We’ve worked really REALLY hard for this love. And just in case it looks easy or you feel like everyone around you has it figured out—it’s not easy and none of us have it figured out.
We’re learning a healthy relationship needs two whole people who show up and engage honestly.
I can’t make him happy.
I can’t make him whole.
I can’t make him feel loved.
He is responsible for himself.
And he can’t make me happy, whole or feel loved. I’m responsible for me.
God is the giver of these big, beautiful gifts we look for in a partner.
Happiness, wholeness, love—those are gifts God gives. They come wrapped in packages of brokenness, heartbreak, pain and uncertainty.
I know it makes no sense. It’s upsidedown and messy and I don’t have it figured out.
But I can tell you this—somehow as we lean into our brokenness we find wholeness. As we lean into our pain we find healing. As we lean into the mess we find a new, deeper beauty.
This is love. And we’re working really, really hard to love each other well.
Through it all, I know there is no other place I’d rather be than together. That’s the inspiration behind my “Better Together” necklace. Isn’t it adorable?? I’m giving it away as a gift with every order right now at my shop, but only for TWO. more. days!!
1. Warm days with time spent outdoors. Yesterday we ate In-n-Out outside and it was simple and so fun.
2. Watching Arrested Development as a family. It’s a show filled with the quirkiest characters and we laugh so hard.
3. Slow mornings! I can sip my coffee and slow down.
4. Organizing and purging. I’m going drawer by drawer and room by room through our house and cleaning things up. Oh my gosh, it feels so good!
5. Neck scarves (or bandanas). I love them. I used to wear them in college all the time.
6. Letting go of guilt. One of the things I’m working on in therapy is worrying less about my boys. I’m trying to let go a little and let them grow up. I’m reminding myself they are not only fine—they’re powerful people. They need my love and support but they don’t need me to worry.
7. Garlic and olive oil. I’m cooking more and basically EVERYTHING tastes better with more garlic and more olive oil. Ha!
8. The Joy Diet book by Martha Beck. It’s about 10 things to make your life more joyful. She’s one of my favorite authors. ♥️
9. Sunless tanner. Have you tried it? I’m using some and it’s making my legs look less glowing white and more slightly tan.
10. My sterling cuff (from my shop) on my wrist with my boys’ names. I gotta keep my boys close all the time. Love.
For so long I wanted to create warm, sunny days and avoid the dark heavy clouds. But I can’t. We can’t. We need to feel it all.
I’ve been trying to focus on gratitude lately—not as a means to avoid feeling pain, but as a means to avoid bitterness. There’s so much to be grateful for. So much beauty in the midst of the everyday crazy stuff of life. Dark clouds and warm sunshine work together to create vibrant, blooming, breathtaking flowers.
This bracelet holds my heart. I wear my Thin Sterling Cuff every day as a reminder to be grateful for all the love I have in my life!
Like how grateful I am for my family and the love we have for each other. That’s what makes personalized jewelry so sweet, it lets me carry the names of the ones in my heart. I’m grateful for these little everyday reminders of what really matters.
There was a short period of time when David was bigger than Matthias. By six months old Matthias had already passed David in weight and length. When they were young, they had t-shirts that said, ‘littlest big brother’ and ‘biggest little brother’.
They aren’t the children I imagined I would have. I’m not the mom I thought I would be. It’s completely different than I expected and so much better.
And oh my gosh, they’re growing up so fast! David just turned 19 and I feel a new grief around his life looking so different than a typical 19 year old’s life. He will always need full time care. At the same he fills our lives with joy and beauty.
Simultaneously Matthias is 17 and I’m grieving the last moments before he moves out and gains independence. I don’t want him to grow up and I love watching him become more independent. He’s one of my favorite people.
It’s amazing my heart can hold these two extremes—grief over one staying and one going, overwhelming joy and sadness. Maybe this is the complexity of being human? Our hearts can simultaneously hold conflicting emotions and desires. Joy and sadness, hope and fear, love and loss. I’m grateful for all of it.
I feel like the luckiest mom to get to call these two my sons. They are each unique, insightful, determined, and full of love. Thank you God for these boys!
Look at how beautiful my Full of Love necklace is! If you’re looking for a heart necklace, this beauty is so full of meaning.
I am prone to judge myself harshly—I wasn’t productive enough, honest enough, kind enough, thin enough {I could go on and on about my not-enoughs!}
I’m learning with practice, therapy, time, and patience to be more gentle with myself. All is well. Everything is okay. I am loved. I am worthy.
Full of love—that’s what the necklace is called {and what it symbolizes}. Pouring out love for family and friends. Taking time for quiet and reflection—time to nurture our own heart and believe we are worthy of time, energy, fun, play, silliness, happiness, goodness. We don’t have to earn our worthiness—we are already loved and worthy.
This heart necklace is so unique! The hand molded pendant shows the artist’s fingerprint, making each one a one-of-a-kind treasure. It’s the perfect little piece to wear around your neck every day. Your heart is so full of love!
One of the biggest things David has taught me is to be present in this moment. He lives in the NOW. He doesn’t worry about the future or the past. He truly lives in the moment.
It’s a gift to watch and learn from him. So many times, I’m overwhelmed with worry and I look around and find I have everything I need in this moment. Right now, everything is fine. It’s all okay. I’m trying to stay in the moment today.
Also soaking up his silly smiles and hugs!
It’s hard, it’s heavy, life is a lot but I promise you, there is beauty in this moment.
I designed this piece for David and everyone in the CdLS community. It’s a meaningful mother and child necklace that really captures the beauty of David’s life. I love it so much!
There is so much beauty around us—this doesn’t minimize the pain and the mess of how hard it is to be human, but it brings BALANCE, hope and relief.
It’s easy for me to see the hard stuff—to feel overwhelmed, scared and frustrated—but I’m practicing taking time to notice the beauty, to breathe it in, to feel grateful for these gifts. Gifts like colorful flowers, snuggles, and time with my boys!
It’s strange how pain and peace often go together. Exhaustion makes way for deep rest. Sadness created space for joy. In my experience as a human, there’s no such thing as perfect—but there’s so much GOOD. You deserve good and beautiful things!
And friends, don’t forget to take the time to smell the flowers and notice the beauty around you. My sweet flower jewelry reminds you to do just that, like my Be You Wildflower Necklace and Birth Flower Necklace. Aren’t they gorgeous?
It’s here! It’s here! Oh my gosh friends I have been so excited to share this brand new collection with you–but I wanted to make sure everything was just right. And guess what–it’s all JUST RIGHT!
I bet you know your birthstone–but do you know your birth flower? Each month has a flower and your flower holds special meaning just for you.
These little charms have been created with so much love. Each one began with a sketch, then a wax carving and finally a perfect sterling pendant hung on beautiful chain and finished with a freshwater pearl .
Aren’t the beautiful? They’re even better in person. They have detail and weight–and the charms warm to your skin as you wear them.
When I get a new calendar the first thing I do is turn to my month. Do you do that? My birthday is in August and the birth flower is a poppy. I love my August birth flower! It means brave and strong–two characteristics I hope I am growing to be!
Our dining room is a really beautiful space. The previous owners of our home remodeled the living area–so the family room, kitchen and dining room all flow together.
If you’re new here, my family and I have been in our new home almost a year. It’s a beautiful space with lots of little nooks to read and sip coffee while looking out the window. We live in San Luis Obispo, California and my husband and I run our own businesses making jewelry and gifts.
Okay, so back to the dining room. There is a giant window in this space with a window seat. The light that comes into this room is magical. There’s just one little problem–it’s hard to see inside the glass built-ins. They kind of get lost with all the light. But I found a quick, easy fix!
We added puck lights to each shelf and it really illuminates the glass cabinets beautifully! Look below and you can see the difference a little lighting makes!
Crazy, right? Keep reading and I’ll tell you more about the puck lighting.
The built-ins have a wine rack and wine fridge and even though we don’t drink a lot of wine, we’ve managed to fill a lot of the space! I like wine but I love a gin and tonic!
Lately I am really into gold frames, real plants, textured wood, pottery, textiles and natural light. Put those things together and it’s a magical combination!
One big take away from photographing my dining room is we need more plants!
I love to search thrift stores for plant containers with texture–like that aged silver urn or a cool basket. Also can we talk about this incredible chess set my husband created?
I found this little painting at a thrift store. I’ve collected colorful pitchers for years. I just found that little cake plate in the dollar section at Target. I think it was $5. My husband asked if we have enough cake plates but I assure him we don’t.
I love mixing glass, paintings, weathered wood and rusty metal. So good! Also can you see those puck lights sitting there in the middle of each shelf?
I literally just set the puck light in the middle {towards the back} of each shelf and it really illuminates the space.
This window seat has become a favorite spot. I often sip my coffee here in the morning and Matthias will come talk with me. I love it! The cushion is custom made from Heritage and Folklore on Etsy. I really didn’t use the window seat before we got the cushion–but once we got the cushion we started using it all the time! Cozy matters.
And that friends, is our dining room! We love having friends over and gathering around this table. I wish I could have you over and sip coffee with you and hear your story.
Do you have a formal dining room? Do you use it regularly? Tell me everything!
I’ve been looking for the perfect blazer–something that I could throw on and it fits great, feels put together {without being too dressy or business-y}. I wanted something I could use as an alternative to my denim jacket. So when I found this velvet blazer second-hand I was thrilled. And it fit just right!
Lately I’ve been wearing these jeans, booties and a white tee almost every day. It’s become kind of my uniform. Most days it’s too cold to wear dresses and these jeans feel easy and comfortable.
When I added in my new-to-me blazer it took my uniform up a notch! And can you see my necklace?
The older I get the less I can tolerate wearing something uncomfortable. I want to feel good and I want to look put together. We don’t need a ton of clothes, we just need the right clothes–the ones we want to wear over and over because they help us feel our best.
These jeans are Madewell and they are just so dang comfortable. I find I usually have to try jeans on in the store to make sure the fit is just right. On a recent trip to Nashville I was able to pop into a Madewell store. These jeans are true to size and have become an everyday favorite.
Louis wanted to be in the photo too. He’s my sidekick. He’s only in it for the treats but I’ll take it!
Have you guys seen the new My Monogram necklace? It is so easy, simple and full of meaning! After all, it’s my initial and represents me and the things I’m passionate about. I think everyone needs a My Monogram necklace.
The Brave Love spinner ring is another favorite. Layer on a gold spinner for each of your loves!
The next day, I layered the blazer with a black sundress and knee high boots for a completely different look! I think this blazer might live at the front of my closet so I can keep it in regular rotation.
For those of you who are new here, I make personalized jewelry! My heart is to create jewelry that’s one-of-a-kind and helps you tell your story. In this post I’m wearing My Monogram necklace, Full of Love necklace and the Brave Love spinner ring. See all my jewelry here.
Do you have a blazer you love? Are you on the hunt for the perfect blazer? Tell me all about your blazer journey.
