Grace taught me a lesson about embracing “awkward.” Every morning, we take a walk through the retirement community near our house. One morning, after chatting with a sweet lady we’ve known for four years, Grace said, “Mom, we don’t know her name!” Well, um… Yes, you are right, Grace. I never asked. After knowing her for four years—knowing all about her husband’s health challenges, and even what she eats for breakfast on Sunday mornings (blueberry pancakes), it seemed a little…
Maybe your well-laid summer plans went sour, or you didn’t started on any of your goals or that summer bucket list you made with the kids. Guess what? That’s okay! Welcome back to Part 2 of our Fruitful Friendship series! Be sure to check out five easy ways to grow meaningful friendships. Your summer doesn’t need to be perfect to be meaningful, and you don’t need to be perfect either. I often feel like everyone has it all together but me. But,…
The blueberry patch near our house has been here for over thirty years, and these bushes keep making sweet fruit. Our friend, Wanda, tends to them little by little, and keeps them well-pruned. If Wanda let the bushes grow grow grow, the fruit wouldn’t get as sweet. The nutrients would be spread thin. Are you feeling that way lately? Are your relationships in need of revival? We learned how to embrace awkward, and now we’re going to learn how to tend…
I spent far too long believing that I wasn’t good at friendship. I was “too busy,” too stressed, inconsistent, forgetful, and I had a lot of fear. I realized I was chasing “perfect” in friendships, and that was holding me back from making any connections at all. As my friend Em says (pictured here with me), “I will hold myself to a standard of grace, not perfection.” That’s what Fruitful Friendship is all about. You don’t have to be perfect. You…
Hi, friends! Welcome back to my weekly series about making progress on what matters, little by little—along with a few links I think you might enjoy. In case you missed them, here are the past six weeks! This update is short and sweet this week, since we are on staycation, and my mom is visiting! Ari joined me this week on Facebook Live to talk about the story of our marriage crumbling, our faith journeys, our staycation goals, how we are raising our kids, UNC basketball, and…