... about me ...

I'm so glad you're here!
I always loved the idea of ladies in the neighborhood chatting over the backyard fence, 

or having morning coffee together at the kitchen table.
I think the internet might be the modern equivalent of that kind of community.

One of my very favorite things about the blog world is how quickly you come to feel like you've always been friends with people you've never actually met.  I spent many months clicking around my favorite blogs, wondering how in the world you could be bold enough to enter such a dynamic, lively, inspiring, gracious, beautiful, wisdom filled world.  Writing has always played a big part in my life, so it was rather a natural progression to finally create my own little place on the internet.  Let me tell you a little bit about me ...

Why I Blog

For more than fifty years, my mom faithfully kept Daily Diaries of our family's activities.  I tried follow in her footsteps and keep written family journals, but most of the time by February I'd fizzle out, and now I'm left with calendar journals with mostly blank pages.  I could never manage to lose myself in scrapbooking, either, though I do love a good scrapbook.

Blogging fuses three things I love: writing, taking pictures, and celebrating the joys unique to each season.  It keeps me coming back to capture events, chronicle things we've done, and celebrate the joy we find in the seasons of the year and the seasons of life ... kind of like my mom did with her Daily Diaries.

I also love sharing what I've learned (and am still learning) about being a wife, a mom, a homemaker, a child of God, and the ever illusive best version of me.

We Homeschooled

We homeschooled all four kids kindergarten through 12th grade. When it was time to send our eldest off to Kindergarten I just couldn't fathom sending him off to spend the day with someone else. 

The benefits of homeschooling compound daily, and for us, it's been a source of great blessing for our whole family.  We had lofty reasons for why to homeschool in the beginning, but after 17+ years, in my opinion the greatest benefit is simply the relationships we have with our kids.  

Homeschooling and Stay at Home Mom-ing meant turning in my resignation and leaving my high heels and corporate life behind.  When I quit a fabulous job in the airline industry, it made absolutely no earthly sense.  In fact, it was completely crazy.  But my husband and I wholeheartedly believed it was what God wanted for our family, and God gave us the courage to do it.  He continues to bless us in a million million ways for making that decision, all these years later.

We live in the county

We moved from the city to the country in 2002.  We didn't think we were really affected by the hustle and bustle of the city, but I'm here to tell you life really does have a whole different feel when you're more than half an hour from Walmart.  We call our little piece of Texas Heaven the JustB, and to us it feels like the Promised Land.

It's the JustB for three reasons.  First, because when we moved, we would sit in our lawn chairs every evening and watch the sun set and just soak up the peace.  One night, my husband (LtDan) said, "It makes you want to sit and just ... be."  That was the moment we knew we'd always call it the JustB.  It's also a play on words because our last name starts with the letter B.  And finally, it's a tribute to the One who blessed us with such a wonderful place to live, as spoken in Psalm 46:10, "Be still, and know that I am God."

These are the Sunshiney Corners

I admit in all humility that this blog represents the nicest parts of life ... which are real, though not necessarily the whole picture - or even constants.  The older I get, the more astounded I am at how much more there is yet to figure out, but I'm not a let it all out there kind of girl  (I adore that kind of girl ... but she is not me).  It isn't my intent to be deceptive and paint a picture of a got-it-all-together, I'm-so-awesome-life, but just to put my best foot forward and focus on the things I love that make me happy in hopes that sharing some of the sunny corners of my world might offer you a little joy, too.

Joy in Every Season is the story of our lives here at the JustB, a way to help us remember and treasure the joys of every day life as the seasons change.   I'm delighted you've peeked in on my corner of the internet and hope you come back.  And if you also have a little corner of the blog world, I hope to have the privilege of visiting you, too.