Hi! My name is Lindsey! I was born and raised way out in West Texas, a place that I could love for its wide open spaces and the cotton candy colored sunsets. I have been blessed to have grown up in a Christian home with loving parents who taught me about God. I love my Mom and Dad with all of my heart and am so thankful for them. I have a wonderful, big sister who has always looked out for me and been there for me.

I spent my college days in Lubbock, a city that looked much like where I grew up, in Midland. Lubbock carried tumbleweeds across the highways and it also carried kindred spirits into my life. These kindred spirits that I met in college became my life long friends. I attended Lubbock Christian University, where I got my bachelor’s degree in Humanities – with a Specialization in English. I have ALWAYS loved to write, and I was a writer and photographer for the college newspaper.

After graduating college, I moved to the Austin area, in hopes of writing for a magazine. Life doesn’t always go as planned, and I ended up working at a law firm as a receptionist. I would spend the next five years working in the legal field as a legal secretary.

My life seemed to begin, and I felt like I found my purpose, when I moved away from Austin and to a city in East Texas. It was here, one cold, cloudy Sunday in December of 2009 that I met who my heart and soul had been searching for my whole life. I met Josh, the man who I fell head over heels in love with and married in April of 2011.

On our first date, I remember sitting in Josh’s truck and feeling my heart leap within my chest when he said that one of his dreams was to be a photographer for National Geographic. Well, what do you know? We shared the same dream! He loved to travel. I had a little bit of the travel bug in me after going on mission trips to Mexico during college. I appreciated the different culture and the uncomfortable challenge of trying to understand a foreign language.

Josh had studied abroad in London before meeting me, which had filled his heart with a love of travel. So, with our wanderlust spirits, shortly after getting married we decided to quit our jobs (and sell my cherry red Mustang, which I still miss!), say goodbye to our families, and moved across the globe to New Zealand. We spent our first year of marriage living in “The Land of the Long White Cloud”. One of the most beautiful places on earth and where Josh and I shared in so many adventures together.

Our working holiday visa was valid for a year, so after our travels abroad we moved back to the States. Josh and I love the outdoors and we both found jobs in Denver, Colorado. The weekends were spent hiking and conquering “14’ers”, as the 14,000 + feet tall mountains are called there.

Life changed and Beauty was brought into this world when our daughter was born in October of 2014. She brings light, happiness, laughter and love into our world every day!

Shortly after I gave birth to our sweet daughter, I became sick with an illness so frightening and foreign to me. Postpartum depression.

That rocked our world and it was a very scary, traumatic time for Josh and I, and our families as I battled the illness the first four months of my daughter’s life. Eventually, with the help of therapy, medication, and ultimately – God, I found healing.

Going through postpartum depression and anxiety changed me. For the better, but it also left many wounds. I have found that since then, healing is a process. I’ve learned that I want to help others. I have been vulnerable. Shared my story countless times. Mental health is something that is not talked about often, and I don’t think it should be this way. I believe that it has to be talked about. Sharing our stories helps others heal. I want others to know that they are not alone. That there is Hope.

It’s been such a long journey since going through PPD, I’ve come a long way. Life is not always easy, and with this blog I want to be real. Share about the joys. The triumphs. The struggles. The beauty. The light.

“Wayfaring Wren” is going to be a blog that encompasses many topics. Christian living, mental health, motherhood, travel, food! I want to inspire my readers with my writings.

After living in Colorado, shortly after our daughter was born – then Josh and I, and our daughter moved back to East Texas where both our parents lived. Those three years of living in Tyler again were a blessing from God to us. We had a beautiful life and an amazing support system from family, friends and the church, and this helped us to continue to heal from our experience with PPD.

Now, our family of 3 lives in the hustle and bustle in the thriving metroplex of Houston, Texas. We find ourselves navigating this new lifestyle. The past year of living in Houston has been a time of growing. We’ve faced many challenges and experienced the loss of loved ones. It’s been a hard year, but we are, like the lotus flower, pushing through the mud. And I see it. We are almost there. We are on our way to being.

Being in Full Bloom.

When the name, “Wayfaring Wren” came to me, I knew this is what my blog needed to be called. It made perfect sense. It has a deep meaning to me. It’s special. And though the name may not make sense to the reader, with time and as you hear my story, you will understand. For the wren has been wandering/wayfaring/traveling the world with me all along.

“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.” J.R.R. Tolkien