“Don’t bend; don’t water it down; don’t try to make it  logical; don’t edit your own soul according to the fashion. Rather, follow your most intense obsessions mercilessly.”

-Franz Kafka

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Fall Blouses $25 and Under from Amazon

Fall Blouses $25 and Under from Amazon

Hi! Yesterday I shared some olive green button downs (such a great Fall staple) to pair with whatever your heart desires, since it's a great color that will go with a ton! And well, since Fall is upon us, today I'm sharing 9 affordable blouses in a variety of colors,...

Live Lightly, Child

Live Lightly, Child

I woke up last week to my mind overflowing with scattered thoughts, clouding each other, swarming the landscape of my psyche and robbing me of peace before I could open my eyes. Quickly, I remembered my ritual of listing at least five things I'm grateful for before...

Your Rainbow Awaits

Your Rainbow Awaits

Maya Angelou once said, "Every storm runs out of rain." I am not the biggest fan of rain, but this year in particular I feel so much gratitude for the moisture that has graced the valley that I call home. Now that the winter months have come and gone (the ones I...

Return To Your Soul

Return To Your Soul

I wonder how many people were taught to fully love themselves. My guess is not many. This must be why there is so much heartache in the world. Whose guardians truly demonstrated that art, day in and day out, each moment while raising a child into the world? Even the...

A Letter to My Children

A Letter to My Children

To my children: When you were born, so was I. Never had I been a mother of a daughter, then a mother of a son, and then a mother of three. In every moment since you’ve been here, I’ve been learning. Life sort of takes on a gravity that surpasses what exists in our...

Waking Up To Your Life

Waking Up To Your Life

Clarisse. She’s one of my favorite literary characters. Every November when I have the chance to teach Ray Bradbury’s classic Dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 to my sophomore classes, I ruminate about her character, drawing parallels to my own life. In case you aren’t...

Thursday’s Thoughts About Therapy

Thursday’s Thoughts About Therapy

I’ve never felt shy or shameful about physical therapy. By contrast, just the mere idea of psychological therapy used to hold major stigma from my perspective. Physical therapy became a part of my life when I was 15 years old to lessen the symptoms of scoliosis. A...

Tuesday’s Theories

Tuesday’s Theories

Swirling spirals of thought Have me tangled up and caught Until I stop... What is right in front of me? What is quietly asking to be seen The present moment...outside the spiral, living the dream Write it down, make it real We create constructs to control the way we...

Monday Morning Musings

Monday Morning Musings

This morning I woke up to snow on the ground and the quiet that comes with low hanging clouds. The house was chilly, so we turned on the fireplace. Our Monday morning hustle commenced as normal, and with the addition of hats, mittens, and snow pants, off to school we...

Facing Truths to Mend What’s Broken

Facing Truths to Mend What’s Broken

Picture this: you read a post on social media that resonates with you. From reading the comments, obviously it does with many others as well. The post is so lovely, you decide to leave a comment too. You compliment the writer for making so many people feel like they...

To Be She Part 2: Inspiration through Eve

To Be She Part 2: Inspiration through Eve

powerful, life giver, brave the O.G. trailblazer and mother of humanity saw the grand vision accomplished the mission revealed to her daughters divine intuition took on the burden didn't shrink down or shirk it trusted deep down that this life would be worth it to see...

Thank You, September

Thank You, September

It is mid-September and you lay in bed and try your best to fight back tears. Just go to sleep. Your mind is a busy factory pumping out unwanted thoughts at a frantic pace.  You think about how only two people came to your daughter’s birthday party, how composed...

A Walk Around The Park

A Walk Around The Park

Sometimes… I wish life was more like my morning walks around the park Everyone on the same literal path And yet… no “path” is the same Some of us choose to saunter; others opt to sprint Some are pushing strollers with sleepy babies Others are pulling bike trailers...

Marriage: No answers here, just experience…

Marriage: No answers here, just experience…

This September I will celebrate fourteen years of marriage. Although Autumn and I have a “marriage” category on the blog, I have written about it zero times. Mostly that’s because I feel that marriage is a total crapshoot, and truthfully, I still don’t really know...

Dear Reader

Dear Reader

Dear Reader I just want to sit down with you and talk. Lately, my daughter has been working through an exercise in self-trust. It involves boundaries and privacy and Being honest about needing space. It involves learning to honor oneself before the image other’s hold...

Forged in the Fire

Forged in the Fire

“You gotta leave yourself behind.” -Lady Gaga The Roles We Settle In There’s a lot about societal structures and cultural norms that make self-exploration and expansion a tricky task. Your upbringing determines your world view as a young person. Family dynamics,...

Don’t Put Me In A Box

Don’t Put Me In A Box

Society loves boxes. It loves to compartmentalize people so that it can better make sense of humanity. It tells us: You are a democrat. Stay there. If you ever find yourself thinking something remotely conservative, stop your brain in its tracks. Only liberal...

Embracing Your Humanity in Motherhood

Embracing Your Humanity in Motherhood

This week, I’ve been giving my alarm clock the metaphorical middle finger. I am under the weather, and so are my kids, and it’s spring break. Last week was the first week of daylight savings, and after 7 days of feeling extraordinarily exhausted, my body succumbed to...

The Words That Were My Lifeline

The Words That Were My Lifeline

Why do we always pour out our fear onto other people’s journeys like sticky syrup and call it sweet intervention, unaware that they can feel it dripping off their fingers and sense our judgment masked as love Because last I checked a journey can differ from mine and...

Alchemy of Women

Alchemy of Women

Lately, this quote has been repeating in my mind: “Well behaved women rarely make history.” It doesn’t really matter what I’m doing. I could be washing dishes, driving my car, or just lying in bed at night in the dark. The words continuously return. I am fortunate...

The Power of Sacred Rage

The Power of Sacred Rage

Recently I heard a woman on a podcast talk about “sacred rage.” For thirty minutes I ate up every word she said about a woman’s right to be angry and the power in her rage. It was balm for my soul. What Does Anger Mean To You? Before we dive into this topic, I would...

Wisdom From Trees

Wisdom From Trees

Sometimes I think we keep ourselves small by believing lies our mind masquerades as truth. Ill-rooted perspectives can have a way of misinforming us about who we are. Personality and experiences play a big part, too, of course. I have a bad habit of ignoring what I...

Stuck In a Moment

Stuck In a Moment

Thought Tornado I’m sitting on the tile floor, while my daughter plays in the bath, and the Sing 2 soundtrack blares from my phone. My little one is asking me 10 questions per minute and my thoughts are fragmented. There’s a tornado inside my brain. Every now and...

How I’m Taking December Back

How I’m Taking December Back

For the past few years, I have found myself feeling a teensy bit panicked when December arrives. This did not used to be the case for me. I have always LOVED the holiday season...the music, traditions, lights, baked goods. But this year, I'm sad to confess that I felt...

Sex & The Patriarchy: Why Women Get Left Behind

To Be “She”

Childhood & Adolescence I notice a chunky girl in the novice class at gymnastics struggling to get through her beam routine. I watch her, low-key horrified, and make a silent vow to never look like that. For weeks I fret about getting fat. I am nine years old. In...

The Revelation of Rest

The Revelation of Rest

It's 11:30 in the morning and I'm standing in my kitchen wearing last night's pajamas and a robe. I'm bingeing Ted Lasso on my iPad, which I've started today and episode 3 is up. From the fridge I've fished out a small wedge of brie cheese, an apple, sour cherry...

When Faith Turns to Doubt

When Faith Turns to Doubt

I recently wrote a piece about my faith journey, which you can read here. I didn't feature it as a stand-alone post because honestly, it scared me to put something so personal and vulnerable out there on center stage. But ultimately I decided it has a place on the...

To Be Human

To Be Human

What a ride to be human in America right now. Living through a pandemic feels like a confusing, nightmarish version of Groundhog Day. Each person has an invisible barbell, Fit for an Olympian, Sitting on their shoulders. Life feels extra heavy. Our country is isolated...

12 Fall Outfit Ideas For Teachers!

12 Fall Outfit Ideas For Teachers!

Happy FALL! Today I am dedicating this post to all the amazing teachers! I'm a teacher, and I know how tough things are right now. It's a different kind of hard than last year, but still so incredibly challenging and exhausting. We truly DO NOT GET PAID ENOUGH. I...

When We Worship THIS, We Lose Ourselves

When We Worship THIS, We Lose Ourselves

Some people worship money, others sex, and still others don’t quite know who or what they worship...but they hold onto a hope that there’s something out there bigger than themselves. I personally worship God. And sometimes dark chocolate and Diet Coke (God knows I’m...

The Kid Lunch System for Busy Moms that Actually WORKS!

The Kid Lunch System for Busy Moms that Actually WORKS!

A few years ago when my eldest started Kindergarten, I would make her lunch every morning before school. If I was super on top of things, I would make it the night before. And then I would pat myself on the back. (I think that happened like twice). Most of the time, I...

8 Elements for Strong and Enriching Friendships

8 Elements for Strong and Enriching Friendships

In order to have great friends, one must be a great friend. While I have passed this truth on to my children, I think different people hold different definitions of “being a friend”. What is valuable to one person may not be to another. Because of this, people come...

Three Simple Ways To Update Any Space In Your Home

Three Simple Ways To Update Any Space In Your Home

Do you ever feel like a certain room in your home (or maybe just your home in general) needs a facelift? Like maybe it has a case of the blahs...but when you look around you aren't exactly sure how to spruce it up? I'm not talking about remodeling (although that...

Live Among The Wildflowers

Live Among The Wildflowers

When I turned 31, I climbed the mountain that overlooks my hometown. It stands at just under 13,000 feet in elevation. I hit the trail at 6 AM, and the unobstructed sunrise was pure magic. The hike is predominantly uphill, and I crossed through many different...

Going Back to Basics

Going Back to Basics

Disclaimer: I debated posting this because I feel like a bit of a fraud. I texted Autumn this morning and said, “how can I post about this topic when I can’t even live by my own advice most of the time?!” She reminded me that I’m human and that our main goal on this...

5 Podcasts to Restore Your Faith in Humanity

5 Podcasts to Restore Your Faith in Humanity

It's been a couple years now since I discovered the world of podcasts. Listening to podcasts makes folding laundry go faster, cleaning bathrooms a breeze, opens my mind and broadens my perspective in a unique way. The podcast world is saturated. Especially after the...

5 Awesome Books For Your Spiritual Journey

5 Awesome Books For Your Spiritual Journey

In 2016, an old friend of mine from college passed away to a rare form of cancer. His death was a turning point for me because it was in those vulnerable moments of quiet grieving that I turned to books about the afterlife. I suddenly had a thirst for knowledge and...

The Ultimate Father’s Day Gift Guide

The Ultimate Father’s Day Gift Guide

The Ultimate Father's Day Gift GuideWhether you're browsing gift ideas for your husband, your own father or another special dad in your life, we've got you covered!For the Grill MasterMonogram Grill Set   This  grill set includes utensils and a personalized...

Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble

Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble

Last week in the grocery store, I noticed rhubarb was in the produce section. My eldest daughter loves rhubarb. She will even eat it raw! In the past, I have always made my great aunt's recipe for rhubarb crunch. But this past weekend, I decided to try making...

Little Black Clouds: Why Mamas Are Warriors

Little Black Clouds: Why Mamas Are Warriors

This one’s for the moms: new moms, seasoned mothers, mamas in the thick of it— I want to give you a shout-out. But this piece is not to praise you for your efforts in mothering your children, although believe me; heaven knows we can use a lot more of that. Instead, I...

Word To Your Mother: Great Gifts For Mother’s Day

Word To Your Mother: Great Gifts For Mother’s Day

Word To Your Mother: Great Gifts for Mother's DayIt's time to show our appreciation for the wonderful women in our lives who wear the many hats required for Motherhood. Mother's Day is May 9th! Parenting, Wife-ing, Daughtering, Sistering in a Pandemic is a twisty...

Ten Children’s Books That Teach Kindness and Empathy

Ten Children’s Books That Teach Kindness and Empathy

Kindness and empathy are lacking in our world today, especially on social media. I don't think there's ever been a better time than NOW to start teaching our kids how to be kind and empathetic. Notice that I said HOW...because these things are learned behaviors. I am...

Three Simple Meals Using Naan Bread

Three Simple Meals Using Naan Bread

Naan flatbread is a staple in my household these days. I discovered this brand at Costco a couple of years ago and haven't looked back. It is so versatile! Naan is similar to Pita bread, except that the texture is a bit different since it is made with an egg/yogurt...

5 Easy Ways To Stay Fit

5 Easy Ways To Stay Fit

Fitness is a big part of my life. In 2013, I invested in Kayla Itsines’ BBG program and it changed my entire life. Because of her dedication to building a program that would be accessible to all women of all types, she has quite literally led a fitness revolution. I...

10 Lessons I’ve Learned About Marriage

10 Lessons I’ve Learned About Marriage

On March 10, 2007, my husband and I said our vows. It is so wild to look back on that day this week, 14 years later, and wonder how the time has passed by so quickly, yet has seemed simultaneously slow going. This week also marks the one year anniversary of being...

Mini Spring Capsule Wardrobe: 10 Pieces, 20 Outfits!

Mini Spring Capsule Wardrobe: 10 Pieces, 20 Outfits!

For the past couple of years, capsule wardrobes have been trending on the interwebs. You've most likely heard of them, maybe even read about them...and if you're like me, you've tried them out and are SOLD on them! When I first heard of a capsule wardrobe a few years...

Cream Tea Scones

Cream Tea Scones

To be honest, scones were never really my choice pastry. I don't love super crumbly foods in general, because I can't stand the messes they make and super crumbly often equals super dry. And who likes a dry pastry? This is why people eat biscotti with their coffee. So...

Cute Decor from Amazon To Refresh Your Kitchen!

Cute Decor from Amazon To Refresh Your Kitchen!

I just recently moved into a new house that also happens to be twice the size of my old one. For the past couple of years I have been saving my money specifically so I could buy new, affordable decor and random items that are both cute and functional to fill and...

Will You Be My Valentine?

Will You Be My Valentine?

Two Easy Valentine's Treats To Make With Your Kids Can you believe it is February of 2021 already!? Honestly I cannot. This coming weekend it's already time to celebrate Valentine's Day and like most holidays in the last year, it snuck up on me. No matter what your...

Three Easy And Healthy Weeknight Meals

Three Easy And Healthy Weeknight Meals

Need some easy and healthy weeknight meals stat? Look no further! Back in the day, I had a fitness Instagram account and my mojo was healthy recipes! I LOVED creating new recipes and sharing them with my followers. Even though I'm no longer active on that account,...

Why Learning To Let Go is Key to Living With Joy

Why Learning To Let Go is Key to Living With Joy

For as long as I can remember, my favorite Beatles song has been “Let it Be.” This is ironic, of course, because also for as long as I can remember, I have been a type A, over-analyzing, control freak. Letting things “be” is not frequently a strength of mine. Maybe...

Motherhood: A Million Ways To Do It Right

Motherhood: A Million Ways To Do It Right

Being a mom is the hardest job that nobody prepared me for. It's a job that requires more physical, emotional and mental energy than any other job I’ve held, yet it’s the one job I don’t get compensated for. I find myself constantly wondering how I'm supposed to do a...

11 Things I Learned In 2020

11 Things I Learned In 2020

Dear 2020, I must say that I'm happy to see you gone. I’m not afraid to call you out for what you were at times: a soul-sucking maelstrom of frustrations, losses, and annoying surprises. But with the bad comes the good; for me that equates to growth. I want to reflect...

The BEST Brown Butter Thumbprint Cookies

The BEST Brown Butter Thumbprint Cookies

Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas! If you are anything like me, the holiday season comes with go-to recipes for treats and goodies to share. I find myself on autopilot every year. Sugar cookies, chocolate peanut butter bark, mini chip snowball cookies, ginger...

Holiday Outfit Ideas, Two Ways!

Holiday Outfit Ideas, Two Ways!

*This week we have our first guest post! A HUGE thank you goes to Lindsay's sister, Whitney, for contributing to the blog this week! Have you ever received or sent a text from/to one of your friends that goes like this: “Hey, what are you planning on wearing to...

Closing The Book: A Farewell to Babyhood

Closing The Book: A Farewell to Babyhood

I wrote the piece below almost exactly one year ago to the day. I was feeling all sorts of nostalgia flood through me as I came to terms with the fact that my baby was turning one. Today that same baby (I refuse to stop calling her that) will turn TWO. Mamas, the pain...

10 Unique Gifts for the Women in Your Life

10 Unique Gifts for the Women in Your Life

The Search for Something MeaningfulLast minute Christmas shopping can creep up. I find myself making lists and aiming to be prepared early on...starting my process of present hunting in early fall. Inevitably, there's always stragglers come December that I'm still...

Easy Six-Can Chili

Easy Six-Can Chili

This is one of my favorite dishes to make in the slow cooker, but you can also just throw everything in a big pot after browning the meat and let it simmer away! Either way, it’s super easy and such a classic comfort food. 1 lb. lean ground beef or turkey 1 can...

The Transformational Power of Anxiety

The Transformational Power of Anxiety

July 20, 2018 4:21 AM Listen. I want to tell you about the crippling arrest anxiety grips my heart and my mind with. It’s ironic, really, how I have spent 20 years watching, experiencing pain, and learning all about what my sister’s mental illness can do to a person,...

The BEST Amazon Cozies Under $40!

The BEST Amazon Cozies Under $40!

If you’re anything like me, you’re alllllll about the comfy cozies right now. Whether you stay at home with your kiddos, work from home, or just like to go straight to lounge-mode at 5pm (or maybe you’re all three, like me), comfy clothes are a must. And it’s...

Marriage is Hard: Here’s Why It’s a Worthwhile Adventure

Marriage is Hard: Here’s Why It’s a Worthwhile Adventure

The New Oxford American Dictionary defines ‘Adventure’ as “an unusual and exciting, typically hazardous, experience or activity”. A sign that hung in my little girl's bedroom bears this quote by A.A. Milne: “As soon as I saw you, I knew an adventure was going to...

How I Found Peace In Humbling Myself

How I Found Peace In Humbling Myself

“You are not responsible for a person’s perspective of you.” I heard Alicia Keys recite these words the other day, and they stopped me mid-scroll. I paused and felt my soul awaken as I reflected on some emotionally draining circumstances that had unfolded several...

Norwegian Pancakes

Norwegian Pancakes

I would grow up to discover that the rest of the world I live in refers to these little slices of heaven as crepes, and they are very similar. To me, these will always be Norwegian pancakes. They are a crowd pleaser and a kid favorite.

Granny’s German Chocolate Cake

My father in law has a very special spot in his heart for the German Chocolate Cake his mom made him for his birthday growing up. Granny, as we all call her, is a killer cook. All the food from her kitchen is delectable. And if you're in her house, buckle up, because...

Craveable Chicken Crust Pizza

A Surprising Spin on a Family Favorite Well, here's the straight forward story: I had a package of ground chicken in my fridge that needed to be used. There is often ground chicken in my fridge, because it's tasty, affordable, and versatile. As it turns out, it is...

In Gratitude to Fitness

In Gratitude to Fitness

Dear Fitness, You and I have always known each other in some capacity or another. As a child, I loved to run and jump and climb and ride my bike and swim in the pool on a hot summer day. Through my years in school I played a variety of different sports. You were there...

You Are My Last

You Are My Last

Written By: Lindsay Note: I wrote this piece in 2019, not long after my third (and last) baby was born. It reflects my feelings on coming to terms with the fact that I wouldn't have another child, that this would be my last baby. You meekly latch on as I lay exhausted...

Don’t Put Me In A Box

Don’t Put Me In A Box

Society loves boxes. It loves to compartmentalize people so that it can better make sense of humanity. It tells us: You are a democrat. Stay there. If you ever find yourself thinking something remotely conservative, stop your brain in its tracks. Only liberal thoughts...

You Are A Force

You Are A Force

I confessed: I don’t know what I believe anymore, I don’t know who I am Wisely and calmly, she whispered:  As much as you feel like you’re floundering,  no longer on solid ground, without convictions,  I see someone with the strength of water You are...