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The Ghost of Christmas Past
Christmas is in two days, but the magic isn’t there. I’ve done all the things. I hung up the twinkling lights, watched the movies, and decorated the tree. I made the treats, sang the songs, and bought the presents. But something is missing this year. A huge piece of me… gone. As I was walking through Kohls the other day to pick up an order in the back, I passed the little girl section. The clothes were strewn about and tossed aside as people looked for the perfect outfit. When I stopped and looked at them, I felt my heart hurt so much that I stumbled and had to suck…
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Italy Day 1 – Cats, Rowboats, and Carbonara
(If you missed it, here is the arrival) We were finally in Italy! The country we had dreamt of visiting for so long. We had arranged to drop off our luggage at our VRBO in advance of check-in, so we made a last minute decision to walk from the train station to our rental. With our luggage. But we were not prepared for walking the streets of a country where everyone drove like it was the Indy 500. And you could either get mowed down by a motorcycle, a vespa, or a tiny hatchback. Anything was possible. So what we thought was a 20 minute walk, was in fact much…
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Another Birthday
Another November has come and gone, and with it, another birthday. Another number added to my age. Another year of life slipped away. Time disappears faster as the years pass and there is nothing I can do to stop it. I will never be young again. It doesn’t matter what clothes I wear, or how I style my hair. Or even how I feel. That’s something I wasn’t prepared for. I don’t FEEL middle aged. I have the same hopes and dreams that I had when I was twenty-three. I still look up and marvel at the sky. I watch the sunset, listen to music, and feel like I can…
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Hello There!
It’s been a long time since I updated this website. Far too long. So to recap…the house still isn’t done. Are they ever truly done? But we moved in October 30th, 2020. It was chaotic and to make it even more so, kitchen counters installed the day we were moving in. We didn’t have closets, and everything was in boxes for a very long time. The last couple of weeks before moving in were certifiably hectic. We worked nonstop on both our old house and our new one. Our house sold very quickly and we had no choice but to get out by a set date. So much was done…
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I Tried to Be Ready
When you were a baby, everyone told me to enjoy these moments. That one day the sleepless nights would be over. One day, you wouldn’t need me for bath time anymore. You wouldn’t need me to read you one more book. Or fix your meals. Or comb you hair. One day, you wouldn’t need me at all. I tried to be ready. I took those early memories and slid them deep into my heart so that I would never forget. Your first bath, those tiny fingers curled into fists. The smell of newly washed baby hair. Your chubby cheeks and your sweet smile. I would watch you sleep in your…
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A Long Overdue Update
Working on the inside of the house!
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The Busy Season
It’s been a rough couple of weeks. Besides the insanity of life, having four kids in sports at once (three different schools), my car was on the fritz. It has almost 200k miles on it and I need it to push through another few months at the very least. Thankfully, Emmett was able to get it running. Pretty sure there isn’t much of anything that he can’t do. And last week I had to say goodbye to my shadow of 16 years. He was with me through everything, and he loved me with his entire being. It didn’t matter if I was too busy to give him attention, the second…
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Farmhouse Style
Years and years and years ago, I picked out a farmhouse style house plan with wrap-around porch. I don’t know why, but it just appealed to me. It had three dormers but only 1600 square feet. Pretty small, but it had everything I needed. Many years later I married Emmett, and as we were talking about house styles we both wanted the same thing. Kind of eerie actually. But we both loved the three dormer farmhouse with wrap around porch. So…here we are. We’ve been married five years and have talked about our new house for that long (possibly longer). After months of planning and preparation and construction, we now…
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The New Year
I really dislike the ‘New Year’. There are so many ads to help you change your life. Want to lose weight? Make a resolution! Eat healthier! Want to have a simpler life? Declutter! Start in the new year and collect less stuff. Or buy these tote boxes and label everything that you store. Want to be more organized? Buy these planners with stickers and colored pens and you can make all of your dreams come true. It sounds so easy. To get everything you ever wanted you just need a notebook, some tote boxes, and eat some trendy healthy certified organic produce. But those of us who have been through…
