soul care, faith, mothering Charlene VandenBrink soul care, faith, mothering Charlene VandenBrink

I Will Carry You

Curveballs fly on the news, triggering fear but when one hits home we learn a new level of surrender.

Control is illusive—stringing us along until something snaps.

One year ago this Sunday, my husband Benj hit the pavement in the golden hour of the Costco parking lot and our son Gavin broke his femur. This is how Gavin (4) retells what happened:

"Daddy was running too fast with the shopping cart and it fell over.  I got hurt but Hudsy didn't.  I had a big cast on, that's all."

That's all and then that’s not all.

Read More

Travel Together on Instagram

Letting myself be loved by God is a choice among many... I was struck by the powerful image in Inside Out 2 when Anxiety began tearing up as she worked hard to try and manage and control Riley’s life. I sat in the theatre this summer, tears s
This little girl is sure missing her daddy on his 69th birthday... Words fall short, so I cut our tallest sunflower for the graveside vase. A symbol of grief for all that's broken and hope for the Light to come🌻
After a decade of homeschooling I am still growing, changing, and finding new rhythms for our crazy, beautiful days together... Hudson was especially excited about his first day at our homeschool enrichment program 💙 This is the second year for th
First day of school...ever! Grade 9 at MCS 🙌 Yes, I cried as I drove home and called Benj and a friend 🥹 Change pulls at the heart strings, but all is well and she's still smiling 💓
It's ok if I cry this Thursday...right? I didn't get to when she started Kindergarten at home... Now, my little woman is poised for learning adventures at Millwoods Christian School for grade 9, new backpack and all! Annelise and I headed out on F
It's a wrap on another amazing week camping together, milking a region for adventure + treats! 🙌 The Pembina area has it all: -repelling off a bridge🪢 -hiking to a private river beach ⛱️ -sliding down mud into the river 💩 -swimming in an out
I am so grateful for the last 10 days...first at a family camp where Benj went to Bible College and then chasing waterfalls, groundhogs and tennis balls in the beautiful Kananaskis country. 🏔️ This photo is while on a 10 K hike where Benj said, &qu
Happy 40th Birthday, @seskim & @colleenjrobertson! You girls are a gift from God and it was so special to reflect on our 40 years of friendship with these photos & memories (link in bio): www.charlenevandenbrink.com/blog/forever-friends Ha