I've been working on my website, podcast and blog for the past few months, but, in reality, I've been planning them for YEARS.
You see, I've always enjoyed writing. I even wrote a book a few (read: 10) years ago. (You can check out that book and buy one or 50 for yourself here.) But, then life happened. Kids happened. Mortgages and car payments happened. Writing and speaking and books were put on the back burner. There just wasn't time to pursue those dreams.
Oh, the dreams were still there. They may have been dormant, snoring giants, but they were there. It just wasn't the right season. Until now....
Let that be encouragement to you young mothers out there. You won't always have children hanging off your body or zero free time. There will come a day when your kids can sit (relatively) quiet for 30 minutes and you can do WHATEVER YOU WANT!! Rejoice with me!
My kids are all school-aged now. My youngest started kindergarten last year and so, naturally, I figured the "big dream" would begin that fall. Nope. Didn't happen. I think I needed a "bonus year" to figure out my life.
I had been a stay-at-home mom for over 10 years. Ten years since I'd updated my resume, ten years of technology changes in my fields of expertise, and ten years since I'd had to wear anything dressier than yoga pants.
I had no idea what was next for me. I talked to people in my industry. I took a crack at my resume. But, nothing resonated in my heart.
It finally got to the point where I asked my husband, Michael, "What am I good at again?"
His reply: bringing the heart.
And he was right. Of course, I might not have been able to summarize that into bullet points on a resume, but it captured the essence of how God has wired me and how He uses me.
I bring love, encouragement and authenticity into relationships, gatherings and groups. I love people. I encourage them. I share my life vulnerably in hopes of connecting and uplifting.
I believe we all have stories to share and we're better when we belong to each other. We're at our best when we celebrate each other rather than compete with each other. There's more than enough joy, success, and admiration to go around. We can all win!
So, this is the beginning of my new season. The beginning of what I hope will be a community of "heart people." A movement of love, encouragement and authenticity.
Thank you for joining me in this adventure. I hope you'll find camaraderie here. I hope you'll find "your people."
PS: This site wouldn't exist without the brilliance of Angela Meijer. You can learn more about Angela's ministry through design here. Thanks also to Nathian Stier (www.thevinepro.com) for his video found on my speaker page.