Journey along with me as we find freedom in our daily lives!
Growing into 2020
We’re starting a new time! Growing into 2020 and beyond has me so excited for what’s to come. Part of the excitement comes from not knowing what’s around the corner and all that holds. As we venture into this new time, what areas are you hoping to be bold in? Step out of your comfort zone I stepped out of my comfort zone this year and started working with refugees from other countries. The joy they have shown and taught me has been indescribable. They have displayed what it means to start over in a different country, how to love well...
read moreBaby proofing your home
Baby proofing your home Our babies are adorable and we love them endlessly, but they need our protection. Making sure our homes are baby-proofed keeps our kids out of harms way. Babies love to explore and play with everything, and that can get them in trouble at times. There are a few steps we can follow to protect our babies in the home. This 7-step guide has been prepared for parents by house cleaning experts Bettercleans, based in Milwaukee. Follow the guide and put any missing protections in place for your baby. 7 step guide 1. Baby’s...
read moreGod Box
I put God in a box. A pretty, blue, large-sized box. Full of compartments where He could only oversee certain parts of my life at certain times. You get the gist, i.e. He’s in charge of the budget this month, or He’s in charge of my attitude this week. Very compartmentalized and on my terms. Somewhere along the way this box mentality started to shift. God showed up in 2017 and started reshaping my box. The box completely disappeared once the reshaping began. I took Him out of the box and let Him be in charge. Of. It. All. No more box How do...
read more3 things every person is free to do
Summer, our season of being free, is coming to a close. Each summer we take intentional time to hang out as a family. We only have so many summers with our kids and I hope to be able to enjoy each one. This means I put a lot of things on hold and just soak up the time with my sweeties. When September comes, we pick up the pace of life. For me this summer was about realizing our personal freedoms. In the U.S., we have the freedom to live life as we like. This got me thinking about the freedoms we have as believers. What are our freedoms? We...
read moreLetting go of others’ opinions
2018 was a pivotal year for me where my perspective on others started to shift. As we have walked through this season, one of the fun lessons was learning to let go of what others think. A lot of people care about what others think and I’ve been one of those people. People love to ruminate on what others say and let that affect our actions. I’ve come to realize I shouldn’t care about others’ opinions of me, but care about Jesus opinion of me. His opinion is what matters most. So why do we care so much? Because it’s human nature to want to be...
read more4 Ways to Find Freedom
In my 20’s, I tried everything I thought would bring me happiness. I tried to fill a void with sex, food, alcohol, and shopping. Oh how I wish I had the money I spent after my divorce. Part of it was having the freedom to shop after being financially abused and part of it was being careless. This is where my journey veered into finding freedom. I wanted to be free from the things poisoning my life on a regular basis. Now, there is nothing wrong with shopping, sex in the right context and food. But when those things are controlling you, it can...
read moreBeing present with my family
Each school year, I go and go until I crash. Being a doer doesn’t always make me present with my kids. One of my biggest struggles is being present with others instead of spinning my wheels on my to-do list. As summer approaches (hello Colorado snow in May), our family hops off into adventures. We have decided to do a digital detox again which brings us back together as a family unit. Being present and creating adventures What I love about about unplugging is how it pushes me to be present with my kids. Taking a step back from the news,...
read moreSafety Planning
These statistics are alarming to me. Domestic violence happens every minute to 20 people in the US. Domestic abuse happens to 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men in the US. When you hear those words, what do you think? I think about the women and children at the local shelter where I volunteer. They risked their lives to become safe. Safety planning is so important to bring more people to safety. What is safety planning? Safety planning is coming up with a plan in order to escape violence. Whether you’re leaving your residence or the residence of the...
read moreHow self-reliance can become God-reliance
I am survivor. I am a doer. I’m also self-reliant. Survivor is a badge I wear proudly. Surviving multiple things such as domestic violence, health issues, and upheaval of community has lead me to become self-reliant. Most of the time, I’m pretty proud of my self-reliance. While being self-reliant, I’m also a doer. Doer’s have a hard time sitting down and not doing anything. These fine qualities can help you navigate life well, but if you’re unhealthy, they can become very detrimental. Being self-reliant in this culture is something people...
read moreFinding freedom during health issues
A few weeks ago brought another health challenge. As we walked through another possible surgery, I kept thinking of all the amazing gifts we’ve been given. My family and I can walk, talk, see, and hear. The older we get the more our bodies can resist harder workouts. I love to workout, but sometimes we’re reduced to walking. And guess what? That’s okay. I can still hike, snowshoe and ski, but in the midst of health hardships, how do you keep going? Put one foot in front of the other. You get up each day and make the decision to keep moving...
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