Brave Heart, Brave Soul. She who is brave is free.

“Love your family. Spend time, be kind and serve one another. Make no room for regrets. Tomorrow is not promised and today is short.” ~ Unknown Family. We're born from and by them. How we came to be part of our families, isn't the question. One way or another we did. Whether through birth or adoption, our lives have been built upon their stories. Their history is our history and ultimately our story as well. For me, home is a place where unconditional love resides...a shelter and refuge full of memories, both and happy sad. I come from a very closely knit family. Not perfect in any way shape or form but close. I’m deeply connected to my roots and family tree. Today I stand in awe of both the lineage and legacy surrounding my life. My family has and will always be my greatest source of strength and joy. We’re a crazy bunch, that's for sure. But what family isn’t? I look at our life together and I’m reminded “we're just the right mix of chaos and love.” What I...

"I'm much more me when I'm with you." ~ Unknown I love the summertime. I mean what's not to love about the lazy days of summer? You know what I'm talking about, especially if you're in the education field. The stay up late nights followed by those non alarm sounding wake ups, messy hair, no make-up, PJ wearin', barefoot I'm burning daylight, I don't care filled with a hot cup of tea, a good book, your play list turned up best morning ever kind of days. And the best part well that's the ability to spend the afternoons with your closest friends. When I say I'm truly blessed I am. Over the last few years God has strengthened and fortified several wonderful and remarkable friendships in my life. These women many of you know I call my sisters of the heart. Truth be told, I have no doubt, we'll be the old ladies causing trouble, racing our wheelchairs and dueling with our canes one day.That's just who we are, goofy, silly a...

"Because when I look at you , I can feel it. And  - and I look at you and I...I'm home. Please...I don't want that to go away. I don't want to forget. " Dory, Finding Nemo I can hardly believe it's been 14 years since we first watched Finding Nemo with our boys. The year was 2003. Joshua was 6 and Micah just 4 years old. Little did we know that just three short years later breast cancer would come for me, wrangling for our family and the life we were creating together. How could we know then that every memory we were making was about to be put to the test, tearing at our fabric, and pulling at the very stitches holding us together? How could we know a barracuda named breast cancer would come seeking to destroy our home, our life together in 2006, possibly leaving our boys without a mother? I wanted nothing more than to see my boys grow up. I mean what an awfully big adventure that was going to be right? I longed to see where life would take our boys e...

"Mom and Dad, I cannot begin to describe how BLESSED I am to have amazing parents in my life. Seeing true love through you both makes my heart happy. As your daughter, I see perfection in both of you. I love you." ~ Anonymous My Mom and Dad met in May of 1968 and married just 9 months later on February 8, 1969. Today my parents celebrate 48 years of marriage as husband and wife. For almost 5 decades my folks have built a life together, cultivated a family and been an example to so many of what true timeless love is. Growing up as my parents daughter I not only felt un-conditional love but I saw it in practice, in everyday life. I watched my parents, listened to them and felt their constant encouragement. I not only saw their love flourish through both good and bad times, I felt their love each and every day of my life, seeing it in continuous motion. To say my parents have endured trial by fire is an understatement. To say they have overcome does not begin to exp...

"The best loved stories are not from books or films BUT those from our own families." ~ Anonymous It's been said, "every family has a story to tell" and today for my last post of 2016 I welcome you to ours. "The house that built me was strong, faithful, not perfect by any means, but graceful and loving, and still standing strong. I was given joy, hope and an inner peace which has continued to give my life direction despite the winds blowing and howling outside. Jeremiah 29:11 says, "For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope." That's actually from a post I wrote over four years ago called ' The House that Built Me ' in July of 2012. Re-reading over my older posts from the last 10 years the truth is my writings haven't really changed much since 2007. I'm still writing about what's most important to me...my family.  My family...

"No matter how poor you think you are if you have a family, you have EVERYTHING." ~ Anonymous Two years ago on December 19, 2014 to be precise I wrote my first post titled FAMILY IS EVERYTHING . The truth is our family has been through some pretty tough times. Back then we were recovering from some fairly harsh blows that year on all fronts to be honest. The thing is this: as a family we are stronger together, each of us individually bringing a strength which fortifies our bonds, reinforcing the ties that bind us. And just like in 2014, our bonds in 2016 are still unbreakable, unshakable and inseparable. Doesn't matter what bombards us, attempting to destroy or target our family. It doesn't matter who or what may try to tear us apart I know this to be true: we will not abandon those we love. Simply put, family is everything and so today I am revisiting this subject. Let me start with this... as a family, our goal is not to appear happier than anyone else, not to o...

“Legends are born in November.” ~ Anonymous I learned this very lesson during November of 1996. Yes, twenty years ago I became a mom… for the first time I might add. In the days before Joshua was born I was scared, excited and completely unaware how much my life was about to change. Sure I knew life was never going to be the same again but I never dreamed how infinitely it was about to. I knew what I’d been told by other moms. You know the old no sleeping, "don’t do that, but do this" speeches. I was ready for all that, but what I wasn’t fully prepared for was the ache I felt inside my heart. I had no clue the unbearable yet beautiful pain I’d feel loving my child more than myself.  How do you fully explain how a child changes you? I don’t know if anyone can really except to say your lives are turned upside down, changed and completely different within seconds. From the very moment we first heard Joshua’s newborn cries Johnny and I knew our lives would be forever alte...

“Home is where your story begins.” ~anonymous Our home is the beginning of our story, but our life together is the story itself. We are a small, sometimes untidy, and a bit unruly but mostly a happy bunch of nuts from the same tree. Life in our home, inside the intimacy of our walls knows no limits.  Why, because our home has never been contained by four walls. When I look at my husband I see the man who offered me his name, never insisting I take it. I see the man who became the father of our children, giving them his unconditional love. I fall in love with Johnny even more when I watch him engaging with our boys. I have watched him grow as a father, losing some battles only to find his footing again becoming stronger. As a mom, I sit back and watch a lot. You know what I see? I see a man who loves his boys more than himself. A man who is proud of the men they are becoming and I see a man who would sacrifice anything for their good. I also see the interactions, ho...

“A simple life is a beautiful life.” ~Anonymous Life in itself is pretty complicated. Why, well I'm not sure there’s one particular reason honestly. We hurry to work, hurry home and repeat. Life can get overwhelming and become under appreciated. Life, if we’re not careful can get completely out of control. Before we know it we’re working to live instead of actually living. If lived simply, life offers us continual moments of inspiration daily. We just have to be willing to stop worrying about the Jones’ next door and begin living as the Smith family we are. “Sometimes all we need is just a new perspective.” That’s part of the reason I love spending weekends at the country house. Being out in the woods, away from the noise with no real technology, being able to grill and eat  outside, just chilling with our family and friends, well it centers us. Want a simple, uncomplicated life well then you have to, “ask yourself what is really important and then have the wisdom and ...

Making family time, what does it mean to you?  Why is it so difficult to get everyone under the same roof, to sit around the table and simply share a meal together anymore? Do we make time to breathe or to sleep? We just do it right? It’s natural, the way things are. So why do we have to actually make or schedule time for family? Shouldn’t it be just as important? I know we’re as guilty of this as anybody at times. Through the years we’ve had our share of grab dinner and go, let’s schedule a night next week and let me just finish this or that kind of moments. It happens, especially in the digital, go, go, go, always connected but not connecting society we all live in. Life is just busy, constantly moving and asking more and more of us. We sleep less, but we sleep, right? However many times family just gets pushed to the back burner and left there. No flame, no simmering, just left and forgotten. But what does that say to those we love? How do our children feel when we say I HA...

“In this house we don’t give up.” It’s our motto, our hakuna matata you could say. Being a young mother diagnosed with TNBC in 2006 was shocking to say the least. But it was downright absolutely frightening for my children. They were babies really. Joshua was 9, in third grade and Micah was in first grade just turning 7 the week I started chemo. You can say this wasn't exactly  how I saw our story playing out myself. That in mind I can just imagine mommy having cancer wasn’t anything like Goodnight Moon for the boys either. Breast cancer, isn't a fairy tale of heroics and martyrs. It’s a battle to the death, for life. Either cancer is going down, or you are. It’s just that horrifically simply. When I look back on my life, on my kids and their battle with my disease I’m amazed by their bigger than life brave hearts. They are what we call co-survivors. Why, well because they too were fighting the beast right alongside me. Literally, “my kids were my heroes through it all.” ...

When I look around me and see all I have, by whom I am surrounded and the love that encircles my life I am awe struck. I am not only a breast cancer survivor with a second lease on life; I am living a life of purpose. I know who I am and where I have come from. I am not ashamed of the circumstances that have molded me, created and made me who I am. My life, all I have and have not and everything else in between is more than sufficient. I may not have it all but I do have a life many dream of. And I don’t mean material riches, title or possessions. I’m talking about the real stuff dreams are made of like family, friends, love, faith and a life well spent. I'm loved unconditionally and accepted wholeheartedly by those closest to me. Do I deserve the love or life I have been given, not really but I am unbelievably thankful for all of it. I have been provided an education I am proud of, a job I love and a profession tailor made for me. I am married to the love of my life and toget...