The Architect & Me – Part 11: My Birthing Coach
I think the two greatest gifts life holds are watching life enter the world, and watching a precious saint of God leave the world. I’ve had the privilege to do both, twice. But I must say watching a baby enter, arms flailing, swollen-eyed, red-skinned, and then wailing is the most holy thing I’ve ever seen. […]
The Architect & Me – Part 10: From Heart to Hand
We walked up to the steps of the restaurant and Philly asked, “Are you ready for this meeting?” I wiped my wet palms on my pants. My heart pounding as if I’d just run laps in the parking lot. “No.” But up the steps we walked anyway. She was waiting for us at a table […]
The Architect & Me – Part 9: The Pen Tells the Story
If pens could tell stories the number of books they’d fill up could be stacked to the moon. Think of all the things your pens have done. Remember that love letter to your fourth-grade crush? Check yes or no. Or the birth certificate they signed when that little miracle came into the world? Then, there […]
The Architect & Me – Part 8: Every Place Your Foot Touches
It was our first family vacation as the newly formed and very messy Joneses. We didn’t know if we’d be able to afford a vacation. But a few months after we married, I was offered a new book deal. We decided we’d set aside some of that money to take the kids away for a […]
The Architect & Me – Part 7: When A Home Is A Haven
When I married Philly, I moved from a neighborhood called Westhaven to a street called Deer Haven. However, there was a discovery at Deer Haven that had never made its way to Westhaven. The discovery happened at the decision to move from Deer Haven and downsize as the youngest was about to leave for college. […]
The Architect & Me – Part 6: The Cardinal Painting
You have that thing don’t you? That thing that speaks God’s love? For my mom it’s the sunsets. He painted that just for me, she always says. Now my niece will send me pictures of sunsets and we both know we are thinking the same thing. “Mom thinks that’s just for her.” Maybe for you […]
The Architect & Me – Part 5: Coming Out of the Dark
Three years after we got married, I heard the words I had been longing to hear Philly say. “We have enough extra money for you to do some things to the house.” I’m still shocked as I write this, that those were words I longed to hear Philly say. But from the time I moved […]
The Architect & Me – Part 4: But Is It Only A Pillow?
When Philly and I married part of the pain of both of our stories was our train wreck of finances. Our first few years of marriage I squeezed our budget so tight Spanx would have felt loose. I couponed. I shopped specials. And we bought nothing but necessities. A year after we married, he had […]
The Architect & Me – Part 3: Making A Home
When I met Philly Jones two years following my divorce, I was two years past that bookstore experience (story in part one). In those two years I had bought three things for my house all by myself. A new bed, because the one I had was my wedding gift from my first husband. New linens for my new […]
The Architect & Me – Part 2: I Got it Naturally
She didn’t come into life rearranging her furniture, but she did come loving beautiful things. I think that’s because her insides are so beautiful that it just naturally seeps out. So, when Home Interiors and Gifts was introduced to her, (think Pampered Chef with mirrors and pictures and candles) it was perfect for her. A […]
