Grounded in the Middle.

Letting go can at times can feel easy while at other times shakes us to our core. In the season of our lives where we are overcome with emotions and are resistant to turning the last page in a chapter that we know is complete, know that when letting go the chapters that came before this new one has prepared you. Give yourself permission to grow, even if there are some bumps and bruises along the w...

Life is a marathon with sprints we endure along the way. Today I'll be sharing some of the sprints we've experienced living out here in the middle in our farmhouse and how they have built our character and prepared us for who we are meant to be today.  {Let's Connect} Find me on Instagram @farmhousestoryteller Visit my website www.farmhousestoryteller.com {Let's collaborate} Email Danielle Foulk a...

Have you ever thought about your status in life? Maybe you are working towards a particular status, but do you perhaps have blinders on that might keep you from seeing what you may be leaving behind? Tune in to hear some thoughts around what I've learned about "status" over the past 20 years and how sometimes we have good intentions that when we eventually get to where we once used to be, it isn't...

Summer break is over for some and nearing the end for others which means a transistion back to school.  Consistency can not only be a really helpful thing to lean into when you have children in school, but also in general. Listen in for 4 take aways focused around adding consistency back into your routine that will help you reflect, rethink, and become rooted in a better life. {Let's Connect}...

How many of you have taken a trip this year? How much planning did you do ahead of time? Did you feel a bit relieved once you hit the road, kind of like you had just got a plan off the ground? Today I'm going to be talking about the benefits of not planning out every single detail of a trip and how maybe an impromptu trip may just be the next trip you need to take!  From today's podcast: Be sure t...

Lately I have found myself reflecting on our garden and the endurance it has given me. For the past three years, we prepared the soil, planted the seeds, weeded occasionally waiting to harvest what grew. But to be honest, there was a lot of belly aching when it came to the garden always producing what seemed like a lot of weeds rather than produce. I would comment on how maybe we should be using w...

Hey there friends!  I hope this finds you well! Last week I mentioned in my podcast that I had been doing a little metal detecting and I ran out of time to share with you what I have found here around the homestead both below and above the ground. Have you ever wondered what people did with their garbage before trash collecting became a thing?  Listen in to learn what I have found out on the prope...

Hey there friend! Have you ever heard of La Grange, Kentucky? If you're a fan of Ben and Erin Napier's HGTV show Hometown Kickstart, you just may have seen an episode where La Grange is featured. This town has trains run through its gorgeous historic town up to twenty (YES 20!) times a day! After seeing the episode, I had to take a visit and see the kindness capital of KY and what a fantastic trip...

Hey there friends! Are you feeling a little weighted down? Tune in to learn about the Farm Effect and how it just may be something you need to try to eliminate the stress you're carrying!  {Let's Connect} Find me on Instagram @farmhousestoryteller Visit my website www.farmhousestoryteller.com {Let's collaborate} Email Danielle Foulk at Thefederalfarmhouse@gmail.com It's my hope to inspire oth...

“Look how far you’ve come!” This was a phrase that came to mind after receiving a text from my husband that said, "Your old self is dying right now." In today's podcast, I'm going to share a little bit about that person I used to be and how I have in the end returned to my roots having not let the beacons in my life completely go out of sight over the past 20 years.   {Let's Connect} Find me on In...

This week on Grounded in the Middle, I'm chatting with my friend, Dawn Kendrick, who is a repurposed news reporter telling only real, raw, vulnerable stories that uplift, encourage and inspire. In today's episode we are chatting unscripted about our experiences and struggles with identifying our identities through various season of our lives.  Connect and learn more about Dawn through the links be...

Have you ever felt like you have fallen short? Sometimes we have control well sometimes we don’t when it comes to not hitting the mark. In today’s episode I will be sharing how I have fallen short when I could’ve avoided it and then how I have fallen short but it was out of my control. From these experiences and more, ultimately I have learned that by falling short we can fall forward in Toto grow...

Today marks 154 years of celebrating those who have served and sacrificed for our freedom and as the storyteller of our life out here in the middle I have found a passion for learning and sharing about the lives in which came before us. In today’s episode, I’m going to be sharing about the history of Memorial Day as well as well as share with you about John Leslie Wehr who was born and raised here...

How do you make the most out of the longer summer days? Do you feel a change in rhythm when school is out or when we reach June 21st on the calendar? Are there other signals that notify you or give you permission to live differently in that season? No matter your official work hours, we are all given the opportunity to switch things up during these longer days to dive into things we often feel we...

Have you ever trained for a 5k or another physically demanding task? It takes a lot of intention and planning from paying for a gym membership, making it to the gym, planning your menus of meals for the week, and grocery shopping.  Now let me ask you this. When is the last time you spent some time strengthening your mind? In today's podcast I'm going to be sharing an event I went to that got...

Have you ever had something from your past come into view out of the blue? This past week, a memory was triggered while watching a show and it got me thinking about how I had completely forgotten about it yet I was still weighed down by it like a rock in my pocket. Today I’m sharing something I have kept close to myself over the past 12 years in hopes to rid myself of something I’ve been lugging a...

Have you ever had someone share some advice to you that you hadn’t solicited? It’s not always easy having others point things out to us as adults but if we take the time to listen rather than respond immediately on the we can really learn something about ourselves and maybe even slightly change. On today’s podcast I’m gonna share with you how a couple simple Thomas Rhett song shifted my perspectiv...

This week I want to share some thoughts around Grace and not Grace from the Chevy Chase Christmas Vacation movie. However, I did in fact observe a customer at Lowe’s this past week who reminded me of Chevy Chase’s character, Clark Griswold. Can you think of a time when you have shown someone grace? How about a time when someone else has shown you grace? It isn’t always easy to give grace, however,...

Well hello friend! While things may seem smooth sailing out here in the middle (of nowhere) I want to be transparent with you always in sharing that we more or less function by finding a balance between limping and thriving at the same time. There is hardly anything at all perfect-It's messy, but wouldn't you know that we wouldn't be where we are today had we not had a really big interruption 10 y...

Well let me be one of the first to those who celebrate, Happy Easter! I feel like I say this a lot, but I honestly feel like time is flying by quickly this year. Where is it going? How do you celebrate the holiday? We are going to be going to church and enjoying a breakfast afterwards as a congregation and then we will be spending time with our family at a restaurant we’ve been going to since we w...

Are any of you experiencing a tug and pull situation between winter and spring weather? Here in the middle, we have had warm and sunny days with temps in the 70’s as well as overnight temperatures in the teens and snow showers. The fields have begun to turn a deep green allowing for the perfectly straight rows to be noticed when passing by. While in limbo as to what to wear for the day or what to...

Happy Spring! Join me on the porch today for a completely unscripted podcast about our weekend out here in the middle that was full of house projects and a hockey game that proved that anything is possible when you commit and don’t give in!

Have you ever had one of those weeks when you had your schedule planned out just to have it derailed within the first part of your Monday? Two Sundays ago, I had finally taken the time to plan out everything that needed accomplished all to have it pushed to the back burner when I woke up sick on Monday. I have to admit I wasn’t completely surprised because I swear every time, I try to get myself t...

How many of you are noticing signs of spring? Ove the past five years of living out here in the middle, I’ve tuned in a bit more each year to the change of seasons and over the past week and a half, I have noticed the earliest signs of spring. We’ve woke to geese on the pond, many squirrels bounding through the yard and up our walnut and maple trees, we’ve heard the woodpeckers and seen our front...

How many times have you taken a family photo? I’m guessing many of you have. Now how many of you have taken a family photo and when you look at it, you think of how many times it took to get everyone looking and smiling at the same time? Or maybe there were other circumstances and hurdles that stood in your way and by golly you were determined that family photo was going to happen because of the h...