ALY ALLEN | THE BLOG

this print has a funny story behind it. i originally designed it knowing that it was an important verse for a lot of you, and i thought you might like a cute way to display your mission of parenthood. as i was designing it, i thought, of course, about how i have two little ones at home. and how it's my responsibility to teach them Love, show them Grace, point them to a Savior. to sharpen and mold and ultimately spur on in the direction that God has ordained for them, since before they were born. it's not my choice what they do, but it's my job to help them do it well, whatever it is.  as i was thinking about my two girls, i wondered why i'm so set on having no more kids. if i'm honest, it's because i don't think i'm a good mom [whatever that means], i know i'm failing miserably in a lot of areas, and i'm just pretty sure i shouldn't add any more children to the mix. but this verse caught hold of me as i remembered the incredible bles...

when she was born, you kept your distance. your little world had been rocked, but you weren't jealous or rough or inconsiderate. just a little bit reserved. maybe a bit indifferent, maybe a bit curious. that's your way. you stand back until you see how you fit in. a lot like me. soon enough you began to help in any way you could. i think it was your strategy for getting positive attention from me, a way to keep our relationship strong, to make my life easy. you think about those things and you could tell that taking care of a newborn was hard. you were like a second little mommy to her. you still are. always looking out for her, always letting me know when she's crying, always comforting her. you are a natural big sister. it's a role you were always meant to fill. i know i expect a lot from you. and you will never know how much i pray for discernment and patience and eyes to see you as the three-year-old little girl that you are . i don't want to put all that re...

i still haven't figured out why i always walk over there. sure, i have to buy toilet paper and shampoo, but those are clear on the other side of the store. i try to give myself a pep-talk before i go in, yet somehow i always end up in the little girl's clothing section at Target. and every single time, i find about fifteen things that my daughter absolutely needs to have. and every single time, i walk away with nothing but an ungrateful and disappointed heart. why do i torture myself so? good question. i really don't know why. i do buy clothing for my daughter at Target. but it's when she has absolutely no clothes in her size for the new season, and it's after i budget a certain amount for the month to buy her new clothes. the weekly trips into Target for baby food and toothpaste? as much as i want to throw in a few extra things for her, i just can't do it in this season we're in right now. we're comfortable, we have plenty, but we don't get to...

there's nothing quite like a rainy morning. we always open up the window and listen to the rain and lay in bed a little bit longer. the cool air and the smell. mmmmm the smell of rain. it just smells fresh and new and promising. plus it signals that fall is finally letting her guard down for us. i do love the rain, but sometimes it's a bummer when it rains on your pumpkin patch plans [say that ten times fast]. that's what happened yesterday. we'd planned for a few weeks to head up to the pumpkin patch with some friends, but the minute we woke up, it was rainy and the forecast said rain all day long. we'd been looking forward to it, but i was not excited about the prospects of wetness and muddiness with the kids, so we decided not to go. i was bummed, not because i needed to go to the pumpkin patch so badly, but because i crave quality family time. something other than sitting around the house, since that's what we do most of the week. i always feel ...

today i had one of those crazy shifts in perspective. do you know what i'm talking about? all of a sudden i'm standing there cutting up the pork shoulder to stick in the crock pot and it hits me: i am so blessed to be doing this. all of this. this morning i woke up like any other. you know, an eleven week old baby, crying and hungry. we went downstairs and i made some fresh juice for Reese and myself.  we had orange-pineapple-apple. seriously delicious and refreshing and perfect.  it struck me how much joy i actually get from taking a few pieces of fruit and juicing them up into something yummy and nutritious. something that Reese begs me for every day.  i get joy from that.  i think it's two-fold: that i even have access to nutritious food for my family,  and also that i don't mind doing the work of cutting and peeling and juicing for what would seem like little return. for me, it's a huge return-- nutrition.  and i finally r...

[found here] today, i'm thankful for: our almighty infinite God.  the one who creates, who ordains, who directs, who provides,  who equips, who saves, who redeems, who restores,  who loves more lavishly than I will ever comprehend.  the One who sent His son as the atonement for sin, as the victor over death.  who was and is, and is to come. He who has done great things throughout the ages  and continues now, in my life and yours. He is good.  it would be impossible to adequately express thanks [in words] for what He has done for me. a husband who works hard, today included, doing what he loves.  impacting lives, coaching football, and providing for our little family.  who sees me and notices when I've had a hard day.  who  orders me  to sit on the couch while he prepares for our guests,  cleaning, setting up, serving food [yesterday]. a daughter who could not be more p...

today i am 19 weeks + 1 day pregnant. we had our official, medical ultrasound [where you usually find out the sex, but we already knew it was a girl]. she confirmed that it was in fact a girl, which was no surprise to me. and it looked like everything else was good too. i never want to take for granted the fact that my babies are healthy and all their parts are working properly. i know it could be very different and i know i certainly don't deserve a healthy baby over anyone else. anyway, it occurred to me that maybe you'd want to see some shots of the growing belly? and it is popping out fast! i promise at the end of these 40 weeks people will be asking if i'm sure i'm not having twins [it happened last time, so i fully expect it again]. i discovered it wasn't all that simple to take photos of myself... find the right lighting, find an object to set the camera on that was high enough, make sure it focussed correctly, and then make sure i didn't look like a...

i go to a  large church . i sing in the choir and praise team, with the occasional solo. the music department is  bursting   with talent. i've often heard people say that they don't like our church because it's all a big production, a show. i can understand how it may  look  that way from the outside, but it's so far from the truth. we do have great music, and we have the opportunity to do things that other churches may not be able to do... but i wonder if it would be better to suppress all this talent and not allow it to be used for His glory, so as not to offend anyone? i wonder if it would be better not to bring the gospel to the ends of the earth through a growing television ministry, so we don't look like we're showing off?  i think you know the answer to those questions. anyway, i wrote an email to our choir director/worship leader today because i was completely overcome this weekend by the whole thing. overcome by the power of the resurrection, ...

i didn't have a post prepared for today...  but my daughter woke up a little early  so my husband brought her downstairs to play with her toys  while he finished getting ready for work. as i'm finishing up my quiet time, i hear  "oh buzz, i love you. [breaking into song] i love you so much, i love you so much,  i can't even tell you how much i love you". i walk into the living room to find this: a tea party for buzz and "annie" the dog. "i put cinnamon in it" "buzz. you love it?" "he need more" what could be lovelier?  yes, i snapped [and edited] the photos and pulled together this post in 3 minutes flat.  but they're priceless to me. PS: as i hit "publish" on this post, a frantic [almost] 2 year old little girl came running in: "trash truck here! go see him? go see him!?!" she loooves the trash truck. it's tea parties and trash trucks over here, guys.

spring is in full bloom here in san diego. at least in my little corner, in my yard. we've never seen our house in early spring, so everything is a surprise. when we got home from mammoth a few days ago, we were greeted by three white calla lilies blooming by the front door. i didn't even know that was a calla lily plant? [my wedding bouquet was all calla lilies. i adore them] i don't think i've ever appreciated spring so much. not since i started counting the gifts , noticing the beauty. and certainly not since spring became so symbolic of my life  right now. there is beauty all around. it is breathtaking. so my husband suggested that i cut them off and bring them inside. i'm no floral designer like shauna  ;)  but i just placed them in a simple glass vase, leaning to the side. i love them. i hope they last a long time here on my kitchen table. but if not, i know there will be more where they came from. God is too good. ** to leave a comment, ...

nothing makes you feel worse than going to the doctor for your coughing daughter, to hear that she has a double ear infection, and one side is really really bad... you feel like a bad mom [for a minute] , until you remember your child is not even two, so she's not great at communicating that her ears hurt. and she's generally happy, so i had no idea she was in that much pain. i just thought she wanted to cuddle because she had a cold and cough. poor thing. but these are the times that i'm so thankful for modern medicine, in the form of antibiotics. so, so thankful. i wonder what people did when there were no antibiotics? surely they got bacterial infections? did they use natural remedies? did they even know the difference between viral vs. bacterial infections, to know which remedy to apply? did they just die, like, all the time , from basic ear infections? this is something i'd love to research. it's that history degree i earned, begging to be useful, i guess . any...

i just put my little girl down for her nap. while we prayed, I thanked Jesus for clean water... at the mention of water, of course, she asked me for water. i looked around and there was a sippy cup on her dresser, one outside her door, two across the hall in my room, and undoubtedly three more scattered around the house. we are blessed.  we are fortunate.  we are  wealthy. and when i say  "we" , i don't just mean  me. i mean all of us. just having access to clean water is a luxury that many children do not know. what are we doing with all this wealth, as thousands of children are dying every day and we're concerned with the latest fashion trend that we must own or who was the best dressed at the grammy's or what new reality show everyone is talking about? sometimes our lives are so unrealistic and absurd that i can't even believe it. i hope sometimes you get stirred by the gross injustice and gaping discrepancy, too. when you're stirred, i hope that you a...