Mother Love

motherhood + home + family

FAMILY VACATIONS + LINKS

When I was growing up, my family would take a vacation every year with either my dad’s side of the family or my mom’s side of the family. And most every year, we would go back to the same island on the South Carolina coast and spend a week vacationing to our heart’s content. Eating good food, lounging on the beach, crabbing, fishing, shopping, sleeping…I have so many memories of those weeks with my families. So many good memories.

We are spending the next few days on this same island with my small family (as in, just parents + siblings), and it is going to be glorious! We’ll do all the things we’ve always done when we are here, and it all feels so familiar and comforting and relaxing. Plus, it sure is nice to have the perfectly warm spring weather that the south offers this time of year. Plus, it sure is nice to have a husband with me this time to share in all the goodness and fun of our beach vacations.

We always rent bikes for the duration of our time on the island, and use that as our primary mode of transportation, whenever we can. I think that would be one of the biggest perks of living in a city…being able to use your feet or a bike to get where you want to go. Plus, there is just something so vintage about pedaling home with groceries in the bike basket in front of you…hehe!

Some links:

– I love having this on my computers. 

– Cheers to this.

– This is so fun!

– Helpful for the upcoming berry season.

– Gift idea for anytime.

– LOVE this blog and so making this when I get back into my kitchen. 

– Also this.

– I just have no words for this.

– Small but M I G H T Y little book.

Have an amazing week, ya’ll!

What about you: do you have memories of family vacations?

I’d love to hear your thoughts!

LOVE + GOODNESS, COFFEE DATE, + LINKS

It’s another new week, and it’s going to be outstanding.

It’s going to be outstanding because there. is. so. much. good. There is so much goodness and light and LIFE that we are given, and I take that for granted far too often. Way too often. I was laying in bed last night, just thinking, as I was falling asleep…and this realization and feeling of the overwhelming love and goodness of the Lord just knocked me off my proverbial feet…He truly is so good. 
He can’t even help it. 
It’s just Who He is. And this week and this month and this entire lifetime I want to teach myself to be intentional about seeing that goodness. It’s so easy to look around at this world, at all the hard things, the dark things, the injustices, the sadness and pain…it’s so easy to see all of this and forget. I forget Who Jesus is…I forget that He is good and that He is in control and that He is coming to set all things right. 
Sometimes I not only forget the goodness of the Lord…sometimes I even blame Him for all these difficult things in the world and in my life. My heart can easily find itself looking at Him in frustration and accusation, blaming HIM for the darkness or pain that either I or someone else is experiencing. No, dear heart…NO. Jesus is only good, only light, only LIFE. Anything else in the world and in my experiences that is not such is not from Him. “For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” (Eph. 6:12) 
Let us not forget where this darkness and difficulties come from. And let us truly not forget the goodness, that perfect love and goodness, that comes only from the heart of God.
A few shots from a sweet afternoon coffee date:
One of our favorite coffee spots is in Rochester, which is a decent hour-plus drive away. We don’t get there very often, but when we do, I just want to sit for hours and sip drinks and have conversation and take photos. It’s one of those true-blue coffee places, where they don’t even have syrups or flavorings…just the straight-up-good stuff. I got a sweet little macchiato and Ben got a latte, and we split some macaroons.
I think pretty coffee is one of the most photogenic things in this world. And that macaroon was scrummo (scrumptious + yummo).
Tasty coffee is one of the most satisfying things in this world! I’m not addicted to coffee (truly!), and while I do drink a cup most mornings, I don’t get headaches or negative symptoms if I don’t have it. But coffee is such a simple pleasure…such a satisfying, simple pleasure.
Some links:
– Neato!
– Do it.
Have the best week ever, ya’ll!
What about you: tell me your truest feelings about coffee. 😉

I’d love to hear your thoughts!

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