Real Talk

July 7, 2019

Fear and Truth

As I look back and reflect on the path that this blog has taken, I can’t help but smile at little at the randomness of it all.

Admittedly, I’m probably not the best blogger because of that. I guess you could consider this a “lifestyle blog” but most days it just seems like a peek at the inside of my brain – random, discombobulated thoughts floating around with no true sense of focus or direction. Okay, that might be an exaggeration, but still.

Community, Rhythms, and Other Thoughts on Moving

I’m not entirely sure when the shift happened, but there was one. In 2015/2016 as my faith and my relationship with the Lord planted roots and grew deeper, a lot of my posts reflected that. When I go back and re-read them, I remember how I felt the Holy Spirit giving me all of those words and just feeling like I needed to share them. I remember being in the days and weeks after my grandmother and aunt were called home to Heaven less than 48 hours apart from each other and just feeling like I needed to write down the things that were being revealed to me in the wake of all of that. The words that the Holy Spirit gave to me would serve as a beautiful piece of my story – a story marked, yes, by grief and loss but also of tremendous hope and healing.

But at some point, the journey shifts from grieving and into healing. And in my case, when I began to enter that phase, I realized that I didn’t feel led to write near as often. It’s been an adjustment and honestly a bit of an “identity crisis” of sorts.

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March 15, 2019

Friday Feels // Vol. 5

Anyone else feel like their bodies are playing “catch-up” after losing that hour of sleep on Sunday? While it is nice to have more daylight hours, I also just really enjoy sleep.

It’s hard to believe that the official start of Spring is next week! It doesn’t even feel like we’ve had a legit Winter here in North Carolina. The one time we got snow, it was in mid-December and technically still Fall! Not to mention the weather’s been pretty mild for this time of year and SUPER rainy. I think we’ve hit a bunch of records for the amount of rainfall we’ve gotten for this time of year. I grabbed these gorgeous tulips from Trader Joe’s, though, in an attempt to bring some brightness to our kitchen and try and counter the rain and the clouds.

I recently tried the Roasted Garlic Chicken Sausage from Trader Joe’s and I seriously don’t know how I’ve gone this long without it! I’ve made it with my favorite Brussels sprouts and also with the spinach tortellini from TJ’s, tossed in their vegan pesto. It’s so good!

I also recently tried Califia Farms’ Barista Blend almondmilk in my at-home lattes and it is so good! We have the Aeroccino milk frother and this blend foams really well in it. I think I like this brand better than New Barn’s Barista blend – plus, it’s cheaper.

I also joined the rest of the world – or at least the world according to Instagram – and picked up this rose quartz face roller. I want to try some DIY facial serums with some of my essential oils soon so this will be a good tool to have on hand!

This weekend (tomorrow), I’ll be going to my cousin’s wife’s baby shower! There’s a decent age range from my oldest cousin down to me (I’m the youngest grandchild) so our cousin Matthew is one of the first of the younger cousins to have a baby. We’re all so excited for this new addition to join us in May!

Also, any other teachers currently just trying to make it until Spring Break? The struggle is real. Counting down to April 12 like whoa.

Happy Friday!

March 1, 2019

Friday Feels // Vol. 4

Happy Friday, friends! At last we finally started to dry out after 8 straight days of rain last week…only to get more wet weather around the middle of this week. Sigh. While I am in no way rushing summer along, I would like some Spring-like weather. Or at least one more snow day.

This week felt very hectic for some reason but whew, I made it! On Tuesday, I met up with two friends from college who live in the Triangle for Appalachian Night at the Carolina Hurricanes game. This was my third-ever hockey game and I must say, I think I like this sport. It was so fun to have bits of my college experience sprinkled throughout the night – complete with our mascot Yosef, part of our pep band, and the chorus even did the national anthem!

Wednesday evening, I watched an training course on evangelism that was put together by my church and it was really interesting! My Wednesday night group is one of two that I just recently joined, bringing my total up to three small groups. Whoops. I’m prayerfully stepping back though from at least one in order to try and create some more margin in my weekly schedule but I’m super grateful that the Lord answered my prayers for more opportunities to cultivate community here in Raleigh!

Thursday I had another workout with my trainer – I just have a few more sessions left! These eight weeks have flown by! While I do have slight anxiety about going into the gym “on my own” without his guidance, I am kind of happy to be able to have some flexibility in my schedule once I don’t have to factor in someone else’s calendar and availability. I think I tend to thrive more with routines and rhythms and currently things feel a little up in the air. The gym will still be part of my weekly rhythm though twice a week.

This weekend, I’m glad to have some margin built, especially after a busier week than usual. This evening I have an oil change scheduled for my car, which is not that exciting, but I scheduled it at the shop that is across from my favorite Lebanese/Mediterranean restaurant Sassool so that part is exciting!

Have a great weekend!

February 22, 2019

Friday Feels // Vol. 3

Happy Friday!

This week was a shorter week for me since I took Monday off but it definitely felt like the longest short week in history. Super happy that it’s finally Friday. I just wish this dreary, rainy weather would go away!

My week began with a quick trip back home to the Charlotte area. Sunday night I was able to go over to my dear friend’s house for dinner. It always feels like there’s never enough time to truly feel like we’ve caught up but I’m grateful for any amount of quality time we can squeeze in! My main reason for the visit was a relatively minor outpatient procedure my mom had on Monday so I went to be with her and my dad. We grabbed lunch and hung out a little before driving back to Raleigh and it was a such a sweet time with the two of them.

Tuesday evening I babysat a friend’s two little ones and it was such a sweet time! I also learned this week that another friend, whose twins (they’ve since added a third baby to the mix last month!) I watched a fair amount when I lived in Charlotte, is moving to Chapel Hill this summer! Those kiddos are seriously the sweetest toddlers I know so I am super excited that they’ll be in the area soon!

My Young Living Premium Starter Kit arrived on Wednesday and I’m already falling in love! The Desert Mist diffuser looks gorgeous on my dresser (I had thought I’d put it downstairs but it just looks so cozy there). I was dealing with a headache for most of the day so I immediately grabbed the Peppermint Vitality (approved for ingestion) and held a drop to the roof of my mouth. The headache eased within seconds! Barely one day in and I’m already loving these oils and this community. If you want to grab your own PSK and join a community that is supportive and educational, shoot me an email (messymilestones@gmail.com) and I can get you connected!

Lastly, I’ve been attempting to revive the Instagram page for this blog (@messymilestones)! I created it probably two years ago but fell out of the habit of using it. I’ve posted a few times in the past couple of weeks so if you’re interested in following along – go check it out!

See you next Friday!