Mild Mama

Thank the good Lord that I got hitched before dating got crazy... I can't even fathom how people are finding their spouses these days - if it ever even gets to that point. All I see and hear from my friends is how they're "talking" with someone. No labels. No commitment. Just casual, we talk, we show we care about each other sometimes, but still get to have our space and distance and can bow out whenever we want. Ugh, just writing that gives me the heebie jeebies. Ain't how I roll. I am old fashioned, I guess. Ladies, if you are not being pursued by someone who is going to give you their all, end it! Don't settle for someone who won't be straight up with you. Don't assume they want the same thing as you, make them tell you . If it is not what you want to hear - find someone who has what you want! Sam, the day he told me he liked me, looking directly in my eyes, said "Kendall, you're my best friend. I really like you as a person, I don'...

I want to share a story with y'all that I haven't told many people outside of my family. After I had Emma 4 years ago (this friday to be exact... what happened to my baby girl?! UGH) I became a fear stricken parent. Every night going to sleep I would have horrible images flash through my mind of Emma getting kidnapped, my kids not being protected, not being able to keep them safe etc. I was literally engulfed in fear for a long period of time. Sam would have to pray over me every night just so that I would be able to fall asleep. Seriously, it was no joke. I never really opened up about it because it revealed that I had an issue with God and I wasn't ready to work it out yet. I wasn't trusting Him with my kids. He was bringing these fears up in me so we could deal with it head on together. It's not easy when God brings something so heavy to the surface. But I needed it to be resolved and soon because I was driving myself to the point of insanity. Finally, one nig...

I am just going to jump right in to what is on my mind. Yesterday, at church, the pastor was speaking about living intentionally. How we should be living as though we know when we will die. I have heard this many times before, but it hit me differently this time. Did you know that the Bible talks specifically about our days being numbered? Psalms 139 says we were formed in the womb and that our days are ordained by God. Whether you believe that or not, the fact is - no one knows when they will take their last breath. During the sermon, the pastor had a man stand up and talk about how 60 days ago, he was given only 90 days left to live. He shared how since he had been given his diagnosis his life has gotten so much better because he has started living with purpose. His days are full of love and forgiveness and spending time on the things that matter. He said he doesn't take anything back because he believes that this has set his life on a better track. Can you imagine that? I...

I saw another one of those quick recipe video things and decided to try it out. We love Mexican food at our house and are always wanting to try new things!! Before I even looked at the actual recipe, I bought a head of lettuce instead of cabbage. OOPS! So, mine were a tad different but still tasted amazing!! The kids loved it too, I bet it would be even better with cabbage though :) video link below!!             - INGREDIENTS- 1  head green cabbage 1 tbsp.  extra-virgin olive oil 1  large onion, chopped 1  red bell pepper, chopped Kosher salt 2  cloves garlic, minced 2 tsp.  ground cumin 2 tsp.  chili powder 3 c.  cooked and shredded chicken 1 1/3 c.  red enchilada sauce, divided 2 tbsp.  chopped cilantro, plus more for garnish 1 c.  shredded Monterey jack 1/2 c.  shredded cheddar Sour cream, for drizzling Preheat oven to 350º. In a large pot, b...

A few weeks ago, I was talking with my friend who will be getting married shortly and she asked "How do you and Sam communicate so efficiently?" "Was it hard to figure out?" The questions caught me off guard because we have disagreements, we get in arguments, we often don't see eye to eye on everything. "I don't try to make him into my clone," I answered quickly before thinking. I wasn't even sure what that meant at the moment, but as I've thought on it this morning - I realized, thats the key . We didn't marry someone to turn them into ourselves. I married someone who has an entirely separate way of thinking than me and thats OKAY. Hopefully you married someone who has the same foundational beliefs and thoughts - but besides that, everything else will be up for debate. I've seen lots of marriages where everything turns into an argument, there is no such thing as a healthy discussion. This should not be the case! For Sam and my...

I was talking with my daughter the other day and if you know Emma - you know that she is incredibly intelligent, she learns in a whole different way than I do. That in itself has been a learning curve for me as parent, for sure. She definitely didn't get her smarts from me either, her dad is extremely intelligent. Anyways, it was about 40 degrees here a couple weeks ago and she wanted to go outside. It was sunny and bright but the wind was brutal. I said "Emma, you need to go get your jacket on, you're going to freeze." "No I won't mom, the sun is out." "Trust me Emma, its cold." "I don't believe you mom, I don't need a jacket," she says in all of her 3 year old gusto and wisdom. "Fine," I reply "you can go outside without your jacket." About two minutes of playing outside, she runs back into the house "Mom!! I NEED my jacket! I'm soooo cold!" It was obvious by the shade of red her nose and ...

I honestly don't have anything specific on my mind I want to talk about, so I'm just going to write until it happens. I'm sitting here listening to the kids yell at each other in the other room and avoiding going in there at all costs. I love my kids dearly, but man - they can really pinch my last nerve sometimes. Last night, as I was standing over the sink full of dishes, I started to get teary eyed because I had this sweeping emotion of how 'this is just my life now.' It consists of waking up, children all day, cleaning, and then sleeping and starting over. I got into a funk last night because I forgot my purpose. I don't know about you, but I often lose sight of my purpose. I sit and feel so stuck in the now that it is hard for me to look past my current circumstances. I think back on what I thought my life would look like and see that it is not what I had imagined in my teen years. I used to believe I was going straight into ministry - rescuing women from...