Finding simple… when you have kids.

I am going to start this post with a bit of raw honesty. I am a hypocrite. The last few days have been, well, interesting. Instead of skiing away New Year’s, sledding in the new snow, or celebrating with friends, we’ve been inside the house for three days straight. The flu has been passing through the…

The Power of Team Dynamics Within a Family Unit

Mom! She won’t stop swinging the princess in my face!” He yells from the back seat. “Stop swinging it in his face, daughter. I glance in the rearview mirror to see her energetically swinging it over his head. Didn’t I say to stop that??” “Well, you said to stop swinging it IN his face, not OVER…

I am Half a Dirtbag Mommy.

In case you are not well acquainted with the term “dirt bagger” or “dirt bag climber,” here it is: 1. Dirtbag Climber A glorified bum, who spends all of his/her time begging for food, drinking PBR, and climbing. They live the traveling life, taking to the road year-round in pursuit of adventure. Often in a van….

Seeing New My Normal

The sunlight turned orange this morning, behind hazy mountains, and navy blue clouds. The sky was a swirl of indecision. Lightening. The smell of rain. An unsteady breeze. The colors outside were alive. Somehow, the world I see everyday looked new again. The same black topped streets, the cracked sidewalks, cookie cutter houses all displayed…

Climbing 14ers for Orphaned Kids!

Today, I want to introduce you to Dave from 14ers4kids. In case you don’t know, a 14ers is commonly know amongst mountaineers as a peak topping out at 14,000 feet above sea level. And Dave’s story inspired me because he took something he loves, summiting mountains, and is using it to help orphaned children. Last…

Bruised But Not Beaten

I promise I’ll never give you fake. Consider it a personal goal I have never to be fake. But sometimes it happens on accident, doesn’t it? Especially with bloggers. See, everything is going along fine and then wham! You get hit by something. And if you are like me, that something takes me out of…

The thorn and the rose

It’s that damn pricker again. You know, the one that has left the faintest sliver of a thorn lodged somewhere in the threads of your sock. You stop. You remove your shoe and feel around on the outside of the sock.  Nothing. You take the sock off. Wipe free your foot. Put it back on….

Being a mom is enough!

I like simple. I like quiet. I like still. I have three kids. So life is rarely simple or quiet or still. But I love my life. Add into this the fact that we home-school our oldest daughter, run this blog, write, photograph, are committed to a local church and cannot sit still when there…

For the linguist: My word for 2013!

Confession? If you’ve recently posted on FB or Twitter, “what are your 2013 resolutions?” Then I have quietly and systematically ignored you. (Chances are I am offending everyone here, cause my news feed yesterday was nothing but that resounding question…) The truth? I am not really a resolutions type of girl. It is either the…

Off On The Right Foot

I have to be purposeful at most things in life. Now, if you know us, you also know that we are quite spontaneous. I am not diminishing the beauty found in sudden acts of whim. But most of life, rather most of what I want out of life, only happens if I am purposeful. Like…

Resist Busy

A word to myself: Resist busy, Alyssa. Resist. I enjoyed quite this afternoon [thanks to the husband]. I escaped to some lone rock, up a not-so-lone canyon to watch the sun rays dance off the rock faces, read and journal and talk with God. I forgot a pen. And I forgot my Bible. And my…