The Sacred Everyday Book) Podcast #40
We never really know what we are building with our lives. I try so hard to understand what it’s all about. I pray for vision, I research my past for clues, I desperately seek God for the next step. This is the life of faith. And though we may think our lives will look one…
Faith and Miracles (Ch. 6 Read-Aloud of The Sacred Everyday Book) Podcast #39
Are you going to have more? How do you feed them? How do you do it? And the often-implied but never-spoken–why??? When people see us with our eight children, they are curious. For the past 6 weeks, I have been reading aloud a chapter at a time of my book, The Sacred Everyday, A Search…
Questions at 2 a.m. (Chapter 5 Read Aloud of The Sacred Everyday Book) Podcast #38
If you find yourself lying awake at 2 a.m. asking questions that seem to have no answers, this episode is for you. Many of these reflections were written in the dead of night, stealing out of my dark bedroom, making my way to the kitchen table to pour out my heart to God, to empty…
Every Morning I Wake in an Ocean (Chapter 4 Read Aloud of The Sacred Everyday Book, available exclusively on the podcast, epsiode #37)
This chapter is a collection of writings that were born out of many difficult seasons of my life. The exhaustion of motherhood, the weight of raising a family, the struggle to find my breath after grief knocked the wind out of me. I share my search for hope and beauty in spite of, and often…
Love Like Ocean Waves
It’s the ocean again. This time in a dream. I found out two friends would be traveling there, and I silently imagined myself asking them if they would mind if I tagged along. Without the fare of gas, with a place to stay, without a family to care for. There would be nearly no expense….
Motherhood When It’s All Too Much (Podcast #31)
Have you ever found yourself wondering what you were thinking when you believed you were capable of raising children into adulthood? Or have you ever been overwhelmed by a season in your family when it just all seemed too much? Sometimes, this happens to me. (Ok, it happens to me a lot…) I realize that…
Nothing is Wasted: Motherhood and the Surrendered Life (Podcast #29)
When I look back over what I dreamed my life would be 19 years into my marriage, I could not have imagined the impact motherhood would have on me. So many of the goals and aspirations of my life have shifted and refocused themselves into the everyday rhythms and rituals of raising a family and…