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fresh.wanderings

One of my best-loved morning time bundles just got

The rain of the last few days has kept us mostly i

The rain of the last few days has kept us mostly indoors. I’ve been at work picking up the mess that the sleet and rain from last week have made, doing loads of laundry, drawing an elevation of what we hope the exterior of our home will look like…some day, and helping Alissa prepare a salt dough map of an unreached people group. Diverse things, but things that a mother and a wife does nonetheless.

It was a very welcome sight to see the calendar showed today as the day to start our first seeds indoors. Spring is on its way!! I hope it brings some sunshine. ☀️

Today was soap making day. I’ve made this charco

If you’ve seen any of my stories since new year

I spent the entire morning wrapping gifts. Special

I spent the entire morning wrapping gifts. Special consideration was given to the perfect wrapping, the ribbons, the boxes, and what is inside of them. As much as I love wrapping gifts and making them feel special it all feels a bit trivial as I’ve already received the most special gift I will receive this year and ironically it came in the form of a text message.

As most of you know my dad was diagnosed with ALS this summer. Among all of the other losses that ALS brings, it can also bring the loss of the ability to speak. Currently my dad can still speak, but it is getting harder and harder as he loses strength in his diaphragm. For Christmas he recorded himself reading advent lessons from a book my sister had purchased earlier this year. This gift truly was a labor of love and is one I will treasure always. Now we have the gift of my fathers voice reading God’s word to us each Christmas.

This journey truly is full of bittersweet moments. In some ways it makes typical things like wrappings presents feel silly and in other ways the traditions bring a sense comfort and calm in a really hard season.

We rejoice that Christ came to earth and is familiar with our sufferings. He alone is the reason we have HOPE this Christmas.

🎄🎄🎄

A little child, a shining star, a stable rude, the door ajar. Yet in that place, so crude, forlorn, the Hope of all the world was born." - Anonymous

Spending some time today just basking in the warmt

Spending some time today just basking in the warmth and comfort of home. While waiting for muffins to come out of the oven I decided to spend a few minutes reading from a book I have full of Christmas poetry.

If you would like a new poem to commit to memory. I thought this one was beautiful and worthy of memorizing.

My counterpane is soft as silk,
My blankets white as creamy milk.
The hay was soft to Him, I know,
Our little Lord of long ago.
Above the roofs the pigeons fly
In silver wheels across the sky.
The stable-doves they cooed to them,
Mary and Christ in Bethlehem.
Bright shines the sun across the drifts,
And bright upon my Christmas gifts.
They brought Him incense, myrrh, and gold,
Our little Lord who lived of old.
Oh, soft and clear our mother sings
Of Christmas joys and Christmas things.
God’s holy angels sang to them,
Mary and Christ in Bethlehem.
Our hearts they hold all Christmas dear,
And earth seems sweet and heaven seems near,
Oh, heaven was in His sight, I know,
That little Child of long ago.

- A Childs Song of Christmas by Marjorie Pockthall

Some of my favorite corners and holiday things. Th

Some of my favorite corners and holiday things. This time of year our house feels especially cozy, like it’s giving us a warm hug.

Home truly is one of the nicest words there is - especially at Christmas.

I dusted off my neglected blog this morning to sha

We completely switched things up this year and hav

We completely switched things up this year and have decorated everything but the tree. That will come tomorrow. Slowly yet surely it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. 🎄

Today, I'm celebrating all the things I'm thankful

Today, I'm celebrating all the things I'm thankful for.

• Family
• Friends
• Our home

This year has brought a lot of unexpected and hard changes, but it has also brought many good ones as well. I know these things sound very broad and generic, but aside from God’s grace these things listed above have been such great sources of unconditional joy.

Happy Thanksgiving, Friends! 🦃

This summer we learned that my dad has ALS. ALS is

This summer we learned that my dad has ALS. ALS is a disease that causes the motor neurons to degenerate over time until they eventually die. When they die, they can no longer initiate or control muscle movement. This diagnosis has really impressed upon me the importance of each and every thing my dad is still able to do. I am so grateful for all of it, no matter how big or how small….they are treasures and we want to hold on to those things as long as we can.

I’m passing this on to you because that's what friends do when they have learned something the hard way, also because this life is a gift and it truly needs to be seen as such. Instead of using the words "have to" for things that I may not love but that are required of me, I have been impressed of their value as "get to’s".

For example:

•I get to ______ do laundry
•I get to ______ carpool teenagers
•I get to ______ make dinner for my family
•I get to ______ clean bathrooms
•I get to ______ stay up late while my children finish homework
•I get to ______ work from home

Realize that not everyone GETS to do these things. Someone in the world would love to do the things we get to do every single day. Things we often take for granted. And sure, it seems silly to apply it to the things no one typically loves to do, like doing laundry that never seems to end or cleaning the house just to see it end up messy again. But even those things we get to do because we have a Heavenly Father who allows us to have the people or things in our life that create all that laundry and all those messes to clean.

So I'll pose the question to you: What do you get to do today? Tell me in the comments. I can't wait to hear what you GET to do.

I had very good intentions of waiting until after

I had very good intentions of waiting until after Thanksgiving to pull out the Christmas decorations and then it snowed…..you see how the rest of the story unfolds.

I wish as a homemaker that I had realized sooner h

I wish as a homemaker that I had realized sooner how perfect soup is as a Monday night dinner staple. Most recipes are easy to prepare and can be placed in a crockpot to stay warm until ready. The leftovers also make perfect lunches for the rest of the week.
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For this soup I used the @halfbakedharvest creamy tortellini vegetable soup and added sausage for a little more protein. I prepared it early in the afternoon and it finished cooking until we returned home from practices later that evening. It was simple, delicious, and was used for numerous lunches. A perfect solution all around.

A prayer for you and for myself as we begin a new

A prayer for you and for myself as we begin a new week: "Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands; yes, establish the work of our hands." Psalm 90:17
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The seasons of my life have shifted drastically over the past 4 months. I play a much different role in the lives of my children who, after 12 years of homeschooling, now have others who are primarily responsible for their education. My dads recent ALS diagnosis has also brought a valley I never expected. Changes have been big, dramatic and at times completely overwhelming. It is a season where most days I'm doing all I can to just keep my head above water.
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While things are different, it doesn't mean that they are insignificant. Little eyes (well...not so little anymore) are still watching and character is still being built. Who I am and what I believe is truly being tested and exposed.
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J.R. Miller reminds me of these truths. - - "There is nothing insignificant in the life which we live within our own doors. There is nothing which is without influence in the building up of character. One some old rocks the geologist shows you the tracks which birds made ages ago; and the print of the leaf which fell; or the dents made by the pattering raindrops. It was soft sand then - but it hardened afterward into rock, and these marks were preserved, imperishable records of the history of a day that shone uncounted centuries ago.
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When the results of life are all gathered up - it will probably be seen that the things in us which have made the deepest and most lasting impression in our homes and upon our children - have not been the things we did with purpose and intention, planning to produce a certain effect - but the things we did when we were not thinking of training or influencing or affecting any other life!"
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May we be faithful...in the big things and the small.

I was contemplating what a home truly is recently

I was contemplating what a home truly is recently while I drove around our hometown taking pictures of old homes that I knew my parents and grandparents had lived in at one point or another. This house is the one my mom spent many years of her youth in and is the one she lived in when she met my dad who lived two doors down. Isn’t it beautiful?

Houses truly do play such a huge role in the formation of a family. Each home has a story of its own. I look at this one and wish I could hear the ones it holds

A few days later I ran across an incredible sermon series devoted to home-life. It was written in the 1800s but I believe the points made are still relevant today. The beginning was really beautiful so I’m sharing it below.

🤎🤎🤎

If all the different members of a family are faithful in their own places, doing their own part well—the home-life will be a sweet song of holy peace. Whatever its experiences may be—it will always have its undertone of joy. In its darkest nights of trial—it will be brightened by the lamps of affection, which no wintry blast can put out. Secluded from the world, sheltered by its own roof, containing in itself the sources of happiness, and not dependent upon the outside world for its gladness and joy—it matters little whether it is day or night, whether it is calm or stormy without. The true home has a peace which is not broken by earth's tempests! Its love is a fountain of blessing—which does not wither in summer weather, and is not frozen in coldest winter. The possibilities of happiness and blessing in household life, are simply incalculable. All that is needed—is that each member faithfully does his own part.

My maternal grandfather - he married my grandma wh

My maternal grandfather - he married my grandma while she was still very young. They courted long distance and when they were married he moved her from the Iowa Plains to his home in the Roger, AR in the heart of the Ozark Mountains. She was a sister to his older brothers wife. The two of them built a wonderful life together that allowed him to pursue an array of passions. He was a firefighter, a postman, farmer, and a carpenter. He picked black walnuts every fall and loved to eat saltines spread with Miracle Whip.

He was daddy to six girls. Five he had the joy of raising and one they lost to Leukemia at the age of 3.

My grandpa died in 2005 while I was pregnant with our first child so my children never had the privilege of knowing him. I was honored to live next door to him growing up and knew him well. My memories of him are wonderful. Though this picture was probably taken nearly 30 years before I was born it’s a great representation of how I see him….overalls were one of his wardrobe staples.

His life is a beautiful story. I hope to continue learning about my family and introducing my children to the long line of wonderful people that their lives are intertwined with. I hope to share some of that here, as I am able.

#freshwanderings #fresh_wanderings_heritage

Cousins and fellow sunshine makers. They bring so

Cousins and fellow sunshine makers. They bring so much joy and happiness wherever they go. It truly is an honor to be chosen by God to walk alongside them on their life journeys as mother and auntie.

Two of my absolute favorite fall morning time bund

Last week I took a poll in my stories gauging inte

In August I sat with my parents as my dad met with

In August I sat with my parents as my dad met with his ALS doctor for the very first time. While the doctor was evaluating the progression of disease in my dads body and explaining to us what we should expect going forward he asked my dad a couple of questions that seemed random and out of context. The questions being, “Do you own your home?” and “Do you feel safe in your home?”

I would imagine that to the person who answers no to either of those questions, the inquiry would be perplexing. But we understood it’s importance.

HOME: when it is built with love it is more than just four walls or a place to lay your head. It is a sanctuary. A place of refuge. A place to pray. A place to rest, and a place to prepare yourself for the struggles and disappointments that lay ahead.

For my dad, home is going to play a crucial role in how he fights a really big battle.

My husband and I have contemplated numerous times selling and moving somewhere else. It would make sense, especially considering all of the things that need fixed and updated here. Yet, every time we begin looking we always come back to how much we love it here. Even though it isn’t even close to being perfect. This is where we feel safe. When our world is meeting us every day with new conflicts, hurts, and disappointments this is where we feel peace. It has been, and continues to be, a place that brings joy and contentment.

I’ve always known home is important but the question at our recent appointment continues to confirm it over and over again. I’m thankful my dad has a home he feels safe in, I’m thankful I have a home I feel safe in, and I hope, for you, that you have a home like that, too.

#fresh_wanderings_dwell

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