Words Matter.

Defect.  If you just sit with that word a minute, what images does it bring up? I’m guessing they aren’t the prettiest pictures.  Defect. Defective. Those words mean imperfect. Faulty. Wrong. They aren’t neutral words. In fact they are quite negative.  But that is a word that we use when talking about brand new lives…

What my daughter with Down syndrome has taught me…

When we think of ourselves as parents, one of our main jobs is teaching. We teach our children to dress themselves and tie their shoes. We teach them how to be kind and polite. At some point in our parenting journey, we realize that we are learning too. As a mom to a sweet almost…

My Story

I am one of those people who had her life planned out at age ten. Become a teacher, get married, have kids. And life pretty much followed. I went to Hope College, became a teacher in Allendale, married Sam, and had two kids – Zoe and Eli. Last summer, Sam and I decided it was…

Birth Story – Part 2

“For you created my inmost being;  you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;  your works are wonderful,  I know that full well.” Psalm 139:13-14 Ivy came with one push at 1:19 pm on July 5th, 2018. She cried immediately and was able to be put right on my chest. After…

Seek the Planner, Not the Plans

“‘For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be…

How are you doing?

“God when You choose to leave mountains unmovable… Give me the strength to be able to say it is well with my soul. I know you’re able and I know you can, save through the fire with your mighty hand but even if you don’t, my hope is you alone. I know the sorrow and…

Hands and Feet

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger…

What’s Been Happening…

“Don’t be afraid, I’ve redeemed you. I’ve called your name. You’re mine. When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you. When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down. When you’re between a rock and a hard place, it won’t be a dead end— Because I am God, your personal God, The Holy of…

Words of Truth

Can I be honest here? One of the hardest things about the journey I find myself on is trying to reconcile the immense grief I have over the loss of our precious baby, with the fact that I am still carrying a healthy little girl. My belly is expanding (perhaps a bit more rapidly than…

Learning the Ways of Grief

“Have mercy on me Lord, for I am in distress. Tears blur my eyes. My body and soul are withering away. I am dying from grief; my years are shortened by my sadness.” Psalm 31:9-10​ Somehow until the past few months of my life, I was oblivious to this verse. In fact I feel like…