Every Story starts somewhere
I believe in fairytales and happily ever after.
I believe it’s better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all.
I believe we are more than what has been done to us.
I believe it’s always more about the journey than the destination.
These beliefs weren’t handed to me neatly wrapped. They were formed slowly, surely, and through lived experiences, the real, everyday messy kind.
I grew up in a home where my parents fought demons of their own. My childhood was a roller coaster of high highs and low lows. When things were “good,” there was deep, high-control religion, strict rigidity, and a firm focus on appearances. When things were low, there was alcoholism, chaos, and all the fallout of bad decisions.
Ultimately, my dad lost his fight to suicide when I was 15. The aftereffects were everything you’d expect dark, lonely, and grim. But even at 15, I knew I wanted to build a good life in spite of the darkness. I knew I wanted to be kind. I knew I wanted to create change. I knew I wanted to live a large, full life. I didn’t know how to make that happen, but isn’t that what teenage life is all about?
Maybe that’s just life in general: figuring out who you want to be, and how to become.
A few years later, after trying to pick up the pieces of that chapter, I met my forever-and-always, my ride-or-die soulmate, Ryder. We fell quickly, 23 days in, we were engaged. Both of us completely certain that life would be better if we were doing it together. We took a few months to plan a small and simple wedding, married within the year, and began our happily ever after.
You’ll often hear me say that God knew my life was going to be hard, so He blessed me with a marriage that is as easy as breathing. First came love, then came marriage, then came the house that needed all. the. renovations. (Go ahead and ask us what project we’re working on right now, I guarantee there’s at least one. )
Not long after, we stepped into parenthood. Our journey began with our angel baby, Sebastian. Twenty-two weeks of pregnancy and only a few minutes earth side introduced us to loss in the deepest, harshest way. There are moments you can point to in life and say, I was one person before this, and someone else entirely after. Losing Sebastian was that moment for us.
Choosing to try again came with more nerves than I could ever explain. Much to the surprise of our friends and family, our next pregnancy was twins (less of a surprise to me, but that’s a story for another time). The twins pregnancy was so complicated it’s been studied by experts since, starting with strict bed rest at 6 weeks, a cerclage surgery at 12 weeks, and 30 more weeks of waiting, praying, hoping.
At 36 weeks, our two incredible babies arrived. (The delivery story is a wild ride in itself.)
Instantaneously these kiddos have had us wrapped around their little fingers. So much so that we braved two more complicated pregnancies to complete our family (at least for now, who knows what the future holds). Our four earth-side kiddos are everything the world needs and more. They are kind, loving, bold, adventurous, hilarious, and full of spunk. We have no idea what we’re doing most days, but we’re having the best time figuring it out together.
Somewhere along the way, a series of small dominos led us into homeschooling, Heartheld, and the life we now get to live; a life full of love, laughter, and little moments that make each day special. It’s in the quiet mornings with tea, the adventures that take us by surprise, and the joy of watching our kids grow and explore the world. This is our happily ever after, not a storybook of perfection, but one that feels full, abundant, and entirely ours.
I’m so glad you’re here.
~ Jasmine
