The Story Behind My Son’s Name: A Resurrection Reminder

by Leave a Comment

Two years ago, I was preparing to welcome a new life into the world. My due date was April 9th—Easter Sunday. The timing alone felt like a divine appointment after going through a season of grief. As I walked through that pregnancy, I kept reflecting on the significance of Easter: resurrection, renewal, and hope.

During that season, a particular Bible verse stood out to me. It mentioned a colt—a young donkey—tied up, waiting. It was from the story of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem:

“Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to Me.”
—Matthew 21:2 (NKJV)

That verse stirred something in me. The colt wasn’t just a detail—it was part of a prophecy being fulfilled. It symbolized obedience, purpose, and being chosen for something sacred. Even in its youth, the colt carried the King.

The word colt stayed with me, knowing we were looking for a name that started with the letter “C”. I prayed on it, and eventually the name Colter came to mind. It felt strong and gentle all at once. We didn’t know prior to his birth if we’d have a little girl or boy, and we never did settle on a girl’s name

Colt was a name we considered 6 years prior for another child. In my heart, I knew I was meant to have a son named Colt, but when the day came to name that child, Colt didn’t feel right. For a couple of years, I wondered why I had such a strong tie to the name that we never used. I thought maybe someday it would fall to a future grandchild, or a puppy- ha!, since I thought I’d never get to carry another child in my womb.

I praise God that I did get to know the depths of pregnancy and nurturing a newborn again.

This name carries the memory of Easter, of God’s promises, hope after hurt, and of the quiet, powerful ways He uses even the smallest among us for His glory.

So, when my baby boy arrived— 3 days before Easter just as God knew He would, in the most beautiful way, wrapped in love, joy, and peace—I knew without a doubt: his name would be Colter (his brothers names end in “er”.

I’m reminded of that Easter Sunday when we took our 3-day-old baby boy and family to a church so packed full that we watched the service from the church’s basement on a projector. The hope of resurrection, and the tender ways God weaves meaning into our lives.

Colter’s name is more than just a name—it’s a testimony.

If you’re in a season of waiting or walking through something hard, I want to encourage you: hold on to hope. Just like that colt, seemingly unnoticed and tied up, God sees you. He has a purpose for your life that is greater than you can imagine. He can bring beauty out of waiting, joy from sorrow, and life from what feels broken. Easter reminds us that with God, nothing and no one, is ever truly lost—only being prepared for something greater.

Jesus Loves You (and He Hears You!)

by Leave a Comment



“Jesus Loves You.”

Those three little words, whispered from a tiny voice, stopped me in my tracks this morning.  Sweet little Colter was standing at the hallway gate – you know, the one we put up to keep this little one out of the homeschool while his older siblings do their work?  And wouldn’t you know it, the gate was open.

Now, on the other side of that gate was a land of pure toddler temptation.  The computer, the markers, the toys, the books, the math manipulatives, the board games – a whole world of fun just waiting to be explored!  I could practically see the wheels turning in his little head.  He knew he wasn’t supposed to go in there. We tell him, many times a week, that the homeschool room is for when we’re all working together, he isn’t to go alone.

And then, I heard it.  “Jesus Loves You.”  He said it to himself, almost like a little reminder.  And just like that, he turned around and toddled back to me.

It was such a simple moment, but it filled my momma heart to overflowing.

As homeschool moms, we pour so much into our kids. We teach them about God, about right and wrong, about listening to that still, small voice inside.!

We pray that those seeds we plant will take root and grow.  Sometimes, in the midst of the chaos and sibling squabbling, the laundry, the housework, and the never-ending lessons we get to teach, we wonder if it’s really sinking in.

Then, you see a moment like this.  A moment where a little boy, faced with temptation, chooses to listen to that gentle nudge.  A moment where the words “Jesus Loves You” become a guiding light.

It’s a reminder that even when we can’t see it, God is working in their hearts.

The lessons we teach and the prayers we pray are not falling on deaf ears.  They’re being stored up, like treasures, ready to be called upon when needed.

It makes me think of the Holy Spirit, that gentle guide who whispers to us, reminding us of God’s love and leading us down the right path.  Just like Colter heard that little whisper, our children hear it too, and it gives me such hope!  Hope that even when they’re grown and facing bigger challenges, they’ll remember those simple truths we’ve taught them.  Hope that they’ll always turn to Jesus, even when the world is pulling them in another direction.

It’s a reminder to me, too, to keep planting those seeds. To keep speaking truth and love into their lives.

You never know when a little “Jesus Loves You” will make all the difference.  And isn’t that what we all want, to raise children who love God and walk in His ways?

What little moments have reminded you that God is at work in your children’s hearts? I’d love to hear about them in the comments!

Our Words May Echo

by Leave a Comment

I recognize the Lord telling me that the words I say, the phrases I repeat, and the tone I use today will echo for more than just my years here on Earth. What comes out of my mouth will carry through my children and their children’s children.

What an honor that could be if we allow the Lord to work through us.

How we parent in ordinary everyday moments matters. Our children regulate their emotions and learn their responses through us. Those same responses they may someday teach the children in their lives and so on.

The cycle, whatever it may be, good or bad, will continue regardless.

So you might as well be a good person. A truly very good, loving, caring, person. Resist evil, lies, blaming, impatience, and anything that doesn’t bring honor and glory to the Lord.

Do your best, and keep doing your best, until your best is better than you ever imagined it could have been. Impress yourself!

Take a couple of minutes for a hug in the morning (and again in the afternoon and evening). Yes, even with your teens, or maybe especially with your teens.

Intentionally make eye contact.

Ask open-ended questions, and listen for the answer before jumping to the next thing.

I know parenting is never-ending, but let’s be grateful for that. That means we get to keep on refining our skills each day that we are here.

📷: @justgivingthanks

Quick Life Update: November 2022

by Leave a Comment

Surprise!

This summer I have been quieter here on the blog, yet making plenty of noise over on social media. Take a peek at our announcement on Facebook and a slightly different one over on Instagram.

The Lord has given my body the opportunity to carry another little one! After 2 years of intentionally and carefully healing my body from toxic burden/mold illness, and the grief we have been walking through with the loss of my nephew, this hardly seems real. There were days I felt like the “sun” may never shine upon our family again. Yet, the Son of God does. This doesn’t erase the hurt, but it does remind me that there are brighter days ahead and joy is still possible on this Earth.

While I am always able to see that God is still Good, maybe almost in an annoying way to some, there were days that I asked God, “what are we even doing here now?”

How do we move forward in a way that honors the Lord, and the life of my nephew? I’m not sure I have the answer to that, other than to take nothing for granted, love deeply, and keep pursuing Him.

I am so grateful for this gift of life growing within my womb.

Lord-willing we will be meeting this little one sometime in April of 2023.

That all said, I do know that this news may bring mixed emotions, maybe even sadness to some of you readers, due to your own losses or maybe because you are desperately longing to grow your family and God has you in a season of waiting. Please know I am not oblivious to your hurt.

Obviously, I understand tough seasons. I have so much compassion for where you are.

I remember walking the path of infertility while watching other families grow, some even dispising the position they were in, complaining that they were pregnant again, like it was something that just happened so easily and it was more of a burden than a blessing.

I had a Nurse Practitioner once tell me “Maybe this is just Mother Nature’s way of saying you shouldn’t have more children” as she looked at my children in the room with her nose turned up. Whether she meant that with ill intention or not, THAT comment stung for a lot of years.


For the past several months I’ve been meditating on Acts 1:7, which says:
Jesus said to them, “The Father is the only one who has the authority to decide dates and times. They are not for you to know.

May these words remind you, as much as they remind me, that the God we serve has a plan, and He is the authority when it comes to timing. He sees the things that we cannot. He knows what the years ahead will hold. He sees you and me both in the waiting, in the hurting, and in the healing.

Yes, for if we stay the course, there WILL be healing.

While my heart is filled with gratitude for this precious little babe, it is still grieving so dang hard for the way I feel about my incredible nephew not being here with us. I know he is in Heaven, I have zero doubts about that. When I think of him, I smile, because I LOVE that he is with Jesus. That’s my end game too; being with our Savior.

When I think of the rest of us here and what we feel in his absence, my heart hurts, and my eyes fill with tears. Please, take no pity on me over this, I just want you to know in your moments of gratefulness that may sometimes be intertwined with grief, you.are.not.alone.

I never understood the highs and lows of life at the depth that I do now. I am choosing to say: Thank you, God, for your comfort in trials, and for your refining process as I continue to learn and grow in your grace.

Wife + Momma

by Leave a Comment

There isn’t an easy way for me to adequately describe the depth of the joy and honor that I feel to be the wife and mother of this family. The love I have for this tribe is overwhelmingly beautiful, intense, and never-ending.

Gathering around the table for homemade apple pie (my grandma’s recipe) will always hold a special place in my heart.

I imagine the days ahead when my children might make this same treat for their families, and the heart behind the tradition continues to deepen with each generation.

I wonder how they will tell the stories of their childhood. Will they remember the love and dedication we all had for each other? Will they forget the little spats and disappointments?

Will they connect with their families over food, recreation, or something else? Will meals around the table be a priority for them, as we’ve made it here?

Will they willingly work with their hands to provide nourishment for themselves and the tribe around them?

When they fall in love, will it be forever?

I’m excited for the future, while still fully embracing the present moments that are here and now.



No matter how life goes on this side of heaven, I know this to be true, God is always good. 💕

Favorite Bible For Pre-Teen and Teen Boys

by Leave a Comment

If you are looking for a great bible for a pre-teen or teen, and really, boy or girl, I encourage you to check out The Action Bible. Our son, who is now 14, loves this book! When he first got it he was 10 years old and the graphic images were a little startling. It did not make a great bedtime story in that season!

We put it on a shelf and let him go to it when he was ready. As he got older it has been his go-to for free reading. He loves sharing it with his friends and has taken it to church on occasion to show the kids in his Confirmation class.

We also purchased the Audible Version of this title. My husband, Mr. Awesome, went through this whole book with the kids using the audiobook and physical book (almost TWICE!) to create a fun experience. The audiobook is VERY well done!

There is also a devotional in this series that we have, but that is totally optional. We’ve found that has spent more time on the bookshelf than in the hands of the owner.

We also have the Easter Story on Kindle from this series and it is equally engaging as God’s Redemptive Story!

Our Easter Sunday Outfits

by Leave a Comment

DEAR MOMS OF LITTLES WHO ARE GETTING READY FOR THE EASTER SUNDAY SERVICE AT CHURCH, OR SOME BIG FAMILY GATHERING- I just want you to know that 3 out of my 3 children are wearing the same clothes they wore last week to church, and 2/3 of those kiddos may have pulled their clothes straight out of the hamper for mom to wash “real quick”. Well, Mom may have forgotten, and now it’s 1 am and I’m tired! So guess what? I’m delegating the spot cleaning to Mr. Awesome & the kids will never know the difference (not that they actually were concerned with appearances anyway, that’s my gig).

The point here is JUST DO WHAT YOU GOTTA DO and GO WORSHIP JESUS. No one cares about the clothes, and seriously if they do, BE BOLD and ask them to kindly help you out with your wardrobe situation for next Sunday! ha!

I love ya, moms!

PS. I still don’t know what I’m going to wear, and that’s OK.

You Can’t Give it if You Don’t Have it- So Get It!

by Leave a Comment

trains

As I got ready for bed one night this week I walked past this sight, in the middle of my living room floor.  Our cat, who we call #slightlybetterbrownie on social media, was checking out the tracks left out by my kiddos.

Normally I would’ve told the kids to clean them up before bed, but I was away that evening so I couldn’t suggest a 10 second tidy.  My husband, Mr. Awesome, is the laid-back parent who ignites their creativity and doesn’t mind the little messes.  We’re a good balance that way.

These trains from IKEA have entertained the creativity and curiosity of my children for years and years.  They couldn’t imagine parting with the whole set, yet they offer pieces to their friends, when they show an interest in them.  I always giggle and think, what could their friends do with just a handful of pieces and one train? I admire the generosity of my children anyway.

For some reason the other night I just stopped and stared at these trains, thinking of how they remind me of my relationship with Jesus.

I LOVE Jesus, and can’t imagine Him not being in my life.  I mean, I am more than willing to offer up what I know to help others, to actively seek to gain knowledge that I feel Him leading me to so I can help His people.  I will go to bed worn out time and time again from a full day of serving His people, and praying over His people.  I will cry big heavy tears of joy or sorrow and give all that I can when He calls me to.

I can do this because I am His, and He is mine.  I am renewed and refreshed in Him and through Him each day.

A couple times a year we visit IKEA and we almost always end up coming home with a new set of tracks.  They’re affordable and I imagine they’ll last a life time.

THAT is how my kids can keep offering out their tracks, because they are being replenished.

In order for me to keep offering out myself, I have to be replenished too.

Some of the ways I do this are through attending church, reading scripture from my Bible or my phone (I love the YouVersion Bible app’s home screen widgets and their reading plans), reading inspiring blogs, listening to friends who encourage me,  and through physical rest.

Two final thoughts:  1. If a stash of something isn’t replenished it will run out. 2. Someone else may be replenishing your stash and you might not even know it.

Teaching Him To Sew

by 1 Comment

IMG_20151203_223701

My little guy is HARD on his clothes.  I swear he doesn’t mean to be, he just lives life fully.

He had been wanting to learn how to sew for quite some time; I always had an excuse as to why he wasn’t ready.

Really, I wasn’t ready.

It’s work, and the machine was expensive.  He was too young, I was too busy.

I hardly ever drag it out anymore, but I had a burning desire to sew a quilt, so I went with it.

Then he saw the sewing machine asked again… “Hey, can I try to run that thing?”  “Can I just push the pedal?”

Alright. 

It was important to me that he didn’t just do it for fun, but that he would appreciate the value of the machine, and the work that it could do with the help of his two hands and a foot.

Backstory: Since he was a toddler he has been watching me sew off and on.  For the past 6 years each time I’d get my machine out he would watch the way my foot controlled the pedal, and how that pedal told the needle to bounce up and down.  He studied how the thread went into the machine, wrapping around all sorts of things, then being finely threaded through the needle.  He had turned the power switch off and on a dozen times to see the way it controlled the light.

I don’t know why I didn’t teach him sooner, I honestly think it was pure laziness on my part.

He was ready, and finally one day this winter, I was too.

We got out the machine and he stitched up a hole in the sleeve of his favorite Spiderman shirt.  The pride on his face after a job well done was THE BEST!

It was a simple stitch, but we all start somewhere, right?

Yes, he’s a guy… Yes, I am teaching him to sew.

I am appreciative of guys who have a natural curiosity for learning new things.  I think this 8 year old little fella of mine will be a man with many hidden talents, just like his daddy, and just like my dad.

The first time I heard my dad, a biker who has always worked maintenance jobs, play Yankee Doodle on a ukulele I was blown away!  I knew he could fix anything, I knew he was kind, I knew he was incredible at public speaking, I knew he could cook- but I did NOT knew he could play a string instrument.  And I was already a teenager at that point!

I think my son will impress people like that someday too; That is if I keep following his lead and teaching him the things he wants to learn, or find someone who is able to mentor him in a trade he is interested in.

A Toy They All LOVE: Pattern Blocks by Learning Resources

by 1 Comment

PatternBlocks1

We’re snowed in and enjoying our traditional post-Christmas morning. Ordinarily the kids would all be off in separate rooms happily occupied with their new toys, while Mr. Awesome and I continue trying to assemble whatever hasn’t been put together yet.

This post contains affiliate links.  Visit my disclosure tab for more details

This year though, the kids all woke up and gathered on the living room floor to play with little sister’s new pattern blocks from Learning Resources. It was such a sweet sight to see!

From ages 3-13 each of my kids are enjoying these blocks! I regret not buying them at the beginning of the school year when I was purchasing our 2015 homeschool curriculum.

I printed off some pattern block templates from PreKinders last night and laminated them front and back. Prior to this my youngest was sorting them by color into her new pots and pans for her kitchen.  That kept her busy for hours yesterday!

We also ordered the set of pattern blocks that came with cards, but those haven’t arrived yet. I think they will be a New Year’s Eve present (that’s a thing, right?).

I prefer wood toys, but after reading reviews about the color coming off of the wood pattern blocks by the same makers, I decided to go with the plastic ones. The wood may have been just fine, but I didn’t want to take any chances with our beige carpet.  These plastic ones have not disappointed us at all!  Even my husband and I have been playing with them…. for the kids, ya know? 😉

Anyway, I just wanted to share in case you have been on the fence about these. We’re loving them!

Disclosure

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This site contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you click and purchase, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting A Slightly Better Life!