Blessings

Currently

I haven’t done a “currently” survey since April 2015, so I think I’m due to fill one out again! I always enjoy looking back on what books I was reading, what I was feeling blessed about, which TV shows I was into, etc. in the past. Here’s a link to one from 2015 and one from 2013.

All pictures in the post are from a recent photography walk I took around Pittsburgh!

All pictures in the post are from a recent photography walk I took around Pittsburgh!

Current book(s) Attachments by Rainbow Rowell (thanks for the recommendation, Amy!), Leaving by Karen Kingsbury, The Bible, and I just finished Then Came You by Jennifer Weiner.

Current music – I pretty much listen to audio books, but if I have the radio on in my truck, I enjoy listening to K-Love because it’s so encouraging and positive.

Current guilty pleasure – Long, hot showers. As I mentioned in my last post, winter has arrived in Pittsburgh. Taking a burning-hot shower has never felt so good!

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Current nail color – Just a clear coat! I’d love to get a manicure sometime, though.

Current drink – Eight O’Clock coffee.

Current food – Runny egg sandwiches on an English muffin. I’m totally hooked.

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Current television show(s) Alaskan Bush People and Gold Rush. I guess I’m a big Discovery Channel fan?! Alaskan Bush People is just so interesting to me because the way the Brown family lives is very different from typical American life. Gold Rush has been a favorite show of mine for years now as well. I never expected to be enamored by gold mining, but it’s pretty neat!

Current wish list – Hmmm. I don’t think I have anything I’m wishing for or wanting. I have more than I could dream of or ask for in life. I am so grateful.

Current needs – Yarn! My mother-in-law and sister-in-law are going to teach me how to crochet this week and I need to get some yarn. Can’t wait :).

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Current indulgence – Daydreaming. About places I’d like to visit, things I want to do, books I want to read, and on and on. Just letting my mind wander to fun places is an indulgence while I’m working or doing household chores. Sometimes my mind gets stuck on the work-work-work track, and taking time to slow down and be creative is wonderful.

Current blessing – My husband and church family. Jimmy is so solid. Sometimes I feel like my emotions are all over the place, and knowing I can talk to him about anything and have his care, calmness, attention, and understanding means the world to me. My church family is a blessing because it’s incredible to live life surrounded by people who have the same beliefs and goals in life and are supportive and loving. One of the best things about being a part of a church is the deep connection and love I get to experience. There’s nothing like it!

Current excitement – I was asked to give a devotional during a ladies’ event at my church this spring. I said yes, and now I’m in the planning stages. So pumped! If you have any topic ideas, feel free to send them my way!

That’s all I have for today. I hope everyone is having a great week so far!

Tell me your current excitement, blessing, etc.!

Hello

Hi there! Well, it’s been quite some time since I last blogged. Actually, I just looked at the date and noticed it has been exactly four months. How weird! I totally didn’t plan that, haha.

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When I stopped blogging, I didn’t specifically plan on taking a break, I just let it fall to the wayside and focused more on everything else going on in my life. Looking back, I probably should have written a post saying something instead of just dropping off the face of the internet. Sorry, guys! I wasn’t sure if I would come back to this space, or if I had become too busy to blog or write. Over time, I realized that writing has always been a huge part of who I am, and blogging is one of my favorite ways to record my life, express creativity, and reflect on everything going on in and around me. I hope I will never become “too busy” to write because it is the easiest way I express and evaluate myself.

Anyways, I’m back! Four months feels like an eternity, and I have never stepped away from my blog for such a long period of time. I have some catching up and updating to do. I feel refreshed and renewed after the long break. I’m also feeling much more focused. I’ve always been pretty random in my posting, but I’m hoping to be at least a little more organized from now on.

A lot has happened since April! Jimmy and I turned this…

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Into this…

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According to our neighbors, the previous owners of our home used to have a rockin’ garden. We decided to try and follow in their footsteps and have had wonderful results. We actually planted way, way, way too much haha. I’ll blog about the garden another time because I could go on for hours!

Jimmy and I celebrated our one-year wedding anniversary at Savage River Lodge in Frostburg, Maryland. We even brought Lola along for the celebration :). It was wonderful to spend a weekend reflecting on a year of marriage in such a beautiful setting.

Savage River Lodge

I spent a lot of time taking pictures of Hannah over the past few months to practice my photography. I ended up taking senior pictures for her and her best friend. I don’t claim to know much about photography, but I enjoy learning more every time I look through my lens and take another photo.

My family graciously took Jimmy, Lola, and I to the Outer Banks last week, so that was awesome. Some time away from work and responsibility was just what we all needed. Since moving out of my parent’s house, I’ve missed my family a lot, so having a week with everyone together again was a tremendous blessing.

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Other happenings for me since April include plenty of working and pet sitting. Previously, I never really discussed the specifics of my “regular” job. I was hired as a household manager for a family of four in January. Basically, I run errands, grocery shop, cook, clean, take care of their pets, occasionally nanny, and do any other random tasks that they need me to do. I love my job, and the family I work for is very good to me. I won’t go into too much detail about my job because I respect my employer’s privacy, but I figured it’s okay for me to at least say what I do for a living, haha.

Pet sitting has also been keeping me super busy. I adore every single second of it, too. I’ve only had one bad incident where a dog I was watching in our home bit Lola on the nose. Poor little gal. Since then, I’ve been focusing on pet sitting outside the home more often.

Dog sitting

I’m sure I’m forgetting about a million other things that have happened since I last blogged, but I’ll probably remember and post about them eventually.

It feels good to be back. The main things I want to focus on and blog about nowadays are life (as always!), faith, photography, dog sitting, book reviews, and some fun writing topics and prompts. I used to blog a lot about fitness and food, but my interestes have changed over time. I’m always going to stay true to myself and blog about what is interesting to me because I feel that naturally produces quality writing, you know?

Okay, this post is getting super long so I’m going to go and try to catch up a bit on everyone’s blogs in the next few days :). Thanks for reading, and I’ll be back soon!