The Worthy Ministry of Stay-at-Home Mamas
"When did being 'just' a stay-at-home mom become not enough?" I can’t remember the exact context of the conversation. But his words...
Search
easpenner
- 4 days ago
- 1 min
A Mother's Love will Forever Stop Me in My Tracks...
It stops me in my tracks every single time... The little scrunched up knees. The little busy toes, finally resting The mesmerizing,...
5 views0 comments
easpenner
- Jun 17
- 1 min
There's just something about a grandma's hug...
There's just something about a grandma's hug. Something that makes you want to unbuckle your seat belt and run back into her house, for...
4 views0 comments
easpenner
- Jun 15
- 2 min
Dear Dads, You Set the Standard for Your Daughter
“I don’t deserve this, Mommy and Daddy,” she whispered. Just loud enough to compensate for the sizzle of the boiling pasta water and...
1 view0 comments
easpenner
- Jun 6
- 1 min
A Prayer for My Daughter
Dear Daughter, I pray the world never gets so loud that you can no longer find God's voice. My prayer is never that you win every race;...
31 views0 comments
easpenner
- Jun 4
- 2 min
She's worth the bowl of mac and cheese...
She's worth the bowl of mac-and-cheese. That's what he taught me last night. It was already past bedtime, and we had chosen to grill out...
5 views0 comments
easpenner
- May 21
- 2 min
To the Homeschooling Mama: the Quiet, Unsung Hero
I never thought I’d be a homeschooling mom. For twelve years, I got up and was ready to be out the door and in a classroom as an...
45 views0 comments
easpenner
- May 10
- 2 min
Love Beyond-Extraordinary
I didn’t get to sleep in. My little five-AM wake-up call doesn’t have a snooze button. I didn’t have a day without arguing or tears....
3 views0 comments
easpenner
- May 5
- 4 min
Sweet Mama, You Are Never Alone
Last night was one of those nights. The kind of night, up with the baby. Then losing myself in mindless Facebook scrolling. Feeling worse...
2 views0 comments
easpenner
- Mar 26
- 2 min
Dear Heavenly Father, Stay with Me
The sun has yet to rise, Lord. Quiet is this house. The peaceful, thoughtful kind. The only sounds heard are my whispers to you. Already...
33 views0 comments
easpenner
- Feb 17
- 2 min
Dear Pandemic Mama, You are Enough
Some of us will never make it big. Some of us will never have anything go viral. Some of us may never be truly known by more than a few....
8 views0 comments
easpenner
- Feb 8
- 1 min
The Messes Make Us Whole
Oh, some days I think the sound will absolutely do me in. The gritty crunch and crack. The dozens of crushed pieces. Underfoot and...
13 views0 comments
easpenner
- Jan 6
- 2 min
2020, meet 2021...with grace, please
2020, You were a year. A year the world never expected. But, a year God knew was coming, all along. A year that threatened to break us. A...
7 views0 comments
easpenner
- Sep 29, 2020
- 3 min
A Mother's Forever-Flexible Love
Chewy Blanket. That's what she calls it. Edition two. Chewy #1? It was a hand-me-down from one of her older sisters, who enjoyed a few...
1 view0 comments
easpenner
- Sep 19, 2020
- 2 min
The Beauty in a Baby Doll: "It's okay."
“But I don’t want to grow up!” she sobbed through her tears. “I don’t want to get bigger and older. I just want to stay my age!” So many...
4 views0 comments
easpenner
- Sep 16, 2020
- 1 min
Thank you God, for tomorrow.
Thank you for tomorrow," her gentle four-year-old voice whispered into my ear, as I kissed her good-night. "Tomorrow, already, sweet...
4 views0 comments
{"items":["60d400bc476c5700156eaf2e","60c939088d43a5002b9ff937","60c9385e3afd6a0015c74e8c","60c9378c0145ac002bb436b1","60ba78a575cc5d0016151d3a","60ba6fcd68242600154f13fa","60a7d59cb46da20015edb082","60999cd298125f0015dcc5a4","609207b1cbb63f00155a8e14","605d1d625a2a730015b80617","602aef810eeb7d0017ba1a74","60203779e9d2e4003430d4c8","5ff529d2694f3a0017d55322","5f72a88c4c008e0017edb6a1","5f65862ccb5de3001784f6d9","5f62781a1846e00017ed7b8f"],"styles":{"galleryType":"Columns","groupSize":1,"showArrows":true,"cubeImages":true,"cubeType":"fill","cubeRatio":1.3333333333333333,"isVertical":true,"gallerySize":30,"collageAmount":0,"collageDensity":0,"groupTypes":"1","oneRow":false,"imageMargin":32,"galleryMargin":0,"scatter":0,"rotatingScatter":"","chooseBestGroup":true,"smartCrop":false,"hasThumbnails":false,"enableScroll":true,"isGrid":true,"isSlider":false,"isColumns":false,"isSlideshow":false,"cropOnlyFill":false,"fixedColumns":1,"enableInfiniteScroll":true,"isRTL":false,"minItemSize":50,"rotatingGroupTypes":"","rotatingCropRatios":"","columnWidths":"","gallerySliderImageRatio":1.7777777777777777,"numberOfImagesPerRow":1,"numberOfImagesPerCol":1,"groupsPerStrip":0,"borderRadius":0,"boxShadow":0,"gridStyle":1,"mobilePanorama":false,"placeGroupsLtr":true,"viewMode":"preview","thumbnailSpacings":4,"galleryThumbnailsAlignment":"bottom","isMasonry":false,"isAutoSlideshow":false,"slideshowLoop":false,"autoSlideshowInterval":4,"bottomInfoHeight":0,"titlePlacement":"SHOW_ON_THE_RIGHT","galleryTextAlign":"center","scrollSnap":false,"itemClick":"nothing","fullscreen":true,"videoPlay":"hover","scrollAnimation":"NO_EFFECT","slideAnimation":"SCROLL","scrollDirection":0,"scrollDuration":400,"overlayAnimation":"FADE_IN","arrowsPosition":0,"arrowsSize":23,"watermarkOpacity":40,"watermarkSize":40,"useWatermark":true,"watermarkDock":{"top":"auto","left":"auto","right":0,"bottom":0,"transform":"translate3d(0,0,0)"},"loadMoreAmount":"all","defaultShowInfoExpand":1,"allowLinkExpand":true,"expandInfoPosition":0,"allowFullscreenExpand":true,"fullscreenLoop":false,"galleryAlignExpand":"left","addToCartBorderWidth":1,"addToCartButtonText":"","slideshowInfoSize":200,"playButtonForAutoSlideShow":false,"allowSlideshowCounter":false,"hoveringBehaviour":"NEVER_SHOW","thumbnailSize":120,"magicLayoutSeed":1,"imageHoverAnimation":"NO_EFFECT","imagePlacementAnimation":"NO_EFFECT","calculateTextBoxWidthMode":"PERCENT","textBoxHeight":0,"textBoxWidth":200,"textBoxWidthPercent":50,"textImageSpace":10,"textBoxBorderRadius":0,"textBoxBorderWidth":0,"loadMoreButtonText":"","loadMoreButtonBorderWidth":1,"loadMoreButtonBorderRadius":0,"imageInfoType":"ATTACHED_BACKGROUND","itemBorderWidth":1,"itemBorderRadius":0,"itemEnableShadow":false,"itemShadowBlur":20,"itemShadowDirection":135,"itemShadowSize":10,"imageLoadingMode":"BLUR","expandAnimation":"NO_EFFECT","imageQuality":90,"usmToggle":false,"usm_a":0,"usm_r":0,"usm_t":0,"videoSound":false,"videoSpeed":"1","videoLoop":true,"jsonStyleParams":"","gallerySizeType":"px","gallerySizePx":940,"allowTitle":true,"allowContextMenu":true,"textsHorizontalPadding":-30,"itemBorderColor":{"value":"rgba(204, 204, 204, 0)"},"showVideoPlayButton":true,"galleryLayout":2,"targetItemSize":940,"selectedLayout":"2|bottom|1|fill|true|0|true","layoutsVersion":2,"selectedLayoutV2":2,"isSlideshowFont":false,"externalInfoHeight":0,"externalInfoWidth":0.5},"container":{"width":940,"galleryWidth":972,"galleryHeight":0,"scrollBase":0,"height":null}}