Another Saturday has come and went, and it is even more apparent that Summer is upon us! May 20th marked an important day in my educational career as my first “last day of school” as an administrator. It has been a truly memorable year, and I will not forget everything that these students have taught me. Yes, I will still be working during the Summer and in and out of the school building, but Friday was still very special!
On Saturday, even though I would have much rather reveled in my celebration of Summer a little bit longer, we hit the ground running to tackle some much needed projects around the house. We washed load after load of laundry, cleaned the house, hung a (very, very, very heavy) porch bed swing, and dismantled and reassembled a (very, very, very heavy) weight bench system.
You would be right in assuming that this took to majority of a day to complete; however, we wouldn’t be completely satisfied if we didn’t try to squeeze every possible minute from the day. So….we loaded up the car and struck out towards the beach with some family. We. Had. A. Blast! Although initially I was hesitant to drive out to the beach for just a couple of hours, but I am really glad that we did. Addie loved playing with her cousins on their boogieboards and performing her best cannonballs in the waves!
I can’t deny that the month of April was a bit of a blur. Working three weekends in a row and then going out of town for the other didn’t really leave a great deal of time for family adventures and fun. With a new month ahead of us we wanted to make sure to take advantage of the warmer (but not scorchingly hot) weather. The last two weekends have been very different, but equally exiting.
Weekend #1: Staycation
-Savannah Scottish Games (complete with Celtic dancing, traditional highland games, fairies, Scottish soda, and lots and lots of plaid)
-Mother’s Day (we went to church and had lunch at my parents and hubby’s grandparents)
Weekend #2: Adventures Away
-Walt Disney World (We left Friday after work and spent the day at Magic Kingdom on Saturday. We saw the princesses, rode our favorite rides, and hit the rode around Addie’s nap time.)
-St. Augustine (We arrived in St. Augustine in the early evening, and spent the rest of the day walking along the river, San Marco Castillo, and downtown. We had delicious pizza at Pizza Alley and homemade popsicles at Hyppo. The next morning we made sand castles at the beach and went on walks for sea shells.)
-Grandma’s (Like many Sunday evenings we spent the last bit of the weekend at hubby’s grandmothers house eating good food and enjoying random conversations with family. Addie and her cousins even found the time to make “mud angels”).
Was our weekend busy? Of course, but we wouldn’t have it any other way! I can’t wait for many more weekends just like this one of the next few months!
Once again this year, the Vinton’s and Harvey’s braved uncharted territories and faced perilous times all for the sake of chasing the next adventure. No….I we did not explore the remote areas of the Amazon. What we did was much, much more dangerous. We took a TWO YEAR OLD on over a 1,000 mile road trip and four plane rides in one week. Yes, we are crazy!
We certainly had many adventures (and misadventures) along the way. Here are just a few snapshots to highlight some of the memories we made.
I am so thankful for good friends and good times! Thank you Lord for blessing us with a sweet (and sometimes crazy) little girl, and such fun (and sometimes crazy) friends!
Here are some highlights from the trip:
-Driving to the very tip of the Cape & collecting sea shells
-Watching whales breach near Providencetown, MA
-Exploring Vermont’s Agrotourism (cheese and chocolate tasting, and touring a cider mill)
-Ben & Jerry’s!
-MIT Museum, Sam Adams Brewery tour, & the Boston Aquarium
-Riding the ducks in Rhode Island
-Addie seeing SNOW for the first time
-Hearing FRENCH all aroumd us in Montreal
-Montreal’s AMAZING food scene
-Authentic Sugar Shack dinner in Montreal, complete with maple snow taffy
Can you believe that there are only 940 Saturdays in each child’s life? Yep, the days a certainly long, but oh how the years are fast! While every Saturday will include bucket-list fulfilling activities, they will be priceless moments for our family. I don’t want to forget even one of them! So here goes…
I had a work obligation during the early part of the morning on Saturday, but after lunch I was able to meet up with Addie and the Hubby at the outlets. No, we didn’t have a massive to-do or to-get list. We just strolled, browsed, went to the candy store, and played on the play ground. We then hit up the ole faithful Mexican restaurant in town, and then headed home for an early evening in house. All in all we had no earth-shattering, ground-breaking adventure. But we did have fun!
Am I the only one that is running on caffeine and Jesus? My days start before daylight and end long after sunset. On any given day I am burning through the midnight oil and into the next day’s allotment! As I scroll through Pinterest I am bombarded with pins and posts with lengthy/complicated cleaning schedules, tips for cleaning tile grout, and fancy new techniques to fold my socks. I can help but think to myself, “Is this real life?” I don’t know about you, but right now I am lucky if I can find a pair of matching socks (I swear my dryer eats them), and the shower grout is the last thing on my mind when my head hits the pillow each night! I don’t need another thing to add to the to-do list and I CERTAINLY do not need another thing to feel overwhelmed or insecure about.
I have to get rid of my perfection infection at the front door. I live with a two year old. My husband and I work…a lot. We love to travel and escape on adventures whenever we get a free second. My faith, my family, and our amazing memory-filed adventures are what matters most to me. While I often have to put these things into perspective for myself and realize that is truly important, I also know that our lives function more smoothly when we are in a doing life in a tidy home. Things just seem to flow, and we are able to truly relax in our space. While my husband and I work outside of the home, and we both do our fair share of the work, I feel a certain responsibility to my family to make sure that our home is one that we can truly take pride in.
So…I did what I always do when I feel overwhelmed. I made a list. I gave myself 30 minutes each day and divided the tasks over a week. I set a few ground rules for myself: #1 Set a timer for 30 minutes max, and stop whenever that buzzer dings, no exceptions! #2 Only touch the clutter once, this means no piles and no pushing stuff around from room to room. #3 Put away perfection! I made this chart to help me visualize everything and added these tasks into my planner each week.
I have found that often even the most well-intentioned plans cannot run on willpower alone. If I have a system in place I can in turn build a habit, and that consistency over time allows me to build momentum and find success (with a little help from that caffeine and Jesus, of course)!
I am pretty sure that parenthood is a constant practice in the art of failure. You see, I know that this parenting gig is going to be full of ups and downs, but as I clean up an “accident” off of the kitchen floor for the 1,232 time during our never-ending potty training saga I feel a twinge of guilt. What am I doing wrong? Why can’t I get her to understand that the she needs to go in the potty instead of all over the floor in front our dinner guests from Church. What will they think? Maybe I should consult the all-knowing Mr. Google….
So here I am tonight. I am acutely aware of the fact that I can not and will not always be able to do the right thing for her (despite my best intentions), but ultimately it is Christ who holds her future. I can not make her into a good little girl, productive citizen, or successful adult, no more than I can grant her eternal life. Tonight I rest in the fact that He is all that she or I will ever need, and He certainly does not have a fear of failure.
How many times have you swam in the ocean or a swimming pool and dove down as deep as your lungs and your legs will take you? As every inch of your body searches for the water’s surface you stretch and strain, and when your nostrils fill with air you suddenly feel relieved, rejuvenated, and filled with life-preserving and sustaining oxygen.
This is my life. A new job, a new house, a little girl who is all of a sudden a toddler, and a husband whom I have had the blessing of sharing life with for over seven years. With new professional responsibilities and a more demanding work schedule the past nine months have been a time of growth, pruning, and sacrifice. God has humbled me in some areas and given me courage and strength in others. This year my prayer has been (will continue to be) for wisdom.
This year, like all of the years past, I have cried, laughed, and loved. God in his mercy, grace, and faithfulness has been steadfast in guiding and equipping our family even in the midst of my doubts and fears. While each day brings new challenges, it also brings opportunity. I look forward to the start of each day and coming up for air…
PS: We didn’t get a ton of action items off of the bucket list, but we managed to have quite a bit of fun!
Well, 2015 is more than half way over and I literally felt like I have blinked one time since January 1st. Is anyone with me on that one??? I am content. I am happy. Actually as I am writing right this very moment I am sitting across the living room from my beautiful little girl who is sound asleep after a long day out in the sun and sand. My family and I are spending the weekend with our family friends at Tybee and the weather is beautiful. Hubby is away serving the Lord on a mission trip to Ecuador and is scheduled to fly back to us this evening. We can’t wait for him to be back, but we are grateful for the opportunity that he has been given to impact the lives of others. You see, I (we) am more than good. I (we are) am blessed beyond measure. I have to remind myself that if NOTHING on my bucket list gets accomplished every again, God is still good. He is still faithful. He is still worthy of my praise.
Our lives and hearts have been VERY full in 2015. Here is a run down of this year’s progress thus far:
1. Be more thoughtful (create a thankful box and plan to send more cards, flowers, letters, and thoughtful gestures each month).
—–This started off really well at the beginning of the year. I was on time or even early with Birthday cards! I need to get back into the routine for Fall. Having a designated container for stamps, cards, and cute stickers etc… have made it easier follow through with all of those good intentions.
2. Read 15 books (2 personal finance, 2 parenting, 3 devotions)….yeah I am still working on this rather slowly…
—–HAHAHAHA! This is so pitiful of me because I really do love to read. I have read a couple of devotional books, part of a novel, and more children’s board books than I can count!
3. Learn to sew and making something for Addie (Almost finished with the first skirt.)
——I am 90% finished with Addie’s first skirt…..but I put that project down a few months ago. I really should finish it!
4. Crochet a blanket
—-Yeah. NO. Haven’t even gotten the yarn!
5. Build our dream home (We are working working on hardieboard outside and sheetrock inside now!)
——SO MUCH PROGRESS HERE! We are painting the outside of the house this weekend. We could not have survived this process without the support of our amazing family and friends. We OWE them big time. Really big time.
6. Visit 2 new states (AL and LA)
—–WHOOO HOOOO! I have lived in Georgia my entire life but have not ventured to either of these two states. Not to offend any current residents of Alabama or Louisiana, but these were not necessarily my favorite of what the good ole US of A has to offer. I am more of an east coast gal, what can I say…
7. Celebrate 10 wacky holidays (Celebrated 2 currently: 1. Spouse’s Day 2. National Have Fun at Work Day)
—-I have missed so much. National S’more Day and all. I need to plan out my next 8 days to catch up! Good thing the Fall is jam-packed with fun and wacky holidays just waiting for us to celebrate!
8. Go zorbing
—–Nope. Any ideas where I can get this done?
9. Take Addie on her first trip to Disney (to visit Mariah)
—–Again. Nope, and Mariah isn’t there anymore. Opportunity missed! 😦
10. Go see Tori and John (Tori actually came to meet us in South Carolina!)
—-My most-bestie came to visit us in Columbia a few months back. I am excited to celebrate her birthday with brunch in Brunswick this upcoming weekend!
11. GO see Audra, Drew, and Baby Samuel (We visited for Samuel’s FIRST Birthday and had a great time!)
——We have actually gotten to see these sweet friends TWICE this year! We are on a roll! We celebrated Samuel’s first birthday and Hubby took me on a surprise trip to visit with them and take the kiddos to the zoo!
12. Hang glide
—-Maybe this October at Lookout Mountain!?
13. Triathalon
——-This is most hilarious. This would require me to actually be running…which hasn’t happened in a REALLY long time. (Note to self: workout tomorrow.)
14. Krispy Kreme Challenge
—–I can’t remember what we were doing…but I think we had a good reason for not going this year.
15. Plant hydrangea and bougainvillea (My grandparents gave my first very own hydrangea for my birthday! I am trying to keep it alive long enough to be able to plant at our new place!)
—–Hydrangeas are still alive from my birthday. Not sure how that is still happening…. I am ready to get in our dream home and plant some of these bad boys. This item will probably be placed on the 2016 Bucket List as well.
16. Find my “signature dish”
—-Finding my “signature dish” would require me to find an oven or even a kitchen for that matter, which hasn’t happened. Oh well, maybe that is saying something in itself.
17. Complete 2 Minimalist challenges
——This hasn’t happened yet, but don’t worry because I will be completing a major PURGE if/when we move into to the afore mentioned dream home.
18. Create a will
—-Not yet.
19. Complete at least 2 100 Day Challenges (currently working on challenge #2!)
—–Working on the second 25 day session of Challenge #2. More to come on this after completion!
20. Celebrate the Highland Games (Out of town when this happened this year in Savannah…)
—–Nope 😦
21. Stick to a budget ALL year (in progress)
—-Loosely in progress. We are building a house, remember?!?
22. Dye my hair a crazy color (probably not going to happen this year since I worked through Summer…)
—I am holding out on this for next Summer. I worked Summer School and then straight into my new job and purple or pink should not have been a color associated with my hair in any way shape or form.
23. Start and keep a prayer journal (sadly this has been slack…worse than my poor attempt to stay up to date blogging).
—No excuses here. I just need more discipline.
24. Get a henna tattoo.
—And that would be a big “not yet”
25. Give up soda (again).
—-I yo-yo with this one the worst! I love love love pepsi and cherry pepsi. I really do think sometimes they make me happy….that is so tragic to actually type.
26. Get to happy college weight again.
—-Try college happy weight plus 15lbs. I like to call it the “post-grad 15.”
27. Brush up my Spanish for the mission trip
—–And no.
28. Put Waring second only to God (working on this…)
—–Who doesn’t struggle with dying to self? Just me?
29. Get our home’s first nativity set
——-Not yet. Any good ideas?
30. Start an Advent Calendar
—–I have the most amazing hanging felt advent calendar that I purchased on clearance after last Christmas season. It is all I can do to stop from declaring Christmas in August! 🙂
31. Learn about homesteading (Rain water collection, composting, bees, chickens)
—-Does Pinterest count? I have looked up into for rainwater collection, acquired a composter, and learned lots about creating emergency preparedness kits. I still have a lot to learn…but I am a nerd about this kind of stuff.
32. Go to an stargazing event
—-Missed it this year
33. Run the 1/2 marathon for time
—-We didn’t get around to really training for this….opps
34. Make homemade soap
—-Booked a class in Jacksonville….now just gotta go
35. Make our own bedroom furniture (done!!)
—-Headboard: check! Antique chest: check!
36. Learn and use essential oils
—–Currently have made an energy roll on and a sleepytime roll on. Still MUCH more to try.
37. Focus on 5 specific individuals all year in prayer
—in progress…
38. Keep fresh flowers in our new home
—-this requires us to have moved into said new home.
39. Create an emergency preparedness kit
—-not yet.
40. Set up autodrafts into our IRA
—also, not yet…
41. UNPLUG! (In progress. I am not perfect yet, but I must say that it feels good!)
—-I actually feel like Hubby and I have both made progress with this area of our lives as compared to January of this year. When I come home I put my phone on charge in the other room, turn the ringer up loud and go play with our beautiful little girl. She is growing up so fast. I don’t want to get sucked into the mindless vortex that is my iPhone and miss it.
42. Smashbook ALL year! (In the works…)
——in progress
43. Complete the Tybee Polar Plunge!
—-Check!
43. Eat a bug! (Wax worm at the New Orleans Insectarium April 2015)
With the house building process finally in full swing Hubby and I decided that we probably needed to keep our vacations this year state-side, even though I am eager to collect more stamps in our (my) passport.
I have been asking for YEARS to go on a road trip to New Orleans as I have never been to Mississippi, Lousiana, or anywhere really in thag general area….
So after spending Easter with the family we headed out on our first road trip journey with a TODDLER in tow. We traveled through the night and arrived in our first destination, Pensacola, FL in the wee hours of the morning. Addie did very well and slept for much of the ride.
The next few days were spent with Waring’s sister and brother-in-law, Trish and Ryan. We went shopping, to the beach, and Ryan grilled us the best steak I think I have ever eaten! Visiting family was so relaxing, and it feels so great to just catch up.
After two nights in Pensacola we headed out to NOLA around 9pm. Addie once again slept the majority of the ride. We stayed in a Hilton Garden within walking distance to the French Quartee, but still out of the craziness.
The next morning we hit the ground running! We ate a nice breakfast downtown, took Addie to her first aquarium (she loved it), walked and window shopped in the French Quarter, strolled along the mighty Mississippi River, looked at art in Jackson Square and the French Quarter Market, ate a bug at the creepy-crawly insectarium, took a pedicab to dinner, ate BBQ, bought Addie some fleur di lis earrings from a local artisan, ate the local pralines, and then CRASHED in the hotel room!
The next morning we were at it again! We checked out of the hotel, drove to the zoo to see lots of animals, and then drove to the Hard Rock casino in Mobile for dinner and a magnet, and were on the road again. We made it back to our home in Georgia around 3am!! What a wonderfull whirlwind!
Along the Mighty Mississippi!I can’t believe this is our first IMAS experience.
Beautiful day in Pensacola!Kissing the doggie at Aunt Trish and Uncle Ryan’s.Fishes!Yay NOLA Audobon Aquarium!Loooook!
Mighty Mississippi!
Audobon ZooPensacola BeachBest part about the beach…SAND
NOLA InsectariumYUUUM!Wax worm in cajun seasoning!NOLA
-April 2014 put house on the market
-24 home showings and three offers later…
-October 2014 sold our first home!
-October 2014 bought our first storage shed and moved in with family
-December 2014 land cleared!!
-January 2015 land officially deeded to us!
-February 2015 closed on building loan
-March 2015 broke ground on property
-April 2015 building during rainy season…
-May 2015 framing!!
My mind is constantly consumed with minute details such as door hardware and styles of facets…basically I am eating it all up and hungry for more!!
Daily Drops in the Bucket 