The name for this blog is simply the meaning of my two names put together. My mother tells me that upon birthing me, her seventh child, she and my father realized how much grace they had been given from God and how much more grace they needed to raise their children to fear Him. To remind themselves of this abundant grace that they received they decided to name a child Grace. My middle name comes from my great-grandmother, Genny Florence. Ironically, she also went by her middle name too, I think. When I was young I didn't care too much for my known-name, "Flo." I tried to get people to call me Grace; I felt it was much prettier of a name. However, as I grew and developed I found that Flo stuck and now feel it better portrays my personality.

When I got married in the fall of 2010 I decided to ditch the name Grace. It was a constant hassle when dealing with legal issues, banks, doctors, and teachers - I constantly had to explain my preferred name versus my legal name; I thought enough was enough. My sister, who had successfully dropped her unused first name when she got married, told me that all she did was tell the social security office to drop it and make her maiden name her middle name. It seemed all too simple. A couple weeks after beginning married life I went to the SS office to claim my new card and my new name. However, when I got there the lady across the counter told me that I could not simply write off my first name. I would have to pay $130 and go through the court system. "Ridiculous," I thought. I'm not one to put up a fight; so, I simply said that it really didn't matter and that I would just keep my first name. It was at this point I realized how truly attached I was to my maiden name, Faris. I found a sense of pride in it. I was born a Faris, and in my opinion, would always be one. Those first few weeks of marriage were particularly emotional already for me, and when the lady told me I had to drop my maiden name completely I almost broke down crying in front of her...don't worry, I held off until I got in the car. :)

Now, it's been over a year since I said, "I do," and now I am just as proud to be a Blackwood as I was to be a Faris. Yet, I know that my last name is not my ultimate identity. I am a sister of Jesus Christ who has been forgiven and redeemed by His blood.

I write mostly to remind myself of the promises and purposes of God - finding joy in the life He gives. But, to any who stumble upon this blog, I hope that you find encouragement and that what I write about, whether my thoughts or the daily happenings of a stay-at-home mother and wife, is used to point you to Jesus Christ, the King of all the nations.