Crosbi Says...

This girl of mine. She makes my heart hurt, I love her so. Today she asked to hear her current favorite song over and over...and over in the car today. I couldn't say no because inside I'm praying the words wash over her and that as she grows she really believes them.

I hear a voice and it calls me redeemed

When others say I'll never be enough

And greater is The One living inside of me

Than he who is living in the world

I love hearing her little voice sing these words. Especially because she thinks the words "he who" are so funny.

When she's not singing her heart out in the car, she's saying all kinds of things that make me smile.

On a walk, Crosbi found some hedge apples that had fallen and wanted to play with them.
Me: Those don't look so great. They're starting to rot.
Crosbi: Rot? Like rot and roll?

Referring to our house I said, "I'm so glad I get to share this home with you!"
Crosbi: You're welcome.

Me: What's that all over your arm?
Crosbi: Marker. I was making a tattoo. But I tried to wash it off because I talked to myself and I said, would mommy want me to make a tattoo?

Me: You need to pick up your toys and get ready for bed.
Crosbi: My heart says I want to keep playing.

Goodness, she's fun.

xoxo

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Surrender

Because life can be completely random and God is hilarious, I was asked to speak to a large group of women at a conference in Orlando last week. I'm still laughing about it. When I got an email asking if I could help with a "Women In Radio" event, I literally thought they needed people to volunteer for cleanup. For real. So before I even knew what the request was, I said, "Sure! I can help with anything you need. Just send me the details."

Famous last words.

I was asked to speak for three minutes about my purpose as a woman and how that purpose translates into being in radio from a record label perspective.

Gulp.

I had two days to decide what I would talk about. I know three minutes isn't long, but I was sweating. Surprisingly though, the words for my talk came quickly. A huge part of my story involves my leaving the record label world (and my dream job) to step out in obedience to stay home with Crosbi. It was God asking me to surrender my goals and dreams for His plans and how that season of staying home, while incredibly challenging, was one of the sweetest seasons of my life. I also spoke about how my trust in God was honored and my dreams restored with my return to the music industry. Because God is good. Surrendering is good.

Except it's not easy. The irony in all of this is that my talk on surrender was more for me than anyone else. I find myself in another season of not knowing how things will work out. I don't know what the future holds, but I know my current setup isn't working for my family. I'm being faced with the decision to surrender again. And it's scary.

But God is so quick to remind us of His goodness. Just this morning He reminded me again that His plans are better than mine.

I haven't shared this story on my blog, mainly because I haven't found the time, but I want to remember this:

When Todd and I first started looking at land, we found a lot on a private lake and we were smitten. Then reality hit and we came to our senses. It was way over our budget. So we continued to look and found a little acreage in a neighborhood. The perfect compromise for the two of us: Todd wanting to be in the middle of nowhere, me wanting other humans around. We kept an eye on the "perfect" lot for a full year. We walked it over and over again. We took our parents to see it. We met the next door neighbor.

Because the lot had sat untouched for years, we took our time. We got our finances in order, we sketched floor plans, we daydreamed about life in the country. Then just days (literally days) before we made an offer on the land, our realtor called to tell us there was another offer on the table. We found ourselves in a bidding war that we knew we weren't going to win. We were devastated. Our former house was already under contract and now we didn't know where we were going to go.

There was another lot on a hill that we knew was for sale, but had never looked at, and sure enough, others were looking at that lot too. In desperation, Todd drove over to look at it by the light of a flashlight and on hope and a prayer, we made an offer on the land we now live on. Here's the funny thing. Before we broke ground, we brought our parents back out and they all said we had lucked out. That we actually got the better lot. Todd and I were having a hard time believing it. We felt like we had been left with less than our best. But we were wrong. The longer we live here, the more we know this is exactly where we were always supposed to be.

One of the first mornings in our house, I tip-toed upstairs early for some quiet time and I was greeted by this view:

And just today, when Todd walked out the front door for work, this view:

The same view from the other lot would have been the front of the neighbor's house across the street. We didn't get less than His best. Not even close.

Things feel really uncertain and I don't know how everything will ultimately play out, but I know God has this. I know I can trust Him. And I know the view is so much better when I do.

xoxo

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The Times Are Changing And So Am I

I'm struggling to write this post. The words are there, but it could come across in ways I don't intend. Even so, I want to remember this season and I know I'll look back at this post in the years to come. I'll want to be reminded of what God was doing in my heart and how he used a three year old girl to teach me about true love. Warning - this is a bit lengthy.

I'm working quite a bit now. I have the luxury to work from home a majority of the time, but I'm working nearly full-time hours. There are two reasons I'm okay with this. One, I know this is just a season. I can't keep this pace up forever and by God's grace, at this point in our lives and finances, I know I won't have to. Second, working more means I have been able to put more money towards our new house than we originally planned and I've been able to contribute to furnishing it without adding any additional debt. All good things.

With more work means more child care required. It doesn't sit well with me to work away on my computer while Crosbi plays alone or to use the TV as a babysitter. Because of that, she's now enrolled in two part-time preschools. Both are just two half days a week, meaning she goes four days a week. One of the preschools she has gone to since she was just shy of two years old. It's a dream school. I love the staff, Crosbi has made incredible friendships, and I've even made some really great friendships with other moms. The preschool is in a church and the values being taught to my daughter are invaluable. She's not only learning about the love of Christ from the curriculum, but her teachers demonstrate God's love in ways that make me tear up just thinking about it. I'll be sad the day she begins Kindergarten and we say goodbye to her church school.

This summer I knew I had to add some additional care, and I knew another two-day school would be the best fit for our family. I had another church in mind, but I just couldn't get myself to pull the trigger. Then I remembered a school I had heard about when we first moved to Nashville that had only been described as "magical." Outdoor and imaginative play are the primary goals. I can get on board with that. But I also knew this school was pretty liberal. This is not a "Christian" school. This school is open to all children from all backgrounds. I went ahead and enrolled Crosbi and paid the enrollment fee to save her a spot so I could give it more thought.

A few weeks before school began, I panicked. I threw the registration papers away. The school is too liberal, I can't have her going there. But now I didn't have a plan. I would need to find a nanny. To say I was overwhelmed was an understatement.

In bed one night I tossed and turned, not able to sleep. Stressing about my childcare situation, I asked God to make His plan for Crosbi known. I picked up my phone to search preschools when I saw the email that the first month of tuition at the "magical" school had already posted. That was a pretty clear indicator that things were already in motion for Crosbi to attend.

At open house, I hesitantly walked in. As a mom, I stuck out like a sore thumb. I was the J.Crew to a world of Urban Outfitters. A Chevy to a land of Subarus (literally!). In other words, I was the least "hippie" mom there and it was obvious. Shortly after entering the building we met other children and quickly met a little girl in Crosbi's class who had come with her two moms. As someone who prides herself on loving others and being the hands and feet of Jesus, I was surprised by my reaction. I smiled and engaged in conversation, but in my head, I was done. No way was Crosbi going to school here. I can't have her going to a school like this. She's three years old. We're not ready for these conversations.

Wow.

Where did that come from?

My heart. My ugly, fearful heart.

In church the week before, our pastor had said that if the last ten people we had called on our phone look like us, have the same skin color, are in the same tax bracket, etc,. then we're not doing it right. God didn't call us to love the people that are just like us.

Gulp.

After leaving the open house, I had to really humble myself and ask God for direction. He made it very clear that this school would stretch my family and that running away was not what He was asking me to do.

On the second day of school, the teachers told me that Crosbi was really drawn to the little girl with two moms. This little girl is a bit younger and smaller than Crosbi, and Cros has gone out of her way to love on her. The teacher told me that when the little girl was playing by herself or felt left out, Crosbi would come to her and hug her or hold her hand.

I wish I could say I jumped for joy, but my fear took hold. Of all the kids in this class, Crosbi would be drawn to this one? In the car I asked Crosbi what she liked about her new friend. Her response shook me to my core:

"I don't know, mom. I just really love her."

Crosbi is oblivious to the situation. She doesn't understand the family dynamic of this little girl. She just loves her. No stereotype, no fear. Just love.

God is wrecking me in the best way during this season in our lives. He's using my sweet girl to get me outside of my own head, my fears and judgment. He's reminding me that he made all of us in His image and that He never ran from those that were different. In fact, He was drawn to them.

My prayer these days sounds something like this:

Lord, help me to love with childlike love. Help me to follow my daughter's lead when she's more in tune with your Spirit than I am. Use this season to teach my family what the love of Christ truly looks like. Make us more like you.

I'm so thankful for a God who doesn't leave us in our mess. I'm especially thankful that he would use a spunky three year old, who I have the blessing of calling my daughter, to do His best work.

xoxo

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Here + There

It's August. How is it August? Also, we move next week! In some ways it feels like we were never going to get here, and in other ways...well, I haven't packed a thing. I'll add packing to my never ending to-do list. This season has been a whirlwind. A new house, lots of new work for me, and life with a three year old has made my head spin, but we're starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I can't wait to open our doors to friends and family. We took friends to see our home today (wanting so badly for them to be our future neighbors), and it felt really good to say, "Come on in! Make yourself at home." I didn't realize how much my heart aches for hospitality until I couldn't have friends in our home. Asking people to be quiet because the neighbors might hear doesn't quite scream hospitality.
#apartmentliving

One more week. We can't wait!

Until then, we'll say goodbye to July and the memories we made. A beach trip, night out with the girls, family in town, and lots of outdoor time made for a fun month. Well, minus the broken arm part (as seen in the photo above).

Yep, she broke it again. Just days after telling her I signed her up for soccer this fall, Crosbi decided to get a head start on practicing and took a tumble over the ball. My girl is giving me a run for my money.

So long, July. You were a good one. Except for the broken arm. That part wasn't so good.

xoxo

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Crosbi Says...

Just popping in for a quick update. Life has been cray-zee. I have said yes to too many of the good things, but I'm not completely certain they're the best things. Being an adult is for the birds sometimes. But we're all still alive and kicking and trying to enjoy this summer amidst the craziness. We just got back from a beach trip to see my mom in North Carolina and now we're anxiously waiting to move into our home. We're less than a month out and couldn't be more excited. Life is good. It's messy and hard at times, but we're healthy. We have a roof over our heads and family and friends that love us. It's all so good.

You know what else makes life so good? Conversations with my daughter. Man, she's the best.

When she's not making up songs to sing (her lyrics are very much inspired by One Direction). She's saying things like...

"If I see a bug, I'm going to get my shoe and dead it."

Me: Crosbi, where's your dad? (Knowing he's in the other room).
Crosbi: "He's probably in a meeting."

"In the new house, I think God and Jesus are going to give us a dog and a cat."

Crosbi's preschool just started show and tell on Tuesdays. Crosbi tells me she loves bringing her toys to "Show Hotel."

Speaking of hotels, we're currently living in an apartment, but we have stayed in a few hotels this summer. A couple of weeks ago, Crosbi let me know that she told her friends at school we live in an apartment, and sometimes a hotel. Her sweet teachers probably think things have gone from bad to worse over here. Too funny.

This might be my favorite age yet.

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Here + There

It's been ages since I've written. I thought it was time I pop in and give a little update on what we've been up to lately.

The first question we get asked these days is "how is the house coming along?" I kinda love that question. This has been such a fun time of dreaming about our future in our home in the country. It has been all kinds of stressful, but it has been really great too. I'm not the most creative person. I don't draw or paint in my spare time. When it comes to fashion, I stick with the basics. Nine times out of ten you'll find me in jeans and a v-neck tee. And flip-flops of course.

But my creativity kicks in when it comes to my home and I've wrestled with that a bit. I have a pretty specific vision in my head for how everything will come together and it's hard to not think about what others will think. I'm constantly thinking about how I'll respond when someone says, "Why did you pick those counter tops? I wouldn't have chosen that paint color. You really spent too much money on this. I would have invested more in that." It can be kind of crippling. But I'm learning as I go and I know that there will be things we wish we would have done differently. There will be things we'll want to change the day we move in, and that's okay. That's the great thing. It's a blank canvas and we can make changes as our seasons in life change. Will Crosbi's room always include shades of pink? Probably not. Will styles and trends change? Always. For me, I'm letting my creativity be influenced by the season we're currently in and I'm 100% okay with that.

But where are the photos?! Here's a sneak peek.

The first floor is framed! Actually, this was taken several days ago and now the second floor is going up and our garage is completely framed out. Our house looks bigger than it actually is because we're on a hill. Our future neighbor asked if it was going to be three floors. Definitely not. About 2-3 feet of the concrete that is visible will be covered by our yard once the dirt is spread out. 

As much as I'm excited about the house, my eyes go right through the house to those trees. TREES! Our last home didn't have a single tree. I'm counting down the days until I'm sitting on our back patio, watching the sun go down behind all those shades of green.

In the meantime, we're plugging away in our apartment. We are beyond blessed to have the temporary living space we have, but we miss so many things about having a home. I miss grilling so badly I can barely stand it. Even though I don't cook anything on a grill, (that's Todd's domain) it has been such a big part of our lives to eat outside to the smell of a bbq. I miss watching Crosbi play in the yard and ride her tricycle up and down the street. That isn't really possible in our current setup. So to make up for that, we try to spend as much time out of the house as we can.

We took a last minute trip to Atlanta to check out Shake Shack and visit Ikea and other great outlet stores (hello Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma Outlets!). We've hit local festivals and just this past weekend we took Crosbi camping for the first time.

Crosbi had her last day of preschool this week and yesterday Todd and I celebrated ten years of marriage. It's amazing to both of us the life we've lived the past ten years, but I think I would be okay if the next ten are at a much slower pace.

Crosbi is still making us laugh daily. She's currently obsessed with One Direction. It's pretty amazing, actually. She can hear a song and tell you when each band member is singing by name. "That's Harry! That's Zayn!" I love it because I was the same way (oh that's Justin, and that's JC! - you NSync fans will know what I'm talking about). And this isn't by video. She does this by ear, listening in the car. She knows every single word to 17 of their songs. I just counted. We joke and roll our eyes, but it's pretty much the best thing ever.

She loves playing rester-not (restaurant) and has really started getting into Disney princesses and My Little Pony. She knows what she likes for sure. My little girl isn't so little anymore.

So that's where we've been! It's very likely we'll be moved in the next time I find time to post, but only time will tell.

xoxo

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Old House

We moved out of our house just a little over two weeks ago and in some ways it already feels like a lifetime ago. We've been going non-stop since we said goodbye to our house and we really haven't had the chance to think about everything that's happening. We're currently navigating apartment life while we wait for our new home to be built. Apartment living with children is not for the faint of heart. It's been a bit of an adjustment, but we're making the best of it. Once the pool opens this summer, we'll be smooth sailing I'm sure.

Because we've been so busy, I haven't really stopped to think about our "old house" as Crosbi calls it. We packed and got out so quickly that it sort of felt more like a dream than reality. The other day in the car Crosbi said she wanted to go to her "old house" and I was reminded that it really was a special place for us. Todd and I bought that house when we were 24 and 25 years old. We didn't have a clue what we were doing. We spent over seven years there. We both started our careers, brought home a baby, and practically grew up in that home. We have so many memories with friends and family. There were marks on the carpet from the Super Bowl parties we hosted every year. There's a small stain from when one of my best friends jumped up and down (while holding a cup of coffee!) after hearing I was pregnant. I smiled every time I saw it. There was a mark in the bathroom from when my sisters were experimenting with hair color. It's the little things that make a home.

But I'm also at such peace about our future. When our buyers had their final walk-through, their realtor told ours that the husband and wife both had tears in their eyes as they walked through what is now their home. Hearing that, I knew our season in that house was officially over. It belonged to them, the new owners, to make their own memories. I pray the memories they make are as sweet as ours.

I didn't post many photos of our home. I did a post on Crosbi's bedroom and our bonus room makeover, but I'm not one to do a "house tour." However, I do want to remember our old house. The photos our realtor had taken make me smile. I'm sure I'll come back here many times to relive old memories. These photos were taken when our home was at its best, but I can still picture the dirty laundry and dishes in the sink. The puzzle pieces in the floor and crayons on the kitchen table. We were really blessed by our first home.

I'm more than excited to start creating a home in the country, but I know now more than ever that it's not the size or style. It's not the furniture or the accessories. It's the love and memories that fill a house that make it a home.

Goodbye old house. You sure were good to us.

xoxo

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Life Lately :: January & February

I'm not sure I'll do a "thankful" post each month. It was such good accountability to blog more and looking back on those posts sure does cure the blues on a rough day, but the next few months are going to be pretty crazy, so I think I'll stick to doing recaps here and there.

I just had all of our (mine and Todd's) Instagram photos from 2014 printed in a photo album. Can't wait to get my hands on it. I love posting my photos here, but I really like having a book to flip through. When I was little, I practically had my grandmother's photo albums memorized. I knew which photos would be coming up next. I spent so many hours flipping through them and I want Crosbi to be able to do the same.

But, I'm still proud of this little blog. The other night I had a hard time falling asleep, so I pulled up Crosbi's birth story. Todd's version too. Yes, we could have written those things in private journals, but it's not as easy to pull out a journal at 3am in the dark when you're in need of reading material.

I'm rambling. Basically I'm trying to say I'm still going to blog as often as I can because even if I write for an audience of one, I love having this little time capsule.

And while I'm not off to the best start for 2015, here's what we've been up to lately:

Crosbi is quite the performer. She loves to sing. I will barely have the car started before she's asking for her favorite songs, and listening to Spotify or Pandora is a constant in our home. Her current favorites are Taylor Swift, Francesca Battestelli, Jamie Grace, For King and Country, and "the girl and the boy" also known as Love & The Outcome. I envisioned her having a love for music when I was pregnant, but to see her fully embrace music has been such a gift. And I'm telling you, if you want to start conversations about faith, God and Jesus, play Christian music in your home. She is already asking us things like, "Why did Jesus die? What does she mean He's holding us? Is God singing with her?"

Because Todd and I both work in the music industry, she does have a bit of an advantage. Todd jokes that she's not going to know what to do when we take her to a show where she can't watch from backstage!

It feels odd to post photos of us outdoors. The past two months have been so strange with sickness and bad weather. My mom visited in January and she just happened to time it to arrive between two weeks of sickness. First the flu, then the stomach bug. And with the weather we've had this month, I think I can count three solid weeks in the past two months where we didn't leave the house. Spring, we're ready for you! But we're thankful for those rare moments that we were able to get out and enjoy the sunshine.

I don't think I've mentioned it here, but I'm doing contract work for my friends at Sony / Provident Label Group. It's so fun to be back with them for a little while. But what's the first thing they do? Send me to Seattle on a trip for an album release. I'm definitely rusty at traveling solo these days. It's hard to believe how much I was on the road just a few short years ago. While it was a bit lonelier than I remember, it was good to catch up with old friends. Plus, it was Seattle. No complaints there! I'm a fan of that city.

The rest of our time has been filled with fun preschool parties, snow days, and lots of time playing inside. We've been in the South too long. This cold weather stuff just isn't in our blood anymore! It's been fun to see snow, but I'm ready for typical Tennessee weather.

So that's January and February in a nutshell! We close on our current house in a little over a week. Lots of adventures to come. So glad I have this little piece of the internet to remember it all.

xoxo

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We're Moving!

The big news, the exciting adventure that I hinted about last year? This is it. We put our house on the market. It sold in less than 24 hours, and we're moving to the country!

I've had lots of thoughts swirling in my head about this post. Mainly because this is our family's scrapbook so I want to record everything, and also because friends and family who live out of state read this and I want to fill in all the details (because sometimes my parents don't relay all of the correct info). Ha!

About a year ago, Todd and I both started to feel like a busy suburban neighborhood wasn't working for our family. Between trips back to Missouri and long talks about our childhood, we knew we wanted Crosbi to have a childhood very similar to the ones we had. We were also starting to feel the walls closing in a bit. We would be in Missouri, and I would sneak out on my parents' back deck and it was like the weight of the world fell from my shoulders. I breathed deeply. I listened to the wind blowing and birds chirping. And the silence. Ahhh, the silence. Those feelings and sounds are part of my DNA. Which means they are also part of Crosbi's.

The struggle was that to afford the land we wanted, we would have to move out of our county. We live in a very affluent county with access to the best schools in not only the state, but the country. But the decision was actually quite simple. Crosbi's future isn't determined by the school she goes to. Just like it wasn't for me or Todd.

Anyone who knows me knows that I grew up in rural Missouri. I'm the daughter of a small jewelry repair shop owner and a truck driver. Money was never going to be my ticket to a bright future. When I was ten years old, I remember holding an Alan Jackson cassette in my hand and thinking, "I want to work for his record label one day." I turned the cassette over and saw that he was with Sony Nashville and I decided then and there that I would be an employee of Sony Music.

The laughs followed. The sarcastic "good luck with that" was a phrase I heard often. I didn't know anyone from Ozark who ended up working for a record label. People from Ozark tend to stay in Ozark.

But God, who planted the dream in my heart, would see it to fruition. I not only have been (and still am!) an employee of Sony, I even got to work on an Alan Jackson (hymns) record. God is good. I didn't go to a fancy high school. But I had a dream and I had the drive. No school district can give that to my daughter.

The other thing that became really important to us was that Crosbi have ample opportunity during her school years. One of my favorite bloggers, Laura Tremaine of Hollywood Housewife took the words out my mouth with this post about growing up in rural Oklahoma (she has worked in film/TV and is now married to a famous Hollywood producer):

"I was really into choir when I was in high school. One of the benefits of being in a small town is that even with my mediocre talent, I was able to participate in all kinds of activities that would have been impossible in a larger, more competitive school. With zero training, I was on my school's pom squad and part of a very active show choir, and these are my favorite memories of the teenage years."

I mean, she's practically describing my life. I was on the pom squad, the marching band, and student council. Any group or activity I wanted to join had space for me and I never once took lessons or had special training outside of school. Same for Todd. He was captain of our football team, homecoming king, played baseball, basketball, and was named "Mr. P.E." I don't say all of this to brag. We are nothing but two average kids from the Ozarks, but attending a small school opened so many doors for us and we both look back at high school as some of the best memories of our lives. We wouldn't trade our experiences for anything. We only hope Crosbi's memories will be the same.

So there you have it. We're moving to the country. We close on our house in just a few short weeks and we'll begin building sometime in April with hopes to be moved in by fall. We're already dreaming of tree houses, tire swings, a fire pit, and the big garden we'll plant next spring. The school district might not be the "best" to some, but it's the best for us and the dreams we have for our family. Plus, lower taxes!

Everything has fallen into place so quickly and carefully that we are confident in our decision and we're giddy about the future.

I hope to post a lot about this new journey in the coming months. I hope you'll join me and follow along!

Until then, I'll be singing...I'm from the country and I like it that way...

xoxo

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Crosbi Says...

This month. Goodness. We started this month with such big goals and expectations, awaiting new and fun experiences, but life doesn't always go the way we think it will. For nearly the past two weeks, our girl has been sick.

Last week she had a fever for 5 days and little energy. She finally came out of it in time for my mom to visit (God is so good that way). But the day after my mom left, Crosbi was hit by a stomach bug that won't quit. As I write, she's napping. Her third today. And she hasn't eaten since Monday night (it's Wednesday afternoon). Ugh. I'm just so thankful that I can be home with her, even though there isn't a whole lot I can do to help.

Our fun plans are postponed for now, and we're missing out on some amazing warm weather, but I'm so thankful for God's provision and promises. I'm blessed to know she will fight this and be back to herself soon. I know more warm days are ahead and memories will be made. Today, we snuggle. We rest, her with a cold washcloth on her forehead, and we watch lots of TV. His mercies are new each day and I'm so hopeful my girl will be much better in the morning.

Last week when Crosbi wasn't feeling so great, I bought her favorite movie and offered her a big bowl of popcorn. She jumped up on the couch, eager for the movie to start and said to herself, "I love this popcorn life."

I laughed out loud. I called Todd to tell him what she had said, telling him I was so glad we could fulfill her deepest dreams. Ha! But today, when all I want to do is get outside and see my girl run and play, I'll sit beside her and put on another cartoon. Because this is what life is made of. This is it. It's not perfect and definitely not always Instagram worthy, but it's so good. Crosbi, I'm with you. I love this popcorn life.

Now get better, young lady!

xoxo

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Thankful :: December 2014

Nothing like posting a recap of December during the second week of January! I almost made one of my goals for this year to blog more. Then I thought...who am I kidding? This year could be a bit crazy. We're preparing for crazy, anyway. So instead of making blogging more a goal, I'll just be pleasantly surprised if I record more of our memories here than last year.

December was a complete blur. I know it's that way for everyone. So many activities, dinners, celebrations. Throw in shopping, wrapping, and lots of travel. It flew by for us.

This past year was really special. It wasn't the easiest year, necessarily, but I think we really found our groove as a family. As a couple, Todd and I were intentional about spending time together, but also spending time doing things we love as individuals. He spent time with friends and time on the water in his new kayak. My girlfriends and I started a monthly girls night, I went away on two girls overnight trips and I felt less and less guilty for sneaking away for a cup of coffee or a walk around Target on my own. I'm hoping for much for of that in the year to come.

Last year we made growing in God's Word a priority. BSF changed and challenged us and really set the tone of the conversations in our home. I've loved the She Reads Truth studies and Todd and I feel much more equipped to share God's truths than we have in years past. 

December wrapped up 2014 nicely with time spent with friends and family. A busy, but beautiful month.

I've so enjoyed this Thankful series. On hard days, it's nice to look back and remember all of the good that happens in my life that could be easy to overlook. I thank God for the many blessings in my life, the memories I cling to when life throws curve balls. I'm really excited about 2015 and all that it could bring. Even if it's predictable and uneventful, but resembles 2014 even a little bit, I'll be more than grateful.

Goodbye, 2014. Thanks for being so good to us.

xoxo

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