Happy Birthday TMS

Happy second birthday TMS. How on earth did we get here? I feel like it was just Christmas and before that the Fourth of July…

To be fair, I am in the thick of a lot right now. We just got back from NYC over the weekend. We started a minor (semi-not-so-minor) house refresh on Monday. Everything is off the walls. There are holes in the floor. And my heart can’t wrap around the idea that this little one-week adventure to pass the time while we were on a two-week shutdown (y’all, two weeks, LOL) has turned into this most lovely and wonderful two years!?!?!

Last year, there was a balloon garland, cupcakes and a rounding rendition of happy birthday sung by two very precious 3-year-olds to celebrate one whole year of TMS. This year snuck up on me. But it doesn’t make this milestone any less important. I snagged a birthday muffin from Great Harvest on the way home from preschool drop off and pulled two pink candles and the lighter because I firmly believe ‘the everyday’ deserves celebrating. And, spending the last year with this little corner of the internet has brought me immense joy and gratitude.

It’s funny – while things have shifted all over the place over the last year, TMS has remained a steady part of my everyday rhythm. It’s kept me grounded when I was all up in my feelings. It is where I cried after the babies’ fourth birthday party recap. It’s where I laughed and danced my face off after Taylor re-released Red in December. There have been long-rambling double dips, a few late night TMS editions and the occasional missed show due to #reallife and that LONG few weeks when I didn’t have live comments. You’ve been patient, generous, encouraging and committed.

Since our last birthday: I got braces, stayed firmly committed to eye patches, found out my beloved coach was retiring while I was ‘live’ on the air. We celebrated another of my actual birthdays, predicted H&M’s baby name nearly 100% correctly and I took you on a tour of my bathroom. I had a few dance parties, found my way back to the porch, occasionally multi-tasked, did some serious holiday brainstorming, and I finally got comments back among the approximate 250 shows from the last year…

I said it last year, and the sentiment remains, my life is forever changed by this little corner of the internet. You’ve graciously shared your lives with me: the babies, the engagements, the weddings, the birthdays, and the funny stories. Your passion for certain topics (ahem, shoes in the house and college basketball) have left me rolling. And your honestly and vulnerability with hard topics ranging from infertility to loss of a loved one have deepened my prayer life and served as a reminder for everyone about the seen and unseen battles everyone faces daily.

The light-hearted nature and premise of TMS is firmly established: hi, I’m Kristin and I love this sound machine, these sunglasses, and for real, please wear sunscreen EVERY DAY. But if I’m honest, it’s messages that pop into my inbox below that keep me showing up day after day. They all have a different premise or reason for writing, but the general messaging is often the same: “thank you for showing up, I am <tired, emotionally spent, battling xyz> and catching up on TMS is the just the smile I need. TMS is such a blessing to me.” – TMS Friend

Dear friend, every single one of you, the feeling is mutual. TMS is such a blessing to me.

Community, even when it might not look like what you thought ‘community’ is supposed to look like, is so important. Forever grateful that TMS is a safe place for people to land, take a load off and hang out for hot minute or fourteen.

I don’t take one single show for granted. Thanks for showing up. For being you, from front-row commenter to backseat watcher. For those of y’all who’ve been here since Day 1 and those of you who stumbled across this circus last week. Thank you. From the bottom of my monogramming-loving, coffee-drinking, Aquaphor-obsessed heart.

xo,

KNW

PS: In case you missed it, this TMS First Birthday Recap is worth the read.