Grab A Cup and Pull Up A Chair

Welcome!

Thanks for stopping by Hearts Homeward as I join in a fun little event 

called the "Ultimate Blog Party" hosted by 5 minutes for Mom!  

If you are new here, I hope you find plenty of encouragement, parenting wisdom, tell-it-like-it-is marriage inspiration and most of all that you feel welcome and understood as you grow in your walk with God.  If you've been here before, I hope you hang out and get more familiar.

Grab a cup of your favorite hot beverage and pull up a chair while I introduce myself and give you a tour around Hearts Homeward.

Getting to Know Me … 

Married Life … I moved to California from Ohio when I was 21.  I met my surfer husband when we were hanging out with a group of mutual friends at the beach and we were strictly friends.  Our romantic feelings snuck up on us and we ended up dating for seven years before we got married.  We've had our serious highs and lows in marriage.  What we have now is a well-worn love which grows deeper with the years.

The Boys … We have two boys who are the joy of my life.  We home educate using Charlotte Mason's principles and methods.  When our oldest was born, we found out about a four-year-old relative who needed care and we took her in as our foster daughter.  She was with us for the first year of our son's life, so we started out our parenting journey flying by the seats of our pants!  Our oldest son, Jordan, has a heart of gold and a great wit.  He loves reading, playing piano and hanging with his closest friends.  It was seven years of hoping for another child before God blessed us with our silly-willy, mad-scientist, artistic son, Paul.  We jokingly call our neighborhood "Mayberry" because we are committed to knowing our neighbors and having kids who run around all afternoon having old-fashioned fun together.

My Spiritual Life … My parents decided to let me "choose my own religion" as a child.  I went to church with friends and found God at a very early age.  My childhood had its share of pain and difficulty and my father died when I was twelve years old.  I had a wayward season in my teen years and ended up returning to God in my early 20s.  Since that time I have devoted myself to healing, growing in Him and ministry to others.  Words can't express redemption and restoration and the solid ground on which I now stand, but I take a stab at it in my writings from the soul.

My Writing …  I write to inspire and encourage.  My hope is that when you visit here you find something that makes you feel less alone and enriches your life.  You can search for writings on your favorite topics by using the tabs at the top of my home page.  

Here at Hearts Homeward, you'll find a different "dish" served up on different days.  On Mondays I write about marriage.  I share honestly about love and learning how to live out our life with Jesus in our home.  On Wednesdays I write about parenting and home education.  I'm currently undertaking a wonderful series on the principles of parenting based on a book from the 1600s by Francois Fenelon.  One or two other times between Thursday and Sunday I post about my walk with God - either by linking up with Five-Minute-Friday, Faith Jam, Still Saturdays or The Weekend Brew.  I share about doubt, disappointment, longing, joy, hope and the fingerprints of God through it all.  Always my prayer is that what I write will turn our hearts homeward.  

Check out the Sidebar for some of my most popular posts. 

I'd LOVE to get to know you.  Please introduce yourself in the comments and if you find something here that blesses you, I'd love for you to let me know.  

I pray for you every time I sit to write.    

~ Patty 

P.S. The adorable photos of my family were taken by our friend, Patrick Ang.  

You can see more of his work here.