Fall is here and the holidays are coming! The leaves have begun to change color and fall; pumpkin spice and all of your favorite fall decorations and smells are all around! Oh how I love the cozy scarves, blankets, sweatshirts, and boots! (Give me all the plaid, people!) It is heartwarming to snuggle by the
By Ashley McIlwain If you’ve ever been in a room with parents and their children, there will likely emerge some parenting themes. They are those lessons that parents are constantly trying to instill in the impressionable minds of their little people. In an attempt to mold their children into productive human beings that can co-exist
By Ashley McIlwain Whether you have been married for one day or for a century, there is one universal truth. You will always and forever have to continue to work at your marriage. Often times we assume that there is a point and time in the life of a marriage where you are “over the
By Steve McIlwain Hubs here. Ash and I are settling nicely into our new area. We moved here about six months ago and are learning the city and meeting new people. We have also begun the process of purchasing a home. The home buying process is both exhilarating and exhausting. There are exciting moments of
By Ricinda Perry “Would you edify me please?” These words have resonated and continued to replay in my mind over and over. It wasn’t long ago that my husband and I went on a trip to North Carolina. While the setting was warm and inviting during our stay, the couple we were visiting had no
By Steve McIlwain Hubs here. The holiday season has begun. Thanksgiving is almost here. Decorations are going up all over the place. Yet this holiday season has begun with a bit of a somber tone for us. A good friend of the family (a wife, mom, and grandmother) recently passed away from cancer. Other friends
By Ashley McIlwain It’s ironic. It’s ironic how we always seem to want something so badly until we get it. Then it’s not that great anymore, and we swear that we will be happy for real this time if we could just get on to that next big thing. When we get that new thing
By Ashley McIlwain As with many holidays and special occasions, Thanksgiving will likely come with the usual hustle and bustle in tow. Before we know it, it will be a thing of the past, and we may have missed out on the opportunity the day presents. Thanksgiving is defined by Miriam Webster as the act
By Steve McIlwain Hubs here. Gobble, gobble. It’s that time of year. Time for turkey. Pilgrims, pumpkin pie, the Macy’s parade, and going around the table saying something you’re thankful for. Thanksgiving is a two-way street of expressing and receiving gratitude. It’s a refreshing feeling to express the things you are thankful for. For most
By Ashley McIlwain Our society is obsessed with the concept of happiness. We are motivated to make decisions based purely on having an emotional status of happy. People promote this message and encourage others to chase after the unrealistic and impossible expectation that life should always be filled with happiness, and if it isn’t then
