Here we are, nearing a year since her passing, and I still don’t regret sharing openly about her and our stillbirth story. Grief still seeps in on big days and ordinary, everyday moments. In honor of what I’m calling her “birth month” (June), I wanted to share the story and meaning of her name.
Read MoreFriends, in case you didn’t know, I’m thrilled to share with you we have moved to the UK! Bristol, England, to be exact. On Monday, March 25th, we boarded a flight with our two boys and kissed Texas goodbye. While, yes, the move is temporary… we packed all we could into our three checked bags and started our travel across the pond. The boys did great, but I’ll share more about traveling with toddlers later. For now, let’s connect some dots. Since this Facebook post and this Instagram reel, questions have poured in. So, I’ve decided to end the post with a Q+A of sorts. But first, I’ll share how we even got to this decision:
Read MoreOn June 14, 2023, I delivered our third child, stillborn.
These past six weeks have held some of the deepest pain I have ever experienced. And while writing, for me, has always been therapeutic, I began to sense God’s leading to share our story. I just hope a mom out there - somewhere, anywhere - feels less alone about miscarriage, pregnancy loss, and/or stillbirth upon reading this.
Read MoreIt’s been ten months since I’ve shared anything on this blog. Ten months, too long. No blogs about Josiah and his cleft journey, no further pregnancy blogs, no baby Abner blogs (though he most certainly is now out of the womb, praise God, and growing like crazy), no ministry-related blogs, travel blogs, or recipe blogs. Nada.
I was on a flight to London in late June and I found myself looking around wondering…
Read MoreHardest secret to keep from y’all but n0w it’s out so let’s TALK about it! I figured a timeline may help break it all down and help keep me on track. (I’m prone to ramble, ha!) But whatever you do, please read until the end. I have something important to share down there.*
Read MoreHave you ever thought about the fact that while in the water in order to drift all you have to do is. . .
nothing. Absolutely nothing. Do nothing and you drift.
It may be slow. Probably subtle. A little wave here, another wave there. But nonetheless, if you do nothing, you’ll drift. The same thing happens to us spiritually. When we do nothing, we can drift away. And that is undoubtedly the resounding heart beat of Christine Caine’s new book, “How Did I Get Here?”.
Read MoreBe advised, Josiah’s palate repair was the hardest thing we’d done on this journey so far. This read may seem heavy, really heavy. But by the end you, parents to cleft warriors or faithful reader, will find hope. As we have. Because as dark as the night may be, the light always overcomes it. Now, let the hour by hour breakdown of this surgery day begin.
Read MoreI’m just going to get right to it, over the past holiday season our family experienced a big transition. And I’m excited to finally talk about it with you all in this way! Often times we only talk about God “opening doors” in the sense of a new door to walk through. But have you ever considered God may open a door in a way of communicating, “that was it” “you’re done here” “let’s move on to the next thing” “time to go” “walk away” “you’re work here is done”?
Read MoreI sat here not knowing how to come to you all after months of not blogging, writing, creating or speaking while endless thoughts swirl my mind and even greater emotions penetrate my heart. And the truth is, there’s just no other way to say this…
Read MoreWhat a crazy time, right?
Life has changed for many of us, for some in more drastic ways than others, but we are all still doing our best to get adjusted. Whether we like it or not, this is our current reality. I, like I’m sure many, sometimes have to combat negativity and the temptation to just sit on the couch with the news or Netflix running 24/7 and wait for everything to end and then go out and do all the things like normal. But instead of giving in to laziness, I have challenged myself to at the very least implement some healthy daily habits to help me make the most of every day. Yes, Carpe Diem during a global pandemic!
Read MoreWhen life suddenly changes, what do you rest assured in?
When you find yourself in the darkest of night, what lights your path?
When you’re pressed and crushed on every side, what do you cling to?
These words which will never pass away, HIS WORDS, are what I must place all my hope and trust in.
I wanted to share Josiah’s lip surgery a little more in detail for those interested. My hopes with this blog post is to enlighten any of our friends and family or future cleft parents curious about how surgeries go for cleft cuties. I’ve included pictures and video, as well as a packing list and tips for any parent of a cleft baby.
Read MoreHis birth story was nothing like I had imagined or planned. [Disclaimer: I plan to share it ALL. The good, the bad, the unforgettable. You’ve been warned.] And I think I’ve put off writing it out because perhaps it has been haunting me in a way. I mean, when you drive past the hospital you labored and delivered at and you start to get emotional 4 days postpartum, something may be up. And I don’t mean the happy emotional. . .
Read MoreAt 19 weeks pregnant, Calvin and I headed to my doctor’s office for the anatomy scan. This is where we are able to see the baby through an ultrasound and where we’d normally find out the gender of our baby. However, just minutes after our ultrasound, our doctor had other news for us… she told us the ultrasound tech suspected a cleft lip on the right side of baby’s face.
Read MoreGet the matching outfits, prep the roast, plan for family coming in, clean the house for Easter lunch, get the baskets ready, hide the eggs…
We fall into the Hallmark holiday musts that we hardly observe the true meaning of a sacred holiday. And how on earth is GOOD Friday even actually good? How do we observe or yet, celebrate a day when the Son of man was beaten, hung on a cross, crucified and left to die?
Read MoreIf you know us, it’s no secret that Calvin and I both love God and love His word. With our very first baby on the way, we undoubtably desire to teach our little one about God and look forward to watching his or her knowledge of Him grow.
Read More That’s right! In case you didn’t know because you aren’t on social media or I haven’t seen you in person lately: WE’RE PREGNANT!! I have a lot to say about this so I hope you’re ready for some good reads that will be broken into multiple blog posts! ;) But before I start. . .
To anyone on the journey to parenthood I want to say: I see you.
16 years later since I first became a Christian…
and I still want more.
I’ve decided to share a very real and raw conversation I had with the Lord recently. But first, let me give you some context:
I DON’T HAVE THIS DOWN.
Hear me out. I still struggle to understand every single day that my identity is God given, not self or others given. Let me explain…
Read MoreFriend, I get it. I've been there.
I was horrible at it, too. Reading the Bible was not my forte. I thought this struggle would go to the grave with me.
Crystal Williams is a writer, speaker, and mentor focused on delivering honest stories to encourage others in their walks of faith.
