If you’re anything like me, sometimes you look back and realize that you forgot (or more accurately, chose not) to dream—forgot (or chose not) to hope, seek joy, or even plan for moments of rest. But friends, dreaming is good. Even in the midst of strange, uncomfortable, and dark days, living with hope matters. I want to challenge you to consider one specific way to seek joy and plan for rest with your family this summer: I give you the SUMMER BUCKET LIST!

In the past year, my own kids have spent a significant amount of time squabbling over toys and snacks… And it’s made me wonder, what small things could we integrate into our daily lives that would yield a future friendship? I voiced this question to my Base Camp staff team, and the immediate response was: Talk to O.J. and Rachael Aldrich. So I did!

In Base Camp, we believe it’s important to help kids identify and validate what they are feeling. That’s why, in partnership with Summit Church’s ReGroup ministry, we created a set of feelings wheels for each age group in Base Camp.

"We all experience the craziness of life, and need a chance to stop and intentionally think about the coming year. This planning process helps you lay a firm foundation so you can be a more level-headed parent. We can make decisions about time, people, and money when we’re in a good, emotionally healthy place; not stressed out on a Tuesday night... This gives us a fighting chance."

On January 12th, 2020 - after 70 months of praying and hoping and waiting to become a mother - I got the call that changed everything. “There’s a birth mother who has picked you and Jake. And she’s having a boy. And she’s in Texas. And she’s in labor right now.” Safe to say, 2020 got off to a real strong start for my husband, Jake, and me.

I believe that small changes in our homes, especially when our children are young, can open them up to a new way of thinking. We don’t have to do things the way we’ve always done them, and Thanksgiving can be more than a commercial holiday. It can be a meaningful celebration of community, interdependence, kindness, sharing, stewardship, cultural differences, and so much more.

When my husband and I were blessed with our sweet daughter, Isabel Bea, we were on our way to the family I had always envisioned. We planned to wait two years, maybe three, until we had our next child. But as we began trying to conceive again, it wasn’t as easy as the first time.

We’ve adapted and settled into new routines this year, but I’ve continued to struggle with finding rest. And, as a parent of young kids, I’ve felt the absence of in-person church services keenly. As I’ve watched Lauren and her husband, Mark, move through this season, deep in the preschool years just like us, I’ve grown more and more curious about their weekly Sabbath. What Lauren shared resonated so deeply with the ache I’ve been feeling in this year full of unknowns and exhaustion. And I can’t wait to share it with you...

When we had our first daughter, I expected that my new role as a parent would be hard and exhausting. But I was surprised at how deeply I struggled in that first year. I felt like the very fibers of me were unraveling, exposing every single imperfection. As much as I wanted to chalk it up to being only a few months postpartum, I knew it was more than that.

Though we reached the end of a season, this last first day won’t truly be the last for Emma. As I wonder what lies ahead for her, I can’t help but reflect on the many first days I’ve already had alongside those yet to come: the first day of college, of grad school, of marriage, of motherhood… the first day of work, of caring for an elderly parent, and eventually the first day of learning to live without parents when they pass on. The constant in all of the first days is God. He redeems all the ugly of uncertainty for my good, though I can only see it clearly in hindsight.