Coffee

2017 Inspiration in Pictures

I don’t have any specific goals for this year. It just feels like too much pressure. Rather, I have some inspiration. There are things I want to do, see, accomplish, and experience. Ultimately, I’m leaving what happens in 2017 up to God. He’s way better at planning than I am. I’m just going to follow His lead. Love God and love people. That’s what I want to do every single day.

I hopped on Pinterest and started an inspiration board for the upcoming year. Actually, I named it my 2017 Happy Board. I browsed around and wanted to see what would catch my attention. Some things surprised me (I didn’t pin as many travel pictures as I thought I would), and some things definitely didn’t (I pinned all kinds of dogs).

So, here’s a breakdown of my inspiration for 2017!

2017-inspiration-collage-1

It appears that I want 2017 to include copious amounts of coffee, studying my Bible, and writing.

Really, though, I am determined to get on some sort of a writing schedule for my book. I’m thinking I may lock myself in our office for a few hours on my days off of work or head to a coffeeshop so I’m not tempted to do household chores. Either way, I don’t want to stress about it too much. I love the quote I pinned, too. I need to believe I can finish my book!

As for the Bible studying, I’m going to study the women of the Bible this year and seeing what God has to show me in their stories. I’m currently reading Ruth and really enjoying it. She was such an upstanding woman.

2017-inspiration-collage-2

Ah, creativity. This didn’t surprise me one bit. Anything that involves a paint brush, camera, or any type of crafting makes me happy.

I’m inspired to use my camera and capture memories big and small. I’m also hoping to frame some of my watercoloring if I deem it acceptable, haha.

2017-inspiration-collage-3

Gardening, yoga, campfires, and house projects. A random conglomeration, yes, but I’d like to make each of these things happen.

I’m already wistfully counting down the days until Jimmy and I can start our garden again. I’m hoping to paint a coral accent wall in our office, refinish a bookshelf in our living room, have campfires with Jimmy, and continue to practice yoga. Bonus points if Malcolm joins me 😉

2017-inspiration-collage-4

Dogs. Always dogs. I don’t know if this means I’d like to have another (eek!), or if I just want to keep pet sitting as much as possible. Either way, I hope 2017 involves lots of dogs. The volunteer quote is so true. I’ve been in contact with an organization I applied to volunteer with in the upcoming year. Hopefully I’ll be able to share more details soon!

Oh, and how pretty is that bedroom? Jimmy and I might do a bedroom overhaul this year. We’re thinking of getting a headboard, maybe painting a peacock blue accent wall, and just updating our sparsely decorated bedroom. The top right picture reminds me that I want to have as many dates with my sweet husband as possible.

2017-inspiration-collage-5

This last collage is totally random, haha. The cake is inspiration for Hannah’s bridal shower. Yes, I am making her bridal shower cake and I am so pumped! The kitchen is another renovation I’d like to work on this year. Mostly, I just want to repaint our cabinets and walls.

Hot cocoa reminds me of coziness, and I I’ll take as much of that as I can get this winter. The bottom right picture is from Washington DC. It has been a few years since I’ve visited and I’d love to go again. The top right picture is always what I hope to be. It reminds me to love others as much as possible.

While it may sound kind of silly, writing this post helped me have more of a focus for what I’d like this year to look like. I’m praying I will follow God’s lead for my life and do my best every day.

Happy New Year!

Up Before The Sun

Hello and happy Friday! I’m up bright and early because Malcolm was biting my ear around 4:45 this morning. I decided to just get up, brew some coffee, and read my Bible while I waited for Jimmy to wake up.

There’s just something special about the quiet stillness of the morning before the sun rises.

coffee-and-bible

Now I’m sipping my second cup of coffee and writing this post because I have some time before I need to leave for work. Yay! This post is going to be full of random thoughts and pictures. That’s nothing new here, though 😉

First things first, I decorated our house for fall! Our mantle is looking quite festive if I do say so myself. Jimmy and I also welcomed the new season last night by visiting a local farm to buy apples. I plan on making apple pie sometime soon, as long as I don’t eat all the apples before then!

fall-decorating

I filmed a vlog of the decoration process, and also explained a little bit about why Jimmy and I don’t celebrate Halloween.

Malcolm left me a note the other day (aka Jimmy wrote it, haha). I had a to-do list sitting on our kitchen counter and Malcolm gave me some encouragement to finish all the tasks.

jimmy-and-malcolm-note

I had to laugh about the “P.S. I like your pen” part because Malcolm is kind of obsessed with knocking my pen off the counter.

My mom and I had a girls’ day last Saturday and we were about to hop into her Jeep when she noticed a butterfly on the hood.

butterfly

I think it was a blue monarch? It was pretty neat because my mom and aunt always tell me that monarch butterflies remind them of their mom who passed away when they were in their 20s. Every now and then we’ll see one and it makes me smile.

I’m 100% obsessed with Malcolm.

malcolm

I looked up cat strollers on Amazon the other day so I could take him on my daily walks with Lola. If pushing our cat around in a stroller is wrong, I don’t want to be right.

Today is the last day of the September Bible study I made. It seems like just yesterday I was working on creating the calendar and pouring over the pages of my Bible.

bible-study

It felt great to be so involved in studying God’s word. Something I’ve been thinking about lately in regards to my faith is allowing God to work in my life in His way.

I think I try to limit God so often because I have preconceived notions, preferences, and a comfort zone. I’ve been asking God to help me to know and obey His will for my life, no matter what it looks like.

Alright, I better get going. I have to order a ceiling fan part for the family I work for because I broke theirs while I was dusting. I don’t know how they put up with my clumsiness. In the year and a half I’ve worked for them, I’ve broken a vase, part of a ceiling fan, and a picture frame. Eek!

Have you ever broken something important? —> I once stapled a piece of paper on top of a glass vanity when I was younger and the vanity shattered and a shard of glass sliced my shin. Good times, haha.