a hospital stay.

my husband and i often find ourselves sitting on our couch after all the babies are tucked in and sleeping soundly, sharing about all the things that we see in our children.
the qualities that we admire, the character that is developing.
they strength that they embody and the gifts that fill us with pride and hope.

we love these little people more than life, yes, but there's more. we admire them.
we respect their growth and are inspired by their resiliency.
we are challenged by their innocence and convicted by their faith.
we are encouraged by their unwavering hope and ability to hold on to peace.
their bravery continually astounds us.

on wednesday night, our oldest started to have a mild asthma flare up. by early thursday morning it was clear that the flare up was becoming more than we could manage at home. a trip to the ER turned into a 36 hour hospital stay in order to get Kale back to where he needed to be to come home.

while i hated to see his health compromised, and my mama heart hurt for him more than words can say, i was filled with gratitude for a son who is clearly a fighter. who is determined to stay positive and choose bravery and courage over fear and anxiety.

and the silver lining of all was the sweetest 36 hour window with just me and my boy. we ordered all of his favorite foods, worked our way through an entire spiderman activity book, built a rocketship to fly around the room, played countless rounds of tic-tac-toe and snuggled up to the coziness of disney marathons.

i am incredibly thankful for the person that Kale is.
and for his health and his character and his spirit. he is truly one of my favorites of all time.

xx

a new season.

so it appears that a hiatus from this blog became necessary for me. it was not done easily or without some sadness. this place holds so much that is dear to me, so allowing it to take a back seat for a while, was truly difficult. it always remained in the back of my mind as a place that was dearly missed.

i believe that for everything there is a time and a season. and a practice that i try to do fairly frequently, is to re-evaluate each and every thing that i give time to. during one of these evaluations, my sweet little blog was put on the list of things that needed to be removed. the last six to nine months have been quite a whirlwind.

our fourth baby was in her first year.

i got bit by the entrepreneurial bug and started not one, but two small businesses. (Ellis.Rose & ItWorks!)

we have been on an emotional journey with our #3 and some serious health issues, which i'm sure will make its way into this space in the near future.

we have done a complete overhaul on our diets, requiring so much more time from me as i learn a completely new way to feed our family.

and amidst it all, i have tried (although failed many times) to keep my four precious babies at the forefront.

all this to say, i have finally felt like i am at a point to sit down and begin writing again.

to start sharing my heart and pieces of our lives.

to start documenting our story, so that i will have it for years to come.

so hello again. :) to my favorite old friends, and the new ones that i look forward to meeting!

xx.

rest.

"now i see the secret of the making of the best persons,

it is to grow in the open air and to eat and sleep with the earth."

walt whitman

to rest is essential to life.

our bodies need it. they demand it.

in order to thrive and grow and change and live well,

we need to pull away. 

to retreat from normalcy and indulge in a space and time that is meant solely for rejuvenation.

for filling ourselves up; for sitting in silence.

for listening to music and lingering in soulful conversations.

as a mother, i have a difficult time carving out time that does not include my children.

i feel bad leaving the little people behind who are my very heartbeat. 

i tell myself that i don't need it. that i am strong.

and then when something or someone pulls me away,

it takes no time at all, for me to sink into the pure pleasure of allowing myself to rest.

it is glorious, filling my lungs with everything that i have been pouring out into my people.

pouring back in encouragement, patience, gentleness, joy.

giving myself the gift of being loved on and of going on adventure. 

of taking the time to truly sit and enjoy a meal.

of sitting in silence for an uninterrupted amount of time.

passions are reignited.

i slowly return from a place of surviving to thriving.

i remember who i want to be and how i want to love.

i am better.

with a full belly and rosy cheeks. 

and a heart ready to pour it all out again.

this past weekend was all of this and more.

scenes from a morning.