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Every day Facebook notifies me to check out "On This Day." To take a look back at all the memories posted on Facebook on that exact day for every year that I've had an account. Usually it's a quick minute of fun. Looking back at old photos. Embarrassing posts that were made back when Facebook was much, much different than it is now. Fun albums from when Katie and I would comment obsessively on everything with all of our inside jokes. But sometimes I wish there was a way to pick and choose what memories Facebook has us see. Some flashbacks in time we really don't want to relive or re-experience. At the same time, some moments in life are unavoidable to remember. Even if there isn't one single post regarding that moment, any photo or memory from the time surrounding that moment will trigger those emotions and that memory. Some moments in life are a clear marker of "before" and "after." As a mom this is often to do with kids. My life is di...
We are a few months shy of our 10 year anniversary. 10 years y'all! In those 10 years our marriage has seen many times of ups and downs. Some downs are lower than others just like some of the ups are higher than others too. All marriages have those periods of hilltops and valleys and while it's easy to say you're going to always strive for the hilltops, valleys WILL and DO happen. Mine and my husband's goal for the times of valleys is to keep them as shallow and narrow as possible. And each time we hit a wider, deeper valley we want to get back on that upward climb having grown closer together through the lessons they valley time taught us. Rough times are times for growth (both personal and in our relationship) and by working through those tough times together, we're able to have taller and wider hilltop times! Find yourself in a marriage valley? Here are some the ways we personally work to get out of a marriage rut: 1. Apologize First: Whew. It's HAR...
I have an amazing group of close blogger friends who gifted me with several blog posts when Zach's started on this new medical journey. Today we are visiting Shepherd Center for our first appointment. I'm filled with nerves and anxiety and can barely think straight while trying to pack and prepare and thought it'd be the perfect time to use one of the posts my sweet friends prepared for me! Huge thank you to Stephanie from Giving it Grace for this awesome post about checking in once a week with your spouse. This is something Zach and I recently started doing (we call it a "business meeting" and also do it on Sunday evenings) and it's SO GREAT! I hope this post inspires others to start it as well! ***** My husband and I started doing a weekly check-in each Sunday shortly after we got married. I'm all about being intentional and this seemed like a great way to ensure he and I were having purposeful conversations on the regular. Af...
A lot of "challenges" float around Facebook and I've never really been one to participate in them but when I saw the spouse challenge going around I totally jumped on board. Of course whenever anything becomes the "thing of the moment" there will be other stuff posted against whatever that "thing" is. I get that such a "challenge" can come across like those posting are only posting their TOP moments in life and not displaying the REALNESS in their marriage. The ups and downs and harder parts. I get that. And I get how that could make someone feel badly about their own marriage b/c they get caught up in comparing their real life to someones highlight reel. And I get the people saying that their spouse knows how much they love them, and that they don't need a silly social media challenge to prove that. I agree with all of these things. We can't get caught up in comparing. We shouldn't filter our social media so much that it becomes...
I don't care if you have one kid or three kids or even more than that...marriage with kids is not a walk in the park! Zach and I have been married for NINE YEARS this next week. NINE. Whew. Looking back over those years I think that having our first child brought such a new element to our marriage. We went from being a couple to being a family and it was awesome! Sure we had our rocky moments, but overall our bond grew when we added a child to our lives. Having our second child though? It was the roughest transition when it came to our marriage. Life became about dividing and conquering rather than being together. I'd be with the baby and he'd be with our toddler son. We were surviving life and often felt like roommates more than a married couple. Baby #3 was another game changer for us. Being outnumbered brought us together as a team. It's us vs them haha! We work SO much better together because we have had to! Life with kids in the mix is always busy, always changin...
When my parents divorced my mom became good friends with a fellow mom who had twin girls my age. I grew up with Katie and Toni from elementary school and went through all of school together. As most friendships do after graduation, we all lost touch but it's been good to touch base now and again through Facebook over the years. Childhood friendships never leave your heart and I was so sad to hear the news of Toni's passing in February. We were at Disney when I got the news and it's just so heartbreaking to hear that she's gone. Too many people from our high school have passed away from drugs and my prayer is that through this tragedy others who may be struggling with addiction will seek the help they need. Toni's family has continued to be in my prayers and I'm thankful for the memories we shared together. She was always making others around her smile and brought so much fun to any situation! (Toni is on the far left) (Toni is two kids over from my awes...
