Author * Speaker
The real stuff about our money conversation since we adopted The Cherubs has nothing to do with budgets. It has to do with the long process of realizing what makes the kids feel safe, and me figuring out how to be the kind of Mom they trust to take care of them. I realized how […]
Read MoreThat vacation Kicked. My. Butt. We had a wonderful Christmas – 4 days filled with family get togethers and presents and laughter. It was all way more than I could have imagined or hoped for as we dove into the challenge of creating New Family holiday traditions. I’m so grateful. But the vacation part? Exhausting. […]
Read MoreYesterday was the 12th anniversary of the first time Steve asked me out. This year is first time since then that I’ve remembered that particular date. I think it popped up because I’ve been thinking about this blog series on adopting from foster care, and what it takes to want and go after big things. […]
Read MoreLet me interrupt our adoption narrative for a check-in with present reality. When reading stories about justice, redemption, people helping people and good things coming out of bad, it’s easy to get romantic about it and imagine that things are PERFECT. By PERFECT, I mean that as you read, you are quite certain that none […]
Read MoreCherub #2 looks a lot like Serena Williams. I suspect it will be a viable Halloween costume for her for years to come. For that and a whole bunch of other reasons (the primary one being that Serena’s tennis is awesome), both Cherubs cheer for her now that they’ve discovered that I’m obsessed with the […]
Read More“I believe that enjoying your work with all your heart is the only truly subversive position left to take as a creative person these days. It’s such a gangster move, because hardly anybody ever dares to speak of creative enjoyment aloud, for fear of not being taken seriously as an artist. So be the weirdo […]
Read MoreLast night I was going through documents on my computer, trying to bring order to the chaos. I found notes from a talk I gave a couple of years ago at a women’s retreat in Maryland, called “Shalom Shattered.” It stuck with me, especially after reading Sarah Bessey’s blog yesterday about how reluctant we are to […]
Read MoreI’m listening to a series of talks right now on “Effortful Growth.” It’s by my friend Jordan, and he’s arguing (in a nutshell) that we need to put some elbow grease into life if we want to be fruitful. Healthy things grow, as the saying goes, so we should want to do that. I’m in […]
Read MoreI am on a fitness plan. It’s been two weeks. I did not undertake this on my own, you should know. This is my friend Spanish Girl’s fault. Her gym ran a promotional where members bring in a friend and you compete for 21 days as a team against other member/guest pairs. Whoever loses the […]
Read MoreToday started out crappy. I pulled out my cool-weather clothing to greet this lovely September morn, selected an outfit, and learned that my body has…ahem…changed since I put these clothes away back in the Spring. Let’s just say that all those times I prayed that Prayer of Jabez – Lord, bless me indeed! Expand my territory! – […]
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