Hi friends,
It's been a minute since I've shared something personal here, and honestly, this one feels important — like the kind of thing I need to put into words so I can carry it forward with intention.
My word for this year is home.
Not in the sense of square footage or decorating or finding the perfect place to live. I'm talking about what home means for our little family of three — and how we're building that together, wherever we are.
Frank is growing so fast it makes my heart ache in the best way. Travis and I are settling into this new rhythm of life as parents — the early mornings, the tiny socks everywhere (and yet, somehow still not able to find matches in our laundry), the way our days now revolve around naps and bedtime stories and stolen moments of quiet when we can just breathe.
And somewhere in the middle of adjusting to this beautiful, exhausting season, I've realized something: home is my priority.
Not in a way that sounds like I'm pulling back from the world entirely — but in a way that feels like finally listening to what I've known deep down for a while now. I feel called to be in my home, with my family, first and above all.
That means I'm going to be a lot more intentional about what I say yes to this year. Even if an opportunity looks great on paper — even if it's exciting or flattering or seems like something I should do — I'm giving myself permission to say no if it doesn't serve my family, my home, or the life we want to build together.
I'm not interested in doing all the things anymore. I'm interested in doing the right things — the ones that let me be present for Frank's milestones, that give Travis and me time to connect at the end of long days, that make our home feel less like a place we pass through and more like the center of everything.
So this year, I'm choosing us. I'm choosing slow mornings and family dinners. I'm choosing bedtime routines and cozy evenings on the couch. I'm choosing to build a life that feels handmade — stitched together with intention, warmth, and love.
Home isn't just a place. It's the moments we create, the rhythms we establish, the way we show up for each other day after day. It's in the laughter over breakfast, the way Frank reaches for us, the quiet evenings after he's asleep when Travis and I finally get to just be.
I don't know exactly what that will look like yet. I'm sure there will be moments when I second-guess myself or feel like I'm missing out. But I also know this: there's nothing I want more than to look back on this season and know I was here — really, truly here — for all of it.
Home isn't just where we live. It's where we love, where we grow, where we create the memories that will hold us together through everything else.
And that's worth building.
💛 Jenn