This is some more real life right here. She’s napping and I’m pumping. Double pumping. Hands-free (Yay?!) with the pumping bra. Look at those tummy rolls. No makeup. Bed hair. That’s right, I woke up like this. So, so sexy. I know you’re jealous.
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"Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup; you make my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. I will praise the Lord, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me. I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken. ..."
Loving the whole of Psalm 16 this morning. Feels kind of like a proclamation of mental health on David's part. He's resourcing with an Eternal nurturer. Describing real resilience. The counselor (and human) in me loves it :)
A few years back, I accidentally started a tradition of reading through Psalms between Christmas and New Year's. This morning, I was wondering why ... and I think there's just something about all that vulnerability, all those emotions - the vacillation between fear and courage, hope and despair, joy and sorrow, and the juxtaposition of the messy human and the beautifully Divine, that resonates with the end of a year and the beginning of another. I want to believe in transformation and revelation and redemption and reconciliation and celebration in 2017 ... and I just don't think I get there without wrestling first with the disappointments and losses and woundings and confusions and griefs of 2016. So, that's what I'm doing this week - leaning into the dichotomy of life on earth and breathing in Hope.
I take my coffee outside in the mornings. The dogs expect it, wait for me to get my flip flops and mug and then prance ahead of me to the door, eager to start their day. I move more slowly, stumbling to my chair, putting the coffee on the side table, and rubbing my eyes into a hesitant welcome of the day's sunlight ...
Today, as I went to place my coffee, this leaf stopped me mid-routine. An amber emblem, bright and beautiful, beckoning from a coming Fall. I needed this promise of change, this reminder that, well, despite a wealth of evidence to the contrary, seasons exist, pass, and combine for grand purposes.
Now, I suppose it COULD be taken as a bad sign - it is a dying leaf after all - but it spoke to me HOPE instead ... so I'm gonna go with that today ... a little bit of hope ... and be glad of it while I've got it :)
Post-run, pre-homework backyard hangs. I'm grateful for these moments, because I'm hungry for them so frequently, but rarely able to indulge these days. Yesterday marked the halfway point in this 3-month season (yay!!) - this season where he works hard and devotes himself wholeheartedly to learning this new (and exciting) thing and I give him space and grace and encouragement to do so. We agreed to it, yes. But, like a wise person reminded us yesterday, that doesn't mean we have to like it. And I don't like it - I miss him when he's "gone." :)
A few snapshots from this year's annual family week at the beach!
Because no one was going to NAB this year, we decided to skip Vegas and celebrate our third anniversary on a 7-day cruise to the Eastern Caribbean. We jumped onboard Royal Caribbean's Freedom of the Seas at Port Canaveral and set sail for three destinations: The Bahamas, St. Thomas and St. Maarten.
Overall trip assessment: Awesome. Food? Great. Service? Solid. Room? Worked! Ship? Impressive. Ports? Perfection. The company? My absolute Favorite.
My sis-in-law is lucky to have an awesome photographer as a friend — this photo was one of several snapped while on a spring break playdate at Pappy's Patch!
Caleb, March 17 (Source: Ackerman Photography)
I'd mentioned to the Mr. a couple months back that I really wanted to figure out how to do better makeup for my aging face. He mentioned back that there's a team of makeup artists that regularly work on one of the shows he freelances for and that he'd talk to them about maybe hooking us up. I forgot about it.
He remembered. Seriously, the Mr. is AMAZING like that.
So, come Valentine's Day morning, I get flowers and a gift certificate for a two-hour makeup lesson with About Face Design Team in Winter Park, Florida. Their team of hairstylists and makeup artists have an impressive portfolio and great reviews. From bridal to live television, they're kind of all over it ... and I was thrilled to have the opportunity to work with them.
My makeup artist was Vanessa. She was beautiful and she was awesome. Connie, marketing and scheduling currently at the front desk, was an absolute dear. Everyone was encouraging and sweet and very complimentary. I felt great coming (without makeup on) and going (completely made-up) ... and, to top it off, I feel pretty confident in recreating the "naturally sexy" look I was taught!
I love me some Colorado — at least in the winter, in the midst of crazy snow storms ... and as a vacationer. I'm a #FloridaGirl, so this was my first time experiencing single digit temperature lows and FALLING SNOW and 36" of fluffy powder on the ground. It was crazy ... and beautiful ... and I can't wait to go again!
