It is hot and sticky in the south. Late May. May races into June and the days, long and full with little ones, make for short weeks that seem to disappear before my eyes. My boy is now 4 and my babe will be 2 at the end of the summer. 
I pour my life out for them, daily, like a drink offering. Everything that I have to give is theirs, from sun up to sun down. I am a workhorse. Their first girlfriend. I am desperately needed.
I am learning so many lessons in this stage of motherhood. I am learning the art of calm in the midst of chaos-to smile and speak lovingly when I feel flustered or defeated. I’m learning that two little boys can be upset and crying but I can be calm and attentive and smile. It is easy, as mothers, to let our emotions mirror our children’s -if they are happy, it is easy to be happy. If they are having a bad day, it is easy to feel bleak as well . I’m cracking my way out of that stronghold and trying to find JOY in the very act of mothering. It isn’t easy but it is more than worth it. I fail everyday. I get up and start again and thank the Lord for blessing me with the privilege of being a wife and a mother and a homemaker-all things the world undervalues but that are precious in the eyes of God.
We are slowly, ever so slowly, making updates and changes to our big ‘ol home in North Carolina.
It is big.
It is old.
Big and old.
Seven bedrooms and 2 kitchens big.
But it is dreamy. One-of-a-kind. Everything we’ve always wanted-an old fixer- upper in the country with several acres for our children to run free and have an old fashioned childhood. Truth be told, we were most taken with the land the house sits on, just absolutely beautiful gardens and landscaping.
This is the front entryway when we bought the house.
And the whole family working on renovating and painting the staircase.
This spring, I was out pulling weeds and English ivy and chasing the boys when my neighbor stopped by to tell me that the previous owners had had to employ a full-time gardener to keep up with the yard. I was covered in dirt and sweat and not sure whether to laugh or cry. I am in over my head but I couldn’t imagine a life we’d rather be living.
The boys know what it means to WORK and work together. I hope they have memories deeply rooted in this place and the things we are doing and building here.
( Wynn and a friend near our house at sunset )
Thank you for your patience with me during a slow blogging “season.” It feels really good to be back. If you’d like to follow my photography, you can do so on my Facebook page here!
{ everything i know about photography, i learned through clickin moms! }
Thanks for the glimpses into your life! What a dream!
I love your blog and this glimpse into your world. Beautiful photography, but more beautiful is your obvious love and surrender to God’s call on your life as a mother. You have created such a beautiful rich environment for your children that cultivates what childhood should be. I wonder if you might share some books and activities you enjoy with your boys and how you structure and balance your days. I am a stay at home mother too and I’m still working on creating a predictable rhythm with my preschool age son and my baby boy. Are you homeschooling? I have two boys as well and I’m always looking for good children’s book ideas!
Thank you, Vanessa. Yes, I would love to share a post with that kind of information. We seem to have fallen into a good rhythm lately for our days so I will have to share before time changes too much and we have to come up with a new routine. 😉 We are going to homeschool, yes, I have been doing some preschool work with Wynn but hope to start kindergarten work this fall on a slightly more structured basis.
You are such an inspiration!! Keep blogging!
I just read your last excerpt on your blog and am moved to tears with my own sweet memories of my daughters’ childhood and my time at home with my babies. I am so blessed to have another opportunity to experience our beautiful world through the eyes of my little grandson…thankful for this opportunity and committed to honoring God through my love for this precious baby!
Erin, I want to thank you for your blog. It has served as such an inspiration for this season of my life. We have decided to sell our beautiful Texas home to move back to Virginia, where we initially moved from almost 6 years ago. It’s very hard to give up a house I love, but it’s also very hard to stay in a place where you haven’t formed friendships and are away from loved ones. Now we are on to new adventures!
It’s such a joy to read your blog posts! I can’t wait to see more of what you do with your beautiful old home! Will you be going to your beach house this summer?
Beautiful pictures capturing such precious moments of childhood – you should consider a photography book! As much as I love the pictures I love that you sometimes post sporadically because you are not just documenting but living…
It was so nice to find a post this morning. At 28 weeks pregnant with little one number two, I could literally burst into tears with envy, sinful though it is, at the beautifully simple “old fashioned” childhood your children are having. I’m always, as I’ve said before, moved and inspired when I read your posts. I know that God has planted us where we are, and I am even more inspired this morning to get busy and stay calm and pour myself into my little darling girl for a summer of great memories before a new little one joins us. Thanks as always for sharing. So glad God’s blessed you with your dream, and me with mine!! 🙂
so excited to hear that you are homeschooling…we loved our 5 year journey with it….what a blessing those years were for me and our kiddos.