We had a few very hot days this week at the Ironroad house. The downstairs A/C unit stopped working, and the outside temperatures were in the upper 90's. Not a happy time.

I knew we needed to call the repair company, but I dreaded the news we'd receive after the diagnostic. In my mind, we were lookin...

I was writing yesterday morning when I heard our little girl squeal with delight from the other room. 

"Ah! I DID it!!"

She ran into the room, waving a folded piece of paper. She had successfully folded it in half, with the corners matching exactly. 

A couple weeks ago, she wanted to make a card for a ...

Anger is heavy and expensive. It costs us energy, joy, and connection. In other words, it costs us freedom.

When someone offends or hurts us, it's normal to feel it, as a core human emotion. Ignoring or burying it is unnecessary, and can turn toxic later on, so it's important to process it in a healt...

I've written about baby steps before... how they're meant to be small and wobbly, and that's a beautiful thing. But today I have some different kind of steps on my mind, which are just beyond the baby ones. For this post, I'm thinking about toddler steps.

This topic was inspired by an adorable little...

I watched something really touching yesterday at a neighborhood pool party. 

Our friends have a pool with a diving board, and the kids (+ a couple of dads) were all taking turns jumping into the water. One dad walked a little girl up to the diving board line, strapped tightly in a pink life jacket wi...

It was early in the morning on December 28, 2016. This was the anniversary of my mother’s passing, which was a tough day every year, but this one felt especially painful as it marked 25 years — a quarter of a century — since we lost her to Leukemia. I was only 7 years old when she died, and now I ...

If you've been following along, you'll know that I spent the last few days in Utah with family for my brother's wedding -- which was the best time. I love family. 

On the way out there, I was texting Chris from my seat on the plane. We were about to take off, and I told him, "Going into Airplane Mode...

I shared in yesterday's post that I went and spoke at a camp for teenage girls in my church this week (remember? Before coming home to a chewed-up shoe? I'm not still bitter...).

It was a powerful experience that I feel I want to share.

I was invited to speak about Divine Identity, and they gave me m...

I recently started taking voice lessons, because I got tired of feeling like I was holding back when I sang. I felt like there was so much more I could do, but didn't know how to break out of where I was. 

In my first lesson, my coach (who is amazing, by the way) taught me 2 things that have helped h...

Our teenage girls are off to youth girls camp today, and spent a good part of the day yesterday getting packed. The list was quite extensive, ranging from the normal clothing and toiletries to a mess kit and work gloves. It told a story of what the experience might be, and it sounds like they have l...

Have you ever found leftover broccoli in your fridge that has been there a bit too long? 

You don't even have to open the container to know that it's beyond the point of no return.

Can you imagine wearing a mustache made of that stinky stuff all the time? 

That's like what cynicism does to us. 

Cynicism...

I’ve heard people talk about blind faith, but I haven’t heard anything about blind doubt. I want to talk about it.

Blind faith says, "I will believe, without any evidence, facts, or analysis." 

Blind doubt says, "I refuse to believe, regardless of any supporting evidence, facts, or analysis."

Neithe...