A few of my Mother’s Day favorites

Hello, 2023! I’m not sure what you hold, but I sure am hopeful for some good things. I already feel like the wealthiest woman in the world, as we’ve had several weeks of health! It truly feels like everything I could ever ask for.

We haven’t been this healthy for this long since October of 2021. I tear up thinking about how grateful I am for that, and I’m fighting a spirit of fear as we return to school and preschool, knowing that sickness is not a thing to be feared. Holding my head high, declaring “I will not fear!”

We have had the most delightful weekend celebrating Will’s 37th birthday! Really, all the fun started on Monday, which was Halloween (Sing 2, anyone!?), followed by an evening at the Drive Shack for a double date with Emily and John, then Friday we went for a family hike and ate at Torchy’s Tacos with the whole family, and Saturday included a high ropes ziplining course near us and the NC State game! A lot of fun, and I absolutely sabbathed so hard today and took an almost 3 hour nap (hence the late night blogging!)

I’ve been quite inspired lately by a few friends who are simply showing up. Especially in the online space, which often feels cluttered and noisy and salesy and exhausting, and makes me often want to quit.

They show up simply as themselves, with beauty, with perspective that is unique, sharing a thought or an image or a corner of their simple, beautiful life.

And it makes me want to show up.

I was Marco Polo-ing with my sister the other day, as we do every day, and she shared so much wisdom across 3 messages that we dubbed them her “Ted Talk” of 2022.

I legit went back to record them and take notes, and they were gone. And then I thought-prayed, “Lord, would you just help me remember what I needed most from her words?”

New goals, who dis? 🥴

But really it has been a HOT HOT minute since I have done a monthly goals post. And I’m not quite sure how to feel about it at the moment. But I’m going to give it a try.

(How’s that for starting three sentences with conjunctions? I digress.)

Here’s what I know. I have been in my feelings about a lot of things lately, and rightfully so. It’s been a challenging year of sickness, a year of adding a 4th kid to our tribe, and a year of not writing or working or creating much at all. I’ve felt a little bit lost, while feeling so very happy to be growing our family. Motherhood is something else, isn’t it?

Back in my prime blogging days, when I was building Nancy Ray Photography and speaking at conferences and doing all the things, I remember someone attended an event I was speaking at and shared all that she wanted to do. I was cheering her on to create this business and work that she was so excited for!

Happy 2022!

Well, 2021 did not let us off the hook for an easy ending. We’ve all been sick for the last 3 weeks. No Covid, but we’ve had our fair share of congestion, fevers, chills, aches, strep throat (me and Lyndon and Beaufort and Will), and ear infections (3 of the 4 kids). It’s left me feeling like Christmas kicked me around a little, and I’m behind on a lot of dreaming, planning, and prep that’s usually done in December. We’re just now taking down our tree and decor, and we are all slowly climbing out of the trenches of sickness we’ve been in.

So here I sit, January 1st, the day after my birthday, setting my goals and making a plan. And this year, I’m doing it differently.

One of the best things we can do is remember. It doesn’t come naturally to me on the brink of a new year as I’m constantly planning and looking forward, but it’s a practice I’m committed to because we are a forgetful people. My favorite tradition that Will and I have is our Christmas Date Night - it’s a beautiful evening set aside for us to enjoy a delicious meal, twinkle lights, and to make a list of everything that happened that year. And every single year, we remember a whole lot more happened than we thought. “Oh I forgot about that!” “Gosh that was this year?!” “Wow that was such a fun trip.”

And every few years, we have a momentous year : one that carries so many significant milestones and events that it leaves a mark on our hearts and changes our trajectory for the future. 2021 was a momentous year for us.

It’s going to be a sad Halloween when we choose costumes that don’t have their own theme music. The last three years have been amazing! Greatest Showman, Frozen, and now the Lion King! Here’s to forever being a kid at heart :)

Here is my list of items that we have used and LOVED this time around! Mostly practical, a few splurges (#lastbaby), and all of them have been great buys!

One of the things I was MOST nervous about before having our 4th baby was the fact that my due date was 2 weeks before school started! Here are 5 things that have helped this transition back to school run much more smoothly than I even anticipated.

Benjamin Valor Ray was born at home at 9:50am on July 28th. This is his birth story!

Tap tap tap… is this thing on? 😉

It’s been a minute since I’ve opened my laptop and started to write a blogpost. I’ve missed blogging, but in the last several years, writing blogposts for the joy of writing and sharing has taken a backseat to a lot of other things.

These photos. Gosh they already hold such a special place in my heart. Thank you to my dear friend Olivia Suriano for taking these photos we will cherish forever! As I’m approaching my due date, these photos remind me what an absolute gift it is to carry life inside of me. Something I will never, ever take for granted.

I’m so excited to share my brand new audio course: An Integrated Life!

I just checked, and I officially have 1,648 photos and videos currently on my phone. This is an issue, people. And I’m fairly positive I’m not the only one. As a photographer, the funny thing is – my personal photos rarely get the time and attention they deserve.

When I first began photographing weddings, I took no less than 4,000 photos on a wedding day. Then I sorted them down to around 1,500 to deliver to my client.

Who in the world has the time to do anything with 1,500 photos?!

After being in this business for years, and after being a normal human being with a full schedule and a full life, I wish I knew this one, beautiful truth about photography:

Less is more.

We’re having another BABY! 🎉 It’s true, and I can’t quite believe I’m typing these words… Baby Ray # 4 is coming this July!

We just had the most wonderful time at Great Wolf Lodge! I got lots of questions on Instagram about our experience, so I thought I’d share about it here in detail. I’m grateful to have partnered with GWL for our trip!