My December Love Letter

Words & Photography
by Katie Reeder



My December love letter.

Being Brave

Words & Photography
by Ali LeReaux









The Cat in the Hat says, "You cannot be brave unless you feel afraid." Sharing life with people can feel scary. Will they accept us? Challenge us? Love us? Grow with us? It's hard to be vulnerable...it's hard to trust. But, you'll never know until you try.

Sharing life with people can feel scary. Will they accept us? Challenge us? Love us? Grow with us? It's hard to be vulnerable...it's hard to trust. But, you'll never know until you try.

Thankfully, these boys were, and continue to be, the best examples of facing fears. Crashing into the waves that are stronger than they are, laughing alongside one another, cheering each other on, knowing that facing this fear together they were going to be alright.

His Room

Words & Photography
by Katie Nigbor



His room is one of my favorites spaces in our home. It’s where we play, where we laugh, where we spend time together each morning getting ready for the day, and where we snuggle up each night to read together.

His room is one of my favorites spaces in our home. It’s where we play, where we laugh, where we spend time together...

Time feels like it is flying by in a blink of an eye these days, so I’ll be doing my best to hold onto these small moments we have together with all my heart.

Clearing It Out

Words & Photography
by Karen Nicolet



One of my goals before 2019 is to
create a home that feels spacious and light.
To create a refuge from the chaos outside and in my mind.
We’ve been clearing a lot of stuff in the house this month
and it’s slowly coming together.

Just A Reminder

Words & Photography
by Kristina Nissen



Oh just a reminder
to love yourself.

Do Not Let Carlos Help

Words & Photography
by Chantelina Gauthier



Spent a good chunk of my night watching my tv series
and wrapping the kids' Christmas gifts
before they find them in my closet.
Note to self- do not let Carlos help, he likes to eat dried oranges.
Yes, those little feet belong to Carlos.

Our Kitchen

Words & Photography
by Autumn Boucher



To keep, to freeze, and to gift to sweet neighbors and friends.
Our kitchen gets chaotic and messy this time of year,
but these days I don’t mind.
A lot of teaching and laughing and bonding
and eating good food is happening in there too.

Christmas Countdown

Words & Photography
by Olivia Jane



Growing up I spent hours looking at that
Christmas countdown each December.
My aunt made it for us and it was such a fun
and special way to mark the passing days.
It’s been a treat to see my kids enjoy it for the first time this year.

An Exercise In Letting Go

Words & Photography
by Sarah Box



Exercise in gingerbread making for the kids, exercise in letting go for mama. I always thought I would be a laid back parent, but apparently I’m not, and it’s hard for me to let go of control sometimes.

...I have to remind myself that this is their art, their expression, their experience of the process.

There were many things I wanted to say or do during this exercise- "Don’t make the grumpy gingerbread man!",  "Too much frosting!",  "You’re getting it everywhere!" But I have to remind myself that this is their art, their expression, their experience of the process. Hearing them be so proud of their creations, knowing that their contributions are valued, is more beautiful than any perfectly piped cookies. Free to frost, and free to be.

Old Homes

Words & Photography
by Kimberly Stavros



Old homes have this way of coming alive at certain times, like the memories are locked within the wood and plaster and start to wake at certain moments.

There have been 123 Christmases celebrated here, and I wonder what Christmas looked like 100 years ago here, and what traditions the family that built this house celebrated.

There have been 123 Christmases celebrated here, and I wonder what Christmas looked like 100 years ago here, and what traditions the family that built this house celebrated. It's an amazing gift to be here now, keeping the Christmas traditions alive and well in this old home

Do Something Different

Words & Photography
by Sarah Copeland



I read something great today that I don’t want to forget: if you’re stuck, do the opposite of what you would normally do. In short, do something different. Easy, right?

Breakfasts are golden time in my family—cozy and chill and delicious. Zero drama. But dinner is not our family jam. There are usually arms flying and drinks spilling and someone accidentally getting poked with a fork. I usually try to keep it short and sweet and excuse everyone from the table as fast as I can. Tonight though, as the snow started falling fast and hard, I heard that little phrase: “do something different.”

But dinner is not our family jam. There are usually arms flying and drinks spilling and someone accidentally getting poked with a fork. I usually try to keep it short and sweet and excuse everyone from the table as fast as I can.

My first thought was—candlelight! So I lit candles, dimmed the lights, put on French cafe radio, and whipped some cream for pumpkin pie after our otherwise standard dinner (poached salmon, quinoa, baked sweet potatoes). Guys, dinner tonight was a DREAM, especially the part where the kids took their plates to the sink and spent the next two hours outside playing in the snow while I chilled inside by candlelight.

Feeling restored and I can’t wait to try something different tomorrow too, like, maybe, baked donuts on a school day (or having dad pack school lunches). Winter, I’m ready for ya.

Oklahoma City

Words & Photography
by Brittany Viklund



Where is the place you call home and why? I was born in southern CA, and lived there until we moved to New Mexico when I was ten. I moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma in 2011, and then two years later moved to Oklahoma City with my (at the time) boyfriend whose job moved him.

I got engaged and married in Oklahoma City. We bought our first house here, adopted three cats and a puppy, raised five foster kittens and one foster dog. Had two babies and one miscarriage. All of our babies' "firsts" have been here. I never thought I’d be in Oklahoma more than a year, and now I honestly can’t imagine myself anywhere else, even though at this point in our lives my husband’s work no longer keeps him here (he now works on his organization’s national team and could ultimately live anywhere).

We bought our first house here, adopted three cats and a puppy, raised five foster kittens and one foster dog. Had two babies and one miscarriage. All of our babies' "firsts" have been here. I never thought I’d be in Oklahoma more than a year, and now I honestly can’t imagine myself anywhere else...

Our roots are here and they are deep, despite the fact that none of our family lives anywhere close to us. We’ve started to talk about where we see ourselves, especially when the education of our boys comes into the conversation. It’s weird for us, we have no requirement to be here whatsoever, and yet we are consciously choosing to be here.

I don’t know what the future holds for us, so I collect keepsakes of the present moment, just in case our last days in Oklahoma sneak up on me before I realize it. This Mapiful print has the hospital at the lake where both of the boys were born, which was also the lake where Pat asked me to marry him. It has our wedding venue. Our favorite taco spot (Big Truck!). Our first apartment as newlyweds, and our first home. It has the downtown streets we used to ride our longboards on (pre-baby days), the little patch of land where we pick our pumpkins in the fall, and our Christmas tree in December. It captures so much, like the veins of my body, it’s the place that has given me my entire life, no matter where we end up next.

Reading Time

Words & Photography
by Jessica Strausbaugh

With the dark evenings and the cold temperatures outside, curling up in the warm house and reading book after book sounds so lovely. 

I would spend all of my time reading this Winter if I could. I'm really craving it since the time change. With the dark evenings and the cold temperatures outside, curling up in the warm house and reading book after book sounds so lovely. The truth is, I'm not sure I even finished more than one book this whole year. I'm going to start being intentional about taking a little time for myself to read.

How Times Have Changed

Words & Photography
by Chelsea Lybeck

Sometimes it feels like it was only yesterday that I was checking the back seat of the car every five seconds to make sure my little 5lb. peanut’s neck was supported in her infant carrier.

Sometimes it feels like it was only yesterday that I was checking the back seat of the car every five seconds to make sure my little 5lb. peanut’s neck was supported in her infant carrier. Other times, it feels like I’ve been throwing french fries at her in her car seat non-stop for like seven years to keep her from banshee screaming when she’s hungry. Oh, how times have changed.

Go Explore

Words & Photography
by Melissa Landrus



We gathered our knits, layer upon layer, and made the trek to our little piece of heaven. It was in the 30’s yet we still went! At the beginning of the year, I made a goal to take more hikes, get lost in nature, and teach my children to love the wild—to be wild. I am proud of them. I am proud of myself.

At the beginning of the year, I made a goal to take more hikes, get lost in nature, and teach my children to love the wild—to be wild. I am proud of them. I am proud of myself.

If I could give you one piece of advice today, it would be skip the playground and get lost! Go explore...touch, find, listen, breathe. There is so much beauty yearning to be found and to soak in. These sweet times have been growth for myself and the girls. They have taught us peace and patience, how to slow down, and how to never lose our wonder.

Child-Free Time

Words & Photography
by Hannah Straughan

May you have a little piece of adult-only time in your week ahead, and may you not feel an ounce of guilt in relishing it.

Child-free time. Goodness me, I love the [tiny, dinosaur-adorned] socks off my boys, but let’s not be under any illusions that any of us can have a healthy mind without a little bit of it. May you have a little piece of adult-only time in your week ahead, and may you not feel an ounce of guilt in relishing it.

Mastering A Technique

Words & Photography
by Mandy Tetrault

"Once you have mastered a technique,

you hardly need look at a recipe again

and can take off on your own."

- Julia Child

Once you know how to make this one dough, there are so many recipe opportunities!

Did you know that the dough used to make this lovely, savory, braided bread is the same brioche I use to make my lime-cream-cheese breakfast bread? It is! Once you know how to make this one dough, there are so many recipe opportunities! Want to know a secret? The cream cheese filling for the breakfast bread will be the same filling used in the cream cheese and blueberry galette I’ll be posting later this week. Master a technique or two and you can truly go off on your own!

Slowing Down

Words & Photography
by Cloe Thomson



Do you ever get the sense that life is telling you to slow down? I’ve always struggled with trying to keep up and do all the things.

So yesterday at work when a massive cupboard door literally came off its hinges and fell right into my head, I took it as a sign (after tending to my headache and huge goose egg on my face). It definitely got me thinking about the bigger things in life: What if it had been worse? What would I have done? What if I had a really bad head injury? How would I work? How would I be a mom?

Gosh, life is too precious to waste my days trying to keep up. Trying to do all the things. Who cares if my home isn’t perfectly styled or if my kids are wearing clothes with stains? Really, those little things don’t matter. 

Gosh, life is too precious to waste my days trying to keep up. Trying to do all the things. Who cares if my home isn’t perfectly styled or if my kids are wearing clothes with stains? Really, those little things don’t matter. Know what I mean?

Terrible Twos

Words & Photography
by Carla Natalia Thompson

I’ve cried, I’ve laughed, I’ve screamed, I’ve felt guilty, I’ve needed space, I’ve needed all his love. It’s definitely a roller coaster of emotions.

This season of motherhood has been a hard one since Atticus is in his "terrible twos". I’ve cried, I’ve laughed, I’ve screamed, I’ve felt guilty, I’ve needed space, I’ve needed all his love. It’s definitely a roller coaster of emotions. In the midst of all the crazy, I love our relationship, I love his personality, I love our jokes, I love who he is.

Another Day

Words & Photography
by Chelsea Mohrman



Another day, another sink full of dishes to clean
and basket full of laundry to fold.

The Lesson Could Wait

Words & Photography
by Rasheda Jackson



Earlier today, I was picking up the children's toys in the living room. When I turned around, Richie was walking toward me with my coffee cup filled with coffee. He had the sweetest smile on his face. To be honest, I had forgotten that I had made myself a cup of coffee, as I often do. It was barely warm so he didn't get burned, thankfully, and he carefully brought it to me without spilling it. He wanted me to sit down and drink the coffee.

My initial thought was to tell him not to touch Mommy's cup of coffee again because he could get burned, but my 3-year-old son wanted me to take a break and enjoy my cup of coffee. And that's just what I did.

My initial thought was to tell him not to touch Mommy's cup of coffee again because he could get burned, but my 3-year-old son wanted me to take a break and enjoy my cup of coffee. And that's just what I did.

The lesson could wait.