“”Stealing Kisses” is like just a page from my little town here. As far as the cop in the beginning, I just remember when we were kids, you’d be drinking a six-pack at the end of some dead-end street somewhere, and the cops would come and they’d take your beer and send you home. And you know, they sort of wink at you, like “Hey, see you tomorrow night,” you know, on the next street over, or whatever they do. And it’s just like these towny things that we all sort of experience growing up here and I’m sure it happens in a lot of towns. And then that girl being married to that boy and finding herself just lonely – I don’t actually mention the kids in that song, but one of the things that I found so striking as I got older and as I had my kids is that I live in a little tiny house, and we have five children, and you can still feel lonely. This is a horrible example, but I always say I don’t even go to the bathroom by myself, there’s like a two-year-old following me around. But you can still somehow have that disadvantage of feeling lonely sometimes, and I’ve had conversations with my neighbors and my friends who are moms and are sort of experiencing the same things. So the song is really just that big example, a specific example of that loneliness you could feel even though you’re with somebody.”Lori McKenna (280)

“It’s not a typical love song, but to me it’s this woman that just loves this guy through all his faults and she’s just gonna stick it out and learn to live with it because of this love she has for him. And I feel like he loves her, too, but he’s just got this problem. And those type of songs, people always make fun of me, like if Lori’s gonna write a song there’s gonna be one alcoholic in it or it’s just not a Lori McKenna song. I come from an Irish family, but I don’t know if you really could find anybody that alcohol hasn’t affected, or some sort of addiction of that type hasn’t affected their family somehow. My husband grew up in an alcoholic family, and it’s one of those things that I’m kind of paranoid about in my own relationship with him. So the poor guy goes out for a couple of drinks and then I write a song about it. It’s why my husband doesn’t go to my shows. But to me, it’s just a love song. It’s just this undying love that she has for him and she’s gonna figure it out, when he needs her, she’ll be there.”Lori McKenna (280)

“Well, that song I wrote years ago. That’s the oldest of the three songs that Faith cut. I think I was around 28 or 29 when I wrote that song. I had three of my five kids, and I think I was just watching them one day. I don’t specifically remember what sparked it, just thinking about when you are a kid you just feel like everything’s possible. I always say to people, “Kids almost know more than we do.” It’s like they’re almost smarter than we are in so many ways. Like, we learn so many things as we get older that just take away from this natural thing that kids have. And I remember just thinking about that and feeling like when I was a kid I felt like when I was older I was going to be able to do whatever I dreamed I would do, and it just wasn’t an option that it wouldn’t work out. What sparked the song was I want my kids to grow up and be dreamers, like I am, and feel like anything’s achievable, anything’s possible.”Lori McKenna (280)

“”Bible Song” is just basically what I didn’t do. It’s sort of the opposite of how I feel, in a way, because the character sort of feels like they’re running off, or they want to run off and get the hell out. I know people who have felt that way, but I actually never have felt that way about it.”Lori McKenna (280)

“That song I wrote because my older son, who’s now 17, when he was in second grade was doing a biography report on Ruby Bridges [an American activist known for being the first black child to attend an all-white elementary school in the South – Ed]. So I actually wrote that for his extra credit. It was his oral presentation of that book report. He got an A, by the way. That song has just been so good to me, because I ended up meeting Ruby Bridges, and she came and met my kids.”Lori McKenna (280)

“It’s about my husband and how I think he’s a better person than he thinks he is. And I see him as a beautiful guy, and constantly reminding him that he is, and things like that.”Lori McKenna (280)

“”One Kiss Goodnight,” it’s not 100% about me and my marriage, but I’m sure I was sparked by something in my marriage that reminded me of this thing that happens quite a lot with people. It’s kind of like “Stealing Kisses,” but it’s not as desperate. But it’s sort of like, “Hey, you know, I love you and you love me, so pay a little attention, show a little love.” I think “One Kiss Goodnight” just came from this whole thing in my marriage that happened – and this is horrible and it’s kind of corny – but I think it actually came from an Oprah show where it was like you talked about the first time you see your partner for the day, like just look at them. Drop what you’re doing for one second, look them in the eye and give them a kiss. Just five seconds of paying attention and connecting, and then one little kiss, and then “How you doing?” I swear I had seen it on TV and it was probably on Oprah, it’s just hysterical. And my husband came home and at that point we had like four kids, and it was one of those things where, yeah, my husband would come home and I’d say, “Hey, how you doing?” and not even look at him, because I’m doing my thing and then he’s doing his, and then homework and everything else. And it was just sort of this reminder, like let’s pay attention and just be nice to each other a little bit.”Lori McKenna (280)