40 feels like such a strange number, but also feels like a number full of all the best.  When I was 20 the age of 40 seemed so old, but now that I'm here I must say it's way better than 20. And before I get into any deep thoughts or reflections, I have to say that I thought I'd have a head full of gray hair by now & I don't. I am celebrating that. I have lighter brown & gray popping in right at my part & I also have my sweet sister that covers it for me every few months! I certainly don't want to sound vain talking about how age affects hair color & the body because at the age of 40 I think all my friends have come to realize the body is simply the seat of the soul. Although, I do believe loving the body & soul are equally important. I am a firm believer in taking supplements, drinking lots of water, meditating daily, getting enough sleep, moving the body, eating healthy, laughing often, finding joy in the simple, & practicing gratitude. If I could tell 20 year old Wendy one thing it would be this: "fall madly in love with yourself before anyone else." If I would have loved & protected my soul tenderly through my 20s and early 30s I would have saved myself from a lot of heartache. I don't have regrets, but I do have a heart full of lessons & for that I am grateful. 

The other day she ran to the mirror and said "MIRROR MIRROR ON THE WALL WHO IS THE FAIREST OF THEM ALL?" ✨✨✨ And since then we've been playing a game of swapping out the word "fairest" with other words like kindest, sweetest, funniest, prettiest, bravest and so on. Her confidence is off the charts! It's my mom mission to make sure the world doesn't take one single bit of 'four year old Magnolia's' confidence away from her. I just want to bottle it all up right now so every time she looks in the mirror she sees this little girl full of that matters plus some. ✌🏻

I think it goes without saying that Easter 2021 was a special one for so many! Last year we did Easter basket exchanges between a window of glass & this year we were all together again. The sound of the kids laughter was that much more beautiful. 

This was the year that Magnolia asked the sweetest questions from the backseat of the car. One sunny afternoon she asked, "mom, what does the Easter bunny look like?" I said I wasn't sure & asked what she thought he looked like. She told me she wasn't sure, but she'd dream about him and get back to me. A few days later she dreamed of the Easter Bunny! We found out that "SHE wears a pink & blue tutu, a princess crown, and she's tiny. She also goes apple picking in Grandma's woods!"