Oh, the places we went.

In the moments before the Mr. and I rang in the new year over a binge session of Cobra Kai, we engaged in the obligatory NYE reflections over the past year, and even with all the plot twists and thickening of the last 12 months, we were still grateful to be able to get outdoors and explore quite a bit as a family.

Since I’m laid up in bed with the sniffles today, I thought I would share some of our family’s favorite travel moments from 2021:

SEATTLE, WA (APRIL)

In April, my in-laws flew in to Portland, and we headed to Seattle to explore the city. We stayed at the quirky Graduate Hotel (FYI, the building did not have A/C, which our hot-natured crew really could have used on this particularly warm spring week) and spent a couple of jam-packed days visiting the Space Needle, the zoo, the History of Flight Museum, and Pike Place Market. If you’re ever in Seattle, you really should grab a latte from Storyville Coffee at the market or a gluten-free fried chicken biscuit from Honest Biscuits, two of our favorite spots.

GOLD BEACH, REDWOOD NATIONAL FOREST, AND SCENIC HIGHWAY 101 (JUNE)

If you want to read more about our trip down the Oregon coast into Northern California, you can check out my other blog posts here and here and here. We started with a camping trip to celebrate our middle child’s and the Mr.’s birthdays, including a trip to the Prehistoric Gardens on Highway 101. But when our campsite got rained out night one, our camping trip turned into a beachside retreat. This adventure was probably my favorite of 2021, where we just had to rally and make the best of a disappointing situation, and it ended up being one of the best vacations we’ve had. And I’m convinced the Oregon coast is one of the most beautiful places on Earth.

OSWALD WEST (JULY)

Sometime in July, we were itching to escape Portland for a bit, so a quick day trip to Oswald West was in order. I remember this day vividly, the strain and exhaustion of daily life slowly melting away as we climbed over nurse logs and tiptoed across the pebbled creek near the shore. We dined at perhaps our favorite restaurant in Oregon, Public Coast Brewing Co., a Cannon Beach treasure we happened upon when Kelley and I came to the PNW for the first time. With their abundance of gluten-free items on the menu, including the best onion rings I’ve ever tasted, it’s our whole family’s first choice when we’re anywhere near the coast. (Every now and then, we’ll make a special trip to Cannon Beach just because we get a hankering for those onion rings.)

OLYMPIC PENINSULA / ANACORTES / BAKER LAKE, WA (SEPTEMBER)

We may be 0 for 3 when it comes to tent camping in the Pacific Northwest, but our “camping” trip to the Olympic Peninsula was still a very rich experience. You can read more about the highlights of our week-long excursion, and our recommendations if you’re ever in the area, here.

BEND, OR / SMITH ROCK STATE PARK (NOVEMBER)

We kind of decided on a whim to go to Bend for a long Veteran’s Day weekend, but we had travel points through our credit card that paid for the hotel and funds from our charter school allotment to take a field trip to the local High Desert Museum, so we planned a last-minute mini-vacay. Bend is, in a word, sunny. I guess that’s the first thing we notice now as Portlanders. We enjoyed strolling through Drake Park in the downtown area, sipping cups of coffee from the Looney Bean coffeehouse as our kids played on the Columbia Park playground. We stayed at a hotel in the Old Mill District and enjoyed gluten-free pasta from Pastini after window shopping. We saw otters and birds of prey at the High Desert Museum and took our best guesses at landmarks from Pilot Butte after enjoying a breakfast of French toast and banana cream doughnuts from the Dough Nut on Greenwood Avenue. (Seriously, you have to try one sometime. They also have a nice selection of gluten-free doughnuts that our kids devoured.) On our way back to Portland, we stopped for a hike at Smith Rock State Park and were, once again, blown away by the natural beauty that is central Oregon, but not before I introduced our kids to the iconic last Blockbuster video in America, where I fangirled all over the blue and yellow interior. (I loved working at our local Blockbuster when I was in high school.)

Almost three years into calling the Pacific Northwest home, and we still can’t get over the varied beauty that’s here. May we never lose the sense of wonder we feel when we step outside our front door, and may 2022 bring on even more adventures to come.

First snow of the season + how to prepare for a family snow day

The most anticipated day of the year in our household finally came this past weekend.

No, it wasn’t anyone’s birthday. Nor was it a special holiday. But you’re getting warmer (or perhaps I say colder?)…

Saturday was our first day trip to Mount Hood to go sledding, hiking, and basically just rolling and stomping around in the first big snow of the season.

We are fortunate enough to live in an eastern suburb of Portland that is about an hour-long drive to the notorious snow-covered peak, and we’ve been keeping an eye on the weather for more than a month anxiously awaiting the day that we could dig out our snow gear from the back of our closets and plan a day trip to the mountain. It’s one of our favorite outdoor activities.

There are plenty of sno parks and ski lodges to choose from in Oregon, but our favorite spot on Mount Hood is White River West off Highway 35. It’s a massive (normally rocky) area where a rushing creek slices through the middle of a wide-open space between two treelines, and it has the perfect hills for sledding and trails for hiking or snow-shoeing or cross-country skiing—basically any activity you’d love to do in the snow. And it’s rarely overly crowded.

And this past weekend, it got dumped on.

We grew up in the South, so for us, cruising down the 26 until we enter what feels like the portal to Narnia is magical every time we do it. I mean, this ain’t no Alabama dusting or sporadic ice storm. Back home, if we’re lucky enough to see even a few snowflakes, we can head outside in jeans and a T-shirt and not shiver once. But in Oregon, we’re talking waist-deep snowdrifts. Initially, we felt way out of our depths when it came to preparing for snow sports here. And we’ve learned the hard way that the secret to actually enjoying a day in the snow, rather than shivering your buns off, is all in the preparation. So I’ve put together a few tips that will ensure your day in the snow doesn’t turn into the Great Meltdown (figuratively and literally).

Invest in the right clothing. While this is true of most outdoor activities, it’s especially important in extreme weather. Having snow creep up your pants leg or your own sweat freeze against your skin would mean game over. So, we layer this way:

1. A base layer that wicks moisture away from the skin (don’t even think about cotton; think wool or poly blend, or even activewear with wicking technology). You can make economical choices here; I wear my Calia running tights with a thermal base layer top that I bought at Target. The Mr. and the kids wear basic All in Motion brand thermal sets, also from Target.

2. Wool winter socks. Technically, this is still a base layer, so again, think moisture-wicking to prevent clammy, cold feet.

3. Waterproof bibs. These really are the secret sauce. We invested in good-quality snow bibs, and they haven’t failed us yet. The Mr. and I have these and these Burton bibs from REI.com, and the kids each have this one from Columbia (in black, so we can pass them down to the next kid when the older sibling outgrows theirs). The benefit of buying bibs is that, unlike pants, you don’t have to worry about snow creeping down into your waistband. Our kids literally roll around and crawl in the snow and stay completely warm and dry for hours.

   The kids’ bibs are insulated; the grown-ups’ are not. I’m pretty hot-natured, so this combination works for me. But waterproof technology (rather than water resistant) is the key. Bibs are specifically designed to have an additional inner layer that cinches at the bottom of the leg (called a cuff guard) to prevent snow from creeping in. I love that the kid’s bibs were also designed with Outgrown technology, meaning we can let the seams out and extend them to get another year or more of wear out of them. Bibs can be expensive, so we raided our local Columbia outlet and found these at a fraction of the cost.

4. Insulated, waterproof outer layer. We prefer the 3-in-1 interchange coats from Columbia. Like the kids’ bibs, their coats also have the Outgrown expandable/extendable technology to extend their wearability. We also like that the inner shell is insulated, and could be taken out depending on the outside temp, but the outer layer is completely waterproof. We also like Columbia’s insulated and waterproof gloves, which have clasps to fasten them to each other and cinch around the wrists. Another outlet find for the family bought with a BOGO deal. (Columbia is basically our favorite go-to for most outdoor activities. Not an affiliate; just a true fan.)

5. Insulated, waterproof boots. We bought these for the kids, and the Mr. and I use our hunting boots, which keep our feet toasty warm and completely dry.

6. Hats, gaiters, headbands…This is all personal. Our daughter and I like fleece headbands or wool toboggans (or beanies, as they call them in the PNW); the guys all wear beanies. Sometimes, if it’s snowing or the wind is blowing, we’ll add gaiters, but usually we don’t need them. (Our jackets also have built-in face guards.)

Take the right supplies. Depending on the actual snow sport you enjoy, the list of necessary supplies will look different. But for a typical day out in the snow that includes sledding, hiking, building a snowman, etc., these are the things we take with us:

1. A backpack. They make backpacks especially for snow sports, but we found our hiking backpacks are the best option for us. (They’re from Osprey; I have the Mira and Kelley has the Manta.) They are water resistant and include a rain cover if it's pretty wet out; they include all the best pockets and storage and even a water reservoir, and they are ergonomically designed to be worn comfortably for extended periods of time.

2. Trekking poles. You can spend a small fortune on trekking poles, but we found these on Amazon that work perfectly. They include mud and snow baskets, tips for concrete or rocky surfaces, end caps and a bag for storage, and the ability to adjust the length to accommodate both my 5’2” self and my 6’ husband. And since they’re made from carbon fiber, they are lightweight, and the ergonomical cork handles are also a plus. They make all the difference when hiking through thigh-deep snow and are a knee-saver when traversing hills.

3. First aid kit. We’ve had our share of minor injuries while out in the snow and learned our lesson the hard way how important it is to be prepared. (I’ll never forget having to wipe my daughter’s bloodied nose with her COVID mask.) We have this one and this one.

4. Water. Even though it can be a pain to haul around filled stainless steel water bottles for a family of five, it’s definitely a necessary thing to have when you’re huffing and puffing out in the middle of the forest. It can get really chilly trying to quench your thirst by eating snow. (And there is always the less heavy water bladder option.)

5. Snacks. Packs of trail mix or granola bars can extend the amount of time we can spend with the kids out in the snow before we need to grab a decent meal. Playing in the snow is excellent exercise, and they can work up quite an appetite, even if they don’t break a sweat.

6. Hand and toe warmers. These pocket-sized instant warmers are nice to have on hand.

7. Chapstick or petroleum jelly. Spreading a thin layer of Vaseline on our faces before heading out in the snow helps prevent wind-chapped faces, and keeping Chapstick handy is also beneficial for the same reason.

8. Odds and ends. We always take a flashlight, a pocket knife, hand sanitizer, a compass, an emergency whistle, travel microfiber towels, and sunscreen in our backpacks as well. In fact, these never leave our bag, so they’re always on hand if we were to need them when we venture outdoors.

9. Snow toys/tools. Our family shares three sleds, and we take a shovel with us to help shovel out a sled path and “steps” to help the kids climb back up to the top of the hill.

Set appropriate expectations. With any outing we enjoy as a family, we prepare our kids beforehand by reminding them of the possibility that plans may fall through, and that flexibility is essential. We also give details of our plan for the day so that our kids know what’s coming next, and the rules for how we expect them to behave. This kind of priming helps prevent bad attitudes before they start. Also, as parents we aim to have realistic expectations of what our kids can handle. (They probably won’t enjoy a two-hour hike as much as I do, and they probably won’t be able to walk in the snow as fast as Dad can.) We try to move at their pace as much as possible while also encouraging them to try things out of their comfort zones. But respecting their capacities makes adventuring as a family more fun for everyone.

What is your favorite snow activity? Are there any essentials you would add to this list?

To the trees.

This was my first time seeing the California redwoods. We only decided last-minute to drive down the coast over the state line because it was pouring rain, and we were back to the drawing board, scribbling frantically to write up a new vacation after our camping trip literally drowned. “Why not?” I asked. “We’re only an hour or so from the state line.” It was just over an hour to Jedidah Smith Redwood State Park, two hours to Redwood National and State Park, so we ventured to both.

First off, the drive down Pacific Coast Scenic Highway 101 is simply one of the best road trips. The views are of such magnitude that I felt we should have to pay money for them. The coast is visible through sporadic stretches of rainforest, and each view offers something unique to the previous one. It was the perfect drizzly day for a leisurely drive sipping a latte from Port Orford’s Battle Rock Coffee and listening to the sounds of Johnny Swim.

We’ve only ever seen the parts of California that are visible through the windows of LAX, and Northern California is really more like an extension of southern Oregon than Los Angeles. It’s BEAUTIFUL, and when you start seeing the redwoods above your dashboard, it just keeps getting better and better.

We drove through Jedidiah Smith State Park, which is a beautiful stretch of road and then got back on the 101 past Crescent City to make it to Redwood National Park. Around Klamath, we found the Trees of Mystery attraction, where you can enjoy a treetop skyrail tour of a redwood forest; we opted instead for a picture with the true-to-legend-scale monuments of Paul Bunyan and his trusty ox, Babe, and a round through the gift shop, where we decided commemorative lapel pins made sufficient and inexpensive souvenirs for the kids. (I paid, and the kids paid me back with their money when we got to the car; at this point, Eva learned a hard lesson in commerce and expressed she didn’t like that I took all her money (a dollar and some change) and tried to give me back the lapel pin. Poor girl. As it turns out, she likes how her shiny Babe ox pin adorns her pink sparkly backpack after all.)

Klamath, California, is also home to the tourist trap, The Tour-thru Tree, through which we paid five bucks to discover our massive Ford Expedition would not in fact fit. We snapped a picture anyway and decided a $5 bill was a small price to pay for the laughs and the memory. (That’s what you get when you trust an attraction that can’t spell.)

Then came the elk. And I mean, a LOT of elk. We pulled over to watch them until so many other cars did the same that the elk began to spook. I never get tired of seeing deer and elk, and it was a nice surprise for Kelley’s birthday, considering every other plan I’d made got rained out.

The kind of velvet I love to see.

While our GPS Maps app led us to a key-card-access-only gated road several miles into the Redwood National Park, and we didn’t venture any further south to find another route, we did pull over at the Lady Bird Johnson grove area, which featured a beautiful mile and a half or so walk through the forest. It was raining, we were wearing the wrong kind of shoes, and I discovered my apparent fear of bears and cougars, but once we got over the irritation of being unprepared and resigned ourselves to getting drenched and muddy, we soaked up not only the rain but every inch of the trail we traversed; the kids made forts out of the massive trunks of the redwood clusters and hid in hollowed out trees.

Like snowflakes and fingerprints, each redwood has a completely unique bark pattern, and when I imagine how many redwoods there are in the United States, the thought alone leaves me breathless and full of wonder and gratitude. And my life has been like the bark on those trees—knotted in places, rough and broken in others, aimlessly winding and curving occasionally, but still always coming back to the path upward.

After we got cleaned up from our hike, we ate a picnic lunch beachside just south of Orick, California, before heading back up the coast to our hotel in Gold Beach. (We snagged a beachfront balcony view room last-minute at the Pacific Reef Hotel and Light Show. Though the light show was slightly anti-climatic, the place didn’t disappoint.)

My one regret is that we never did find a place to drive through a redwood, which I feel like is a quintessential thing to do when one visits a park like this. But maybe I’m thinking of the sequoias? Next time we’ll find the bigger trees and perhaps drive a smaller vehicle. Nonetheless, I consider this one item checked off our bucket list!

Must-sees along the southern Oregon coast.

When our camping trip was rained out and morphed into a beachside getaway, we discovered so many hidden gems along Oregon’s coastline that I’m eager to share with y’all.

The Pacific Northwest coast is by far my favorite beach I’ve visited in the United States. As Southern natives, we our first love was Destin, Florida, for its powdery white sand and clear turquoise water, but the heat and humidity of the Gulf Coast are bullies for a fair-skinned and fair-weather family. And the few times I’ve visited Myrtle Beach on the east coast, I got so blistered I couldn’t put on clothes and was resigned to stare at the sliver of beach I could see from the angle of my condo balcony for most of our stay.

The Gulf Coast is like the stereotypical chipper blonde cheerleader of high school—peppy and bright with a bubbly personality, though maybe a little shallow and, for an introvert, tolerable in limited amounts. (I’m personifying here and mean no offense.) But if the Gulf is the pep squad captain, the Pacific Coast is that dark and mysterious brunette who sits in the corner of the library in her combat boots and blunt cut reading Tolstoy. Her beauty isn’t as obvious but just as alluring, and her aloofness is intimidating. You know she’s smart, probably more so than you, and she projects a sense of danger and secrecy and depth that draws you in. She’s breathtaking but not as inviting, and as you get to know her, she seems even more inaccessible, like you’ll never discover all there is to her but you’d commit to die trying.

On a flatter note, I like that I can forego the dreaded bathing suit at the Pacific. There is no scantily clad sunbathing here; no lathering up wriggling sand-peppered preschoolers every 30 minutes. The cloud cover is a welcome friend for these gingers, and regular clothes with waterproof Chacos are completely appropriate. (Though I do have those signature sandal sunburn lines on my pale feet. Should have worn sunscreen.)

These are a few destinations along the Pacific Coast that make our list of must-sees:

1. Sisters Rock, OR. This hiking area is right off Pacific Highway 101, a seemingly lone rock jutting out of the sea in front of a generous parking area; it would be easy to miss the prime hiking trail leading to this landmark. After about a 10-minute walk through a narrow path cutting through local vegetation dotted with vibrant wildflowers, the path opens up to an expanse of rocky terrain that leads to the shoreline on your left and right or a cave up ahead where you can watch the tide rush in. It almost feels like a foggy wasteland, driftwood piled on rocks below hazy cliffs. Like some forgotten Scottish highlands, you’ll see turkey buzzards looming overhead, looking for carrion and carnage. It’s mysterious and a little eery, but in an absolutely appealing way.

When the path opens up.

The shore below.

Pretending to be pirates on the beach.

2. Meyers Beach, OR. This little hotspot off PCH 101 offers a brisk downhill walk and a brief climb over rock piles down to the beach. On this coastline, you’ll see a splattering of rock formations jutting out of the ocean that are prime climbing spots when the tide is low. I perched atop one and watch my kids play tag with the tide. (Just be respectful of the barnacles that make their homes on the surfaces of these rocks.) The sand beach here is expansive and smoother with fewer rocks, though closer to the cliff leading to the highway you’ll find a driftwood jungle gym amidst hot-spring-like tide pools and a waterfall that lends its power to a rushing rockbed creek flowing into the ocean. It’s one of nature’s perfect playgrounds.

One caveat to these coastal destinations: there are no public restrooms. So if you, say, grab an almond milk latte to sip on while you drive down the coast and find you have to go as soon as you’ve arrived, don’t expect to find a row of Honey Buckets somewhere off to the side. You’ll have one of two options: hold it like it’s a quarter between your knees, or duck down somewhere in the rock piles and hope no one sees. This was a little easier for our son; when we got to the bottom of the rock piles and our daughter decided that was the time to announce she needed to go number one, the Mr. rounded his arms into the shape of a toilet seat and…well, this is just the honest journalism you won’t find elsewhere, folks. You’re welcome. (And he’s getting a big Father’s Day gift this weekend, believe you me.)

3. Gold Beach, OR. Gold Beach’s name is a nod to the historic Gold Rush, and some believe you can find remnant treasures if you look hard enough. Though we didn’t go gold mining, we did comb the beach for agates, which is another treasure this beach teases about. We collected handfuls of quartz and other glittery stones, but I’m not sure we ever really learned what an agate actually was. Still, it was a childlike fun to search for cool and unique rocks with our kids, someone yelling every few minutes, “Hey, look what I found!” This was a beautiful stretch of stony beach with a plethora of little rushing rivers flowing into the ocean. And if you visit Gold Beach, you have to try the Spanish omelette at the Indian Creek Café. If you’re of the gluten-free kind, the pineapple and Canadian bacon gluten-free pizza at Sunny’s Family Pizza was the best, flaky, wheat-free pizza crust I’ve ever tasted. It’s extra delicious paired with a Hallmark movie and delivered straight to your hotel room after a long day of driving.

When camping goes south.

We had been planning for weeks. The camp reservation at Humbug Mountain State Park in southern coastal Oregon was booked; we’d even bought a new tent and sleeping bags this year to add to our camping supplies. An upgrade from our 8-person tent that the Mr. and I bought before we even had kids, our new 10-person tent had a room divider and blackout walls. The one thing it wasn’t, as we’d find out the hard way, was waterproof.

The night before we headed out, we checked the weather one more time. For weeks, the forecast predicted the perfect camping weather—around 60 degrees and sunny. But this time, we learned it was going to rain for the next three days, for 3/4 of our trip! At the last minute, we put in a pickup order at a local sporting goods store for a pop-up canopy with a zip-up netting and decided we would keep our plans but bring a few more games to play under cover from the rain.

Before the rain.

We arrived at our campsight, set up fairly quickly, and decided to have sandwiches for dinner. Right after we built a fire for s’mores, the downpour announced its arrival by putting out our fire and soaking our campsight. After three returns home to fetch forgotten items and several hours of driving and wound up kids and water everywhere, I told Kelley, “I just want to go to bed and be done with the day.” So, we got ready for bed and started to get in our sleeping bags when I noticed water dripping on my inflatable pillow. We looked around and our hearts sank as we discovered water was coming in at the bottom seams of the tent and forming pools all around our sleeping gear. Defeated, Kelley scurried to throw our sleeping mats and bags back in the car while I hunted down a motel with a vacancy. We pulled into our motel six miles down the road around 9:45 the first night; we never even got to sleep in our tent.

Sometimes, things just don’t go according to plan. It doesn’t matter how much in advance you investigate conditions and prepare, or how much gear you have—there are going to be times when you just have to abort mission. As we settled in our beds in our motel room from the 1950s (managed by, as it turned out, a fellow Birmingham, Alabama native!), our middle son complained because he didn’t understand why God didn’t help us. He’d kept saying as we frantically packed up our tent, “We can just ask God for help; He says He’ll help us.” To him, sleeping in a dry motel rather than our tent wasn’t the kind of help he expected.

We had a family meeting that night and discussed that when plans don’t work out, oftentimes it’s either God’s protection over our lives from something we may never even find out about, or it’s because He knows what we actually need and has something better in mind for us. In this case, it might have been the former, but it was definitely the latter.

Shoreline at Sisters Rock

If we hadn’t gotten rained out, we would never have decided to drive down the coast to the redwoods of California. We wouldn’t have had the unexpected pleasure of hiking through the Lady Bird Johnson grove in the rain, encountering massive trees that took our breath away with their sheer size. We wouldn’t have seen herds of elk grazing by the mountain roadside on Kelley’s birthday. We definitely wouldn’t have had beachfront views from our hotel room balcony in Gold Beach, nor would I have shared about Jesus and homeschool while combing the beach with a local young mom while our kids hunted for agates. There were little surprises everywhere, unexpected blessings surfaced out of what seemed to be a major hiccup in our plans.

Meyers Beach all to ourselves.

Camping is fun, but it’s also a lot of work. Everything is set up and torn down repeatedly. It takes work to keep food stored at the right temp in the cooler. Activities are constantly interrupted by trips to and from the bathroom with young kids. You’re doing all your own cooking with portable cookware and then hand washing everything with a limited water supply. It’s exhausting. And we were already exhausted.

Our Heavenly Father knows what we need before we do. He knew that although we chose camping because it’s economical, what we needed was rest. So He graciously provided a way for us to experience a relaxing beachside getaway, retreating to the comfort of a warm, dry room after meandering in nature every day. Our campground was nice and cozy, but the expanse of the beach with its sparkling quartz rocks, craggy rock landforms, rushing creek beds, and driftwood jungle gyms were the perfect playground for a family of energetic explorers.

We discovered Sisters Rock with its foggy floral paths, rocky beaches, and hidden cave. We spent hours collecting agates and quartz on the shoreline of Gold Beach and played in a rushing, waterfall-powered creek on Meyers Beach, which we had all to ourselves. The kids imagined forts at the foot of giant redwoods in a forest that smelled of rain and moss. We had a picnic beachside and stood at the foot of enormous Paul Bunyan and Babe statues somewhere in Northern California. We counted elk antlers in a herd grazing roadside on our way to eat pizza delivery and watch the Hallmark channel from our beachfront room. (We were really roughing it, yeah?) We drifted to a dead sleep with the lullaby of crashing waves. We took the scenic route home and listened to the guttural bellows of sea lions piled on top of one another in a dark, smelly cave and admired them perched on jagged cliffs beside a turquoise shore.

Beachcombing on Gold Beach

All in all, we’re grateful our plans were foiled. We came home refreshed and with a renewed sense of peace instead of exhausted from living outdoors for four days. I would say it was a trip of a lifetime, but honestly, and more accurately, it was just another week living in beautiful, picture-esque Oregon.

Welcome to my place.

It kind of thrills me to be uncomfortable. I actually begin to feel uneasy when things appear to be coming easily. Maybe the discomfort is what keeps me hungry for more of the things of God in my life, and when I feel like I’m coasting, I am less aware of my need for more of Jesus, and I stop pursuing Him daily.

I think that’s what it’s like with a lot of relationships, right? When we begin a relationship, we put in a lot of energy and effort into pursuing the other person so that we cultivate a strong foundation. But then after the vows are exchanged, and we feel secure in that relationship, we start to ease up a bit. Over time, that easing up can look a lot like complacency, and complacency is a breeding ground for stagnation, which can lead to certain death—death of momentum, of dreams, of intimacy…

You get what I’m saying. Anyhoo, this seeking to move beyond my comfort zone is what catapulted our family into a life of simplicity, essentialism, and intentionality. It’s forced us to come into realignment with our values and return to majoring in the majors and minoring in the minors. We embraced the discomfort we felt when our schedules and home were stuffed full and decided to take action and simplify our lifestyle. As a result, it’s brought a level of peace and a depth of maturity that we just couldn’t have attained any other way. 

I’ve met a lot of you out there who’ve become uncomfortable with your comfort. You’ve done nicely keeping up with the Joneses, but the accomplishments and abundance haven’t satified you like you thought it would. Those of you who are dizzy from running the hamster wheel in a steady pace but just can’t figure out a dismount strategy. Those of you who have it all, along with a splitting headache and an emptiness in your gut. This website is for you. Every word I write here is with you in mind.

Our simple lifestyle is probably what I get asked THE MOST questions about. Most people are intrigued, some are resistant, but a lot of people long for at least a piece of the peace that we’ve experienced, and so I aim to share our journey—the catalysts, the struggles, the blessing of margin, and everything in between—in hopes of inspiring you and introducing you to the possibility of a new way of life, one in which you can have peace in heart and home, time for rest and renewal, memories with the ones you love, and just the overall sense of purpose that comes from a life lived with and on purpose.

I don’t get it all right, all the time. I’m still learning and have in no way arrived at a life of minimalism or über discipline. But every day is a day in which I intentionally take a step in the right direction, and I’d love for you to walk alongside me!