Kristin Hill Taylor

Seeking God as the Author of Every Story

Saying yes to March Madness

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Hello, March Madness!

In the winter, we plan our social life around the Murray State basketball schedule. We meet friends for dinner before the games. We have friends who travel with us to a few away games – sometimes in a 14-passenger van we borrow and now my eight-seater Pacifica is an option with another family that most often joins us.

I know sports aren’t everyone’s form of entertainment, but Greg and I both would choose a college basketball game over an art museum, a college football game before a musical at the theater, and a Major League Baseball game instead of any sort of dance recital. We both grew up watching sports, so it naturally became something we did together.

We have season tickets to Murray State basketball and football games. We try to go to a St. Louis Cardinals baseball most seasons. We also like University of Kentucky football and basketball, and occasionally make our way to Lexington for a game.

Then we had kids – and we kept doing it.

But the Racers are our favorites.

I have pictures of Cate and Ben sleeping at MSU basketball games. Rachel doesn’t fall asleep like they did because she doesn’t want to miss anything, but like her siblings, she is learning to spell R-A-C-E-R-S! She recognizes both the mascot and the logo around town. Cate is old enough to have memories of players she’s loved watching and each season becomes more invested and interested. Ben asks more questions about the rules and strategies and loves playing sports. He filled out his first March Madness bracket this week.

With sports come stories of perseverance, achievement, and sometimes loss. In a culture where everyone thinks they deserve a participation trophy, it’s good for the kids to see the world keeps turning after your team loses. And, of course, it’s fun to celebrate with teams we’ve come to know from our seats.

It’s been an exciting season for Racer fans.

Murray State only lost four games in the regular season – two by very few points to Alabama and Auburn, both bigger programs in the Southeastern Conference, and then two to conference foes when our best player was nursing an ankle injury.

Speaking of the best player, point guard Ja Morant has gotten much national attention this year. He’s dunked over people and landed himself and the rest of the Racers on SportsCenter more than once. He’s expected to be among the first few picks in the NBA Draft. He’s been a joy to watch because he truly looks like he’s having the most fun. He celebrates his teammates and this town.

The Racers shared the regular-season championship with Belmont and then went on to beat the Bruins in the conference tournament. With the tournament trophy in hand, the Racers also clinched an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. They play Marquette today, and we’re hoping this isn’t the last game for this team that’s been so fun to watch. We wish we were in Hartford, Connecticut to watch, but we’ll be watching from our living room with friends.

Basketball games give me a chance to say yes, introduce my kids to other towns, and let go of our bedtime routine. Naturally, I’m a rule follower who wants everyone to follow my rules, but I’ve had opportunities to give the kids treats and grace. Those things don’t come naturally to me, so being a sports fan has helped me keep perspective on life.

Being a sports fan has helped me be a yes mom
and provided a backdrop for making memories.

{Tweet that.}

March Madness is the best in our sports-loving world. And now we get to root for our favorite team to be the Cinderella of The Big Dance. Pass the popcorn.

 

Stories from the Porch in February

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Well, February, I know you have fewer days than the other months, but, even so, you were so full. And wet. Oh the rain. My friends who live farther north have had snow while we’ve had many, many inches of rain that have come with flood warnings. Meanwhile, time continues to fly around here, even though I keep trying to slow it down!

Highlights

It’s the month of love – both for Hallmark and here for Team Taylor! Greg and I met 21 years ago on Feb. 7, 1998, and then went on our first date a week later. Yep, that would have made it Valentine’s Day. Before kids we called it First-Date Day, now it’s still that plus some more traditional Valentine’s Day sprinkled in because kids certainly make it more fun. {Read more of our story here.}

One of my favorite Valentine’s Day traditions with the kids is to hang up hearts on their bedroom doors that list things I love about them. I even do it on Rachel’s door because one day she’ll be able to read and until then she’s got people who love to read to her.

This month the love continued when we took a few road trips:

I gave the big kids tickets to see TobyMac (along with opening acts Aaron Cole, We Are Messengers, Ryan Stevenson, Jordan Feliz, and Jeremy Camp) as their Christmas present. We finally cashed in that delayed gift with the concert earlier this month. Initially, I was in it for the kids – and the delicious steak dinner we had beforehand. But the concert was so good!

On actual Valentine’s Day, we met some friends for dinner at one of my very favorite restaurants and then watched our beloved Murray State Racers win a close game at Austin Peay in Clarksville, Tennessee.

The after school the next day, we went to Louisville to hang out with my mom, some new friends, friends who used to babysit our kids, and my brother and his family. On that Saturday night, Greg and I detoured for a date with my oldest best friend and her husband before our own date to see Kentucky beat then-No. 1 Tennessee, which drew the third largest crowd ever at Rupp Arena. It was a weekend that filled my soul.

Favorite things

Chrysler Pacifica – After our fun couple weeks of travel to the concert, basketball games, and Louisville, our 2011 Dodge Caravan started making noises. A trip to the dealership service department revealed a transmission issue we weren’t sure we wanted to pay to fix. That decision was confirmed by a mechanic specializing in transmission issues. So we traded that van in toward an upgraded (majorly!) to a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. It’s great and I’m super thankful for the protection and provision God has shown to us during this unexpected situation.

The Couch with Mary Carver – I’ve actually shared about this here before, but I got to be a guest on her podcast, which was so fun! Mary and I talked about our favorite TV marriages, so I’d love to hear about who you would add to our list. {More on the episode here!}

Refined series at Lyli Dunbar’s blog – I got to share a piece of our story about Ben being burned and how community helped us heal as part of Lyli’s blog series. She has an encouraging space on this big ‘ole internet and I was happy to be there.

Crock Pot – I told Greg and I needed a new Crock Pot, so he bought me one for Christmas … and it’s the best! The six-quart appliance has brown/saute, slow cook, bake, and keep warm functions. That means when I made taco soup recently, I could brown the beef and onion first, add the other ingredients, and switch to the slow cook function. One pot. Yes, please. Plus the one pot is stainless steel and way easier to handle and clean than the ceramic pots I’ve always had before.

From the bookshelf

“Since You’ve Been Gone” by Christa Allen – I borrowed this one for free from Amazon on my Kindle and really enjoyed it. It was a quick fiction read about a woman who was uncovering some truths while navigating grief. The characters were relatable and the plot line had enough mystery to keep me intrigued. This author has several other books I added to my list.

“The Secret Orphan” by Glynis Peters – This story is set while World War 2 is raging. I really liked the main character and her story. It was different than other books set in this time period that I’ve read because it focused more on a commoner and how the war infiltrated her life.

“Good As Gone” by Amy Gentry – I read this book in three sittings, but I’m not sure what I thought about it. The story was intriguing, but it also seemed far-fetched. That said, I was surprised more than once and was eager to finish it.

On the screen

We’re glad “Survivor” is back on! I’m a longtime fan of this show, but I’m even more of a fan of watching it with my oldest girl. Meanwhile, I’m sad “Manifest” is over for the season. What cliffhangers!

What are you loving, reading, and watching?

*****

Kristin Hill Taylor - Porch Stories

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Being faithful in 2019

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Happy new year, friends!

When I chose to focus on living rescued in 2018, I knew what I thought that meant. Of course, God took things to his own level and interrupted my plans. But he wove that theme into my heart through books, devotions, conversations, podcasts, and everyday life. He knows I need repetition to truly learn and he was faithful to teach me.

I’ll never be an expert on living rescued because I’m too quick to want to make a plan and solve a problem. But I believe God knows who I am in all my first-born, recovering perfectionism ways and won’t give up on using my natural disposition to lead me to him.

I reflected on 2018 and have been anticipating 2019 with my friend Kayse Pratt from Anchored Women. She hosted #reflectandrefresh2018 on Instagram and the prompts were just what my heart needed. Thinking through and documenting those eight posts led me to my word for the year when I didn’t expect to have one. I really assumed God was still working on the RESCUED theme in my life. And he is. But he’s also reminding me of how living rescued leads to faithfulness in all areas.

I want to say yes to the moments that interrupt my plans, to the little voices in my house even when they’re loud and constant, to loving people well even when they’re hard to love, to drinking more water and taking more walks and eating more vegetables; to moments that seem small because they matter in the big picture.

I want to say no to listening to voices that aren’t rooted in the same principles on which Greg and I are building our lives, to defending choices I know are right for our family, to guilt and shame and doubt, and to trying to please people who will never be satisfied.

I want to be faithful in all the small ways in my everyday life as a wife, mom, daughter, sister, friend, and, most importantly, Christ-follower. I want to live believing the small steps have great value in the current season and the ones to come.

Being faithful is about being loyal and steadfast,
true to the original, who is Jesus, the only one
who can and will faithfully rescue and redeem us.

{Tweet that.}

*****

If you want to see my #reflectandrefresh2018 posts that inspired this word FAITHFULNESS for 2019, here they are:

One thing I’m grateful for in 2018
The best new discovery in 2018
One book that impacted my year
Something that went well in 2018
Something that was a challenge in 2018
One thing I’m saying yes to in 2019
One thing I’m saying no to in 2019
One big dream for 2019

I also shared some highlights, favorite things, books, and TV shows from December, if you want to check out that last post of 2018.

*****

Kristin Hill Taylor - Porch Stories

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