I wrote “Second Chance Life” for my husband to perform, so I wrote it from his perspective. Although, when I think about it, I guess that makes it a love song to myself!

Matt had once told me about a…

Our neighbors had two boys who were always outside shooting hoops, throwing a football, or just being kids. It was the kind of everyday activity you get used to seeing in a neighborhood.

Then one day, we noticed there was…

My husband frequently writes love songs that evoke deep emotions, and I wanted to challenge myself to write what I called my own “bleeding heart song.”

Up until this point, I'd always written songs about something I had personally experienced…

“Stargazing” was inspired by a night my husband and I spent at Big Bend State Park. We took a blanket, found a spot under the open sky, and watched the stars dance above us.

If you've ever been to Big…

I came across a songwriting contest looking for the best “front porch” songs. I thought that sounded like a fun challenge, so I decided to write one. I never actually entered the contest, but I ended up with a song…

“Burned Bridges” is one of my favorite songs. I wanted to write a song about a woman whose quick temper and even quicker tongue kept getting her into trouble. She’s always saying exactly what she shouldn’t. I pictured her to…

I have dealt with tragedy and came out on the other side of it. It was not easy and there were many times I felt completely and utterly broken. I wondered what would I say to a younger version of…

I wrote “Fake Names” with Neal McCoy in mind. I could hear his personality and playful delivery bringing this one to life. It's a lighthearted take on the Saturday-night dating scene, where everyone is looking for love, but not everyone…

My husband and I were driving down the road and got into a deep philosophical discussion which then turned to religion. Everyone always talks about the cross, the sacrifice, the resurrection. I started thinking about the nail that was used…

“Not Even Close” was a title someone gave me as a songwriting challenge. I'll admit, I struggled with it. I don't particularly like writing songs that start with negative words like no, not, neither, or never. I always feel…

When I was a kid, I had a rock tumbler. I remember putting dusty, ordinary-looking rocks inside, letting them tumble around for what seemed like forever, and eventually pulling out these beautiful, polished stones. It fascinated me that something so…

“Perfect to Me” was the first song I ever wrote for my husband. I started thinking about how easy it is to find someone's faults when we're looking for them. None of us are perfect, and if we spend enough…

I've heard the Ten Commandments all my life, but ask me to recite all ten in order and suddenly my mind goes blank! I started wondering if I could turn them into a song that would make them easier to…

“Swept Away” came about after my husband and I had our first real fight. I'll admit, most of it was my fault. We'd both said enough, and I knew that adding more words to the conversation probably wasn't going to…

I wrote “Heaven Isn't Heaven” after thinking about something that weighed heavily on my heart. What if I get to heaven, surrounded by unimaginable beauty, standing in the presence of God and reunited with those I've lost, only to realize…

My dad challenged me to write a song about Zacchaeus from the Bible. You probably remember the childhood song about Zacchaeus being a wee little man who climbed up in a tree to see Jesus.

But instead of thinking about…

“This Side of Heaven” is a very special song to me. I wrote it for someone facing an incredibly difficult situation, one that seemed impossible to understand or make sense of. I wanted to give them something to hold on…

“Take Me Back to the Garden” began on our honeymoon in Italy, of all places! We were visiting a city that was absolutely packed with tourists. Between the crowds, long lines, and rushing from one place to another, we'd had…

After my first husband's accident, people would sometimes ask questions like, “What if he'd made a different choice?” “What if you'd woken up earlier or later?” “What if you hadn't gone to the store that day?”

I learned pretty quickly…

“Future Tomorrows” started as another songwriting challenge. When I was given the phrase, my first thought was, “Isn't that a little redundant?” I wasn't particularly fond of it, but I decided to see what I could do with it anyway…

I think most of us have been here at least once. You're in a relationship, you know something isn't quite right, and yet you keep convincing yourself it'll get better. You overlook the red flags, make excuses, and spend more…

There is a tenderness to “1000 Mistakes” that comes from a very personal place. Sometimes I feel so close to God, and other times I feel like I've made the same mistakes over and over again. I find myself wondering…

I wrote “Two Roads” about my husband and me. Before we met, we were living completely separate lives, each carrying our own heartbreaks, regrets, and experiences that had shaped who we were. Neither of us knew the other existed, much…

I wrote “Burdens to Blessings” while reflecting on one of the darkest periods of my life. There were times when the weight of everything felt unbearable, when I had more questions than answers and couldn't understand why certain things were…