Top Posts of 2016

It is so fascinating to learn what has resonated with you guys this year. From posts about marriage and the Enneagram to big announcements and confessional style offerings… it is so encouraging to find that the pieces I enjoyed writing the most are the ones that ended up being the most read.

In case you missed them, here are the top five posts of 2016:

1. For Better, For Worse

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“I’m sitting in a warm cafe. I can hear the sputter of milk frothing, smell the dark explosion of coffee beans releasing their aroma. Fingers rest on keys, newspapers crinkle, names of coffee orders are called out – punctuating the calm space.

Next to me, perched on bar stools, two guys in their thirties are discussing their marriages. “It’s like two ships in the night,” one poetically offers, referring to the reality that the space has become – passing each other by, going in different directions, dealing in peripheries, never figuring out the life force that they share together. Until it might be too late. There is an urgency underlying their voices, and a confusion. ‘What is going on?’ ‘What is she thinking?’ ‘Where will we end up?’” 

To keep reading click here.

2. The Secret Brew

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The announcement of our fourth pregnancy in the midst of the #Write31Days challenge had me comparing the process of unfurling new life to the delicate act of brewing tea. See more here.

3. What I’m Into Posts

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A new initiative this year linking up with Leigh Kramer, I spend some time recapping what I’ve been watching, listening to and reading for the past month, as well as updates on our kids and the adventures that were experienced. I have very much enjoyed this process as it helps me keep track of our lives and lessons and it is so great to learn that you appreciate the posts too.

Here were a few of the most popular recaps: June, September and October.

4. 5 Ways I Currently Don’t Have My Shit Together

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This link-up piece with Kelly Exeter clearly struck a chord with people who are tired of pretending that everything in life is going perfectly. We all struggle with something and it is so much easier to just be honest about these difficulties rather than keep up the facade of having it all together. You can find the original post here.

5. The Big Reveal

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A couple of weeks ago we hosted a woodfired pizza party to celebrate Dave’s birthday and find out the gender of baby number four. It was so much fun to host the party and we have plans to throw many more such events in the future (pizza parties, that is, not gender reveal parties!). Read all about it here.

What an incredible year 2016 has been. I’ve so enjoyed writing and connecting with you this year! Thanks for taking the time to read and respond. It really does mean so much to me.

Today I’m linking up with the Five Minute Friday community to share what our top posts of 2016 were. Join me next week for a review of the top ten books I’ve read this year. 

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The Big Reveal

I know, I know, Gender Reveal parties aren’t really that ‘cool’, they have been done many times before (to hilarious results at times) but no matter how much I try and talk myself out of doing them, I just can’t! Plus, the timing of the scan coincided impeccably well with […]

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Succumbing

A burst of energy I seize it, both hands clasping, wishing for a hint of my former shadow –  energy, vitality, creativity I push past the fade wanting to reclaim the version of myself that satisfies me Not the hamstrung, snuffed out rest-seeking missile The crystal glass eludes me I […]

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Condiments

I can breathe again Fill my lungs with hope and  gaze forward beyond the next queasy moment Bend down to sort toys into  boxes, think about something other than my next desperate meal See altercations without  expelling a sigh of  ‘seriously’ Embrace the giving of  lectures, cuddles, guidance Savour the aroma […]

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Irrational Imaginings

Food at the moment is divided into two categories – stuff that works, and that which doesn’t. I wouldn’t exactly call it craving, but there have been stages of addiction to edible items, usually those of the fast food variety. The day I found out you could no longer buy […]

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Reaching for the Sky

You would think that the fourth time around would be less exciting somehow. That the ‘been there, done this’ feeling would be more prevalent than the incredible sense of wonder that accompanies the first of any experience. Not so. This morning Dave and I nervously waited in the ultrasound reception […]

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The Vexing Unknown

My body knows something I don’t Industriously creating the conditions for a life to thrive, to flourish Weaving together the cocoon unseen. The unknown triggers feeling of  fear, of frustration in me How many heartbeats dwell within? Will this body be knit together like  the others? I tell myself to […]

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Living In-between

By way of background to this post, in late 2013 I experienced a short and complicated pregnancy that was not to be. You can read about that experience here. That sweet naivete that I carried with me in my first two pregnancies disappeared then and I find it difficult not […]

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The Secret Brew

Something is unfurling. Like the brittle tea leaves yielding to the wrap of the steaming flow, it uncurls and stretches in secret. To brew. The word is so evocative, enchanting. It speaks of magic – of inexplicable moments happening almost unseen before our very eyes. I’m not known for my […]

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