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We were at the grocery store on Saturday when Reeves spun around, gave me a big hug, buried his face in my belly and said, "I love you, baby!"
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We're still 4 days away from knowing whether or not our #ivftransfer was a success. But I can't help but think about what a beautiful moment we would have missed if we'd held our hopes and joy for this baby off until then.

Reeves might have forever missed his moment of knowing what it is to love--and be fiercely protective of--a younger sibling. Joseph and I might have forever missed that moment of our eyes meeting in shared joy of our sweet boy's spontaneous declaration.
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You see, it took me 20 weeks to hold my tummy and tell Reeves that I loved him. I was so afraid that I would lose him like I'd lost the pregnancy before him. That loss devastated me. So I thought I was protecting myself by waiting with Reeves.
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It was only later that I'd realized my mistake. That I had just deprived myself of 20 weeks of joy because I was afraid of what might happen. And that I might never get to experience those first 20 weeks ever again. It was a hard lesson to learn by experience but because I learned it then, I'm prepared to show up differently this time, come what may.
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Don't wait until "someday" to find your joy. Start today. #livehappy

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Those limiting beliefs? The ones that tempt us to play small in our own lives? Oof, they can pack quite a punch can't they?
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And I don't know that you ever become completely immune to those thoughts. I know I'm not. But you can work to stop those thoughts in their tracks by asking yourself a simple question: ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Is this a story that I'm telling myself?
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As a family, we've made it a point to call each other out on this when we see each other telling stories that don't serve us. Whether it's not assuming the worst when someone cuts us off or when a boy doesn't call (btw, I do not miss dating 😂).
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This one small shift has made such a huge difference in our lives and how we show up in the world. #createthelifeyouwant

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You can tell me your debt freedom date...as long as you tell me your financial freedom date in the next breath. Otherwise 🤷.
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I've said this before and I'll say it again: Being debt free is a short term goal.
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Unless you develop a savings habit--you know, where you actually start keeping some of your hard earned cash so that you can start building some long term wealth--your true financial journey hasn't even started yet.
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If you're under 40, you're going to need something to the tune of $2 million dollars to retire comfortably.
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Two. Million. 💵
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I understand wanting to just focus on your debt. I mean, everyone says you should. Right? And very few people are talking about the $2 million dollar-sized hole in your bank account that you will need to fill over the course of your working life.
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So if you haven't heard this yet, let me be the first to tell you that:
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You don't have to be debt free to reach financial independence. And you don't have to be debt free before you start saving.
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Also, you can have your lattes and your millions too.😉
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It's all about creating a balanced money plan that will help you build wealth and pay off debt, while creating a life that you love. #buildwealth #createalifeyoulove

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We're at the end of our IVF journey. We don't know what the final outcome will be, but either way today marks the start of a new and wonderful phase of our lives.
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It might be that in nine months we'll welcome a new child to our family. Or it might be that we'll be planning our future as a smaller family of three, since Alexis will be heading off to college in the fall.

Either way, there is plenty of joy to be found in both paths.

Just a friendly reminder from me to you to enjoy the journey no matter where it takes you. #choosejoy

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Happy 4th birthday to my wild baby. You light up our whole world.
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You made me a #boymom where a quiet house worries me, while simultaneously helping me grow into abundance because it will wash out, we can fix it, and there's more where that came from.
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You showed me that I could do hard things, when I birthed your 10 pound, 3oz body less than an hour after arriving at the hospital on this very day four years ago. I mean, the first thing I said right after that final push was, "Oh my God, that was the hardest thing I've ever done." And I was a Marine so that's saying something.
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You make me feel old--because your energy far outpaces mine--and young, because you remind me to play every day with nothing and everything.
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You help me slow down. Work less. Be present.
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You remind me that every moment is a gift.
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Thank you.❤️

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I waited fourteen years for this baby...
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I always knew I wanted a big family. I knew I wanted to be that mom that baked amazing snacks. That mom whose house was filled with the sounds of children laughing, fighting, and making up again.
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I didn't know that life--and infertility--would spread my children 14 years apart. Or that I would ever be in a position to understand just how lucky I am to have even been able to birth two healthy babies in the first place (something many of us take for granted).
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I'm reflecting on this today, on the eve of Reeves's 4th birthday, having just spent the night at this very same hotel where Joseph and I took this picture four years ago, and being two days away from my IVF transfer--what may very well be my last and best chance to have a baby.
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Despite our best laid plans, life doesn't always turn out the way that we thought it would. Which is why it's so important to find our joy in the process of becoming and to disinvest from the idea that the outcome must look a certain way in order for all of the effort to be "worth it."
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Remember, life is the thing that happens between your goals. Enjoy the journey. #livehappy

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Having big dreams is scary. This was me at 19, hours away from having my first baby, facing raising her alone with no family support, and determined to give both of us an amazing life--while everyone basically told me I was crazy.
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I didn't have it all figured out. Far from it. In fact, to borrow a line from Frozen 2, all I was focused on was doing "the next right thing" for my tiny family. One small step each day in the right direction.
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Sometimes that next right thing was renting a seedy apartment above a bar because it came pre-furnished and rent was just $325 a month. Which helped me save up enough money to buy my first house by 20.
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Sometimes it was 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒓 so that I could take college classes at night while Alexis slept. Even back then I believed in the power of investing in myself. (And no, all debt is not bad.😉)
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And sometimes it meant walking away from the law career I'd spent over a decade of my life working towards so that I could run my business, have a bigger impact, and have full control of my time and my earning potential.

𝐒𝐨 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐦𝐞, 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭'𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐝𝐨 𝐭𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬❓

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My favorite busy mom life hack: wake up early and take my me time first thing--when my energy is the highest and there are no interruptions.
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How can you become one of these mythical early risers, you ask?
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1️⃣ Go to bed early! Yes, if you want to wake up early and ready to take on the day, you need to actually get to bed early so you can *😲* get enough sleep. My goal is to be asleep and dreaming by 9pm every night.
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2️⃣ Set yourself up for high quality sleep. That means knowing your sleep persona and investing in the right sleep aids. Joseph and I have opposite sleep issues. He's a furnace, always hot. And I'm a popsicle, always cold.
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Luckily @bedbathandbeyond had everything that Joseph and I needed to upgrade our sleep situation without having to resort to 1920s style twin beds: a cooling pillow for him, a dual zone heated mattress pad to keep me warm while letting him stay cool, and a just right down comforter that adds warmth for me without stifling Joseph at night.
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Getting enough sleep and making sure that that sleep is high quality will have you embracing your inner early bird in no time. And so the question is: ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Now that you have an hour or two to yourself every single morning, what will you do with it? #ad

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Throwback to our London vacation from last year. Travel is one of our money rocks--something that we always prioritize when we're setting our budget for the year.
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Last year we went to London. The year before we took a cruise to the Caribbean. The year before that? Singapore. And we've taken a number of smaller domestic trips along the way.
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But would you believe that I didn't even have a passport until I was 30 years old? For so many years I told myself that I couldn't afford to travel. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
All the while I spent hundreds or thousands every month on eating out, on cable that I barely watched, on clothes that I rarely wore--even when my household income was less than six-figures.
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It's not that I didn't know how to budget. I did. In fact, I've been using a one year spending plan for almost 18 years now.
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The issue was that I never stopped to ask myself what was most important to me BEFORE I sat down to make my budget. I never stopped to question whether my spending habits aligned with the life that I wanted. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Budgeting isn't about sacrifice or deprivation. It's about using your money to create the life that you want.

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