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…
Tag: large family
My New Book: Chapter 2 Read Aloud
I have been looking so forward to today, knowing I would be reading the next chapter of my book, The Sacred Everyday: A Search for the Exquisite Beauty of an Ordinary Life. This book does not yet exist in print form, and you can only find it here on my podcast, where I’m releasing these…
Chapter 1 of My Book, The Sacred Everyday: A Search for the Exquisite Beauty of an Ordinary Life (A Read-Aloud)
Today I am brimming over with emotion. I cannot hold these words in any longer. In this special edition of the podcast, I am reading aloud the first chapter of my new book, The Sacred Everyday: A Search for the Exquisite Beauty of an Ordinary Life. The book has not yet been published (I talk…
Dear Friends (Family Newsletter)
Dear friends, For some time, I have been wanting to write a newslettery kind of post to let you know a little more about my life, our family, and what is going on in my heart. At the end of the post, I will be asking you a question–feel free to respond in the comments,…
Birth, Motherhood, and Wholehearted Surrender (Podcast #33)
I have written a lot about birth on this blog. God has used it like nothing else in my life as a metaphor for wholehearted surrender. In today’s podcast, I share a bit about birth, about surrendering hopes, surrendering regrets, surrendering fears, and ultimately surrendering our whole hearts to God. I hope this is an…
Open Journal: Heidi’s Birth Journal
Because I have eight children, people often assume that I just breeze my way through pregnancy and birth and that it is no big deal to me by now. If you have been with me any amount of time, you probably already know how life-changing every one of these births have been for me. How…
Motherhood When It’s All Too Much (Podcast #32)
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 #30)
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…
Family Rhythms: Homeschool (Podcast #25)
When Randy and I first started homeschooling, it was because we wanted the flexibility of having our children with us. We imagined traveling, playing music, and bringing our children along… Life shifted as we had more children and we began to restructure our life within the comfort of home. As our children and family size…
Setting Up Stones of Remembrance (Podcast #24)
I have been reflecting on God’s goodness to me and my family more than usual this week, reminded of the miracles he has done in our lives in bringing us safely through so many questions, fears, doubts, and prayers over these years of marriage and parenting. In this podcast, I am sharing about setting up…
Rhythms: Making Space for Beauty in Everyday Life (Podcast #22)
Life doesn’t slow down. Every day there is an inexhaustible to-do list waiting for me. There are needs and questions pressing in–about homeschool, health, children’s needs, creative projects, this house, community, adventure, prayers and plans for the future… One thing I have learned in my life is that I have to create rhythms for myself…
High Risk Life (Podcast #21)
Life can feel so risky–marriage, parenting, meaningful work, just getting out bed… In this podcast, I share how a life of faith can prepare us for every step of our high risk lives. You can also listen and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes or Stitcher. Love this podcast? Join my inner circle of supporters…