A journey through college, young adulthood, marriage, and now motherhood. A Columbus, OH full-time working mother to a perfect baby girl. Our lives are enriched by our daughter, our dogs, our boat, our love, and our surroundings.
Break has been fantastic thus far and I can only imagine it getting better!!
#101: seeing people in Ohio for Christmas was awesome! I love getting to spend time with extended family that we honestly don't see all that often!
#102: I love our family traditions around Christmas. Brittany and I slept in the same bed Christmas eve night in new pj's and Zach was only a few feet from us! We still get so excited for Santa and I'm grateful for parents that enjoy it too!
#103: I have amazing friends and it has been so fun to stay in touch with them over the break as well! I feel blessed and loved.
Pictured: Zach with papa Darryl; Scarlet and I, mom and scarlet!
I LOVE Christmas, people. I love Christmas music, movies, decorations, and LIGHTS. I love the season for so many reasons, and I love seeing other people celebrate the season as well. It's such a joy.
Because of the craziness of my life, I seem to always be driving late at night...and that is such a blessing this time of year! Instead of it just being dark and gloomy, the night sky is filled with Christmas lights!! I love it.
I'm going to Columbus later today to go to the zoo for the Zoo Lights. I have never heard of such a thing but I couldn't be more excited. I love animales, I love Christmas lights, and I'm excited about who I'm going with :) Just one happy girl right now.
#99: Smiles. I smile ALL of the time. Some people get annoyed. But it's part of who I am. And I enjoy being smiley and happy.
#100: One hundred! Crazy to think how long it took me to get here, and how I am only 1/10th of the way done. Couldn't be more excited about this crazy journey of looking at my life and finding more and more things I am grateful for. Thanks for being a part of this journey with me!
So I'm on break. But I'm not sure that it feels like it yet. I've finished my entire first semester of grad school (YAY!) but I am still interning, I have been working lots, and I have been traveling lots too!
I am getting so excited for Christmas and the joy that comes from those few days where all of my family is together. I am excited to see extended family, excited to see friends, and excited to relax after this Thursday!
Until then, it is crazy crazy. And I'm STILL not done Christmas shopping. Which is a whole other level of stress!!
I hope your holiday season has started off beautifully, and that you're looking forward to the celebration of Christmas that is coming up this weekend!
#95: Joy. I have felt LOTS of joy lately. It's been incredible
#96: Honesty. I love when people are honest with me, and straightforward. I like input, and I hate sugar coated input.
#97: Memories. One of my great college friends started a Facebook note where she recounted all kinds of memories from our undergrad years. It has been so fun to think about more and more funny things we have all been through. It's beautiful!
#98: Love. This time of year is so much more full of love than any other time of the year. I enjoy seeing other couples enjoy each others company.
Well finals week has descended upon us at the University of Michigan. That means people are crazy, grumpy and tired. I am most definitely included in that.
I will be done with my first semester of grad school in less than 24 hours and I couldn't be more excited. I am looking forward to a few weeks of craziness: interning, lesson planning and sleeping. Maybe working out, too. We'll see.
I spent the weekend in Indianapolis and had TONS of fun, but became even more exhausted. I am working on getting all of my work done now so I just have to turn everything in tomorrow and hope for the best!
Stay warm!
#92: Warm coats. I own way too many coats, but they all have various uses, looks and warmth. Thankful for them.
#93: Great friends, great family, a great life.
#94: My internship has been incredible. Challenging, difficult, frustrating. But incredible.
I admitted a few months ago on Blogger that I love the Kardashian's. Well since that post, KimK ended a 72 day marriage, KourtneyK got knocked up, and Kourtney and Khloe take NY 2 began. Surprisingly, the Kardashian sisters have been involved in something incredibly positive in the past few days, too.
The Kardashian sisters went on Extreme MakeOver: Home Edition to support a family whose children had suffered greatly from bullying. Though bullying has been receiving lots of attention lately in the media with the rise of bullying-related suicides, bullying is still both rampant and detrimental for children and youth.
Watch Jonah's Story. He is full of honesty, brokenness, strength, and triumph. His story is moving, powerful, emotional, and inspirational. Join me in lifting his struggles and pain up to the One who can impact his life.
#89: I am grateful to be at a place in my life where I can be confident without being cocky, myself without being afraid, and free without feeling judged.
#90: Celebrities are a confusing population to me. They get paid to live their life, basically. Though movie stars or musicians get paid for their goods/works, what made the Kardashians famous? Despite this weird-ness, I am grateful that their fame and the fame of others is doing good in some ways. Many ways, even.
#91: Christmas is upon us. Though that means materialism, Hallmark, and money in many ways; it also means donating to those in need, making Christmas happen for families in need, and spending time decorating the house for the holidays. I love this season.
I love Ellen. She is funny, makes me laugh, helps mornings go by, and stands up for some incredibly causes. On her show the other day was this beauty of a commercial. The commercial is actually from a new TLC show "Virgin Diaries" that follows couples who have "saved themselves for marriage". Since I know several couples who have done just that, I find the show both interesting and a train wreck waiting to happen. While the show sheds light on this ever-shrinking population, it is also making a spectacle of these couples, mocking them in a way. Watch this video for example...
There were serious outcry's from this commercial in particular, so TLC released a new one that addresses some of the dialogue that the couples engage in where they discuss their reasons for waiting, their excitement, and their "plans" for the wedding night (kinda awkward, honestly).
Regardless of how I feel about not having sex until marriage, which honestly I can't say my feelings on this are set in stone, I am kinda disturbed by how many people are laughing at this couples' first kiss. I can only imagine the excitement that led to the kiss, and the embarrassment that they are feeling now...
Is it fair to make fun of these couples who take waiting for sex to heart? I get mad when religious groups require such practices, so shouldn't I also fight for the rights of these couples to practice their beliefs in privacy? Then again, they chose to put their lives on TV. Did they chose the mockery or the exposure?
So interesting!
#87: Grateful my life is not on camera. Privacy is a beautiful thing.
#88: Country Christmas Special. Beautiful, peaceful, and a great reminder of the joy in the season.
ABC Family does this great thing called the 25 days of Christmas. Wanna know something really funny? They have a countdown to the 25 days of Christmas. Ie. a countdown to a countdown...
But it has begun! Christmas is a mere 24 days away! Are you ready? Do your shopping friends! Get your Holiday cards out!
But while we get busy with the Hallmark holiday of Christmas, let's also think about the true meaning of Christmas. It'll mean different things to each of us, but to me, it signifies the birth of the salvation for this world.
#84: Salvation through the life of a tiny little baby who came to this world to offer eternal life. I may not really understand what this means, but I am sure to understand it one day.
Madre and sister yelled at me for days about making a list. So I finally made my Christmas List.
It's hard to name things as I have gotten older because if I need something I simply go buy it. Since I make my own money, I am in control of where that money goes and how it gets spent. This is freeing for many reasons, dangerous for others, of course.
Living at home has equated to having very little expenses and lots of money to go shopping with. Luckily I don't have much free time. I am excited to go shopping this holiday season for my family. I love to give. I love to shop.
#81: I love Christmas. I love the decorations, the music, the gifts, the food....
#82: Looking forward to Britt's Christmas Party. Adult Christmas Attire!
#83: Looking at old Christmas lists. I found one I wrote to Santa in first grade. I asked for a basketball and erasers for my best friend Taylor. Social Worker for life.
