My Beautiful Mess

People ask me all the time about the name of this blog. My Beautiful Mess — what does that even mean?

Here’s the honest truth: life with little ones (well, they’re not so little anymore) is messy. There’s no way around it. The laundry piles up. The dishes multiply. The schedule is chaos. And some days, you look around and wonder how you’re going to hold it all together.

But somewhere in the middle of all that mess — in the flour-dusted countertops from baking with your kids, in the crayon masterpieces covering the fridge, in the bedtime prayers when tiny hands fold together — there is so much beauty.

That’s what this blog has always been about. Not pretending life is perfect. Not curating some impossible standard. Just noticing the beauty that’s already there, hiding in the mess.

The name comes from one of my favorite verses:

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” — Ecclesiastes 3:11

God doesn’t wait for us to get it all together before He makes things beautiful. He works in the mess. He works through the mess. And if we slow down long enough to notice, we’ll find that the mess itself is often where the most beautiful moments live.

So that’s the heart behind this space. It’s an invitation to slow down. To look for beauty in the ordinary. To give ourselves grace for the mess, and to trust that God is weaving something beautiful out of all of it.

Welcome to My Beautiful Mess. I’m glad you’re here.

A few years ago, I started learning about fair trade — what it really means and why it matters. And once I knew, I couldn’t unknow it.

Fair trade is about making sure the people who make the things we buy are treated with dignity. It means farmers get a fair price for their coffee. It means artisans earn a living wage for their crafts. It means children aren’t forced to work in unsafe conditions so we can have cheap chocolate.

When Matthew and I learned about this, we knew we had to start making different choices — not perfectly, but intentionally.

What We Changed

We started small. We switched our coffee to fair trade. We looked for the fair trade label on chocolate (especially around the holidays — because that’s when chocolate consumption skyrockets). We started shopping from companies that partner with artisans around the world to sell handmade goods at fair prices.

It wasn’t about being perfect. It was about being aware.

Teaching the Kids

One of the most meaningful parts of this journey has been talking to Ella and Jad about it. Even when they were small, we’d explain in simple terms: “This coffee was grown by a farmer, and we want to make sure he gets paid fairly for his hard work.”

Kids get fairness. They understand it intuitively. And I love that we’re raising them to think about the people behind the products they use.

It’s a Journey

We’re not experts. We don’t get it right every time. But we believe that small, intentional choices add up. And we believe that as followers of Jesus, caring about justice and dignity for all people isn’t optional — it’s essential.

“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” — Micah 6:8

If you’re curious about getting started with fair trade, start with one thing. One product. One swap. It makes a bigger difference than you think.

Every summer, someone asks me for this recipe. It’s one of those desserts that looks impressive but is actually so simple — and the kids can help with almost every step.

This fruit pizza has been our go-to for cookouts, potlucks, birthday parties, and just-because Tuesday nights. The combination of buttery sugar cookie crust, tangy cream cheese frosting, and bright fresh fruit is honestly perfect.

Sugar Cookie Crust

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Cream the butter and sugar, then beat in the egg and vanilla. Mix in the flour, baking powder, and salt until just combined. Press into a greased 12-inch pizza pan or a parchment-lined baking sheet (shape it into a circle, about 1/4 inch thick). Bake at 350°F for 10-12 minutes until the edges are barely golden. Let it cool completely — this is important!

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Beat until smooth and fluffy. Spread over the completely cooled crust, leaving a small border around the edge.

The Fruit

This is where you get creative. Our favorites:

• Sliced strawberries
• Blueberries
• Sliced kiwi
• Mandarin oranges
• Raspberries
• Sliced peaches (in summer)

Arrange the fruit in whatever pattern makes you happy. Ella always insists on making a rainbow pattern. Jad just eats the blueberries straight off the top before it’s even served.

Tips

• Make ahead: You can bake the crust and make the frosting the day before. Assemble and add fruit the day you’re serving it.
• Keep it cold: This is best served chilled. The cream cheese frosting needs to stay firm.
• Don’t overbake the crust: You want it soft and chewy, not crunchy. Pull it out when it’s barely golden.

This is one of those recipes that never fails. Every single time I make it, someone asks for the recipe. So here it is — enjoy!

Adventure is out there and Jad has always been one to find it. It was very fitting to have an “UP” inspired birthday party. May Details made it easy for me with her custom printables. All I had to do was print.

             My favorite cupcakes are from Truelove They are on Cleveland Hwy in Gainesville, Ga. We had red velvet, strawberry, wedding cake, and key lime.

I ordered the adventure awaits banner for Jad’s room from Earmark

The up house I painted myself. It came from Hobby Lobby-4.99 and I used a 50% off coupon.

Jad already had globes in his room, so I pulled those for decor as well.

I used balloons with gift sacks for the table decor.

I found this golden book Up book at Goodwill. It had never been used. I added stickers and the up house printable and had guests sign the stickers.

Thea Dubose from Naturally Posh Photography did Jad’s one year pics. They were up inspired also.

I ordered Jad’s first year book from Shutterfly. I love how Shutterfly allows you to do storytelling.  

It was Jad’s first time ever eating a cupcake. He didn’t care anything about it. He touched it and grunted until I took it off his plate.

We had his party at the Oakwood Community Center. There is a playground outside which was perfect. 

Don’t you just love birthdays? I feel like everyone in my life is having a birthday today or just had one.

We have one special little guy in our family that we have been celebrating.

Jad turns two April 2nd.

This week I am going to post a few birthday parties we have had shared together but I have never blogged about.

When Ella turned 3 she had a movie under the stars-Princess Party

The invitations (picture I used)

Cookies made by my friend Becca

Friends came in their royal attire

I used princess bath toys for decoration. The frames were from Michaels dollar bins

There were dream come true cupcakes (made by me)

I got the frame at Hobby Lobby. The frame had a print hanging in Ella’s room. I made a 8×10 print with card stock and a princess 3-D sticker for a table decoration.

The cupcake toppers I got from TheBirthdayHouse

She has princesses and princes

My favorite quote of the evening was “Mom, can we do it all over again tomorrow.”

Friends ate cupcakes.

Each guest decorated their drive-in car. The boys decorated their cars with trains, planes, and car stickers. The girls used princess stickers of course.

The wheels were blue and pink plates from the Dollar Store.

Our cousin Brooklyn painted faces. 

A dress-up station

When it was time for the movie-I had a wagon with sheets

The movie Tangled was shown. 

Then we launched lanterns into the sky. Well we launched 2. One was perfect. The other almost caused a neighborhood fire. It came down in flames.

We stopped after that one. One was magical though.

Brantley watched the movie the entire time from the computer. He was my techie and made sure everyone could hear. 

There were glow swords and glow wands for friends as party favors

It was a fun birthday under the stars.