So often, raising kids is like working a puzzle. You intercept challenging behaviors that test your patience. You worry, will my kids ever stop fighting boundaries? Will my efforts to honor their emotions sink in? Nothing works. Then there are moments when everything clicks and your work feels sacred.
What do you know about gardening?
Have you ever sown rows of zinnia, delighted in their growth and discovered that, days later, your tiny sprouts were gobbled up by rabbits? Have you ever cried over plants, or people?
Who I am
I am the poet and the muse.
“Yes” mom summer
I’m stretching my boundaries a bit, sure. But I spent years dreaming of what I’d do with my kids in the summer, and now I’m living the dream.
What the sky can do
I’m especially weary of every breaking news alert and our broken democracy and war and all the messages vying for my attention. What I want is to slow down and feel awe.
Prayers for mothers
Kim and I wrote The Beauty of Motherhood to provide spiritual nourishment to moms in the thick of raising young children. Our collection of devotions encourages moms to slow down and see the beauty before them, and to know they are not alone in this hard, holy work.
Mother at risk of disappearing in children’s messy bedroom
Sometimes my life feels like this messy room, / no matter how hard I try to maintain / a tidy exterior, clutter always finds me
Turning 40: Real talk about aging with grace
Playground visits, being present at school drop-off and pickup, writing in a coffee shop during preschool, Lego-building and reading children’s books are my midlife reality. Honestly, I love it. Motherhood awakened me to the holiness woven into little moments with little people.
Believe women
Even now, women speak truth / and many refuse to accept it
How to survive the end of winter
Plan out your garden // Imagine basil, tomatoes & peppers,
Erin Strybis 