Pages

Wife Life | Four Simple Phrases

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

I'm sorry

I'm proud of you.

Thank you.

I love you.

Four phrases that no husband or wife will ever get tired of hearing from the other. We are realizing every day that marriage is a continuum of love, mistakes, grace, thankfulness and re-dos. The thing is, that continuum is beautiful and full of the gospel that's been infused within the very depths of us. And I really truly am so deeply grateful to walk with someone in this life to share that with.

___________________________________________

Taking a little break this long weekend to walk away from the computer screen and spend some real flesh and blood time with family that we don't get to see every day. Even though I absolutely love what I get to do to earn a living, my mind and my heart are looking forward to some rest.

In the meantime, feel free to catch up on other Wife Life posts here >>


november goals update

Monday, November 25, 2013


Well folks, we are nearing the end of November and with that comes a big fat turkey headed our way this week…doesn't that just make you smile??

I wanted to share an update of my Four Simple Goals I made for November since for some reason that's supposed to hold me accountable to them. Honestly, this month has been so full of developing new ideas and business strategy for the next year that I regret to inform you that the November goals ended up as more of an occasional guilty afterthought at the end of the day.

However, it wasn't a complete failure. I can say that my goal of working out twice a week did happen…once. And documented with one sad little Instagram of running shoes so you know I meant business. One thing I can say in my defense is that my job as an instructor at the Y happens to be a workout every day if you ask me. So there's that.

As far as cooking new recipes goes…that also happened…once. This past Saturday JT and I teamed up  on an Eggs Benedict venture that was so good I could have cried. It was part of the beginning to what is now deemed as the best Saturday ever. I'd like to think that we can credit that to the slammin hollindaise sauce that made me feel like there was potential for a Master Chef debut…but that's just me. Just so we're clear, the Eggs Benedict pretty much made up for the other three new recipes I set out to try. Because it was that good and I'm gonna be proud of that for approximately the next 10 years.

We've been so blessed this month by having some of our favorite people come and visit us and explore our little town. They have made this transition of the seasons one big blur of gratefulness for what we have and who we have in our lives. This newlywed time in our life is so short and sweet and regardless of whether or not I've written that down in a journal, the overwhelming overflow of love, grace and gratitude from the people we love and from each other  will always be etched in our hearts. This is truly a sweet spot, people.

How are your November goals shaping up?
I'm thinking I need to start working on some new ones for December. Which may just be a second attempt at finishing the ones I set out for this month…eh?

Happy Monday, all. Let's do this three day work week thing and keep our eyes set on the rest and feast ahead.


Back from a weekend in Chicago and not regretting even a little bit the decision to leave my laptop at home. My eyes and brain needed a break after a heavy work week. Since jumping back on the blog bandwagon this morning, I've been so refreshed reading everyone else's thoughts for this Monday that I thought it best to share the goodness with you.

Here are some of my favorite posts from the weekend and today:

1. On Analog Weekends | The Tiny Twig
2. This Lady Rockin' Her Business | A Girl Named Leney
3. A Right Way to Start Your Week | Becoming Bryn
4. What Fires You Up? | Naptime Diaries

Enjoy! Happy Monday.

Wife Life | sources of joy

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

image cred

Someone once said to me in college that he would fail me. Not only him, but all people would fail me at one time or another. And that the only one who wouldn't was Jesus. 

As much as that truth stung my heart at the time, the words have never left me. And the lesson has been something I've lived into a greater understanding of ever since. 

My husband and I love each other and have no intention of hurting or letting down one another, but there are moments. There are moments where we fail because we are human beings and that's what we do. And that's okay. 

We knew from the beginning that we, as individuals are fueled, fed, and rested differently. We are interested in different topics, have different hobbies and are a part of different communities. Are there similarities? Yes. I certainly hope there would be. But for the most part, we are different. And that's okay too.  There's harmony in that.

One of the most valuable things we can do for ourselves is prioritize and set boundaries for things that refuel us, for things that make us joyful. And I don't mean things like things because things don't make us happy. What I'm talking about are activities, people, moments, and ways of connecting with God that bring us joy because we like them. Those things. The stuff that brings the passion out in us. Are you still with me?

JT likes to run. Dare I say, he needs to run. It does all sorts of wonderful things for his mind, body and soul. So he makes that a priority. He likes to watch football on the weekends. So we do that, or he does that, while I make comments about how cool the new college helmet designs are. I, dare I say, need to blog and read other blogs. It encourages me. So I prioritize that for myself. I need to connect with my friends over the phone. I love that community and my heart is full when I do that. So I schedule it.

We, as individuals, are responsible for setting boundaries and prioritizing these things that manifest joy and passion in our hearts. We, as spouses, are responsible for fostering an environment for each other where this is possible. We made a promise to take care of each other and this is part of that promise. 

What advice do you have about this?
Moms, what are the ways that you have been able to do this in your marriage amidst this busy season of your life? 
Those who work full time outside the home, what are your thoughts? 

Is this realistic? Is this necessary? Is this a load of crap? I love your comments!



the greatest grace

Monday, November 4, 2013

Brennan Manning describes in his memoir, All is Grace, his experience as part of the Little Brothers of Jesus, devoting a part of his life to simplicity and poverty, shedding the light of God onto a community and preaching the gospel through their actions. He describes the moment that he realized his efforts were drenched in "self-centered yuck." As a result, he was convinced that he would cut himself off from the Brothers and turn his back on all of what God had led him into. And then he had a conversation with a fellow brother in which he described his turmoil. The fellow brother responded with this:

image cred
It is only when we truly feel the utter hopelessness of taking on our own righteousness that we can encounter this great grace. When we truly believe that we are never good enough on our own. This gift is in the depths of all our hearts. He put it there for each one of us and when we find it, we find God's kingdom on earth. God's great grace overwhelming every crack and crevice of our lives.

How blessed are those who know that they are poor, the kingdom of Heaven is theirs. 
Matthew 5:3



On the docket this week:

Wife Life | what is your source of happiness?
Favorite reads
A little business update


Stay tuned and be blessed....



Four Simple Goals

Friday, November 1, 2013


I love the idea of making some fresh goals for the month of November, before things start getting all cray cray holiday around here. Goal making can be a little disheartening because we all like to be overachievers and reach for the moon every time we do it. The truth is, ain't nobody got time for that. The secret is to change little things, one day at a time, about your daily life. Eventually, those little things become habits and we feel like we've made so much more progress. I absolutely love the idea of making four simple goals for the month of November. Here are mine:

1] Write in my gratitude journal ever night, noting three things that I am thankful for that day. This habit has become so sporadic recently and I'm excited to hop back on the horse again seeing as this is, in fact, the month of Thanksgiving.

2] Exercise twice a week. You would think this would be an easy one because I work at the gym...but just the opposite is true. I have no excuse now, it's on the board.

3] Make a real effort to focus on the positive. There are so many good and beautiful things happening in this phase of life and it deserves waaaay more positivity than I'm giving it. We are spoiled rotten sometimes with how good our life is and it's just a shame to focus on the uncomfortable and stressful part of newness and transition. Life is good. Let's think that way.

4] Try cooking four new recipes this month. I'll openly admit it, my husband is a rockstar in the kitchen. Sometimes it seems silly for me to cook anything because he's just so darn good at it but I know that it means a lot for him to have a break from that too. So, in an effort to expand horizons and be a good helper, I'll commit to trying four new dinner recipes. If they're any good, maybe I'll share.

Go say hi to the Tiny Twig to read more simple goals for November.

Do you have any goals for this month? I wanna hear!

p.s. happy Friday, ya'll.


Proudly designed by Mlekoshi playground