09/15/2026
I don’t know if there will be a Design & Devotion this week.
Today is heavy.
I know it’s only Tuesday, but today is September 15th. Five years since Brian left this earth.
You’d think after five years a date on the calendar wouldn’t have quite the same weight. That somehow it would get easier to walk toward it.
It hasn’t.
And then yesterday, of all days, I had car trouble. 😂 If you knew B, you know how fitting that is. Part of me couldn’t help but think, Alright, I hear you.
Slow down, Jess.
Because I have a tendency to believe I can do it all. Run the shop. Make all the mums. Fill the orders. Handle the problems. Take care of everybody. Keep moving so fast that maybe I don’t have time to feel the hard stuff.
But I can’t do it all.
And I dang sure can’t do it all by myself.
Maybe that’s the devotion this week.
God never asked me to carry all of this alone.
I’m incredibly thankful for the mountain of homecoming orders sitting in front of me right now. I’m thankful for busy hands, a busy shop, and every single person who has trusted me to make something special for them.
And in the middle of all of this, Sunday gave us one of the sweetest reasons to celebrate — Halle got engaged!!! 🤍💍
Y’all, my mama heart is SO happy. Watching my girl step into this next chapter of her life, seeing how happy she is, and getting to be there for such a special moment is something I will treasure forever. There are weddings to plan, memories to make, and so much goodness ahead, and I could not be more excited for her and Peyt.
And maybe that’s part of what makes this week so emotional.
Missing B doesn’t take one ounce of joy away from celebrating Halle. If anything, moments like this remind me just how much he loved his kids and how badly I wish he could be here celebrating right alongside us. I know he would be so proud of her.
That’s the strange thing about grief.
Some of the happiest moments can still have a little ache tucked inside them.
But the ache doesn’t cancel out the joy, and the joy doesn’t mean I miss him any less.
Today, I’m giving myself permission to hold both.
Five years later…this still hurts.
But there is also SO much to celebrate.
Grief and gratitude can sit at the same table.
I can miss B with everything in me while being ridiculously excited about what God is doing in Halle’s life and thankful for the life He continues to build around all of us.
So maybe there won’t be a design this Wednesday.
Maybe this week, the devotion is simply remembering that even the strong ones need to slow down, let people help, and let God carry what was never ours to carry alone. 🤍
