Say hello to our newest family member, Lucy.
We adore her! She adores playing for approximately 20 hours a day and sleeping in between my Hubster and I. Isn’t she adorable?!
Escape From LA
Sometimes you just gotta do it.
California is such a glorious state. Those of us that live here know that though. I’m so thankful for God’s beauty, a car, and wonderful company. Adventure is so easy and soooo good for the soul. Schedule your next adventure today!
Red Velvet Cupcakes
For the most part people adore Red Velvet Cupcakes, right? Well, I fall in the category that drools over them. Like, grab this girl a hankie. Anyway, I made my first attempt at making these bad boys and guess what? It was a success! I thought I’d share the SUPER easy recipe with you all. It’s here. And I followed the recipe exactly. Everyone loved them and I sent guests home with a few as well. I keep pastry boxes on hand at home. It’s lovely to have something special to send goodies home in (instead of Tupperware that you’ll surely never get returned). And your guest will feel that much more special with their box of yummy goodness.
Holidays 2012
The end of the year is here! Has your holiday season been a joyous one? I know mine surely has. It’s been a little hectic at times but always full of joy and lots of FOOD. Like seriously, food to the max. I’m so grateful for what 2012 has brought me. For all the blessings that have been in my life and the promises of even more. I’m happy to say that I am proud of where my life is headed.
Here’s a few shots from Thanksgiving. Included are my adorable nephews.
And Christmas..
Here’s to a great 2013!
Happy
Have you heard about this documentary, Happy, yet? Am I really late on this bandwagon? Possibly. Either way, it’s a lovely documentary. A good 75 investment to a reminder that life is precious… Let’s spend it wisely and enjoy ourselves, yes? God designed us to enjoy life. Jesus came to show us The Way. I feel that this documentary reinforces all the teachings of Jesus (just in a way that you don’t know that is what’s going on…shhhh). In culture today, and my goodness in LA culture, so many things get attention from the media, by our friends on Facebook, from newsites. Let’s promote, Happy. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. Maybe it’s not risque enough, but I’m OK with that too.
So, the task of the week. What makes you happy? Genuinely. Don’t delay it any longer.
Fall Interrupted
Fall is here. Wait. No it’s not. The LA weather has been so spastic lately. Barely reaching the mid 60s one week and then soaring into the 90s the next. To just bypass this madness the Hubster and I decided to trek up to the inland mountains for some fun apple pickin’. The weather was a bit cooler, air a bit thinner. It was lovely. I was still too hot in my cardigan, however. Boo. Anyway, I highly recommend going! Gooooood food, fun apple picking times, fresh cider, and the smell of apple pie at every corner. Go! It’s great fun. We went to Los Rios Rancho. Tell them the mrs and Hubster sent you. They’ll know who we are.
Hahahaha.
Kidding.
Here’s a recap photo! We also went with some friends (and their kids) who recently moved to SoCal from Louisiana.
Check out this sunset too. God was (and always is) shining on us.
Sinner
Such a dirty word.
I dislike saying it. Thinking it. You name it. But why do we as Christians find the need to call out certain…”sinners”? What is up with this constant separation of each other and defining me from you. If we try to find commonality (well, so of us anyway) with other religions (also dislike THAT word) why’s it so hard for us to do it within our own community?
What I’m really getting at here is a personal dilemma. My friend. My dearest friend that carries my spirit…has recently entered into a same-sex romantic relationship. And I’m in a tailspin.
Majorly.
God is working through some stuff with me. And I admit, I’m not enjoying it. B.C. (before Christ) I was on the front lines of marriage equality. Did all the phone-ins, organized the troops, etc., etc. But now, now that I have been gripped by the Holy Spirit and have had the word of God fill my heart…things have changed. But I don’t know how they’ve changed. I just know they’ve changed and I’m struggling to find where I stand on the issue (dirty words everywhere). You see, this matter of finding which side I was on and so on didn’t really matter. God and me, we were good. Nothing to wrestle with, no drama with that papa. But now it’s smack in the middle of my life. And now I have to do with it.
And I don’t wanna.
“It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all.” 1 Timothy 1:15
Lord knows He saves me everyday.
Somebody loves me
I was praying this morning while I was doing dishes. Do all women do that? Pray at the oddest times doing the most mundane tasks? I find that lately, my favorite time to pray is when I’m walking. I seem to break into a good stride and an intense moment in prayer at the same time. My heart rate and soul get so amped up. During dish washing, however, the same adrenaline is not involved. During these times though, I find that I scratch at something that I feel has been nudging me and I need to press in to it before it goes away. Before I ignore it and it gets pushed down. Today it’s been the revelation of an ongoing issue.
Somebody loves me.
Silly, right? Sometimes (more often than I care to admit) I find it hard to accept that my hubster chose me. Loves me. Chooses to love me. Sometimes I know that this translates into questioning if Jesus loves me. Why? I know He loves me and I know he loves me. Some days though, lies creep in. Today though, I choose to believe the truth. I pray that I can believe the truth every day.
Forgiveness
One of my favorite things about marriage thus far: forgiveness.
Every day we get to forgive each other. On the flip side, every day we let each other down. Sad. But, the abundance of grace given to each other makes up for it. *sigh* I have experienced SO much love and healing in these short months of marriage. Surprisingly, in areas I didn’t even know that healing was needed. The healing is so, surreal, I suppose is the right word. My hubster fills in areas that I never knew needed filling. When I have my alone time with God, man does the revelation begin!… I am thankful. I am loved. I am cherished.
Forgiveness.
He forgives me. Hubster forgives me. And I did nothing to warrant this beautiful gift.
A little reflection today.
<3 Fashion Blogs
Post two! Look at me. This is awesome.
I’ve heard that when you start a blog you have a gazillion ideas to write about and that you could probably write ten posts a day. Man, do I feel that way. There are topics that I want to address, things I want to share and also just randomness that fills my heart that I want to splat all over here. However, cue the editing. I don’t presume to have this all figured out yet but at the very least I should be able to keep one topic per post: stage right, rule meant to be broken. Stream of concsiousness! A beauty and a beast.
On that note, let’s get to the matter at hand. Fashion blogs. I have become majorly slightly obsessed with a few fashion blogs. First. Where have I been all of my 20s? Under a rock?! Oh how different my early 20s to well, now, would have been if I had a CLUE and had been following these gems. I vow to change that as I roll into my 30s. Here’s a few of my favs:
- cupcakesandcashmere.com - Pure inspiration and a pinch of yummy recipes and decor to boot.
- www.jseverydayfashion.com - Super practical. This blog owner duplicates magazine outfits and sites all the sources for each piece of her creation. Good stuff!
- www.karlascloset.com - More lovely inspiration with a tomboy flare.
- therecomesayes.com - Inspiration, inspiration, inspiration!
- www.lecatch.com - Daily items (and usually outfits) to inspire. These tend to be on the more pricey side but offer drama. This, I like, as I tend to gravitate to jeans, flats, and a cardigan. True (and sad) story.
I love each of them for different reasons but I find inspiration, beauty, and sometimes great deals! They are changing the way I look at how I present and brand myself. And helping me to define MY style. None of us want to blend with the crowd. We were created uniquely for goodness sake.
By no means does this mean that I am defined by my clothing or how others perceive me. This is about feeling confident about who I am, how I was created, and how to reflect all of that awesomeness! And besides, it’s fun being a girl. : ) Case in point; look at my wedding dress. For the most part, it was quite simple except for the BAM awesome flower detail across the bodice. I’d like to think of myself that way. Quite simple and understated until BAM we’re now best friends. Okay, maybe not all that.
Now then. Let’s find outfits that convey all of that, shall we?
Adios!
