What do you do when quiet times aren’t so quiet? Here are 10 creative quiet time ideas for those in the trenches of motherhood. Before I became a mom, I was a stay-at-home-wife. Before I was a stay-at-home-wife, I had a career held an office job with an hour lunch break every day. Before I …
How Has Your Life Been Interrupted Lately?
This post was originally published August 12, 2013. I am republishing in celebration of Intentional By Grace and the next chapter of living quietly for a bit. I pray these words are a refreshment to your soul as you ponder a new what the Lord has done for you. The house relaxed with the evening …
Labor Playlist for a Worship-Filled Birth
Are you getting ready to do the hard work of giving birth? Consider creating a labor playlist for a worship-filled birth. Creating a labor playlist was one of the best things we did for the birth of my little girl. Together with my husband we searched our music repertoire and downloaded new music to create …
Cary’s Birth Story {Part 3}
I’m picking up our little girl’s birth story again today. You can read Part 1 here and Part 2 here. To recap a little bit, I started having regular contractions around 36 weeks. The contractions were 4-6 minutes apart and this went on for 12 days straight. I went on bed rest during this time …
Cary’s Birth Story {Part 2}
I’m picking up the birth story of our little girl today. You can read Part 1 here. Knowing what we know now, what started around 36 weeks was prodromal labor. I had never heard of it before, but I can say it’s one of the most trying times of my entire life. Prodromal labor tested …
Cary’s Birth Story {Part 1}
Susannah Cary Dutton was born at home at 4 o’clock in the morning on June 4, 2016. She weighed 9 pounds 2 ounces and measured 21 inches long. Wait, what? A little girl? I thought you were having a little boy, Leigh Ann. Exactly. So did we! What a surprise we experienced in the wee …
Still No Baby to Hold
I started my maternity leave last month. I was nearing the last weeks of pregnancy and I was tired. My body ached and my mind was filled with all the things I needed to do to prepare for our new baby. With my history of birthing babies, I thought it would only be a few …
How to Prepare for the First Trimester of Pregnancy
Being pregnant is a gift and a joy, but first trimester for some of us is very difficult. We are weeks away from meeting our third little boy, and I cannot wait to hold him in my arms, finally see the face of the baby I’ve been imagining, and kiss that sweet little forehead. If …
How to Prepare for the First Trimester of PregnancyRead More
Sweeping the Floor Is Easier than Praying! Practical Steps to Take When Prayer Seems Overwhelming
By Contributing Writer Anna Joy: Sweeping the floor is easier than praying. No, seriously! It really is. And sweeping the floor is a really good thing to do. In fact, it is necessary. The problem is that sweeping the floor doesn’t have eternal results. At least, not in my house. Prayer, on the other hand? Prayer has …
Managing a Home Business and Family with Grace
By guest writer Claire of EntrepreneurMom.net: Caring for a family while building and nurturing a home business often feels like complete chaos. Who am I kidding, it is complete chaos. Never enough time for either, constantly pulling yourself in different directions, overwhelming guilt that your spouse, children, clients/customers (insert other here) aren’t quite getting the …
Battling the First Sins of the Morning
Have you ever thought about the first sins of the morning? The alarm sounds before the dawn of the day. What day is it? Where am I? Is that a foot in my face? I slowly awaken to what is happening. The alarm is sounding. It’s six in the morning, and that is, in fact, …
Mama’s Bed – The Safest Place in the World
The passage into childhood is scary and clingy. The dark makes shadows and brings eerie noises. The only safe place to rest is in mama’s bed cuddled up close and snoring. These wee hours of hushed coffee and baby moans will soon pass, and he will sleep in his bed unbothered one day. I know …