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an honest journey through
the grit and glory of life

mostly grit.

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Rest Easy Nashville

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i once was a writer

most recent ramblings

words

on joy and grief

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choosing gratitude

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muscle memory

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right here in the waiting

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right here in the waiting

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embrace

live less out of habit and more out of intent.jpg

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one word. for one year.

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don't you ever get tired?

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after kavanaugh

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after kavanaugh

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getaway

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old cameras.jpg

through my lens

S I X T E E N !
__

Happy Birthday, @elipelton!

We are so glad we get to celebrate YOU today! You make our lives — and the world — infinitely better just by being you.

You are joyful and kind. You are wise and perceptive. You are will

T W O • Y E A R S
—
There’s been more heartache in these two years than we should’ve experienced in a lifetime. And there’s also been more

love
connection
lingering meals
adventures
grace
lazy Saturdays
apologies
hard

St. Louis, you were good to us! Freezing — but so delicious, fun, and memorable!

———
Knowing how significantly my own travels as a young person shaped my worldview, it is a gift to be able to prioritize travel and new experie

Experiences > Things

The days don’t always turn out exactly as I’d hoped, but the weeks add up more wonderfully than I could have ever imagined. I am beyond grateful for my little family and my beautiful life — in all its splendid, exhausting, complicat

This is NOT a picture of our son’s school band winter concert. This is a picture of an epic mom fail.

While Eli was there at the correct time, I somehow missed the crucial detail that the start time got moved up 30 minutes. So while his group

Maybe this resonates with you, too…

“It’s not a capability thing,” I reiterate to my freshman son. “It’s not a capacity issue or an intelligence indicator. It’s none of those things. It’s just a sign that some new skills need to be developed. T

It’s somehow been a year already, and we’ve somehow — impossibly — made it through the last of the firsts, those terrible milestones no one should ever have to mark off.

Like a phantom limb, the pain of Logan’s absence

When the roofers start hammering at 7:30 on the Saturday morning of a holiday weekend, I’m fairly certain our neighbors no longer care about our gift-bagged attempt at bribery. 🫣

Sorry neighbors! You’ll be invited to the post-construct

This one right here started high school yesterday. 10 hours before the first day bell rang, we were notified that he got into his top-choice school! Eli had been on a waitlist since spring and while he was ready to make the most of where he got place

How has it only been “official” since last August?! It feels like we’ve been together forever and — even better — absolutely made for each other! Having you for a son is the greatest joy of my life!

There’s only thirteen days left of middle school.

Thirteen days to soak up the 45 minutes E and I spend in the car for school drop-offs and pick-ups. While there have certainly been times the commute has felt tedious or inconvenient, the unin

These are the days.

Long car rides to and from school. Playing DJ and making playlists. Elaborate expositions of gaming exploits. School day play-by-plays. Practices, games, protein bars, gym bags. Stinky pits and sweaty hugs. Sideline cheering and

Eli’s Christmas wish list last year included “tickets to a Broadway show”, which means we all got to benefit from his gift!

It was so special and meaningful to see Annie together last night. Families are made all kinds of ways...

The water comes in
and goes out
without even trying,
over and over and over…
reminding me
to not forget
to breathe.

// E X H A L E //

It took leaving the country for me to come up for air long enough to catch up with friends… even one who lives just blocks away.

In the midst of this season, I’m beyond thankful for the gifts of getting away to a mag

There’s just something about the way the shadows dance with the light, reminding me that one isn’t possible without the other…