When’s the last time you thanked God for how He created you? If you’re like me, it probably doesn’t cross your mind. I’m thankful to God for a lot of things; I tell Him so when I pray. I’m thankful for my family. I’m thankful for my friends. I’m thankful for Jesus. I’m thankful for my home. I’m thankful for forgiveness. I’m thankful for books. I’m thankful that I get to be a mom. I’m thankful for neighbors that feel like family. I’m thankful for my kids’ schools and their teachers. I’m thankful for my church. I’m thankful for almond extract and guacamole, obviously not combined. All that to say, I’m thankful for a lot of things, a lot of people, a lot of blessings. One thing that hardly dawns on me to thank Him for is…me.
Read More
It’s no secret we’re all getting older. No matter who you are, every day you’re one day older than you were the day before. I’m entering my 39thyear next month and was thinking about all the things I do now that remind me I’m getting old-ish. The things on this list are things I’ve noticed myself and/or others doing that remind me I’m no spring chicken. See if you can relate.
Read More
HGTV is quite possibly my favorite network on television. I could leave it on all day and never tire of it. Give me all the home renovation shows and all the house hunters and I could be parked on the couch for hours on end. I mean, I would NEVER do that since I pride myself on always being super productive…but I could. Have I mentioned sometimes I have a tendency to lie?
Read More
Sometimes I wonder if I’m the only mom that gets completely overwhelmed by Advent activities at Christmas time. I love Christmas but the amount of Christmas magic moms feel the pressure of creating is intense. And when people post 17 quintillion Christmas activities to do with your kids, it’s hard not to feel like we need to do them all.
Read More
What? I’m confused. That doesn’t even make sense. Prodigal is about getting lost and being found, right? Nope. How could I have missed it? How could I not have known? I literally can’t remember a time when I didn’t know The Prodigal Son story and you’re telling me I’ve had the definition of “prodigal” wrong this whole time? Yep. Sigh. Still so much to learn.
Read More
The company, Banded, is here in the Nashville area and has created such a fantastic product and it was a dream to work on a book to go along with it. Let me show you the product first…
Read More
Several years ago, I took my boys to get haircuts at a salon. While there, a man came into the salon advertising wholesale beef and chicken. (You guys, I know.) He wasn’t just selling it; he was declaring it to the world. This meat was top grade and the deal we’d get was even better. He claimed he was delivering to restaurants in the area and had a surplus he was willing to sell for a discounted price. He was persuasive, he was high energy, he had a binder. What more information did I need?
Read More
Maybe it’s because I can’t stomach seeing another school shooting come across the TV. Maybe it’s because I just finished To Kill A Mockingbird and I’m channeling my inner Atticus Finch. Maybe it’s because Paxton is starting high school in the fall. The exact reason is hard to know but I feel something needs to be said.
Read More
Can we chat for a second about getting older and living “healthy”? Apparently my body did NOT get the memo that these days it seems I’m working out more regularly than I ever have AND eating better and she needs to follow suit by dropping some lbs. I’m ready for my heavenly body now, guys. This earthly shell is getting doughier by the minute and it’s highly irritating.
Read More
“But Martha was distracted with much serving.” Lk.10:40a
Sweet Martha. I identify with this chick, as I know many of you do too. She’s getting things ready, preparing food, picking up the house, trying to get it just right FOR JESUS. To me this makes total sense. I mean it’s Jesus for crying out loud.
Read More
2 more days. 48 hours until I can relax. Just 2 more sleeps until school’s out for Christmas break. I don’t know about you but at the Allen household, we will be limping to the finish of the semester. Let me rephrase, I, I WILL BE LIMPING TO THE FINISH LINE. Between the shopping, the baking, the projects, the studying, the parties, and just the normal, every day things, I’m whipped.
Read MoreOften at Christmas time my thoughts turn to Mary. I think about how she must’ve felt being an unwed mother. I wonder about that trek to Bethlehem on the back of a donkey being 9 months pregnant (woof). I think about what a wonder it must have been to hold that teeny, tiny Savior baby. I think of her because I’m a mother and, like in any story, I’m trying to identify with the female character.
This year it’s been different. My thoughts haven’t gone to Mary like they normally do.
Read Moret’s here, ya’ll. That time of year when we start to think about what to buy our people for Christmas. Are you the kind who is finished shopping by Thanksgiving? Or do you wait and do the mad dash the week before Christmas? I change from year to year on this. Sometimes I’m on top of it and have at least started picking things out and possibly made some online purchases, but this year…nah. Haven’t even started and I’m not at all concerned. It’ll be fine. I think. I hope.
Read MoreLadies, we’ve all done it. We wake up and put on makeup for the day, actually spend time choosing clothes that don’t double as workout attire, and fix our hair into something other than a ponytail or baseball cap. We feel good. Accomplished. Ready to slay the day.
Read More
Sometimes we just need to laugh, am I right? The world's problems are so stinkin' heavy if we think about them too long it can be soul crushing. So today, I thought I'd take you back to a simpler time. A time when awkwardness covered me like a blanket. A time when modesty and dignity were stripped from me. It was that time I went to a spa in Mexico...some of you may remember...
Read More
If you live in the Nashville area and haven’t been to a songwriter’s event, you need to drop what you’re doing and find one to attend. The talent that writes and plays here is second to none. I had the privilege of hearing a writers in the round featuring Chris DeStefano, Hillary Lindsey, and Rivers Rutherford at Cheekwood Estate and Gardens recently and… It. Was. Magical.
Read More
The air is turning cool, kids need sweatshirts at the bus stop, Starbucks’ pumpkin spice is back…
It’s happening.
Fall is so close I can almost taste it.
One of my favorite things about fall is the warmer, cozier clothes. So can we take a minute and observe a moment of silent gratitude for one of my most favorite articles of clothing?
Read More
Can we talk about La Croix for a minute? So I know it’s the “healthy” alternative to soda, but can we call a spade a spade?
La Croix is nasty bubble water. There I said it.
Read More
I don’t watch the news very often because much of it consists of politicians bickering like children. It seems like the only thing that’s consistent in our country is that it’s divided and in shambles. Violence and hate have owned the headlines.
Then Hurricane Harvey hit.
Read More