Raising two bilingual girls in the heart of Chicago is not for the faint of heart. (Although, I have felt close to fading more times then I could admit.) Deep in my "knower," I've always wanted daughters. Having no sister of my own, like many parents, I wanted to give my first born what I never had: a partner in crime, a ride-or-die friend for life, a sister! These two are more than I could have bargained for. They are the MOST in every imaginable way. The most dramatic, the most loud, the most convincing, the most driven, and all at the same time, the most endearing, sensitive, funny, nonsensical, forgiving actresses a mother could ever want.

On this particular day, we ventured out to Lake Michigan; our stomping grounds. We adore hanging out by the lake. We set an intention to live like tourists last summer, and boy did we ever! After being beaten up by the cold and awakening out of our cabin-fever coma, we resolved to take on the city like pros.

There is always joy in discovering a place unknown, however, I believe the real magic happens in our lives when we take on a new perspective in an old place. Here we find unquestionable growth. We can't always change our circumstances. There are times when we must dig deep and see the same vast blue sky with new eyes –and this takes faith.

When we tap into our deepest resources and find joy and beauty in our ordinary, we are empowered to weather any storm, drought, or famine that life may toss at us. See, we had been to the lake before, but instead of treating our journey like an old, stale cracker, we hunted for the beauty.

We dug up the treasures. Gosh, did we laugh together and tire ourselves from running. We had a day to remember always. Bless the day we found new eyes to see that vast blue sky again.