It’s more than scribbles on a page; keep reading, and you’ll discover how a simple notebook can become your clearest mind, your greatest keepsake, and a powerful spiritual tool.

1. Declutter your mind instantly. Recording personal thoughts, feelings and experiences has been proven to reduce anxiety, improve personal awareness and emotional regulation (WebMD.com, 2021). For me, it almost feels like emptying my mind onto the paper; when i can read it back, its like the knotted up ball of yarn in my brain has been untangled and laid out in front of me in a straight line, almost immediately things make a bit more sense, seem clearer and my mind feels lighter. Anytime something big is happening in my life emotionally, or just a lot of things at once, i like to sit down with some instrumental music and either brain dump or gratitude journal. Both are effective. There are also many more studies that show so many more mental health benefits that come as a result of journaling such as emotional catharsis, reduce negative emotions and more (Baikie & Wilhelm, 2005).

2. Capture life’s details before they fade. Journaling is going to be what helps you remember that significant or insignificant events of your life better than any picture ever could. Theres a Chinese proverb i think of often that says “the faintest ink is better than the sharpest memory”. I heard this quote shortly after getting married and something i had so passionately wanted was to remember every moment of the special day, each emotion, smell, tear, conversation etc. and pictures cant encapsulate it all. So i spent many days and many pages (upwards of 10 pages) writing out from memory as soon as i could, each moment of the day. Now i have a full, precise, thorough and exhaustive account of the day that i can revisit any time i want. No detail missing, its almost like a moment frozen in time. I can look back on significant conversations i had with my mom that morning, the look in my grooms eyes at our first look, my first impression of our catered dinner, the feeling of saying vows in front of 150+ people etc. I can read back and relive it all. The wonderful dream of it all. I will likewise be doing the same if not very similar thing for the birth of my children and other such significant events

3. Relive emotions, not just events. To go to the lengths of writing that i did for my wedding and put forth that effort for every ordinary day is a bit tedious. So something similar that i like to do, a little bit lower effort, is something i learned how to do and loved doing in high school english class; its called a sensory snapshot. So if its your first day at a new job, the first day of the new school year, your babies birthday etc and you want to remember the event or memory with clarity - do a sensory snapshot. Its as simple as describing the moment or day using descriptions for all five senses.

4. Leave a legacy for future generations. A journal, collection of memories and stories is not only a voice that continue to speak after you are long gone but it can also be a treasured story book for your children and generations to come. I think of how incredibly awesome and sentimental it is to flip though photo albums of my parents childhood, wedding and early life; to see them in their entirety, as a whole person more than my parent. What an incredible heritage to inherit written down memories and early years etc. I recently read a statistic that said “up to 80% of family stories vanish within three generations unless they are actively preserved”. This makes me think of Anne Frank, the way her story has impacted generations beyond her time . Although her story is entirely different from yours or mine, the gist still stands that writing down your life preserves it for years to come.

5. Make sense of your story. I am only 27 while writing this, but i can already think back to when i was 21 or 22 and i cant recall what happened in those years that was significant without the help of my journal or past pictures. My high school and middle school years are a blur, which i’m sure is the experience of everyone else at this age in life, only about to recall maybe a few things from each year. I can remember my graduation and a couple classes i took, my friends, school dances and maybe a few other things but thats mostly it. Its kind of a blurry mess, it makes me wonder what i was doing in my spare time, what was i passionate about and who was i back then. I can imagine i will have similar thoughts and questions about my past life when i am 50, 60 and 70. Not only is memory the huge benefit of a journal but in a different vein, i think being able to see the over arching themes, values and transformations that happen in my life, is something i need. I would love to be able to look back and see character arches in my personality, values and inner person, as i read back over the course of my life. Did i ever get over that mental block? Was i able to forgive that person? Did i ever get better at time management? Did i improve as a wife and a mother? Is there stagnation at any period i can prevent in the future? And so on and so on. It is already so cool to me to be able to go back and read who i was 15 years ago and see my immaturity and other such traits, back then, as something i no longer see in my self current day. patterns of thinking i used to have, ways of speaking and things that were so important to me - i have transformed into a completely different person, the same, but different. Praise God.

6. See God’s hand at work. Each month that rolls over i like to create a new page in my journal for prayer requests that I make and ask the Lord for each month. Including things like asking God for clarity in a situation, a job for a family member or healing for a friend. On separate pages, in a more daily pattern, i like to write down a prayer (prayer journaling), especially at the end of my personal Bible study time, writing down my heart towards the Lord, requests and praises alike. Keeping prayer lists and daily prayer journaling can put on display God’s faithfulness and goodness. I can trace God’s hand in my life by looking back at prayers i used to pray and knowing now that I walk in so many answered in my life. It encourages me in my faith, to know God hears me and takes care of me.

Journaling isn’t just about putting words on paper, it’s about capturing your story, clearing your mind, and leaving a legacy that lasts. Whether you choose prayer journaling to record conversations with God, brain dumping to release mental clutter, or simply writing down memories and reflections from your day, each method serves as a lifeline for both your present peace and your future perspective. The beauty of journaling is that there’s no single “right” way; only the way that helps you show up authentically on the page.

So grab a notebook, open a fresh document, or even start with a single sentence tonight. Your story is unfolding every day, don’t let it slip away. Write it down, treasure it, and one day, you’ll be grateful you did.

My first postpartum experience was not anything like I dreamed it and so my second time around i wanted to ensure ease and comfort for both my body and my family. Being in the NICU with my first meant getting dressed and moving around quite a lot to get to the hospital and out and about, immediately after my C-section. Everything we ate was essentially take out or super processed and packaged foods. Essentially little to no rest, very little nutrition and the whole time i remember feeling so uncomfortable wearing ‘outside’ clothes all day everyday when I just wanted to be in jammies. With our NICU stay being in the middle of summer i felt like i was ‘missing out’ on so much, the 90 degree weather, farmers markets, weddings, lake days and other fun summer activities with friends. The whole experience was hard emotionally, mentally and physically.

This time I planned my second pregnancy so that my due date would be during a month where there isn’t much happening, weather or event wise. January. Planning for a January baby and January due date was so fun. That eased a lot of the mental burden i felt last time postpartum. This time there would be no FOMO because January is cold, there are no fun events outside or holidays, no weddings to miss or beach days or boating invites etc. Its the perfect plan IMO. This time i was healing from a second C-section as well, so i was almost as equally stuck in place as i was when we were in the NICU. In a lot of ways, that was mainly how i prepped mentally - was having a due date that WORKED for me, that eased my mind. This second time i felt like i could rest, stay at home, lay low and not miss out on anything. I could heal and not feel bad about it.

The other things I did to prep mentally was - prep my husband. Things that I valued for postpartum, my husband and I got to sit down and have a chat about my desire to do the 5-5-5 rule postpartum, who would be coming over to our house and when as well as who would be coming to the hospital and when. I also asked him if we could strike up a deal, if i stayed in charge of feeding and caring for our newborn, would he be in charge of feeding me and caring for me. And oh boy did he go above and beyond with this, he took way better care of me than i could have ever expected. What a blessing! I also prayed about my postpartum experience, some of it prayer journaled as well. I asked God that he would bless my experience, healing and nursing journey. That He would hear my desire to care for my body and my little one, and that He would empower me and give me the strength and endurance to do those things.

Practically! Preparing for postpartum material needs felt like a mountain to climb. Things for baby, clothes, bassinet and crib sheets, bibs, pacifiers, bottles, carseat etc. Things for me healing postpartum, peri bottles, pads, jammies, nursing bra for sleeping and going out in, nipple butter, breast pumps, milk collectors, postpartum supplements and tea and vitamins etc. As well as food for my husband and I for 3 meals a day for a couple weeks. It all felt overwhelming but heres what I ended up doing that worked for me:

• thrifted baby clothes, newborn onsies, 0-3m onsies and a couple church outfits

• thrifted for button up jammies and a cozy robe, and collected warm fuzzy socks, i bought a pair or two here and there and eventually built a cozy PP clothes collection

• quick meals - made a big batch of 30 breakfast burritos and froze them (sausage, egg, cheese, hashbrowns) all i had to do was heat them up and dip them in my fav salsa! I did the same for dinner burritos, about 30, and froze them (beans, rice, cheese, ground beef) these are good with hot sauce and sour cream

• snack stash - the 3-4 months leading up to my due date, each time i was at the grocery store weekly, i bought just ONE extra snack than i needed and set it aside in my pantry for later (ex. pistachios one weeks, dried mangos week 2, chocolate covered pretzels week 3, trail mix week 4 etc. ) As a family on a budget, not having to do a Costco trip for postpartum food right before i gave birth felt like a good move for us.

• stockpile - I did the same thing each weekly grocery trip with a non perishable dinner food or household essentials for a couple months leading up as well (ex. a couple extra hand soaps week 1, a couple extra boxes of pasta week 2, an extra laundry detergent week 3, a couple jars of pasta sauce week 4, a 3 pack of tissues week 5). and eventually I ended up having a back up or a few back ups of most house hold items, as well as a couple back stock dinner items for any last minute dinners.

• freezer prep - double batching soups and other easily frozen meals like lasagna and chicken pot pie, dinner rolls, curry, meatballs, muffins, loaves of different types of breads. i labeled these and dated them and tetrised them in my freezer.

• sweet treats - double batching cookie dough, here and there, any time i would make a cookies, i just double batched it, cookie scooped all the dough out and set aside half of it in a freezer bag with baking directions written on the bag. the week before i had my son, i did a triple batch of classic chocolate chip cookies, baked none of them, and froze all the dough, it was the perfect treat after we got home from the hospital. this was one of my favorite things i did to prep for pp.

• self care treats - i also grabbed a creamy body butter, a yummy smelling body oil and luxurious body wash - i didn’t open them until after i had my son, it was such a nice treat to myself that i could kind of look forward to.

• drink drawer - allocating coffee beans, electrolyte packets in lots of different flavors, tea bags, loose leave tea for hot and iced tea, matcha and any other drink items, for me is like an instant serotonin boost -because im such a beverage girlie. This feels like my pregnant self looking out for my pp self because it makes it so easy to stay hydrated.

Something that didn’t really involve stocking up on product, that i love that i did for myself, was set up nursing stations for myself. I knew that feeding my baby would have me sitting down for extended periods of time, in multiple places in my home. So i took a few small rope baskets and prepped them with hand lotion, lip masks and lip balms and different hair ties and hair bands. And i placed them all over my home - next to my bed, my desk, the coffee table, the table next to my nursery glider etc. This has been the perfect hack to having everything where i need it, i don’t have to go upstair everytime i need something, or rifle through my purse to find a hair tie, its all right in front of me. But I didn’t stop at nursing stations, i made my nightstand the nursing hub. The first drawer is just packed with snacks for milk supply, breast pads, nipple butter etc. when its night time and im nursing my baby, there isn’t anything i need that i dont have within reach. Its really been a life saver.

Ive realized recently that aot of things in pregnancy, postpartum and life revolve around food. Food can keep us healthy or sick, give us energy or make us sluggish, it can also bring healing and warmth postpartum. So i focused a lot on food, prepping food, saving and freezing food, stashing and stocking food - but in the end, there wasn’t a day where i felt mentally burdened or pressured becasue “we have no food at home” or “i don’t know what to make for dinner” . Honestly thats really all i wanted and i can say that i accomplished that. I wanted to give myself the space, time and peace to heal at a slow and unrushed pace without feeling bad about it and I can say for sure, this second postpartum experience has been way easier and more relaxed than my first, praise God.

In no particular order, these are the first 20 that come to my mind today.

1. God’s loving kindness toward me

2. Hot cinnamon honey lattes

3. Too many baby clothes

4. When my baby boy smiles at me

5. Fresh banana bread, homemade

6. Biblical parenting books

7. Friends to have over for dinner

8. The view of the ocean from our porch

9. The peachy pink end of a sunset

10. Allergy medicine and anti itch eye drops

11. Being an heir with Christ

12. Being justified by His grace, through faith

13. My big pink water bottle, filled with ice water

14. Catching up phone conversations

15. New strawberry lipgloss balm

16. The soft and heavy type of mug that fits perfectly in your hands

17. Windows open for crisp air

18. New Chris Renzema worship music

19. A fast paced fantasy book, a hot cup of tea, next to the fire

20. My sweet husband who is always asking me what I need

Its essentially like counting my blessings. Ive finished this list and i know that I could go onto list 100,000 more things, blessings, and beautiful things that I am grateful for. Praise God.

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” James 1:17