The timelessness of cast iron and linen.

Cast iron, linen, and baked bread. These are a few of my favorite things.

Our family has been under the weather this week, passing around flu symptoms like Baptists pass the offering plate. (No, it’s not COVID, thankfully.) I refuse to believe our sickness has anything to do with our sweaty romp in the snow last weekend. (Don’t even think of proving me wrong.) But it has everything to do with bare-bones lesson plans, the persistence of pajamas and movies, and the comfort of piping hot homemade chicken and rice soup with a side of fresh-out-of-the-oven bread.

My thoughts in quiet moments this week have wandered heavenward, where one day every tear will be wiped away, the old made new, every pain soothed, and we’ll finally see Jesus, the One our souls were created for. Clinging to the hope of Heaven does not make the pain of Earth any less jarring, less wearisome, less real. It only makes it more temporary.

Clinging to the hope of Heaven today.

We do it together.

Saturday morning came bright and early, as our spunky 6-year-old bounced into our room in her floral nightgown around 6:30 and announced it was time to get up and get going. Through blurry eyes and sleepy yawns, we agreed that it was okay to get up early, and she immediately ran back to her room to issue marching orders to her brothers. “They said we can get up! Let’s get dressed!”

This past weekend, our family participated in the Portland Bubble Run, a three-and-a-half-mile fun run that has bubble stations located at checkpoints along the course, where runners pass through drifts of colorful cotton candy bubbles as tall as their heads. One could lose a small child in the sea of brightly colored foam, so parents are encouraged to hold onto their kids as they run through it. It sounded fun, so we signed our family up and ran it together, weaving through other participants and wiping bubbles out of each other’s hair along the way.

We receive quite a bit of questioning looks from others when we tell them we’re running a race as a family, and I get it. We aren’t the typical American family whose weekends are filled with soccer tournaments and ballet recitals and darting from here to there in the family minivan. In our particular circles, we are the exception, and most of the time we stick out like a sore thumb. And we’re okay with it.

Early on in our marriage, Kelley and I agreed that togetherness as a family was something we valued and would make a priority. We didn’t want to be like ships passing in the night, frantically running from one activity to the next while eating our meals wrapped in paper from behind a seatbelt. And when kid number three came along, we were outnumbered without extra adults around to help out, so everyone in the family pursuing separate interests became a logistical nightmare.

Sure, we may not be exposing our children to every single activity that our community has to offer, but we intentionally offer them something that we believe will serve them better in the long run—quality time with their parents. And if there is an activity that interests them, we look for ways to enjoy it together.

Even if that thing is running.

Kelley and I were both athletes growing up, and our sports involved a lot of running. (As a cross-country teamer, my sport was running.) Kelley and I ran a half marathon and multiple smaller races pre-kids, so running as a family activity is not exactly unconventional for us. Liam has always been a high-energy kid, so much so that as a toddler I would run him on the treadmill to burn through some of that energy (he loved it!). He ran his first 5K at age 6 alongside his dad in 27:00 flat. Our middle and youngest kids have run mile-long fun runs before, but this past weekend was their first 5K.

The race had staggered start times, and as my old cross country instincts kicked in, I strategized how we could start in front of the pack. I set the pace, with three sets of tiny footsteps pounding the pavement behind me, Kelley trying not to run me over with his 6-foot-frame and long stride. 

Our boys would shout, “Sneak through the window!” to each other as they wound around groups of women speed-walking in purple tutus and moms pushing double strollers. They quickened their pace when they noticed another child approaching them from behind, not to be outrun. “Watch that patch of gravel!” “Runner on your right!” “Slow your pace around this curve!” We ran as a team, instructing, strategizing, and encouraging each other along the trail. We took turns pointing out the most outlandish costumes we found (running in crazy outfits is a whole culture, apparently—we saw a couple of brides and a gang in animal pajamas). And when I had to stop at the portapotties midway through (thank you, three childbirths), my teammates waited for me without complaining.

Even when Eva tripped on the gravel path and bloodied her knees and hands, I reminded her that bandaids would only be found at the finish line; we couldn’t stop in the middle of the course. So, she stood up, brushed the dust off her floral leggings, wiped her tears, and blocked out the sting to finish the race, chanting, “I can do this. I'm strong and brave and smart,” over and over under her breath as she leaned into the hills and pushed away the fatigue. I held her hand and ran beside her, reminding her that she was strong and would finish what she started.

After she and I were greeted by our men as we crossed the finish line, we proudly accepted our participation medals and celebrated our victory with mountains of frozen yogurt spilling over with yummy toppings. (Eva’s been wearing her medal every day since the race.)

We like to purposefully tackle challenges as a family, and our kids learn from their parents how to overcome obstacles and develop grit and mental toughness. And even though they aren’t playing team sports, they still learn what it means to be a part of a team, one comprised of a varied age range, with those who love them the most. We work together, whether it’s helping each other along the running trail or packing up camp in the forest or climbing a steep natural staircase to a waterfall.

And we celebrate the wins over frozen yogurt.

Master your mornings.

Three babies (four pregnancies) in four years had me savoring my post-kids’-bedtime time with Netflix and chill and then rolling out of bed when the kids woke me up bright and early the next morning. That was my morning routine for the first five years of motherhood. Until I got a little fed up with running on empty all the time—physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

So when my youngest began sleeping through the night, I forced myself to start getting up early to have a prayer time and morning workout before the kids woke up. This was both the hardest and most rewarding habit I could have developed for myself.

It’s changed over the years since, but I’ve learned the all-too-important lesson that if you want to have a good day, it starts by mastering your mornings. Starting the day in a way that fills me up not only improves my mood for the rest of the day, but it also leads to other good decisions and makes me more effective overall.

This isn’t a one-size-fits-all habit, but I thought I would share what my mornings look like in this current season to help get the ideas flowing of what might work for you if you’re looking to be more intentional with your mornings. I work from home and homeschool our three children, so although we don’t have to be out the door at any specific time, I still wake up between 4 and 5 a.m. to have plenty of time to myself before the kids wake up around 7:30. It’s been such a special time of day for me that I aim to do it every morning; however, I may sleep in every now and then, especially if I didn’t sleep well the night before (sleep is hard sometimes). I can tell my day feels different if I miss my morning routine, so it’s become a priority for me to “get my head on straight” every morning. Here’s how I do it:

1. Wake up around 4 a.m.

2. Drink full bottle of water.

3. Make a French press of coffee to share with the Mr.

4. Spend time in worship, prayer, and Scripture reading—honestly, the bulk of my time is spent here. I often light a candle, sing, pray, spend time in silence, and slow-read my Bible.

5. Write morning pages—this is a mashup of journaling, stream of consciousness, and creative writing prompts; basically, I get whatever is swirling around in my head out on paper so I can be more focused and clear-minded throughout the day.

6. Go for a neighborhood run/walk and/or lift weights indoors; sometimes I do yoga instead.

7. Often I’ll spend a few minutes completing a Spanish lesson.

8. Get dressed and make up bed.

By the time my kids are awake, I feel refreshed, focused, and clear-headed, and it’s such a gift to start the day off in peace.

If you’d like to start a more productive morning routine but aren’t sure how, may I suggest setting the alarm for 30 minutes earlier than usual and start the day off with a big glass of water and some stretching? That is what I come back to, if ever I get off track. After that becomes a habit, try waking up an additional 15 minutes earlier and adding in something else. You don’t have to do a complete overhaul all at once, but even taking one positive step toward mastering your morning and starting the day off in the right frame of mind will go a long way toward improving your mental, physical, and emotional (and spiritual) health!

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!