TWENTY-SEVENTEEN: A SUMMER OF SABBATH

Summer always comes knocking with a list of fun activities following close behind. From beach trips to acai adventures, I always have a fairly extensive and ambitious list of things things to do/explore/eat over summer break.

Well, every summer except THIS one, that is.

I spend a lot of time striving for earthy success. And they're not even bad things- good grades, a job well done, investing in specific friendships. After a hard semester, I was completely burnt out. Every second after my alarm went off at 5:30 each morning was spent in an attempt to be as productive as possible and check everything off my never ending to-do list. Email my boss. Prep speech presentation. Connect with a speech pathologist. Edit photos. Do the dishes. Don't forget to eat dinner.

Life, even a simple and well intended one, can be exhausting. 

Each week I had to repeat to myself, "Just make it one more day." Everyday. And when I made it to the weekend, I spent every second catching up on sleep, cramming or cleaning and prepping for the next week ahead. I felt guilty going anywhere but class or work related places, thinking I was wasting time. I'd go over flashcards at stoplights. No music during the 39 minute drive to school, just biology lectures....for 3 months. Putting on makeup and driving to church seemed like a waste when I could just watch it at home, so that's what I started doing.

I know, this sounds so dramatic. I mean, come on girl. We see you posting on instagram all the time! Well what if I told you I scheduled out 35 posts so I wouldn't have to be on the app?

Yeah, I am that dramatic.

It got to the point where rest was just a thing of the past. Relaxation was equally extinct, in my mind. Why rest when you could work? Why relax when you could get stuff done? Why watch Tv when you have a to do list looming?  However, over Spring Break I read a book that talked about the sabbath. "HONOR THE SABBATH AND KEEP IT HOLY." is what the bible instructs, yet somehow I had twisted that into "accomplish as much as humanly possible on this one day to be a good person"

The New King Karissa translation somehow omitted the honor the sabbath and rest on the seventh day part.

And so as a result of that, my summer list is quite different this year. Other than my goal of finishing The Inferno, my summer list for 2017 revolves solely around honoring the Sabbath and learning how to keep it holy in this busy, distracting, demanding world. It's hard to turn it all off. To power down on everything in life, even for a day, has its challenges. But I can honestly say that the best way to recharge is to mute the distractions of the world and fully zone in on Christ.

And isn't it great that God made a day of the week specifically for just that?

The ways  in which we feel called and convicted to honor the Sabbath might be different, but at the end of the day, it's about giving our time and energy back to The Lord. I know I have a long way to go on this journey, but I'm grateful that Jesus is changing my attitude, heart and thoughts toward the Sabbath.

Instead of attempting to pack my summer full of beach days an acai bowls, my main focus is to spend less time on superficial fillers and more time, specifically The Sabbath, with my Heavenly Father.

And with that, Happy Summer and Happy Sabbath!

Previous Summer Lists:
{2012}
{2013}
{2014}
{2015}
{2016}

Palm trees and Pink houses

I've mentioned it before (like, at least ten thousand times) but Pink is my color. Peanut butter has Jelly, coffee has creamer, Jim has pam, and I have pink. The first house we lived in after moving to Florida was pink, and that really set the tone (literally) for rest of my life.

A few years later and a few miles down the beach line, I now live in a town where the town hall is pink. My next door neighbors house is hot pink (and I wrote about it here) and my favorite coffee shop? No surprise that it's a charming shade of cherry blossom pink as well. 

In the next couple months I'll be moving across the country to a state that is a little lacking in the pink house department. But for now, I'm savoring every moment here where there are palm trees and pink houses galore. 

PS: My dress is from Dillards. Honestly, I didn't even know people under 40 even shopped at Dillards. But this dress made me rethink everything, I love it so much. 

The power of Pink

The idea of couples leaving love notes strewn about the house, hidden in cupboards and under pillows, has always been extremely idyllic to me. You thought you were just pouring cereal...till a handwritten love note landed on top of the Lucky Charms as well.

(maybe I'm just buying the wrong brand of cereal?)

But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that there are little love notes for me strewn all over my house and my town and in every detail of life. In sunsets, in flowers, in Vespas and clothing, God's little love letter to me is everywhere.

One day I was in Atlanta and it was just, one of those days. I don't even have to go into detail, You know how it is. As Hannah Montana once put it, "Everybody has those days." I needed encouragement, a hug (and some chocolate), and to know that everything would be okay.

(And then a little more chocolate, for good measure.)

My mom and I happened to be driving through the city on the way to visit family. It had been a stressful trip but we stopped at a trendy place in ATL to have lunch and feel like our lives were slightly put together (it sort of worked!) We ordered a burger to split and an latte to share, and by share I mean I shared one sip, and then went and sat down.

And then the burger came out. And when I saw it, I started crying.

Now, don't deny the fact that you too get teary eyed over a beautiful burger but this one was extra special. Instead of the classic American fixings, this burger was topped with an undeniably pink homemade beet thousand island sauce. In retrospect it kind of looked like a Krabby Patty but at the time, all I could see was the fuchsia hued sauce....
and the goodness of God.

Maybe you see God's glory in goodness in an beloved animal, or in the face of a person you adore or a beautiful sunset. Whatever it is, I know I'm not the only one. God speaks to us all in a million ways. And one way He continues to encourage me is through my favorite color, pink.

I love pink. I always have and I'm equally convinced that I always will. Over the years,  my love of pink has certainly grown just as I have. And while it sounds cheesy to say, I know its more than that. When I see pink, I see God's goodness. I see His love, His creativity, His generosity in sharing glimpses of His unlimited creativity with us - I feel all of that when I lay eyes on a vivid fuchsia or soft shade of salmon.

God didn't have to give me that pink burger to show me he loved me. He could have just given me a plain burger or an undercooked one or the restaurant could have been closed- and His love for me would have been the same.

But He did. Because He Loves us. And furthermore, He loves to bless us. In little, unique, individual ways. He doesn't have to do anything for us really, but He loves us. He loves enough that He sent His only son to die and take the punishment for our sins. He loves us enough to forgive us daily. He loves us enough to prepare a place in Heaven for us.

And He even loves us enough to give us a pink burger on a bad day. Just to show that He cares, about everything.

No matter what it is that makes you stop, smile and remember God's goodness, I hope that whenever you see it, whether it be a vibrant sunset or the quadruple chins of a baby, I hope you're reminded of how fiercely God loves you, and how much He loves to bless you.

And I hope that one day you get to try the infamous pink burger. Who knows, maybe you'll burst into tears too?

Pink, I love you loudly.

It's no secret: I love pink and I love it loudly.  There are 3 hot pink houses on my street. The first purse I bought was pink. Flamingos have always been my spirit animal.  And even at 19 years old, to me there is truly nothing more beautiful than a vivid shade of pink- whether it be coral or neon or flamingo or rose or blush. (if you need more profe, here's an ancient blog post.)

You can imagine my excitement when Pink started to be trendy again. Coral velvet couches, dusty pink sneakers, pink instagram filters, blush bridesmaid dresses, baby pink moody tumblr posts - everything is pink. And in honor of that, and also in honor of the fact that it's Thursday, I thought you deserved to see all the good pink things that are floating around the Internet today.

You can thank me later.

A WEEK OF OUTFITS: HALEY BOYD //
Not only does this outfit scream Nancy and Steve but it's also pink perfection. Actually, everything Haley wears is perfect, I'm obsessed and I'm not even going to bother saying low key obsessed because yeah.

 WHY MILLENNIAL PINK REFUSES TO GO AWAY // 
This is an article all about pink and as you can see, it's pretty perfect! It's also surprisingly detailed, thank goodness there are other people who appreciate pink enough to write an article about it (which i would do!) and also spell check said article (something I wouldn't do.)

CASA LUIS BARRAGAN // 
 I don't really know much about this other than it's in Mexico and I'm in Florida and it's pink and I love pink. Looks pretty dreamy on instagram and idk, I'd be down for going with anyone this summer (well, anyone who can take good pictures of me in front of it. Gotta keep up the aesthetic ;))

SIDEKICK BAG // 
We all know Ban.Do is the way to my heart. And this cutie bag with pom-poms is no exception! I mean, technically I need a backpack for college but honestly, I'd rather have this sidekick bag instead. I could fit like what, a pencil in there? Good enough for me.


Happy Pink to you and yours. And don't forget: whatever it is that you love, make sure you love it loudly.

Same

I bought this pink leather jacket for no reason other than it made me smile. It made me happy when I saw it on the website, it made me excited the whole 3 weeks it was being processed and shipped. The only ironic thing is, as soon as I got it and proclaimed "WE HAVE TO GO TAKE PHOTOS RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!", I didn't smile in a single one of them.

Weird.

(probably because I haven't been wearing my retainer?)

The more things change; the more things stay the same. It's funny how that works. I'll be turning 20 this year and while my life is nothing like I envisioned, at the same time it's all still the same. Pink is forever my favorite color, I love getting up before the sun, the best place for brunch is STILL McDonalds. (and I thought I had a cultured palette, but no!) And moreover, the most constant part in life is that Christ is always with me.

I expect 2017 will hold a lot of changes, but at the end of the day, it's comforting to know that some things will forever remain. Pink leather jackets, sunrise the same shade of pink, crispy hashbrowns and God's unending love- I'm glad those will always stay the same.

A FEMININE FEBRUARY

May your February be extra feminine and full of flowers and well designed valentines!

And if it isn't full of any of those things, I hope it's full of pink at least.

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Remember (the) Alamo (Square Park!)

If you want flowers, go to Alamo Square Park! If you need to see some amazing houses, go to Alamo Square Park! If you are itching for a great city view....

I think you get the idea!

Needless to say, this was my favorite part of San Francisco. It's like this magical little oasis in the middle of the city, full of cool people (lots of yoga do-ers and dog walkers) and basically the prettiest houses I have ever seen. Also, IT'S NOT WINDY THERE. And trust me, once you get to SF, you will appreciate that fact.

Some pink for spring! (how unsual!)

I feel like every new season, I need a few refresher makeup items. Granted, need is a relative term, but still! One should never underestimate the powers of a fresh coat of lipstick or a swipe of new nail polish. It's one of life's greatest mysteries how something can simple can totally brighten our moods.

 

In other words, girls are really confusing!

 

Anyway, for spring I was feeling the hot pink. Which is funny because as a pink girl through and through, the amount of hot pink I have is surprisingly small. So of course, I had to remedy that situation! Essies "Mod Squad" (So good!) and a NYX lipstick in "Fig" seemed to do the trick nicely.

 

What colors are you sporting this Spring?

 

 

Let there be (cherry) blossoms

 

As if I could really take a trip to DC and only post one sentence, ha!

 

As we all know, last year we went to say hello to the Cherry Blossoms...only to find out that they are incredibly shy and decided to not show their faces to us. I still saw pretty blossoms, but not the official "tidal basin blossoms". And obviously, one can't rest until she sees that sight with her very own eyes.

 

Or, something along those lines.

 

So at midnight we decided we didn't want to do school the next day (who does, anyway!) and instead we spent our Monday in a much more enjoyable manner (basically sitting on an airplane for 6 hours with a quick pit stop in DC, but let's not get technical.)

 

▲▲ One thing you don't see on instagram is the outtakes, so here ya go! It was so incredibly windy....and I wore a dress. I don't think I need to say much more on that topic, but I will say that I felt bad for all the poor Mormon boys who saw me. (there were tons!) Honesty Hour, over and out.

 

 ▲▲ Remember those pink vibes I spoke of? I WAS FEELING THEM ON NEW LEVELS. You really can't find this much pink goodness anywhere else.

 

▲▲ This selfie is so bad that it isn't really worth mentioning, but here I am! Just thought I'd share the fact that I have no pride or self esteem anymore (apparently?) because I was walking on the side of a highway while sending snapchats. I should probably be embarrassed, but no.

 

▲▲ Let's ignore my awkward facial expression and instead give a shout out to my mother! It's taken a lot of yelling and arm waving and blurry photos, but we are getting there! Yay for a photographer in training.

 

 Thanks DC! It's been fun getting to know you!

 

(previous DC trip here, and last years blossoms HERE!)

A day for blossoms

Because Mondays are always better when you skip school and go to DC instead, am I right or am I right?

Sarah and Kryn go to the FAIR.

A few days ago my girl Sarah and I went to the local fair. Which I have to say, was kind of a letdown! I have been raised on Montana fairs, and bless their hearts, it's one of few things country people do right. Lots of people, lots of ugly 4-H projects and tons of bunnies (the most essential part, of course!) This fair had a ferris wheel and all the creepy carnival men, and us.

Still we got good photos, which is really all we needed!

▲▲ Never underestimate the power of a cheesy self timer photo. (um, with a Harley Davidson dealership as the background?)  I'm actually getting fairly decent at them. I haven't decided if I should be embarrassed of that or not.

Thanks Sarah and thank you Lord for keeping the leprosy away. As a friend warned us, fairs are dirty places, and this one lived up to it (and more.) Pass the hand sanitizer, over and out.