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Making space for what matters

 

If you’ve ever been to my house, more specifically, my office or my closet, you know that organization is not my strong suit.  I don’t want to see dust, but a pile of papers?  No problem.  I simply wasn’t born with the innate desire to organize chaos.  So I work hard at keeping all the common areas straightened up because, well, Scott.

But spaces that belong to me are a little more “free-flowing” if you know what I mean. 

We’re currently in a season of home transition.  Since we’re building a house, we have the privilege of extended packing time.  Our new weekend mantra is that everyone must pack a box to keep and pack a box to give.  (Quite honestly, that’s not going as smoothly as it sounds, but it’s a start!)  Little by little, I’m making my way through the house.

I’m purging all the things like my whole life depends on …

by Crystal Gornto Girl's Night Out Inspirational Words Love In Action Priorities The Journey Through Life 4 comments chat
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Remember gratitude

This is Beth, Sunny, Angela and Megan.  Along with Heather, Natalie, Madison, Ashley and Shelly (not pictured) these fabulous ladies are the ones making beautiful things happen at the HeartStories GNO.  I would say, “I can’t imagine life without them”.  But the truth is, I actually can.  I remember life without them.

I’m overwhelmingly grateful as a result. 

I remember our very first girls night, in April of 2016.  It consisted of my sister Kim planning the menu, the two of us shopping endlessly at Costco, and her working her fingers to the bone in our neighborhood clubhouse kitchen for hours on end.  The table cloths were pieces of muslin fabric I cut to size.  The flowers where wisteria from outside my bathroom window mixed rosemary Holly collected from her back yard.  My friend Carly, of Tribe Alive, was our guinea pig, as the first featured guest and business highlight.  I hired my …

by Crystal Gornto Girl's Night Out Inspirational Women Love In Action Love in Friendship Loving Others The Journey Through Life Leave a comment chat
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Memories of the people will survive all the stuff

My sister Kim sent this pic to my family last night with a text that said, “Found this picture this morning and brought back such sweet memories of driving after Christmas service to Grandma’s house!”   If you’re not in our family, I’m sure it just looks like an old photograph with some very odd hairstyles on display.

But to our family, this picture brings back a million memories.

That was our rescue poodle named Promise.  He was ours for over 10 years.  In our house full of girls, his fingernails were always painted red, poor guy.  That Raggedy Ann doll I’m holding was my treasure, apparently all the way into my early teen years.  She was a handmade, one of a kind, that I saved up all my money to buy at Silver Dollar City.  (I still have her to this day) Those are all my sisters and I have troves of colorful …

by Crystal Gornto Love In Action Love in Family The Journey Through Life Leave a comment chat
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What the dream is all about

When we moved to Frisco in 2004, we thought this house would be a short term place.  We’d stay for a few years, maybe 10, and move on to the home our children would one day grow up in.   We’re now approaching 14 years, and we’re still here.  Our current house is the only place our boys have called home.  But they’ve grown up on a sort of “tour of homes” because we’ve been looking at houses, planning to move, since 2010.

It’s become almost comical. 

Our friends smile slyly when we announce we “might” have found a lot.  I think their eyes glaze over a little bit while they listen to our plans.  But that hasn’t stopped us from dreaming.  Last weekend, we drove out to a neighborhood with homes under construction and encountered this gargantua being built on a creek lot.  No one wanted to go in, except me, but …

by Crystal Gornto Inspirational Words Love In Action Love in Family Priorities Purpose The Journey Through Life 2 comments chat
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