Welcome to episode 105 of Mud Stories! Mud Stories is a podcast dedicated to bringing you inspiration in your muddiest moments, hope to make it through your mud, and encouragement for you to know, you are not alone. Today I’m continuing with part two of our conversation with Ann Voskamp, farmer’s wife, mom to seven kids, and the author […]
MS 104 Ann Voskamp: The Broken Way {Part 1}
Welcome to episode 104 of Mud Stories! Mud Stories is a podcast dedicated to bringing you inspiration in your muddiest moments, hope to make it through your mud, and encouragement for you to know, you are not alone. Today I’m talking with Ann Voskamp, farmer’s wife, mom to seven kids, and the author of the New York Times Best […]
MS 051 Kayla Aimee: Delivering a Preemie, Anchored by Hope, and Learning to Suffer Well
Welcome to episode 051 of Mud Stories! Mud Stories is a podcast dedicated to bringing you inspiration in your muddiest moments, hope to make it through your mud, and encouragement for you to know, you are not alone. In today’s episode I’m talking with Kayla Aimee, who resides in Georgia with her husband and daughter, and loves […]
When Graduation Changes Your View
I’d known it was coming for months—how they’d pass their own milestones this year and graduate. Him, the oldest of the five, towering tall. And her, the youngest, vibrant and sweet. He graduated from high school with all the pomp and circumstance—the tassel-shifting, hat-tossing, and cheering with streamers flying high into the sky. And she […]
What I Learned {February 2014}
At the end of every month, Emily Freeman shares what she’s learned, and she hosts a link-up on her blog where everyone can meet and share what they’ve learned too. So today, I’m joining Emily, to share what I learned in February. And I’m looking forward to hearing what you learned too! 1. My online friend, Natalie Snapp, was on […]
How a Mistake Becomes a Gift
I wasn’t planning to write. That is, until we missed our flight. I guess that’s what happens when you confuse your departure time with your arrival time, and all eight of you miss your flight entirely. I know. Brilliant. I stand at the counter with the ticket agent there, and her six-year-old self saunters over […]
The Secret of How to Live a Holy Life
I wrestle with perfectionism. My tendency of performing for love, lingers, and old habits are hard to break. Even in my relationship with God. I read in my Bible of being holy–of being ‘set apart’. But I struggle to know what that means, and how it is supposed to look. Because in my everyday chaotic grind, I […]
Choosing to Give Thanks and Fighting for Joy
I so clearly remember how I wanted to be a mother. I watched new moms with their babies, and dreamed of holding a new baby of my own. Holding and bathing. Feeding and changing–a life of meeting my baby’s needs. And then, I became a mother. Four children in six years. Months and months of […]
When a Soldier Fights for You, So You Can be Free
She’s already three centimeters dilated and just received her epidural when I meet her in the early morning. And she dozes as the other nurse gives me report. Her mother rocks in the recliner, back and forth, as any nervous grandma-to-be would, and I notice her droopy eyes and half-worn make-up as evidence of the […]
What I Learned {September 2013}
At the end of every month, Emily Freeman shares what she’s learned, and she hosts a link-up on her blog where everyone can meet and share what they’ve learned too. And I’m joining her today! So here, in no particular order, are 10 things I learned in September… 1. God’s goodness and mercy hunts us down. As I […]