unconditional love | HeartStories

Courage looks different in every season

As we were planning out the weekly content for this month, based around bravery, Megan and I were brainstorming all the places women have to practice courage. As I was thinking through all of the areas of my life that require courage, “parenting” quickly bubbled to the top. It’s funny, because when the boys were younger, parenting required more endurance. Now that they’re entering their teenage years, I’m learning that love in parenting requires huge amounts of courage.

We took this picture at the beach in 2016.

The rest of the family had to leave but that year, I had a little more space in my schedule, and the boys really wanted to stay longer. So the three of us rented a tiny little car and cheap little (upstairs) motel room across the street from the water at The Sunshine Inn. We decided we would go on an “adventure”. As an Enneagram …

Nothing gets in the way of family

I remember this day. Maybe not quite like it was yesterday, but I remember it. I remember the cabin we stayed in on that trip, it belonged to a friend of a friend, who graciously offered it to our family for a road trip to Colorado in the summer. I remember sitting inside, at the log table eating, what felt like millions of grapes, until my stomach felt like it might explode.

Aren’t we a motley looking crew of sisters?

With an 11 year span from oldest to youngest, we were in completely different life phases in this photo. (But at least our fashion game was on point!) Back then, I was a self-focused 12-year-old. One look at this picture now, as an adult, I have so much understanding and empathy for what each of those girls must have been going through. It brings back so many memories. It reminds me …