I had the best customer service welcome EVER yesterday. Our twins and I spontaneously decided to stop at 7-Eleven (can't say I've ever actually written that out...) for a treat. We chatted normally as we walked in the door, but were greeted by the most surprisingly cheerful gasp and a jolly middle-a...

I was pretty proud of myself yesterday morning. I got dressed for church (with accessories, even -- which is a big deal for me), prepped my piano binder, made avocado toast for myself and our 6-year old, and actually got out the door on time.

Winning.

I rode calmly to church with the family because I ...

I had the privilege of watching some dear friends perform in a community theater musical last night. The show (Guys & Dolls, Sr. Edition) was adorable and entertaining, but what I loved most about it was how each person on stage shared their own unique personality. There was no "one right way" to be...

A wise coach (who happens to be my uncle) shared a lesson with me yesterday that his dad taught him back in his teen years: "We don't have to practice misery." The example he gave was, "When you hit your thumb with a hammer, you feel miserable. You don't have to keep hitting your thumb."

In other wor...

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 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...

Today is graduation day at our local high school, and the word "commencement" is on my mind. 

The dictionary defines the word "commencement" as "a beginning or start." While I'm sure some high school students would rather call it "conclusion," the focus is very much on the new chapter. I love how muc...

There's a hero in my life who is fighting an epic battle right now (keeping her identity anonymous for privacy's sake).

She has kept the most powerfully positive outlook on her fight (doing things like calling her treatments "ammo-therapy," for example), which has been truly inspiring to watch. 

I'm t...

I've discovered a simple way to instantly transform ordinary daily tasks from feeling boring and mundane to feeling absolutely epic.

Chores, emails, errands, challenging work projects, paying bills, shaving your legs... it works for all of it. And it's just 2 words: 

Cinematic music.

You turn it on in ...

In my "Motherhood Day" post, I promised you the rest of this story (to be read in your best Paul Harvey voice), so here goes. 

As I wrote before, Mother's Day morning started with our 6-year old bursting into our room and announcing urgently:

"You GUYS. Something happened. You GOTTA come see this."

I ...