The Bright Eyed Brunette

 Every family has that one thing they are known for. Maybe it's Grammy's favorite coconut pie, Uncle Joe's questionable grilling skills, or the annual holiday game night that somehow ends in mild chaos and someone storming out over Monopoly. And then there are families where the main course isn't food-- it's gossip. You know the kind. The kind where conversations are less "How have you been?" and more "Did you hear about what she said about them last week?" The kind where you can feel the tension in the room like humidity in July; thick, unavoidable, and just a little suffocating.  It usually starts innocently enough. You're in the kitchen, helping set out food, when someone leans in just a little too close and lowers their voice like they're about to share national secrets. "Now don't repeat this, but..." And just like that, you've been drafted. Suddenly you hear about :  Who isn't pulling their weight Who can't...

 Happy Easter Monday! I hope you all had a great Easter weekend. We are still celebrating our Risen Savior over here! I have been slightly under the weather, but did my best to try and get all of the Easter fun in! On Saturday, Carl was off because it rained all day. We went to Carlie's to dye eggs with Wrenley. She was interested in it for about 5 seconds. Wrenley had Pappy dying eggs too! She made sure he had orange because it is his favorite color :) She and I went to play Barbies in her room while Carlie finished her eggs. We had to get a Happy Meal before we left to come back home. And Aunt Kena came to eat with us too! On Resurrection Sunday we all headed to church. I woke up feeling pretty rotten but knew I had to teach my class. We must have had a change in barometric pressure because it was a pretty gnarly migraine.  Our normal car selfie. Caleb was at the fire station today, so he is missing in our obligatory family picture. I came home after Sunday School and brough...

 There's something about April that feels like a quiet invitation to start again.                                       The trees begin to bud, the flowers push their way up through the soil, and the days stretch a little longer. After months of gray skies and bare branches, the world slowly wakes up. Spring doesn't rush in loudly-- it arrives gently, one bloom at a time. It reminds me that God often works the same way in our lives. Sometimes we expect big, dramatic change. We think growth has to look impressive or immediate. But often the Lord works in small, steady ways-- softening our hearts, renewing our prospective, and giving us the courage to begin again.  April also points our hearts toward Easter, the greatest reminder that God is in the business of renewal. When Jesus went to the cross, it looked like the end of the story. Hope seemed buried along with Him. But three d...

 What? Did you just hear that? Today I'm going to give you a few of my favorite podcasts.  Starting with one that I have recommended and will continue to recommend is "Compared to Who?" with Heather Creekmore. This podcast focuses on helping Christian women improve their body image and overcome comparison issues through a Biblical lens.  The next one I want to share is, "Family Life Today" with Dave and Ann Wilson. It offers discussions that help families grow closer to Jesus while pursuing the relationships that matter the most.  And next would be a true crime podcast. I still love "Crime Junkie" but I am also really enjoying "48 Hours". I feel like the "Crime Junkie" girls are regular people talking about crimes and investigating other people's takes on crimes and then they add their opinion in , while "48 Hours" is more of a what the police and justice system wants us to know about the crimes of topic. Sometimes I n...

 Happy Monday friends! Here is our weekend in pictures! We didn't do a whole lot. Carl has been in the field all week but got off a little early on Friday and was off at noon on Saturday. That was a nice surprise!  Along with chickens, Trey got a couple of rabbits over the weekend. You can see the white rabbit in this picture. You can also see the two new roosters. The white bantam rooster is named Collin. The two big roosters are learning how to get along. Trey had to separate them on Saturday, but they are doing much better. Maggie loves to herd the chickens and rabbits. Sundays are for church :) I love having this little lady beside me at church. Wrenley had the best time playing with her church friends after lunch. We had a very low-key weekend. We are sad because one of my friends lost her husband in a car accident on Saturday. That made the weekend a little somber. It made me want to hug my husband and kids a little tighter. I am keeping both my friend and her husband's ...

 Twenty-seven years. That's not a number you hear celebrated as loudly as 25 or 30, but maybe it should. Because 27 years of marriage is more than just a number; it is a story. A long, layered, lived-in story.  Back when we started out, we thought we knew what love looked like. We had ideas and expectations. I'm sure there were unrealistic standards and a whole lot of confidence that we had it all figured out. We didn't. But we learned.                                                                                                                            Twenty-seven years of growing together will teach you things that no book, advice, or Pinterest quote ever could. And...