There's a whole, big, beautiful back story here, but I know you came to see the cover. So, let's just show it first, shall we?! 1 ... 2 ... 3 ... SURPRISE! Please tell me you love it as much as I do! Did Ave Maria nail it or did they #nailit? The back story goes something like this. I'm a freelance graphic designer so well-designed pieces are a big deal to me. I had this "vision" of what I hoped the cover would look like and I prayed hard that Ave would be able to see inside my brain. And, by "see inside my brain" what I really meant was I sent them three pages of notes, including font suggestions, colors, book covers I loved, backgrounds that screamed TEXAS! and a few … [Read more...]
You’re 18! And How I Feel About It…
Eighteen. Can we all just sit with that number for a quick second? I (a mom who still doesn't feel that old) have an adult child. And it sure happened a helluva lot faster than I thought it would. I mean, time sure seemed to slow down that one time when Will was two-years-old and kicking and screaming in Sally Beauty Supply because I wouldn't let him buy that flat iron. "He sure is unhappy," the sales clerk said. #facepalm And it definitely slowed down when I put my foot down and told him we weren't buying 15 blocks of cheese, so Will pouted and sat in time out in the dairy aisle at H-E-B. "He won't be like that forever," one shopper shared as she patted my shoulder and walked on … [Read more...]
Lent, and what it’s NOT
Ash Wednesday is um, Wednesday. As much as I'd like to give up winter for Lent (dang you Texas spring, where you at?!), I think God wants me to dig a little deeper. I've written a lot about Lent here on the blog over the last decade. I've chatted about how to make it meaningful for your kids, why we keep missing the point and why I want the world to know what it means (a la sassy Kathryn). At the end of the day, it comes down to one simple question: Are you willing to let yourself be transformed, or are you going to keep the death grip of control on your life? I know what you're thinking, that's easier said than done, Kathryn. And you know what? You're right. Lent isn't about all … [Read more...]
Cleaner, Safer, Better
If you've been following me over on Instagram, you know that our family recently embarked on a major diet change. For two of our family members, it was medically necessary. The learning curve to cut out gluten has been steep (oh pizza, I miss you), but it's something we've been contemplating for more than a year. Well, that and a few other changes. As the mom of six, I've always been hypersensitive to what we feed our bodies (inside and out). Occupational hazard. I think if you want anything to be sustainable, you have to take baby steps to get there. A whole host of radical changes just means you'll be eating chocolate in a dark corner on day two because you fell off the … [Read more...]
The Book! (and a title to boot)
I realized, after looking through all my 2018 posts, that I never "officially" shared on the blog that I'm writing a book. #badblogger So, yes, it's actually happening. I could not be more thrilled or more terrified. At first it sounded so cool to share the deepest recesses of my heart and then I panicked. What if people hate it? What if *I* hate it? What if, what if, what if. I knew, deep down, that it's what God wanted, so I did it anyway. <<deep breaths>> I have had an AMAZING team at Ave Maria Press, my publisher. Y'all, I know other authors gush about their publishers, but Ave is legit, legit. You'll hear more about that whole back story soon. In the meantime, … [Read more...]
