love Archives - Bare Feet on the Dashboard

10
May
2015

Motherhood Changed Everything

I often think of the befores and afters of my life, how I came to be who I am today and how I evolved from the person I once was. Transformations happen naturally as we grow and mature, and sometimes abruptly through traumatic events or drastic changes. Reflecting on milestones is big part of the human existence. We think about our graduations, weddings, job changes, deaths of loved ones, births of children. I’ve experienced a lot in my almost 36 years, but the biggest transformation of my life has come from motherhood. I am a very different person today than I was five years ago, and the two sweet babies who made me a mama are the reason.

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07
Oct
2014

When Someone You Love Makes Bad Choices

categories: family, love

When someone you love makes bad choices, it wrecks you. Every part of your life is affected as you try to do damage control, fix it, cry, pick up the pieces, and pray. Life seems to stop momentarily with every crisis and you wonder how you got to this place again through no fault of your own. How do I know? Two adult members of my family are constantly getting in to trouble and I am watching it damage their lives and our family helplessly. On top of that, over a decade of ministry to hurting kids who struggle and fall and make terrible decisions has broken my heart a thousand times.

I am not a perfect person. I make wrong choices every day. We all do. This is not a self righteous rant of someone who thinks themself sinless. This is a love letter to all of you who are watching loved ones lost in addiction, alcoholism, crime, and mistreatment of others. You love them in spite of their mistakes and their bad choices are killing you inside. I am right there with you.

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05
May
2014

Simple Ways to Bring Jesus in to Your Marriage

categories: family, jesus, love, marriage

Marriage is the best, hardest, most challenging, and most fulfilling life relationship. My husband is an amazing man and his love is a blessing to me every day of my life. We’ve been married six years, so we are still total beginners in the grand scheme of things, but we’ve picked up a few habits that help keep our faith in Jesus in the center of our marriage that I’ll share with you today. Much like my post about Simple Ways to Bring Jesus in to Your Child’s Daily Routine, I’m not coming to you from a place of having anything figured out. I write this more as a fellow traveler on this journey of marriage who wants to share and encourage and protect marriages. Everyone wants their marriage to succeed, and I think that best happens when both partners are on the same page about faith, money, and family goals.

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08
Feb
2014

Frugal Friday: Ten Frugal Date Night Ideas {Perfect for Valentine’s Day or Any Day}

categories: frugal, marriage

With two small children galavanting around our house, date nights are hard to come by. I love dinner and a movie, but sometimes you want a little something different even if you don’t have wiggle room in the budget. Today I’m sharing ten frugal ideas for your next date night (or day) that are cheap or free after polling my girlfriends to get some fresh ideas for our own marriage. These dates would be perfect for your Valentine’s Day celebration or any night you can get away with your sweetie. If you need a frugal babysitting solution so you can afford to go on a date, check out my post on cheap/free babysitting options here. Read on and please share your frugal date night ideas in the comment section.

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06
Jan
2014

The Three Best Things We’ve Done For Our Marriage (So Far) #HappyWivesClub

categories: book review, marriage

This post is part of the Happy Wives Club Blog Tour which I am delighted to be a part of along with hundreds of inspiring bloggers. To learn more and join us, CLICK HERE!

Marriage is the best, hardest, most rewarding, most humbling part of my life. I love my husband and am so blessed to have a partner in this life who loves me well. We have been married for five and half years and I’m praying for 60 more great years with my man. I still have so much to learn and one place I go for encouragement is the Happy Wives Club. Started by the lovely Fawn Weaver as a response to the negativity about marriage in the world, it is a haven of encouragement. It doesn’t take five minutes on Facebook to find someone bashing their spouse or complaining about their life in their status update. I believe marriage is a gift and it is hard work daily. To make it work you have to choose to believe in the value of your marriage and your partnership with your spouse. It is worth it. We are only five years in and still learning every day, but so far I can share with you the three best things we’ve done for our marriage.

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Tag: love