Emily Hoxworth

Peace is knowing all day that dinner is done 🙌

Benjamin Tod

At one point I had to tell Will to stop leaning against me.

He was like "But my feet hurt so bad from these shoes."

I laughed and admitted, "Mine too"
While he decided to wear his fancy shoes, I decided to wear cowboy boots, if you can even believe such a ridiculous thing. (It turns out I'm no cowgirl and will never pretend to be again 😞)

Therefore, both of our feet hurt so bad, at a standing concert, and we both kept shuffling side to side desperate for any relief (proper footwear, apparently, matters now 😭)

In camaraderie,
We stayed for about 3 songs before realizing
We'd rather be in pjs with our babies.

Not so cool after all, folks!
It was a fun ride with my husband to the burgh though lol

Benjamin Tod we will always love you even though we skipped out.

Mondays are marvelous! (Rn atleast 😂 ask me again in a few hours)
Currently, we have the privilege of moving slow and easy.

Stella is a complete force at puzzles.
I'll help guide her but the way she catches on more each and every time is amazing.

The patience it takes in her and the swapping around, and the doubt.
It is an honor to encourage her and see her through it.
(Ill be honest, i dont do this enough. )

I thank God for showing me the importance of stillness this morning. Bc some mornings I feel too busy or like I'm running from spot to spot or unable to be quiet bc otherwise I'm not being "productive."

But somehow, after prayer and quiet time I had alone in the Word and prayer before anyone needed me, today my heart is coming from a place of rest and presence and realizing, "Actually, this matters."

I'll take a slow and easy Monday morning like this over anything
🙌

I hope so bad you get 5-10-15 minutes of complete rest and quiet today. I hope whatever you or I go up against today, i hope we can hold on to this ease and surrender.

I think it might be where the beauty lies.

What I know for sure

To have found a Jadyn Parker has been a gift.
(I believe my mom knew her mom?)
From the moment we met her, when she was still a senior in high school, Will and I loved her.

We loved the way she spoke with Roman about vehicles.
The way she excitedly came up with lesson plans to help him with homeschool.
The way she always showed up.

She is young, but very wise.

And she does things like this while she has our babies.
She draws with them.
Plays.
Talks.
She updates us.

She is truly a treasure.
If I had the money to pay her a salary just to hang out with my kids and be an influence in their lives, I would do it without blinking.

If you are in the Ohio Valley, and are looking for someone to take care of your babies, or older kids, this girl comes highly recommended by me. And I really don't do that lightly.

Thank you so much to our young friend for taking care of them❤️🤟

Brand New
& sitting in a Waffle House hours past our bedtime >>
Marriage has been rocking, i'll tell you!

**We're going to another concert on Sunday and I genuinely don't understand how we got so cool all of a sudden.

Our daughter ❤️

One of the happiest days of my life was finding out she'd be joining us.

It was 2021 when I picked up my Grandma Rose at her little house in Shadyside to drive her up to my mom's.

Rosie looked over at me, dissecting me with her wise eyes and said," You're pregnant?"

I couldn't believe she said that, no one knew I was pregnant again except Will and I.

I wasn't ready to tell anyone yet,
But, I also wasnt gonna lie to my grandma.

"Yes."

She smiled big. " Good. You're going to have a daughter."

It was proven a few months later in an ultrasound, but I love that Rose knew before anyone else.

This little girl has exceeded all expectations.
Our Stella Storm is tough. And sweet. And silly. And firm.

May I be shown the way to raise her how she ought to be 🙏

My mom

When I called her from school sick, multiple times a week, she picked me up every time.
She took me to every specialist from Pittsburgh to Cincinatti. Until we found the answers, she wouldn't stop searching.

When I woke up from a dream that I was on a stage, she told me, "Find an acting class."

When I told her I wanted to move to the beach and live with strangers found on a Craigslist ad, she drove the 9 hours and dropped me off.

When I told her I was gonna get married in 3 weeks, she told me "Let's do it however you want to." And she showed up for every single moment.

To go get the dress. Then the next one. Then the accidental one. That ended up being the right one 😂 (funny story Ill tell you about it soon)

She'd have shown up happily, even if I told her 1 night before.

For all mine and my brothers troubles we've maybe had or not had, she has prayed.
Fought.
Talked back.
Went elsewhere.
Loved.
Always loved.
With the best of her ability.
In every room, she has loved and supported.

She showed up with wedding cakes I didn't order so she could surprise us.
She had placemats out at the restaurant we went to after the wedding and Tea bags in celebration of our marriage.
She had bubbles there for all the kids.

She kept our three babies safe while Will and I went away together for the first time since having kids.
She didn't only keep them alive, she nurtured them.
As she nurtured me.

Will tells me one of his favorite things about me, is the way I nurture our babies.

I only know how to do this out of instinct because of the way she nurtured me.
Always.
In all phases.
She showed me how to take care of them.
So now I can do it myself.

Thank you God for sending me to her.
Thank you God for sending her to Rose, who was the nurturer of all.

Thank you mom, for all you've showed me.
I love you.

Since the 8th of September I have slept...

In an Airbnb in Ohiopyle
In an inn in Ohiopyle
In a cabin in the Poconos
In a hotel outside of Cleveland
In a cabin along a lake on a paddleboarding retreat

This is coming from a person who rarely leaves her house 😂

I have been busy and out of my element,
In all these lovely places with lovely people, by the grace of God, I've held on to intention and grounding and gratitude in my prayers.

The insane childlike admiration of the One Who made it all possible.

Who guides me in everything.

Fully recognizing that nothing that goes on in this life is a result of my own abilities or strengths.

There have been so many circumstances this month where I'm like... that's God right there.

It's been a sweet spot to be in.
A great adventure.
I'll be chilling out( for now haha) and the memories I've made will last me a lifetime.

Thank you letters to my earthside people who have contributed in all the beauty will be coming soon!

Thank you thank you thank you✝️🙏