The Power of Words

It was a Friday at 5pm. Carter was in timeout for the fourth time that afternoon, Kate was melting down because I wouldn’t let her use the iPad, and I was on the verge of losing it. I knew my husband’s time at home that night would be brief, as he was quickly turning around

The Only 3 Books New Mamas Need

Confession time. When I was pregnant with Carter, I went a little nutzo. I am one who likes to be prepared…like WAY prepared. I do NOT generally enjoy surprises, and since the pregnancy was a surprise in and of itself (ahem, we had been married about 5 minutes), I wanted to go into motherhood FULLY

Throwback Thursday…Kinda

This past Sunday, Blake and I started a new bible study at church, and we were having some table discussion with our group members at the end of class. One of the items we were supposed to discuss was the best piece of advice we have ever received, and to answer that question, I had

Tuesday Tidbits

Kids are funny. Sometimes, even when they do something “bad”, you just have to laugh at it and call your village to help. (After documenting the hilarity on Facebook/Instagram, obviously.) That’s exactly what I did last night when Carter gave himself a pretty sweet Mike Tyson inspired tattoo IN SHARPIE while I changed Kate’s diaper. 

Monday Meal Planner

I am typically one to plan out the menu for the week on Sunday night, but since we’ve recently joined a Bible Study on Sunday afternoons at our church, it got put off until today. I typically choose 2-3 meals to make during the week, and we fill in the rest of the week with

A Day in the Life…One Year Ago!

So, I originally posted this on the family blog a year ago, and I took a fun little walk down memory lane tonight reading this. Kate was almost six months old, and Carter was 2 1/2. It’s amazing how much changes in a year! 5:40am: Carter is awake and crying, “I want my mommy!” I

Stepping on My Soapbox…

Brace yourself.  Momma’s about to preach.   I was walking out of my gym the other night, and I happened to catch a glimpse of the events table. Something struck me, and to be 100% honest with you, I’m not exactly sure what upset me so much about it, so I’m going to start writing

Why "A Hot Blessed Mess"?

So, this isn’t my first blog. It’s actually my third. You see, for the last four years, I’ve written about all things family here. I had a handful of faithful readers – primarily my mom, my mother-in-law, my college bestie, and the occasional extended family member. I saw that blog as an homage to my

The Things I’ve Learned from Colic…

Disclaimer: I am NOT a doctor, nor do I have any medical knowledge on colic. I am simply sharing my experience with it last year, and some strategies I used to survive this trying rite of passage.  I will never forget the moment my sweet baby girl was first laid on my chest. She had

My Story of Hope…

This past week at church, our pastor, John McKinzie, challenged the congregation to tell our stories of hope. I am not normally one to talk much about myself, as you can probably tell from this blog, but I felt like God was really pushing me to put my story out there, so here I am…completely