Purpose

The only tiny bit that matters

There’s something about summertime that brings out an extra dose of wild sibling shenanigans around our house. It’s the combination of all the extra quality time together, the lack of a structured schedule, and a diet that consists of “whatever we can find around here”. It’s midday nerf wars and late night movies. I remember the days like the ones in this picture when they were smaller and they thought it would be fun to try to learn to braid mom’s hair. I tried to sit back and enjoy it, even though I think I lost half my head of hair. These days, it’s trying to teach mom to shoot her nerf gun correctly and how, at a minimum, to stand up and run away while trying to learn to play Fortnite.

Summertime around our house has been completely different this year.

I used to keep their summer schedules completely full. They’d …

“One day you will wake up and you will be so glad you did not settle. You will be so glad you did not give up. You will be so glad you did not sync yourself to someone else’s pace and you chose instead, to anchor yourself in a steady rhythm of grace.” ~ Morgan Harper Nichols

The images came in last night from Jenny Martell of JMar Portraits, our HeartStories GNO 3rd Birthday Party and I don’t think I’ve stopped smiling for one moment since. The album is brimming with photos of women laughing, smiling, hugging, connecting and enjoying life together. It portrays EXACTLY what I’ve spent 6+ years dreaming of, and 3 years building, through this girls night out. It’s happening.

Every single month, we get the privilege of reconnecting busy women to inspire the joy they crave and the courage to pursue their purpose.

At the end of the night …

by Crystal Gornto Community Female Social Entrepreneurs Girl's Night Out Inspirational Women Love in Friendship Our Story Purpose The Journey Through Life Leave a comment chat

There’s nothing that screams grown-up birthday celebration quite like flaming fireworks shooting out of a Nothing Bundt Cake inside a swanky restaurant. That was certainly the case at our recent gathering to celebrate my beautiful friend Britney. She’s a friend who loves to celebrate special moments for all of us, which makes it all the more fun to celebrate her. Give her a reason to celebrate, and she’ll radiate pure joy and sunshine (or flaming sparklers as the case may be).

But for many of us, celebrating adult birthdays can easily get lost by the wayside.

Time is moving so fast, and because we often wish it wasn’t, we’d rather sweep the birthdays under the proverbial rug, and pretend they didn’t happen. We’re so busy with all our adult responsibilities that it seems trivial, if not wasteful, to stop to celebrate a date on the calendar that only points to the inevitable …

by Crystal Gornto Girl's Night Out Inspirational Women Love in Friendship Loving Yourself Our Story Purpose The Journey Through Life Leave a comment chat

I did something very unusual yesterday. I dropped the boys off for school and hit the road for Murphy, Texas to visit my friend Alison, the founder of Get Your Pretty On. Let me first just say that Murphy is WAY further from Frisco than I’d always envisioned in my mind. But wow, was that drive was glorious. Big open green fields lined the road. Creeks overflowing with water and yellow flowers painted the landscape. Horses grazed in the pastures. Suddenly, the hustle and bustle that I typically create for myself right after school drop off was exchanged for a beautiful backroad drive. I knew I didn’t “have the time” for this, but my heart knew it was exactly what I needed.

And it wasn’t just the drive.

It was also the friend waiting on the other side. The plan was that Alison and I would meet to broadcast a quick video introduction …

by Crystal Gornto Community Fashion Friday Female Social Entrepreneurs Girl's Night Out Inspirational Women Love in Friendship Loving Others Loving Yourself Purpose The Journey Through Life Leave a comment chat

Our sweet Walter was born in 2004 and has been a faithful friend and companion to our family all of these years. He was my very first “baby” and now he’s the first “elderly loved one” fully in my care. As he’s getting older, we’re navigating the changes that increasing age brings for pets and the ones who love them.

If you’ve been here, you know.

We’re giving him about 12 pills a day, which keep him living his best life. I’m washing diapers on the daily. When his legs aren’t strong enough to hold him, I’m scooping him up to carry him wherever he needs to go. He’s lost his hearing, but his eyes are on high alert. If Hartley jumps up to bark at the window, he howls along from his perch in his bed. If she runs to get a treat, he’s making his way as fast as …

by Crystal Gornto Inspirational Words Love In Action Love in Family Love in Friendship Loving Others Motherhood Priorities Purpose The Journey Through Life Leave a comment chat

My friend Quynh Chau called me up randomly several weeks ago, asking if I would attend a dinner event with her. She explained that it was a watch party for the “Women That Soar” awards show and she wanted me to come meet some of her friends. If there’s one thing I know about Q.C., it’s that she has a lot of friends. But they’re not just casual acquaintances, to Q.C., they are dearly beloved friends. She cares so deeply about supporting each of her friends to reach even beyond our goals, to our full potential. She sees a vision of our future that’s usually much bigger than the one we can see for ourselves. I know this, because sometimes I hardly even recognize the women she talks about, when she talks about me and my work.

She is a true visionary who makes things happen because of the way she believes in …

by Crystal Gornto Girl's Night Out Love In Action Loving Others Loving Yourself Priorities Purpose Roadblocks in Life The Journey Through Life 2 comments chat
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The only tiny bit that matters

A steady rhythm of grace

It’s not about the number

Sunshine for your soul

Learning to love

Contagious Hope