well, hello there!  Oh how I’ve missed you.  happy monday!  man, this month has flown by.  to be honest, the summer has flown by.  June was Africa, July included lots of fun family time, and August has been amazing + strange.  I’ve had stuff back to back every weekend this month & I feel like I haven’t quite “downloaded” it all.  I want to be able to remember how I felt last weekend in Santa Fe, and take it with me into the week.  That feeling of rest and peace and just pure joy.  I want to take all the inspiration I learned from Declare Conference and get to work on this blog of mine.  I want to remember, I mean really remember, all the heartfelt moments of this past weekend celebrating Stephen’s grandads 95th birthday with the family.  Dang it, I need to process our Africa trip!  I know that a huge way I do my “processing” is through my photos.  which means a big photo editing/organizing day is in order.  I say all this to say….be patient with me.  I don’t want to just skip over these amazing memories and moments I’ve had and the lessons I’ve learned.

The seasons are changing.  and next week my two start Parents Day Out at a local church.  2 days a week my babies will be learning, growing, making new friends, eating, crafting, playing and learning more about Jesus with 8 other kiddos in their PDO class.  and this mama….well she will feel like she has a little bit of herself back for a few hours a week.  does that sound bad?  I have gotten over the “guilty” feeling and have moved onto being really excited that while my kids learn + grow I get to also learn + grow.  I’m looking forward to getting back to more consistent writing, working on some projects I keep putting on the back burner, working out again, going to the store alone, lunch with friends, and having more fun Noonday parties!  speaking of noonday..come back Wednesday for a super fun giveaway!

I love how God works….I wrote the first part of this post last night, and the rest this morning.  oh praise God that with each morning come new mercies!

a new season, a new feel.  our home is 1 block from an elementary school, and this morning on my porch time I loved hearing the hustle and bustle of cars and school buses headed to the first day of school.  the weather even felt fall-ish outside.  it just felt different.  a new season.  a new feel.  the start of something new.  a chance to start fresh.  to quit beating myself up about the things I “haven’t done” and to instead start doing them!  to stop living by “my list” and trusting that God is in control.  He has my day, everyday and my peace is in Him.  My circumstances cannot change His perfect peace.

so today, I am choosing to live in that peace.  to let go of all the things that distract me from living close to God, and to trust that He is in control of all of my days.  praying that over you today too my friends.