MEET LAUREN & THE FAMILY

WELCOME! I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE HERE!

    Hi! I'm Lauren. I'm a fire fighter wife and homeschooling mother to nine children + two in heaven.  I had four single pregnancies in 2007, 2011, 2013, and 2015.  I got pregnant with 3 sets of twins in 2019, 2021, and 2023.  I miscarried one of my twins in 2023, and I went through another miscarriage in June of 2025.  My husband and I are open to however many children God will give us.  I've been married to my husband Nathan for 16 years.  We live on a few acres way out in the country in an old modular home that was built originally as a farmhouse.  We have a lot of dreams of gardens, some animals, and fixing up our home.  

A FEW FACTS ABOUT ME...

     I was a missionary kid for several years and even lived in Mexico for a year.

     I'm a follower of Jesus. 

    I was homeschooled from k5-7th grade, then attended Christian school from 7th-8th grade (I did half days in 7th grade so I was home the first half of the day and then at school the second half of the day), and finished up in public school from 9th-12th grade.

    I love early mornings with a cup of coffee, a blanket, my Bible, a few books. 

    My grandmother is full Irish.  I'd love to visit Ireland one day. 

    

     I love being outdoors.  I don't get outside nearly as much as I want to but being out in nature is one of my favorite things.  

    

    I got my first film camera when I was 10, my first digital camera when I was 18, and then my first DSLR when I was 23. I taught myself about photography by studying other photographers and reading blog posts etc.  I've basically had a camera on me at all times since I was 10. 

    I've had 1 c-section and 6 vbacs.  I delivered one of my twins breech, and my last baby I delivered standing up which was totally amazing!  I love pregnancy and birth so much and could talk about it all day every day just about. 

ABOUT MY FAMILY...

    My husband and I met when we were just 12 years old.  We spent two years in middle school together before I moved away and we spent basically the remainder of our relationship long distance.  There were a few years where we weren't "a couple"  as long distance became very difficult at such a young age, but we got back together when we were 19.   We were engaged at 20 and married at 21.  He's my best friend, love of my life and my soul mate!  You can read more about "Our Story" HERE.  It's not finished yet, but I'll be working on more posts to add to it soon. 

My husband is a Fire Fighter and also owns his own construction company. 

We have nine children, Ruy (18), Liam (14), Alanna (12),  Jude (10), my twin girls Milla and Mara are 5, my twins Jamie and Fionna are 3, and then Bridget is 1.  Twins were SUCH A SURPRIRSE!   

We feel so blessed and love having a big family.

We are a blended family.  My oldest, Ruy, is my husband's stepson.  Ruy has now graduated from high school and has moved out of our home.  Having an adult child feels so strange!  How does the time go so fast!?   The rest of our children are still at home and are homeschooled. 

Ruy was homeschooled from preschool-4th grade.  After 4th grade, he attended public school for the remainder of his school years.  The rest of our children are homeschooled and this fall marked 14 years of me being a homeschooling mother. (I can't even believe how fast the time went!!!) You can read more about "Why We Homeschool and My Homeschool Style" HERE.

We currently live on a few acres WAY out in the country.  We've been here almost two years now.  How we got here is kind of a wild story.  We lived on about 1.5 acres (with a little creek) in town for 7 years. It was a little ranch style home with 3 bedrooms/2 bathrooms 1050 square feet.  After that we moved to an HOA neighborhood for 2 years.  It was a 2-story home with 4 bedrooms/2.5 bathrooms 2094 square feet and a smaller yard at .34 acres.  We wanted to get out of the HOA (all the rules) and away from having neighbors right on top of us...get back to a place with more land and privacy.  We sold our home, bought an RV, and lived in the RV for two years while we looked for a new home.  The RV was 2 bedrooms/2 bathrooms 410 square feet!!!  I know...it was a wild adventure.  We wanted to find about 10-20 aces and to build a home, but the housing market was crazy and so we had to change plans.  We started looking further out from where we had hoped to live and were able to find a home on a few acres.  The house was an old modular home with a fully finished basement, 5 bedrooms/4 bathrooms 3,200 square feet.   

Our current home is old so it could use some updates, fresh paint, etc. but projects get done slowly around here as we have a lot going on with our large family and my husband working two jobs.  We're just super grateful to have found something in this crazy housing market that fits our family size so well and gives our kids plenty of room to run around outside.  We are an hour away from most things, so eventually we do plan on moving again as we'd like to be closer to our church and have more land...but for now this is home.  We're working on growing a small garden this year, getting some chickens, and painting the interior of the house. 

THE PURPOSE OF THIS BLOG...

I love to document our days as a way for me to always remember my motherhood journey, and to encourage other mothers by sharing what I've learned through the many seasons of motherhood I've walked through. 

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT TO FIND HERE...

Here you'll find reflections and resources centered on motherhood, twins, homeschooling, homemaking, simple living, marriage, and the everyday rhythms of family life. 

In time, I hope to share more practical resources and guidance for mothers who desire a simpler, more intentional way of living...but for now, I'm so glad you're here.

You can follow along on Instagram and/or SUBSRIBE to my email list so you don't miss the newest posts. 

I'm currently creating a course called Mothering with Delight.  If you'd like to follow along and be notified when it's ready, you can join the early waitlist HERE.