Showing Up

A long time ago,

My life is anything but perfect. It's messy and filled with all sorts of imperfections, but I show up every day, enjoying the beauty that is the journey of my life.

I always want to keep it real with my readers. My life, my husband's life, and our son's life are far from perfect. But one thing is for certain: With God in our lives, we are perfect for one another.

God gave us Tim because He knew we would be the right parents for him, but that doesn't mean we were perfect parents. If that makes any sense! We make mistakes just like all parents do.

The same goes for our marriage. God knew we were perfect for one another. Where one of us is weak, the other is strong. We have made tons of mistakes along the way, but our commitment to one another has always been just that—a commitment. One in which we don't give up on each other and continue to love one another, imperfections and all.

All I have to do is show up and enjoy the messy, imperfect, and beautiful journey of my life.

Showing up. That's what matters.

Showing up whether you feel like it or not.

Showing up no matter how hard the situation is and being willing to do the hard stuff.

A great, perfect life isn't promised to anyone.

I remember a time growing up when I thought so many of the families I looked up to had it all together. But in retrospect, they didn't. They were simply showing up and enjoying the messy, imperfect, and beautiful journey of their lives. It looked perfect from the outside looking in, but perhaps it only looked that way because they had learned to enjoy their lives, mess and all.

Most people only ever saw the mess that was my life and how difficult my home situation was because of my alcoholic father and my enabling mom. What they didn't see was that my mom was enabling him because she was trying to keep us kids safe and out of harm's way. She took the brunt of everything because she didn't want him turning on us.

Regardless, when people looked at my life from the outside, all they saw was a mess.

God, however, changed everything when He became everything to me.

Do I still mess up? Yep! I mess up a ton. But God!

I'm so thankful that He forgives me as I navigate this messy life. Because of Him, I can enjoy the journey and see the beauty in it, even when things aren't perfect.

Life doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful. Sometimes, all we have to do is show up, trust God, and enjoy the journey.

My Guys

It never ceases to amaze me how much my guys look alike. Their baby pictures, if not for the obvious age difference, are almost identical.

I had such a whoa moment when I found an old picture of Scot at his parents' house last weekend while we were going through their things, organizing and cleaning the house. It was like looking at a picture of Tim when he was a baby.

It's funny to think that long before Scot and I ever met, he was once that little boy in the picture. Now, years later, I get to look at that same face in our sons baby pictures. There is something pretty special about that.

The family has always said how much they look like one another, but what's even more amazing is that when you see pictures of me when I was little, you can see so many of my features in Tim, too.

Tim really is a great mix of Scot and me.

While Tim definitely favors his dad in so many ways, I love seeing little pieces of myself in him, too. Sometimes it's a facial feature, a particular expression, or even the way he looks in certain pictures. He's a pretty special combination of the two of us.

What a blessing it is to have these pictures and be able to look back at them. Life moves by so quickly, and sometimes we don't realize just how special the little things are until years have passed.

These pictures are reminders of where we came from, the lives we've lived, and the family we've built along the way. It's amazing how family resemblance carries through the generations. Pictures really are treasures, especially when they allow us to see a little bit of ourselves in the people we love.

I'm thankful we have these little pieces of our family history to look back on and treasure.

Sometimes the greatest treasures we find while cleaning out a home aren't things we can put on a shelf. They're the memories that bring our family history back to life. ❤️

Peace In The Storm

In my experience, peace doesn't mean there isn't a storm, but rather that God is with you in the middle of it. He walks with you through it, helping you navigate your way to the other side.

God has been there with me through so many of life's storms. He's helped me make the right decisions when I've needed His guidance, often at just the right time. Timing is everything when making your way through a storm, and I love how, just when I've needed it most, I've felt God's hand at work in the storms of my life.

Just knowing He's there makes all the difference. I know there have been times when I've looked to others for help, and when all else failed, I turned to Him. Learning to look to Him first can be challenging. It certainly was for me. It took quite some time for me to get to a place where I looked to Him first before looking to everyone else for help.

One thing I've learned is that we don't always get to choose when the storms come or how long they last. We don't always understand why we're going through them or what God is doing in the middle of them. But we can choose where we place our trust. Having faith doesn't mean we won't have questions, worries, or difficult days. It means knowing that even when we can't see the way forward, God does. We can find peace in knowing we're not navigating life's storms alone.

I'm always learning and growing in this faith walk with my Lord. He knows how deep my love is for Him, and I know that is why He is so incredibly patient with me. He is far more patient than I deserve. If I got what I deserved, I'd be drowning in the storms of life instead of still standing on the other side of them.

There have been so many storms in my life, too many to count, and through every single one, God has been there for me. He's guided me, carried me, taught me, and helped me make it through to the other side. I'm so thankful that even in the moments when I didn't know what to do or where to turn, He never left my side.

John 16:33 (NIV) reminds us:

"In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

What a wonderful reminder that Jesus never promised us a life without storms. But He did give us a reason to have hope and peace in the middle of them. No matter what we're facing, we can stand firm in knowing that He is greater than anything this world can bring our way.

The storms of life may shake us, challenge us, and sometimes bring us to our knees, but they don't have to take away our peace. When our peace is rooted in God, we can face the storms knowing that He is right there with us.

That's what finding peace in the storm means to me.

Happy Veterans's Day!

Happy Veterans Day!

Our wedding anniversary is on Veterans Day!

We decided on this date because it would definitely be easy to remember! 😂 But there was another reason behind our decision, too. My brother was going to be giving me away, and he had served our country. He was able to wear his dress uniform while giving me away, which made the occasion even more special.

I also wanted to honor our Veterans and give those attending our wedding an opportunity to remember that, if it weren't for the sacrifices of our Veterans, we wouldn't enjoy the freedoms we have today.

You might be wondering, why didn't my dad give me away? It was because he had passed away four years before I got married. He never even got to meet the man I would marry. I hate that he was gone before he had the opportunity to see me meet the man I'd spend my life with or walk me down the aisle on my wedding day. Sometimes that's just how life works out, though.

My family has always had such great respect for our Veterans. My dad was so proud when my brother joined the Army. My brother was actually pretty close to retirement when he decided he wasn't going to reenlist. He was tired of having to go to Afghanistan. He was a specialist in his field and was sent there frequently. It was taking a toll on his marriage, and he ultimately chose his wife over continuing his military career. You can't fault him for that.

I've always been so proud to have family members who have served in our Armed Forces. We've had family serve in the Marines, Navy, and Army. I'm sure if I were to look far enough back into our family history, we'd probably find someone who served in the Air Force, too.
We've had quite a few family members serve, and I'm so thankful they chose to serve our country. Those who serve make more of a difference than they probably even realize.

May God bless all those who have served and those who are still serving in our Armed Forces. You are appreciated more than words can express. My family will always be grateful for your service and sacrifices!

20 Years of “I Do” — and Still Do...

20 Years of “I Do” — and Still Do...

It’s hard to put into words what it means to reach a 20-year wedding anniversary. Two decades of building a life together, learning each other, growing through seasons of joy and challenge, and holding tightly to the promise we made on day one.

When I look back, it truly feels like yesterday that we said “I Do.” And yet here we are—still choosing each other, still loving each other, still standing side by side saying, “We still do.”

There is something deeply beautiful about doing life with your person. Through every high and every low, every answered prayer and every unexpected detour, there has been no one I would rather have beside me than you—Babe.

God has been so faithful in the way He wrote our story, and I am constantly reminded that I was given one of life’s greatest blessings when He brought you into my life.

You are the best husband a girl could ever hope for, and I’m so grateful that I waited for God’s best. Looking back, I can clearly see how He exceeded every expectation and every prayer I ever had when He gave me you.

You love me with a patience I don’t always deserve, and you sacrifice for me daily in ways that do not go unnoticed. I am more thankful for you than words could ever fully express.

Your love is steady, strong, and faithful—just like the life we’ve built together. I love the way our lives have become so beautifully blended over the years. We haven’t just shared time; we’ve grown together, learned together, and built a life that reflects both grace and commitment. Every year has added depth to what we share and strength to who we are.

More than anything, I’m grateful that God has been at the center of our marriage. Without Him guiding our steps, strengthening us, and holding us together, our story would not be what it is. He has truly been the foundation of everything we are.

What a gift it is to look back and not just see time passed, but a life built stone by stone—rooted in love, patience, forgiveness, laughter, and faith.

I’m especially grateful for the foundation you came from. Your family’s example of prioritizing love, commitment, and putting each other first shaped so much of what we’ve carried into our own marriage and family. Their examples weren’t just lessons—they were blueprints of grace in action.

And above all, I remain thankful that God has been at the center of it all. Without Him guiding our steps, strengthening us in hard seasons, and blessing us beyond what we could have planned for ourselves, our story would not be what it is today.

So today, I don’t just celebrate 20 years of marriage. I celebrate God’s faithfulness. I celebrate growth. I celebrate endurance. I celebrate love that has matured but not faded.

And most of all, I celebrate you—my husband, my partner, my answered prayer, and my forever person.

Here’s to the next chapter—still walking hand in hand, still choosing each other daily, still saying with full hearts:

We still do.

Tim's PT Yesterday

Tim spent yesterday with his physical therapist trying to figure out a path forward with his recovery because of the issues he's been having with his elbow.

It's all part of the recovery process. There are ups and downs along the way, and sometimes you have to adjust your path as you work toward healing from surgery.

Tim is still under the doctor's six-week orders not to lift anything at all, allowing his elbow the time it needs to heal from surgery. As frustrating as it is not to be able to do anything, it's even more frustrating to make progress in PT only to have to take steps backward because of pain in his elbow.

It is our prayer that Tim won't require another surgery to correct another issue with his elbow and that he simply needs more time to heal.

For someone like Tim, giving it more time is hard. All the while, he's watching his competitors and seeing what they're accomplishing, knowing that he can't do anything right now and feeling like he's losing more ground.

His coach has assured him that he will bounce back quickly and come back even stronger because of this experience. Tim just has to trust the process.

Trusting isn't always easy for Tim, especially because of the trust that was broken in his last sport. Sometimes, experiences from our past can make it harder to trust what lies ahead.

His coach, his dad, and I know that he will be fine and come out of this experience stronger. He's just got to work through all of this in his own mind and remind himself that healing takes time and that everything is going to work out.

Sometimes the hardest part of recovery isn't just allowing your body to heal. It's learning to be patient with yourself when everything in you wants to move forward.

We're continuing to pray for healing, wisdom, and patience as Tim works through this next chapter.

This picture was taken on my iphone of a picture.

I had AI do this with the picture.

A Little Bit of Cleaning, A Lot of Memories

This weekend, we spent some more time going through and cleaning up Nan and Pop's house.

It's one of those projects that seems like it will never quite be finished. There is always something else to sort through, something else to clean out, or another area that needs attention.

This time, we ended up throwing away quite a bit of trash. There were items that had been ruined from water damage in the lower lower basement of their split-level home. Most of them were simply beyond saving, and some were just too large and bulky to put in the regular trash, so we ended up burning them.

It's not always the most enjoyable part of going through someone's home. Sometimes it's just work that needs to be done. You have to make decisions about what stays, what can be donated, what can be saved, and what has simply reached the end of its usefulness.

But then there are moments that make all the work worthwhile.

I absolutely loved seeing this picture again!

There is just something special about coming across an old photograph when you're going through someone's belongings. It's a little piece of the past that you weren't necessarily expecting to find. Pictures have a way of bringing memories back to life and reminding us of moments, people, and seasons that might otherwise get tucked away in our memories.

And I love even more how AI was able to make this picture look so much better!

It's amazing how technology can help bring new life to an old photograph. Something that might have otherwise remained tucked away or difficult to see can become something you can appreciate all over again.

It also reminds me that while we're busy cleaning out a house and getting rid of things, not everything we find is just another item to sort through. Some things are little treasures. Some bring smiles. Some bring back memories, and some remind us of just how much history is contained within the walls of a home.

Going through Nan and Pop's house has been a reminder that a lifetime of living can leave behind quite a collection of belongings. But when it comes down to it, the things we hold onto aren't necessarily the things that matter most.

It's the memories, the experiences, the relationships, and the love that remain important.

We're continuing to work toward getting their house cleaned up, and although there is still more to do, every little bit of progress gets us closer to the finish line so that the family can get it put on the market.

Plenty of memories worth holding onto though!

On one of our trips up in the near future we will have to rent a truck one way to get some of the stuff back to NC that Scot wants from his father's garage. He and his brother Jeff are going through it all so that they can get out what they want. What's left the rest of the family will go through and get what they want. 

When all is said and done, we will still have so many memories. With each tool or car part that Scot brings home, there will be memories attached to it that he and his brother, Jeff, can cherish for the rest of their lives. Some things may look like ordinary items to someone else, but to them, they hold a piece of their family's history that is worth holding onto.

Why I'm Not Worried

With the way our country is heading, I take great comfort in this: God never loses a battle.

Not once do you ever read in the Bible that God loses a battle. Not once!

That's pretty significant.

God meets us where we are, and He's there to guide us through everything life throws our way.

There's never a moment that He's not with His children. We matter more to Him than anything in this world. His plans for us are good plans. We never walk through this life alone.

No matter what challenges (battles) I face, I know He will be right there with me, every step of the way, helping me just as He always has.

There's so much peace in knowing, and I mean really knowing, that God is with you no matter what.

I've had so many times in my life when I've felt alone, and God has reassured me that I'm not alone, even when it may feel that way, because He is with me. He leads me. Helps me. Comforts me. Keeps me safe.

When I think about Him, I picture Him like a father with open arms who holds me when I need holding. I can recall times in my life when I felt Him so close that it was almost as if I could feel His arms around me. It might sound unbelievable, but it's true.

God has been there for me in so many ways throughout my life that, when I think about them all, I am in awe of Him.

He has touched my life so deeply that no amount of anything in this world could ever keep me from believing in Him.

He is my world. My everything.

My life wouldn't be where it is today without His loving, fatherly touch on my life.

I can't say enough about all that He means to me and all that He's done for me.

I just want to shout it:

And not only to me, but to my husband and son, too. He's truly watched over us, and there aren't enough thank-yous I could ever say to convey the depth of gratitude I have in my heart. If it could explode out of my chest, it would.

So, no matter what happens in our country or in this crazy, messed-up world we live in, I know that God will not lose the battle!

That doesn't mean we won't face battles, uncertainty, or moments when we don't understand what's happening around us. It means we don't have to face any of it without Him. Our hope isn't in who is leading this country, what is happening in this world, or what tomorrow may bring. Our hope is in the One who has always been, and always will be, in control. And that, my friends, is why I'm not worried.

You might have to click on the image in order to really read it.

Understanding Someone Else's Perspective

Taking the time to understand someone else's perspective means being willing to recognize that we don't have to debate everything they say, especially when something affects them more deeply than it affects us.

Being humble enough to listen isn't always easy, but it can make such a big difference in someone else's life.

Sometimes it's about being willing not to point out someone's shortcomings or cause them additional pain. It's about choosing not to dismiss their experiences or, in some cases, their humanity. Instead, it's taking the time to understand what they have been through or what they may currently be facing. Showing a little empathy and compassion can make all the difference in someone's life.

It can be utterly game-changing for them and maybe even for you as you realize that you don't always have to debate someone or have the last word. Sometimes, you just need to be there and listen.

A verse God has kept ever before me, because let's face it, I need it, is James 1:19, which reminds us to be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry.

For me, that's easier said than done. I miss the mark on this more often than I'd like to admit and find myself having to ask for forgiveness quite frequently.

When I look at the quote above, I'm reminded of three things:

1. Empathy.

Just because something doesn't affect me personally doesn't mean it doesn't deeply affect someone else. I don't always understand the weight someone else is carrying.

2. Perspective.

We all experience circumstances differently. What might seem like a simple discussion or disagreement to me could touch a very painful part of someone else's life.

3. Humility.

Being able to remain calm doesn't automatically make me more knowledgeable, objective, or right. Sometimes I simply haven't experienced what someone else has.

God is continually challenging me to grow in empathy and understanding. He's reminding me how important it is to be slow to judge others because, truthfully, I don't always know what someone else might be going through.

I think we could all benefit from being a little more mindful of how we approach others, especially when their experiences are different from our own.

We don't have to agree with everyone to show them compassion. We don't have to understand everything someone has experienced to acknowledge that their feelings and experiences matter.

Sometimes the greatest thing we can offer someone isn't an opinion, an argument, or an explanation. It's simply a listening ear, a compassionate heart, and the willingness to understand.

After all, we never know just how much our words can affect someone else. Sometimes, choosing to listen instead of debate can make a difference far greater than we'll ever realize.

As we head into the holiday season, may we all be a little more mindful of others and what they may be going through. We never know when simply being present, taking the time to listen, and showing a little empathy might make all the difference in someone's life.

Disappointing Polls

Disappointing Polls

The picture above is just a graph. It has nothing to do with yesterday's results.

I woke up this morning to disappointing news about how the midterm elections turned out. It saddened my heart greatly to see the direction our country appears to be heading based on the way people voted.

I believe we did our country a huge disservice with our votes in these midterm elections. As an American who believes in the principles this country was founded upon, I want to see us moving forward, not backward. I want to see a country that values freedom, personal responsibility, constitutional rights, individual liberties, strong families, fiscal responsibility, and the opportunities that have made America what it is.

Unfortunately, I fear we're moving further away from many of those principles.

Historically, when our country moves in a direction that places more power in the hands of government, increases unnecessary spending, weakens personal freedoms, and loses sight of individual responsibility, I don't believe the results are good for everyday Americans. We eventually feel the consequences in our homes, our communities, our pocketbooks, and our everyday lives.

I feel for us all because we are the ones who ultimately have to live with the decisions being made. Politicians make promises, campaign on what they think people want to hear, and play political games to secure our votes. But when the campaigning is over, it's everyday Americans who are left dealing with the consequences.

And let's talk about voter turnout.

It wasn't what it needed to be, and unfortunately, that seems to happen so often with midterm elections. People recognize the importance of presidential elections, but when midterms roll around, participation often drops. Then we wonder how the political landscape changed so dramatically and why so many of the gains we worked toward are lost.

Our votes matter. Every election matters. We cannot expect to preserve the things that make this country great if we aren't willing to participate in the process. We cannot sit back, ignore what's happening, and then wonder why things aren't going in the direction we hoped.

I also think we've allowed politics to become far too divisive. While I have strong conservative values and convictions, I recognize that not everyone sees things the same way. That's part of living in a free country. We should be able to disagree without losing sight of the bigger picture.

However, having different opinions doesn't mean we should stop standing up for what we believe is right. Our constitutional freedoms, the principles of limited government, the importance of personal accountability, and the ability to pursue the American dream are worth standing up for.

I want future generations to inherit a country where hard work is valued, freedom is protected, opportunities are available, families can thrive, and people aren't constantly looking to the government to solve every problem.

I want to see America remain a place where individual freedoms matter, where our leaders are accountable to the people, and where the government remembers that it works for us, not the other way around.

It matters not which side of the political aisle you're on when it comes to the consequences of poor leadership and poor decisions. We all have something at stake. When our economy struggles, families feel it. When freedoms are threatened, everyday Americans are affected. When our country becomes increasingly divided, we all lose something.

And that's what makes these results so disappointing to me.

I don't expect everyone to agree with my perspective, and I'm certainly not suggesting that one political party gets everything right. But I do believe we need to take a serious look at the direction our country is heading and ask ourselves what kind of America we want to leave behind for our children and grandchildren.

I still believe in America. I believe in what this country can be, what it has stood for, and what it can accomplish when we get back to the principles that made it strong.

But loving our country also means being willing to speak up when we don't like the direction it's taking.

We cannot afford to become complacent. We cannot afford to stop paying attention. And we certainly cannot afford to take our freedoms for granted.

America is worth standing up for, and the future of our country is worth caring about.