Do You Like Living in a Small Town?

I was leaving the post office while running some errands the other day when I looked around at our small downtown and felt grateful to live in such a charming little city. Sure, we don’t always agree with the politics, but it’s been the only home we’ve ever known, and we’ve found ways to make it our own. Then that got me thinking about how I didn’t always have warm, happy feelings at the thought of living here, and why do I feel that way now and do other people feel that way about their small town?

That was a lot of thought in a very short amount of time, but I’m curious: do you like living in a small town? I used to hate it when I was growing up. Everyone knows everyone, there’s never anything to do, and life is so much slower here. Now, though, those are ironically some of the things I love most about it.

It is a lot slower here, we have a low crime rate, and everyone knows everyone, which actually does come in handy sometimes, like when you forget your I.D. or wallet at home and the store lets you get away with it because they know you’re good for it. You know all of your mom’s friends and see them at various places around town, you run into old high school friends at the grocery store and give them a friendly nod and smile when you pass, and all the shops and restaurants are only 5 minutes (at most) away.

Speaking of, though we live in a small city, it is growing! It seems like every day a sign for a new restaurant or store pops up that we get excited about. It’s neat to see how the city has changed over the last few decades, growing more and more every year. It’s also fun to compare how much we have changed, too: things we didn’t love about living here when we were younger are the things we enjoy about it now that we’re older and raising a family (like the slower pace of life).

One difficult thing has been there isn’t a big LGBTQIA+ community here, and our town isn’t necessarily known for being an open-minded place. People ask us all the time why we don’t pack up and move to a more liberal, progressive city to raise a family. We always say that if everyone just left as soon as they could, change would never happen, and that small, close-minded town you’re from would always remain that way. And I’m not naive or self-righteous; I’m not saying we alone will change the way people in any certain place think, but by staying and living our life, we’re showing those who might not be as accepting that it’s okay to be different. We’re exposing them to something they may not come in contact with every day, and maybe, little by little, they will grow to become more open-minded and accepting of those who are different than them.

We live only a few hours away from much bigger areas (Nashville, Atlanta, Knoxville), so we get that small-town feel while still being close to the convenience and fun of those other, more lively cities. There’s a certain charming, whimsical vibe of living in a small town that you don’t get in other places. It’s a feeling of comfort, familiarity, and ease. And it’s a feeling we’ve come to love.

What about you? Do you like living in a small town, too? Or can you not wait to leave as soon as you can? x

Mail Call

You guys are always so thoughtful in what you send our way.

We received the most beautiful book from Daniel (who has sent us some of the sweetest things in the mail before) called To Be a Gay Man by British singer Will Young. It looks so good! I’ve been looking for a new book to read (currently listening to the audiobook of The Dutch House) and I can’t wait to crack this one open and dive in. And how cool that it’s signed by the author?!

Daniel is from the U.K. and we always get so excited every time we receive a package from him because we never know what to expect except that it’s going to be something unique and special. He also let us know that Will Young has a new song out and that it’s very good. The name of the song? “Daniel”.

Daniel, thank you SO much, as always, for being so kind and sending the most precious gifts. We’re so grateful for you, friend!!

We also received a package with some sweet gifts for the kiddos from John and Bob! They sent a pink octopus for sis (so cute), saying it is very soft with “a smily face BUT if you turn it inside out it has a sad face. We immediately thought sis might like this just to show you what kind of mood she is in for the day (or the minute lol, lol). It is small and cuddly and easy for her to carry around. We just thought it was so cute.”

Also included in the package was a dinosaur soap lab for the boys, which, everything about that sentence appeals to them. They LOVE experiments (especially older bother) and anything dinosaur related, of course, so this is right up their alley. John & Bob warned it would be messy, but how fun does it look?! Thank you SO much, y’all!

Thank you to everyone who sends our family sweet packages!! We feel the love from you all the way in our little corner of the world, and are forever grateful for you. xoxo

This Beach Robe is My New Favorite Piece of Clothing (and It's Not Just For the Beach)

And I’m never taking it off.

I saw this block print beach robe on Instagram the other day and I couldn’t take my eyes off it. The pattern! The color! The flowiness of it! I just googled if “flowiness” is a word and it’s technically not, but you absolutely knew what it meant in the context of that sentence, right? And I’m 93% sure you’ve used it before, too!

Anyway, our favorite interior designer, entrepreneur, mom of 5 and all-around inspiration in all areas of life, Lauren Liess was the one wearing it and it turns out it'’s one of the items she sells in her shop! I knew immediately I was going to order one for myself. I messaged her asking if it came in my size and she said it definitely does!

And then something amazing happened. She offered to just send me one!!! Y’all, I can’t downplay the significance of this. I have loved Lauren’s work for years and have always swooned over her designs and admired her work ethic (as a parent and a business owner), so to have her send me something from her shop is huge. We’ve been Instagram friends for the last few years now and it’s still a pinch-me situation every time we talk.

This robe is light and airy and the material is so dang comfortable. I plan on wearing it all summer and then into fall as the months start getting cooler. I’ve really been into caftans and cardigans and robes lately, and this one my absolute favorite.

You can find the beach robe here (I’m wearing the L/XL), and check out her full store of apparel, furniture, accessories, and more here.

Thank you SO much again, Lauren!!!!

An Update on Our Foster Care Journey

Morning, friends! Happy Monday.

Wanted to share some news and a big foster care update! In case you missed yesterday’s YouTube video, where we discuss what our plans are as far as adopting the kiddos and where we’re at in our foster care journey, I’m linking it here for you!

It’s been a long, emotional road for everyone involved, and we’re ready to finally move on to the next steps in our journey. We can’t thank you enough for all the love and support you’ve sent our family over the years. From the messages to the emails to the snail mail (my favorite), you have been with us every step of the way from the very beginning of us being foster parents.

We’re excited for this next chapter!!!

Thank You For Being Here & Happy Friday!

Happy Friday, friends.

First off, thank you SO much for the kind words on yesterday’s post. Having you here with us and hearing your thoughts and opinions and reading your comments (even the bad ones) means more to us than you’ll ever know. The amount of knowledge we’ve learned from you over the years is so valuable to us because it gives us a chance to, in a roundabout way, virtually travel and meet people all over the world.

And secondly, thank you for all the advice and personal testimonies on our latest vlog!! PJ shared his struggles with adult acne and you sympathized and empathized with him, sharing your own issues with acne and what worked/didn’t work for you. We’ve read every comment and email and DM and want to let you know how grateful we are for this community of virtual friends who make the world feel a little smaller with your heartfelt and honest inputs.

We’re heading into the weekend with a rainy morning (my favorite) and a to-do list longer than anything I would ever make on my own. I woke up before anyone else to enjoy my coffee and write a little before the craziness of the day begins. Mornings have been my favorite time of the day for many years now and I would love to find a way to extend them by just a few more hours. I think the solution to that is just waking up a tad bit earlier?

Hope you have a wonderful weekend, friends, and again, thank you so much for everything!!!!!!

The Garden at Ocoee Farm is Starting to Come Together!

I feel like every day some king of big change is happening at the farm…and that’s probably because it is!

Our friend Dixie, who’s been staying at the farm the last few months and helping us with the animals, started a garden a while back. It was filled with squash and zucchini and corn and watermelons, among other things. The only problem was she didn’t have the proper gardening tools to really get it to where it needed to be, so it was needing a little help.

However, PJ started tweaking it the other night and completely turned it around in a day or two. And now it looks like this!

The kiddos and I helped (and I use the term “help” term very loosely here) PJ plant corn on the half of the garden that he’s been working on. There’s still the entire right side to do that I conveniently forgot to take a picture of :).

There’s also garlic and squash and tomatoes and a few other veggies planted, and lettuce will be planted in the fall. How exciting is that? They chose to put the garden in a spot that gets the most amazing afternoon sun so all the delicious veggies planted should do really well there if everything goes according to plan.

PJ grew up working in the garden with his grandma so he knows his stuff when it comes to keeping one. I, on the other hand, have absolutely no idea about gardening, so all of this is new and fresh and exciting for me to see and help with. And by help with, I mean hand PJ the hoe when he needs one and drop the seeds in the little holes while the kids cover them with dirt.

Look at those gorgeous tomatoes!! I can’t wait to taste them, because does anything taste better than fresh vegetables? Especially in the summer? The answer is a resounding no.

An Easy, Made Up On-The-Spot Red Wine Pasta

I had some leftover noodles from dinner the other night just sitting in the fridge that I really didn’t want to just throw away, so I used a few ingredients that I had on hand (and pretty much made the recipe up as I went along ) to turn them into an actually delicious, super quick meal! Here’s what I used…

Ingredients

• A few tablespoons of olive oil

• 2 cups of cherry tomatoes, halved

• 3 cloves of garlic

• 1 and 1/2 cups of red wine (I used a cabernet)

• 1 tablespoon of butter

• salt & pepper to taste

• 1 tablespoon of basil (or more, to taste)

• parmesan cheese to garnish

My sister and her girlfriend made us dinner last week, so we had some cherry tomatoes on hand (I never think to buy those for some reason, but they’re so good!). I cut them in half, poured a heaping amount of olive oil into a pan, and threw the tomatoes in. I generously sprinkled some salt and pepper while mashing the tomatoes to create a sort of sauce.

Then I quickly minced three cloves of garlic and put that and a little amount of butter in the pan and stirred for about 30 seconds, letting it all get nice and fragrant on medium heat. I added some basil (I wish it was fresh but it wasn’t!) and then about a cup and a half of red wine and let it all simmer for a few minutes.

I didn’t measure ANY of this and usually don’t when I make recipes, which sort of makes it hard to replicate them exactly the same way every time. But I always say to use your best judgement! You know the amounts of the things you like (how much garlic, salt, etc.) so experiment and have a little fun with the ingredients.

Anyway, I then tossed the noodles from the night before into the pan and stirred it all together while topping it off with some parmesan cheese (also not fresh!).

I made this on a whim because I didn’t want the noodles to go to waste- we had all already had pizza for dinner that night so this was just going to be for lunch the next day. But it was so yummy that little sis even had a bowl after she already had her dinner, which never happens (it’s hard enough to get her to eat her own dinner every night, let alone a whole other meal with ingredients she usually doesn’t prefer). It was rich with flavor and felt fancy. Cherry tomatoes add such a burst of flavor to whatever they’re in. I need to remember to add them to the list when I go to the store next time!

Happy cooking, friends! x