and it seemed that all at once, she was five.

Zoë has flourished over the last year.
Becoming more of herself separate from us.

I see myself in her eyes, the demonstrative affection and the willingness to drop everything and be silly for silly sake.

I see him in her thought out nature, fully engrossed ways and ability to tell people ‘how it is’ and ‘how it all works’.

More importantly, I see her.

Moved and affected by everything and everyone around her. She has taken on learning how to skate, read, write, have friendships and ultimately become more and more of herself every day.

To say we are proud of her is an understatement.
We are engrossed, overcome, blessed, challenged and inspired by her.

We delight in her.

In five more years she will be ten.
Hard to imagine the changes, the becoming, the metamorphosis that will happen between now and then and from then to beyond.

What we know for sure,

Zoë will always be a bright light as she is. All of the parts of who she is is what makes her unique. We couldn’t ask for anything else.

Our only prayer

is that she always be free in her spirit to be fully ‘Zoë’, however that is, however that grows and changes. May her spirit remain free from the expectations and standards of this world and may she step into whatever her calling may be despite what may try to come against her in her life.

This Autumn I decided to start re-watching Parenthood.

We’ve loved this show for many reasons. Its characters show realistic family dynamics with deep, raw and real connections while also allowing each character room to grow, fail and struggle through life. Its value system is varied with each family and yet follows the wholistic vision of what it means to try to have a well intentioned, honouring family dynamic. It shows diversity in thought and individuality while also showing how we share our families traits, inconsistencies and that our hurts don’t just stop at one person, they follow through into each generation.

The ‘Little Bedford Family’ is certainly not ‘The Bravermans’, but the authenticity we want to create in our home and with the family and friends we have around us is a very real and present value in our hearts and minds.

The values this show has & reminded us of, again and again:

Stay Relational

Human beings are relational at our core. We crave to be seen as we are and often that means a lot of misfiring and mishaps as we go about it with our already self-perceived aches and pains in life. Being individuals, we all experience life a bit differently but we are all intertwined in various ways. Staying current in each others lives, expressing in our most outward form in effort to connect and finding each other amidst the busyness is an important quality. (for us, as a married couple, this means daily connecting after 10pm in conversation about the day, our latest thoughts, concerns and sharing in one of the television series that we are following.)

Stay Self-Aware

Knowing our limitations and boundaries with ourselves and with each other are effective tools in life and in family. Knowing what those are is not a way to stay divided, but to find ways in which to stay healthily connected.

Stay Lighthearted

Life is already heavy enough. Enjoying each others company and finding the joy and humour in the little things has a way of making memories and having something to laugh at when things are rough. (My cousin Kylie is a great example of this. We live provinces apart and still she is CONSTANTLY bringing up (via text or phone call) our childhood ridiculousness or even old or recent laughs at random. & there is nothing better than a good laugh during a rough day.)

Stay Gracious

When we cannot for the life of us understand the other, to do our best to pass grace in a way that honours ourself and the other person. We are not supposed to understand each other fully because how would we be able to practice ‘grace’ if it was that easy? And passing Grace doesn’t mean ignoring hurt or allowing toxicity, but it does mean allowing a gap for those things to exist as you recognize that there is much that you need to be given Grace for and much we need to give grace in return.