Motherhood Rite of Passage
By Jennifer Floyd | November 2023 Newsletter
I plop onto the couch of our Airbnb feeling rested and refreshed. Just a couple of days with the women from Exhale have left me humming with creative energy. I am dreaming up all kinds of creative endeavors when my phone buzzes.
A text thread with Jason, my husband, pops up on the screen. In the text is an image of my five-year-old daughter, her round blue eyes filled with sadness. Her hair—at least, what’s left of it—is pulled back in a ponytail. Like a crown around her brow, hair spews every which way, of varying short lengths. She holds a chunk of hair in her hand, a chunk she undoubtedly cut off herself with the finest pair of craft scissors you can buy on Amazon.
I call immediately, trying to get Jason to explain how bad it is, brainstorming ways he could style her hair until I get home so she isn’t embarrassed. He brings me back to what really matters, and tells me what happened when he sat Amelia down to ask her about it.
“Why did you cut your hair?” he asked, pulling her in for a hug.
Through wails she explains: “Mom is the one who asked me to have bangs, and I don’t know why I said yes!”
Bangs are complicated, this we all know. For a five-year-old, bangs are the hair that gets in your face when you are making art. So in the midst of her creative pursuits, when the “bangs” got in the way, she solved the problem. She cut them off. Into actual BANGS. Very uneven ones.
“This gives a whole new meaning to Create Anyway,” I joke with my friends who are bearing witness to this exchange in the Airbnb.
I wanted to come home from the retreat refreshed and inspired, ready to implement all of my magical and creative ideas with no roadblocks. Very simply put: the creative endeavor that beckoned me first was that of creating connection with my daughter. Trimming her bangs, holding her close, and delighting in how a messy mistake can become beautiful.
When I got home, I gave my girl a big hug and whipped the scissors back out. She now has real bangs and, honestly, she is rocking them.
Maybe I should get some.
Love,
Make Sarah’s Whole Wheat Pumpkin-Cranberry Muffins for breakfast or a healthy after-school snack.
C+C Faves
“The arts remind us that our world is the creative artistry of a God of abundance, a God whose fullness cannot be fully contained by our thoughts or our language." // Art Proves We’re More Than Just Dust in the Wind by Terry Glaspey
It’s soup and slow cooker season. Two recipes in our rotation: sausage, kale, and white bean soup and pulled pork sandwiches.
A shoe corral, but make it pretty.
Books on our (collective) nightstands: Women, Work, and Calling; Pineapple Street, Digital Minimalism, In the Lord I Take Refuge, Deeper: Real Change for Real Sinners, Nestlings, Mister Magic, Shark Heart, The September House, Embracing Rhythms of Work and Rest, How Far to the Promised Land, and our Exhale book club pick, Louisiana’s Way Home.
“The one rule of Hot Girl Swim Club: no one swims alone. And we aren’t. We have each other, friends now for so long that it’s an honor and honestly, kind of a joy to age together. Our kids grew up together and so have we.” // Old Mom, New Mom by Melanie Dale
PSA: Starbucks’ bacon & gruyere egg bites are now in the refrigerated section at Costco. May your weekday mornings be less manic.
If C+C had a team sneaker, it would be this one. And for keeping soles white? This eraser.
“As I continue to follow the curves and lines of each letter, I’m reminded that each of my seemingly small and insignificant actions is in service of something bigger and better that will echo a glorious perseverance into eternity.” // The Elegance of Slowness by Lynnette Woo
Call us influenced, but these silicone inserts—for when you walk to go braless but don’t want to look like you’re braless—live up to the hype.
For a skin (and nail) boost without the botox, add these vitamins to your supplement regimen.
“The world is full of broken things, and God doesn’t always answer our prayers exactly as we want him to. I desperately want our kids to understand this dichotomy. I don’t want the reality of sad things to shake their faith in the goodness of God.” // Some Stories Have Sad Endings by
You’ll put this cardigan on, and say it’s your favorite 😉.
On our kids’ nightstands: Jesus and the Gift of Friendship, Far From Home and Better Than Gold
“For now, I will try to be as gentle with my belly as my son is. Because whether my body has an endearing name known by the family or not, this body is a good body. This Belly is a good belly.” // This body is a good body, fupa and all by
These no-bake energy bites take about three minutes to make and disappear just as fast.
Our fall wardrobe got refreshed with a few staples: this sweater jacket, a velvet blazer, high-rise fleece pants, and a little black dress.
A simple pleasure: writing on a crisp, blank legal pad.
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Podcast Recs
One thing we try to hold dear at Coffee + Crumbs is making space for the both/and. The good and the bad. Joy and grief. Celebration and lament. We are kicking off season 9 of the Coffee + Crumbs podcast with New Chapters. Thank you for your grace and patience as we ease our way back into this work.
This Lazy Genius podcast episode does a deep dive into how to split the work load at home, and we are here for it.
Whether you’ve experienced a miscarriage or want to support a loved one who has, this episode in Risen Motherhood’s grief series is worth the listen.
Upcoming Workshops
Micro-Essay Workshop with Sonya Spillmann // starts November 6
Rooted: A Photography Workshop with Jennifer Floyd // starts November 8
Take-off and Landing: Beginnings and Endings in Narrative Essay with Adrienne Garrison // November 12
Inspiration to Habit: Self-Guided Series with Callie Feyen // Download
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The "good body" essay. I cried. I needed this so much.
The Taylor Swift reference is *chef’s kiss*