Friday Love! {10.21.16}

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I's been like two months since I've done one of these bad boys, so let's get started!

one// This Sunday Michael and I are going to Chicago! It's for a conference with Harvest Bible Chapel, and it'll be our first extended trip (3 days!) without Lydia. I'm a little nervous because the longest I've been away from her is a full day/overnight! However, at the same time I am looking forward to learning and becoming closer to God without all the distractions.

two// The other day I took a picture of Lydia sitting in her chair and realized I had taken a similar one exactly a year before. 7 months old vs. 19 months old. I think she was just starting to army crawl at that age and now she's running, climbing and dancing!

three// I am easing back into painting. I got out the oil paints that I had bought over a year ago and forgot about. I am hoping it'll help with relaxation and spark my creativity!

pacifier nostalgia 

four// So, Lydia hasn't used her pacifier in two full days! We have been talking about weaning her off of it, but my instincts just told me to just keep it from her and have her go cold turkey. I told Michael we need to be strong and not cave in when she's upset. Yesterday she was a bit of an emotional roll coaster but we all survived. On the bright side she's been sleeping through the night without a fuss! The next step? Have her sleep through the night in her crib :)

five// I'm happy that the weather is finally cooling down! This week has been so hot, and I have been drinking iced coffee in the afternoon when my soul is craving a hot latte. I also want to retire my sandals already and bring out the cozy fall/winter clothes. Today may be dreary and wet but I think it is refreshing, and I can appropriately wear a flannel and sip on a latte without sweating :)

six// After two years of reading my bible on my phone, I got myself a new bible this week and it's beautiful! Distractions are constant in my life, and doing my daily readings through my phone seemed to open doors to more distractions. I've always preferred reading books over screens so the transition from phone bible to real bible has been seamless!

That's all I have for this week, I hope you guys have a lovely weekend!

Friday Love!

Just a few things I’ve been loving these days:

one // First things first, this weather is spectacular! Sure there’s been rainy days this week but it has been much warmer lately and am happy that summer is around the corner.

two // This post on respecting your body’s natural size. I found it to be such a positive, spot on and well written piece! I know I have moments where I’m feeling self-conscious with my body, and this post is all about giving yourself a break and to letting go of numbers on the scale. I loved it.

three // FitnessBlender’s FBooty Round 2. I just completed week 1! Much like the first round, this program combines pilates, HIIT, and lower body strength workouts with extra credit for a burnout round. It’s been challenging but so much fun. My goal is to strengthen my lower body and improve my balance and flexibility as well!

four// Adding a shot of espresso to my morning smoothie this week. I’ve been seeing it around the web for a few months now and finally did it! I will be posting a recipe in the near future:)

five // Buttermilk. I know it’s nothing new under the sun but I recently reintroduced some dairy into my diet, and it’s become essential for my fried chicken brine, cake and waffle batters! I've also been using any leftover buttermilk in smoothies and overnight oatmeal. From now on (unless I’m cooking for someone with dairy allergies), I will probably stop making buttermilk substitutes by curdling milk with lemon or vinegar. It just isn't the same!

six // This black "coconut ash" ice cream. I wouldn't say I love it because I haven't tried it but it intrigues me immensely. It's coconut flavored and has activated charcoal in it. Hmmm thoughts? 

seven // Last but certainly not least, my new cacti family. They were a Mother’s day present from Michael:) Phoebe resides in the kitchen while Georgie hangs out in the living room. Aren't they cute?

That's all I got today, have a beautiful long weekend!

A New Home

I decided to relocate my thoughts once again. Though, this time I am not sure if I want to broadcast them right away. I definitely love the minimalistic layouts that blogger provides over the fancy ones at wordpress! I also love that I can use my google account through blogger. Makes life easier, if you ask me. I probably have like 10 or more blogs that I started and just kind of grew out of; which is very similar to the 100+ diaries I started writing in but never seemed to finish.  But I guess that's just how I roll. Start one thing and maybe finish someday.

I guess as time passes I change little parts of myself. And, for the most part I'm okay with those changes. I like to think of them as wisdom kicking in. I'm not entirely sure what I'm talking about, I think I'm pretty good at rambling to make it look like this is a very intelligent post. Clearly, it's not! So I think I'm going to cut this short but saying I'll be back for more to say. Hopefully it will make more sense than this!

-Jessica