Merry Christmas!

a bigger step

Where's the baby?

There it is!

Oh my friends.  In the last little-over-a-month since my last post, so much has happened!  Andrew and I met with a doctor (as I shared we would).  This was what we thought was our big "next step" towards growing our family.  Little did we know that as we set up tests and researched fertility drugs that a new life was already growing inside of me.  *tears!*  God has graciously given us the gift of our third child after ten months of trying to conceive (our only baby to be conceived within what is considered a "normal" range).

the next step

"Today is a good day for a good day."
Spent the night in vivid dreams of being pregnant again. The best dreams are the hardest to wake from. My doctors appointment to start the journey of hopefully discovering why it is hard for us to have babies is one week away. Last time we scheduled this kind of appointment I got pregnant before I had to go. That didn't happen this time. It's frustrating. It's scary. It hurts to keep hoping that doctors and tests won't be our reality. It's hard when you have a list of beautiful baby names you might not get to use. But today (as I sniffle through the hard that is allergies) the birds are chirping and Rennie is here and tonight is date night and I am beloved. Even with all the ick surrounding it, this is a day made by God. It is worth enjoying.❤

~ my instagram six days ago

autumn favorites

AUTUMN IS HERE!!!!!  It may not feel like it (we've had some unseasonably hot weather in Indiana this week), but it is calendar official!  This season is by faaaaaaaaar my favorite and I can't help but honor it with a post about the reasons why.


~  The colors!  I'm usually a fan of light grays, blues, and greens... but there is something so comforting about the colors of fall.

~  The decorations.  Again, though my home decor doesn't normally include items of orange, yellow, and red, this time of year is the exception.

~ Pumpkins!  Fake ones, real ones, drink ones, food ones...  ;-)  From sitting prettily on a front porch to blended in my coffee, pumpkins are a wonderful thing!

mamabird life {seventeen} and blog survey!

Mamabird life has been...

~ Little to no brain capacity for writing.  Hence my terrible lack of sharing here.  These pictures are from a family vacation we took a month ago.  Life hasn't slowed down since getting home.

~ Enjoying *some* cooler weather.  It was beautiful at our vacation spot in Wisconsin and the last couple weeks here in Indiana have been beautiful as well.  It's warming up a bit though... Go away, summer!

family pictures... and musings from a wife and mommy

"The things you are passionate about are not random, they are your calling."  ~ Fabienne Fredrickson


I have always wanted to be a wife and mommy.  I went through my stint of wanting to be a famous singer or author.  I mulled around different career ideas occasionally.  But nothing stuck.  Nothing matched the desire in my heart to love a godly man and raise a passel of children.

The first half of my dream came very easily.  I met Andrew when I was seventeen.  He was the first and only man with whom I had a romantic relationship.  We were married less than a month after my nineteenth birthday.  At twenty-four I am very well-adjusted to sharing my heart, home, and life with him.  We've definitely got that "old married couple" thing going.  Honestly, it hasn't always been easy getting married so young, but God has been faithful to grow us.

seventh blogiversary!

renniebird... two years!

This morning my body woke me up at 6:30. Normally I would have sank back into our mess of blankets and pillows for some more shut-eye, but instead I stayed awake for exactly seventeen minutes to watch my baby turn two. In that time she rolled over in her sleep to wrap her arm around me, smushed her face against my arm, smiled and giggled in her sleep, and was by far the sweetest and dearest child in the world. 
So many times in the years before her existence I laid awake at night wondering if I would ever be a mom. I shed so many tears during that time. I prayed so hard and doubted so much. Yet later this morning I was greeted by deep blue eyes and a smile that reaches every inch of her face as she woke to her second birthday. I am so thankful for the sweet child who calls me mommy. These two years have been a time of enormous growth for me as a person and I would never trade them for anything! Happy birthday, sweet Renniebird. And thank you God for this gift.

--- yesterday on Facebook

little house on the alley... loft

I can't possibly choose a favorite room in my house.  But if there is one in particular that makes a grin spread across my face, its our loft-style bedroom.  I love the original gabled ceilings, the big window, the cozy feel.  I chose the same airy cream paint from the living room for the walls, but included warmer colors for the decor to compliment the small, but so-very-sweet space.

mamabird life {sixteen}

Well, hello August.  We haven't seen each other in a while.  I wasn't expecting you so soon.  You bring much-awaited fun, including a week-long family vacation and my daughter's second birthday.  Hopefully you won't be too overly warm.

Goodbye June/July (because you two completely ran together and I can't keep up!).  We had a good run this year.  You had some hot days but made beautifully breezy and cool apologies on others.  You held beautiful moments.  You were full of good mamabird life.

Including:


Much time spent outside.  On swings, at parks, down slides, with strollers.  It's been wonderful.

Many stained toddler clothes.  Rennie's growing might have slowed down quite a bit, but she's still going through clothes like crazy!

little house on the alley... master bedroom

Yes... that is Rennie putting on her shoes behind the dresser.  Such is taking pictures with a toddler in the house.  <3

I love this little bedroom.  It is a somewhat small space, so I've kept the decor simple and really love how relaxed I feel spending time here!  We have a big, lovely window above our king size bed (yep, our king fit with some room to spare!), peaceful light gray walls, and our closet doors are mirrors so as to add extra light (hopefully pictures of them don't confuse anyone on where pieces of furniture are since, you know, mirrors make things backwards)! 

little house on the alley... laundry and bath

The house tour continues!  These two tiniest spaces in our home are every bit as cheery to me as our open living room.  I opted for a pale blue paint color in both and I looooooooove how it turned out!  All fixtures and large furnishings are white to keep the rooms bright and airy.  Decor is *very* simple to keep from crowding surfaces.  And, of course, the window in the laundry room is bedecked with live plants to complete the space.

For flooring we decided to contrast the light-and-bright of decor and walls with a dark gray "tile" floor.  It transitions beautifully from the rich brown of the flooring in the kitchen/living room.

Andrew built shelves over the doors to store our paper towels and toilet paper.  It works perfectly since we buy most of our paper products in bulk.

mamabird life {fifteen}

It is almost mid-way through the last full month that I am the mommy of a one-year-old.  This second year with my sweet girl has gone faster than the first... maybe because I'm getting a bit more sleep now (still not full nights, but we'll get there).  I'm trying to lock away those memories that aren't being captured on camera... there are so many and I just want to hold onto them.  This motherhood thing ain't easy.  I've been pushed to my limits (and even beyond them to new limits some days).  My daughter is a strong-willed little person who doesn't respond to instruction so well... Reminds me of her parents a bit.  But this journey is also one I would never surrender for an easier me-centered existence.  Sure it would be nice to take a looooooong hot shower every day, but who needs clean hair?

So, here's some snippets of my mamabird life along with some of my favorite recent pictures... I will spare you the ones featuring my unwashed hair.  ;-)

lazy days of summer

little house on the alley... living space

from the loft doorway looking down

I think it is high time I introduce you all to our amazing new home.  <3 We have been living here a few months now and I continue to fall more and more in love with our little abode.

These pictures are of the combined living/kitchen/dining/office space that makes up the bulk of our home!  I will share more pictures of the bedrooms/laundry/bathroom spaces in a future post.

renniebird... 22 months {instagram}

easy overnight fruit yogurt recipe

Sunday morning meals are a challenge for both Andrew and me.  We get up early enough that we aren't rushed getting to church, but we just tend to forget to eat.  :-P  Now that we have an always-hungry toddler, we've been reminded what a big deal breakfast is.  One simple solution I've found (that doesn't require dirtying a pan like eggs do and is also a better source of protein than cereal) is Greek yogurt!  I like to avoid a bunch of sugar, so here is the super easy, make-ahead version of berry yogurt I make on Saturday nights for us to enjoy in the morning!  Andrew and Rennie both love it!  I also made it for some family members and now they make it as well.  :-D

crazy old days... lake michigan adventure

My mother is an adventurer.  And she reeeeeeaaaally loves spur-of-the-moment excursions.  Hence a random trip on a Monday evening to the Indiana Dunes to watch the sun set over Lake Michigan.  <3  While my introverted, planned-out nature doesn't always keep up with her so well, I'm very thankful for these sweet times.  She definitely brings out the adventure in me.

Sometimes I can feel like a dandelion whose seeds have been blown to smithereens and left a plain, strange stem.  Not much to offer.  Nothing special.  But today my daughter picked several of them, dubbing them flowers like the rest, to present to loved ones.  How marvelous that it just takes eyes of love for something small and ugly to become valuable and beautiful.  Jesus loves me (and all of us) just that much.  He sees our hearts of sin and extends His grace.  He presents us before God, a treasure.  But He also takes it a step further by pulsing new life into us so we can grow and thrive and LIVE.  He makes an army from dry bones and beauty from dying weeds.

--- my instagram

family pictures... and i'm going to be an aunt!!!

A couple months ago (I know... I'm really late sharing!) my family had some *amazing* pictures taken by a friend!  I'm so excited to be sharing them along with the news that my sister, Jessie, and her husband have a little one on the way!!!  She is almost halfway through her pregnancy now (due in November!) and I am over-the-moon excited to meet my FIRST niece or nephew this autumn!  Pretty thrilled for Rennie to have a cousin too.  <3

So, here are my very favorite shots (there are quite a few):

sisters!

on my instagram

I recently joined the world of Instagram and it has been such a nice, simple way to share snippets of my crazy life without consuming minutes (and hours, ahem) of my time like Facebook sometimes does.  These are some of the pictures I've recently shared along with some little updates.

togetherness... just some family-picture sweetness

mamabird life {fourteen}

life has become this crazy-lull.  explanation: there are days when overall very little happens and then these spikes of insane-busy occur.  we are also getting very close to moving into our little house.  anticipating crazy times can be almost as nuts as living them!

early aprilness

“So let us know, let us press on to know the Lord.  His going forth is as certain as the dawn; and He will come to us like the rain, like the spring rain watering the earth.”  Hosea 6:3


here i sit, cold coffee beside me and baby girl slumbering on the bed behind me, wondering how time keeps disappearing.  this poor blog of mine continues to be neglected as my life fills, but here is a brief glimpse into my life and thoughts.

mamabird life {thirteen}

whew!  when life is full, blog posts are few.

andrew, rennie, and i are slowly but surely adjusting.  we are currently living in my parents' home while our own home is being prepared (more on that in a minute!).  andrew will be starting his new job in about two weeks; in the meantime we are getting everything officially switched over to our indiana address and shopping for new-to-us (which means used, but still holding years of life!) furnishings.  we've had many sleepless nights between fighting local sickness and rennie getting used to a new house and bed.  we are pretty tired, but are surrounded by caring people (namely my family!) who have helped us so much.

mamabird life {twelve}

last week a chapter of our lives ended.

it was bittersweet.

last wednesday, rennie and i flew out to indiana.  with no return tickets.

it was a crazy three and a half months living with andrew's parents with quite a bit of adjusting for all.  it was so good though.  getting extra family time and watching rennie bond with her amazing grandparents was such a blessing!  i also got the chance to know my in-laws in a deeper way and will always cherish the time we spent together watching movies, playing games, and talking!!!  (and the wonderful-albeit-slightly-stressful driving lessons my dad-in-law gave me!)

10 things NOT to say to a (young/new) stay-at-home mom

hehe, i've been wanting to share this list for a while.  it's so real and true to what i have experienced as a mom (and, from the many stories I hear, what others experience as well).  some of these things are true for all moms, working and stay-at-home, while others are specific to women like me who "don't work" (more on that later!).  important note: this is meant to be a lighthearted post.  no anger or attacking of anyone here!  tone gets lost through written word at times and i want this to be clear.  while these things can truly bother me when said, i know that most of them come from good people with good hearts.  hopefully this can be informative for those who have said them (pre-mom me included!) so they can be a blessing to the moms around them and give other moms with similar struggles the knowledge they aren't alone (and maybe a chuckle here and there).  under each point, i've included some positive thoughts and alternative ideas so you don't feel like you're walking on eggshells with every mom you meet. 

there may be some things on this list that don't bother some moms or some things i've missed.  this is just a simple list from my own experience and what i've learned from the mommies i know and love! 

mamabird life {eleven}

mamabird life for me right now is...

- trying to keep up with my sweet, energetic toddler.  she loves to climb, follow me around (even to the bathroom), give hugs and kisses, go outside, and try on my shoes! 

- not seeing much of andrew these days.  he's been working looooooong hours, BUT has been able to use up some of his remaining personal days to have a few three-day weekends.  that has helped so much.  i'm so proud of how hard he continues to work at his job.  he is determined to finish well.

happy basics (and the leggings subject)... outfit post

heatless overnight curls tutorial

With new haircuts come new experiments in styling.  Most days I'm quite happy to have my hair straight (it's natural form), but other days I'm antsy for some curl.  I have used a curling iron several times and that works fine, but it's also nice to have a heatless, non-damaging option (especially since I'm not terribly fast with curling my short hair yet!).  This way I can wash/set my hair the evening before, go to sleep, and have fun hair the next day with very little work/time lost!

I thought I would share what has worked best for me so far!  This could work for longer hair as well and if you're familiar to the headband technique it should be quite easy!

renniebird... sixteen months

about a week ago my girl turned sixteen months!  since her first birthday i haven't been super diligent with doing a monthly photo-shoot on the 28th, just randomly capturing new things and special moments.  this last month though i did take a few pictures on the exact day she turned a month older so i thought i would share them along with an update!

new year, new mindset... my journey in body positivity

i wrote this post several months ago... since it is now 2017 (happy new year!) and everyone is talking about their resolutions, this seemed like a very appropriate time to share what i've been learning in this area... more importantly, how i am letting it go and giving other things that high priority in my life.  this isn't something i plan on writing about in detail over and over, but it is a part of my journey and will, hopefully, give context and clarity to future posts and conversations!  <3