December always makes me pause. This one feels different. Not just to look back at this year, but to truly reflect — on who I was, who I’m becoming, and everything God pushed me through and pulled me out of.
This year felt like pruning and blooming at the same time.
Hard lessons.
Quiet tears.
Small victories.
Big breakthroughs.
And somewhere in the middle of all of it, I kept coming back to one question:
“What is my purpose?”
For a long time, I thought purpose was one thing — one fixed identity, one calling, one definition. But life has shown me something different.
Motherhood Is a Purpose — But Not My Only One
This ride in Motherhood changed me. Having my daughter sharpened my intuition, softened parts of me that trauma tried to harden, and gave me a reason to keep standing when I didn’t feel strong.
It didn’t cancel my dreams.
It didn’t silence my voice.
It didn’t shrink my future.
Motherhood this 2nd ride around, added purpose.
My kids are one of my greatest reasons — but they are not the end of my story. They are the beginning of a stronger, wiser, more intentional version of me.
© Nicole Nurthen Photography, LLC — http://www.niconicophoto.com
This holiday season gave me a gift I didn’t even realize I’d been craving: Christmas pictures as a family.
My family.
My bunch.
Miss Jennie’s babies.
For three years, I tried to make it happen. Three years of planning, scheduling, rescheduling… and every time, life had other plans. Blending a family of eight isn’t simple. And when your life isn’t in alignment, those picture-perfect moments don’t line up either.
And now I see why —
when your soul is unsettled, even holidays feel heavy.
When you’re surviving, pictures can’t capture joy you’re not living yet.
But this year?
This year was different.
No chaos.
No excuses.
No emotional weight blocking the moment.
This year, we showed up.
We laughed.
We smiled.
We created a memory I waited three years to feel.
That moment wasn’t just a holiday photo — it was evidence.
Evidence of healing.
Evidence of growth.
Evidence that life can fall apart and still come back together more beautifully than before.
This year taught me that being a mother is only part of my identity.
I am also a woman with:
• goals
• desires
• talents
• creativity
• ambition
• a voice
• and a story that’s far from finished
A healed version of me started showing up this year — one who doesn’t dim her light for anyone, one who chooses peace over patterns, one who prioritizes her purpose instead of her pain.
I stopped shrinking.
I stopped pretending.
I stopped carrying people who were never meant to walk into my next season.
Motherhood didn’t limit me — it motivated me to rebuild smarter.
Purpose Isn’t One Thing. It’s Layers.
My purpose is:
• Raising emotionally safe children
• Creating stability
• Breaking cycles
• Building generational peace
• Healing loudly and honestly
• Becoming the woman I needed at 15, 20, 25
• Allowing myself to dream again
• Choosing alignment over survival
• Making room for joy again
Purpose is not a job title.
It’s not a relationship.
It’s not a single moment.
Purpose is every piece of who you are coming together at the right time.
Healing Was the Quiet Work I Didn’t Know I Needed
This year healed me in ways I didn’t expect.
Not through big dramatic revelations, but through:
• small moments of peace
• quiet confirmations
• boundaries that actually held
• choosing myself over chaos
• choosing safety over history
• choosing clarity over confusion
• choosing God over being in control
Healing wasn’t loud.
It was steady.
It was honest.
It was necessary.
And now I can look back and see how every painful chapter made room for the restoration I’m walking in now.
Closing Out the Year With Gratitude 🤍
This holiday season isn’t just festive for me — it’s symbolic.
It represents survival.
It represents rebuilding.
It represents stepping into the life God always had waiting for me.
I’m ending this year:
• softer
• stronger
• clearer
• more intentional
• more aligned
• more myself
And I’m stepping into the new year with one truth on my heart:
I am a mother with purpose.
I am a woman with purpose.
And I am finally living in it.
As we close out this year, I just want to say thank you.
To everyone who has followed my journey, prayed for me, supported me, or simply read these words in silence — I appreciate you more than you know.
This season means something different for all of us.
For some, it’s joy.
For others, it’s healing.
For many, it’s rebuilding.
But no matter where you are in your story, I want you to know you’re not alone.
We made it through things we didn’t talk about, things nobody saw, and things only God understands.
From my family to yours — Happy Holidays.
May this season be full of softness, peace, protection, and new beginnings.
May you walk into the new year lighter, stronger, and more purposeful than ever before.
🤍Lots of Love, Jennie
Nicole Nurthen Photography, LLC. Copyright protected. Used on this site with permission. Visit http://www.niconicophoto.com.
LotsofJennie 