Blog-tember Day Seven | Joy
Oh, joy. This word never ceases to be at the forefront of my mind since I choose it to be my One Little Word in 2013. It was then that I realized that true joy is a feeling orchestrated by the Lord – he is the source of my Joy and all things come from him. Even though our prompt for today is to write about five things that bring joy, I have such a hard time narrowing all the joyful things in my life down to my favorites. Call me noncommittal, but here are six things that bring me joy, along with some honorable mentions at the bottom.
September 7, 2016: Things that bring you joy.
+ Family – My sweet husband and my pup make me so happy and marriage has been such a blessing to me. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about the joy that is waking up next to Kevin, making dinner with him, and dancing around our living room making up voices for Chloe (our dog). In the same way, our extended families are really important to both of us, so we try to spend as much time with them as we can despite living an hour and a half away from everyone! I am also thankful to have the best in-laws a girl could ask for and seeing our families spend time together and love each other is my favorite.
+ Photography – I bought my first dslr camera during my senior year of high school (about seven years ago) after receiving (and loving) a point and shoot model from my uncle. I really wanted something I could play around and get creative with and I have enjoyed the process ever since. I don’t dwell on missed photo opps although I love taking candids and spur of the moment shots to document normalcy in my day. I’ve tried lots of different styles and types of photography, but nature and stills are by far my favorite. I like to keep track of the moments by printing photos and saving them in photo albums and other journaling projects.
+ Travel – I caught the travel bug early on and it has never really gone away. I’ve been to 38 states and have traveled out of the country 5 times. There hasn’t been a single places that I wasn’t able to find something interesting in and often find myself wanting to explore places more thoroughly. I have a hard time narrowing down my favorite destinations, but I really enjoy places that offer both touristy and local fare and experiences. Bonus points if there’s a beach. (The aerial photo above is from our honeymoon in St. Lucia.)
+ God’s Creation – This goes along well with travel, but i’m always in awe of the beautiful things and people that God has created – each sunrise, flower and human are different and similar all at the same time. This often makes my outdoor runs pretty unproductive because I’m always considering the way that branches on trees turn inward, how the sounds of animals and bugs identify them so clearly (or not), and even how each rock beneath my feet is a different shape and size than the next.
+ Learning – Since forever, I’ve been a fan of books and learning. Knowledge and personal growth are so important to me. It is rare that you would find me without both a book and journal in my purse, just waiting for the next free moment when I can crack them open. I find significant value in learning from myself and others, which is why I love challenges and having people in my life who encourage me to be a better version of myself.
+ Being Cozy – Naps, yoga pants, and coffee shop window seats are my m.o. When we purchased our house, my main decor requirement was that things felt cozy and comfortable for us as well as our guests, while still being stylish. I love warm colors, soft fabrics and all variations of wood. I love flooding of natural light and would always choose the golden hours as my two favorite times of day. Add floral patterns or the real deal in a vase and your living my dream.
Honorable mentions: gift giving, chai lattes, entertaining, blogging, being creative, honesty, deep conversations, snail mail, feet pictures, and filled up journals.
What brings you joy?
Want more info on the Blog-tember Challenge? Check out Bailey’s blog by clicking here!
Birthday Memories
Some people don’t care much about celebrating birthdays, but I am not one of them. From the get-go my parents really went out of their way to make our birthdays special. Whether it included streamers in the kitchen or a special note in my lunchbox every single year from age one to eighteen on August 20th, we celebrated the same way – my parents invited over all of the family and we spent time eating delicious food, chatting, and opening a few gifts. It was easily my favorite day of the year and holds many fond memories, so instead of choosing just one, I thought I would make a list of some of my favorites.
- Stories of my smash cake at my first birthday. Apparently, after I had put my hands all in the icing, my family asked me “where is your ear, hair, lips, nose?” until my face was covered in cake. I’ll never live that one down.
- My 8th birthday when my parents threw me a surprise party and blew up hundreds of pink and purple balloons. I even got Pikachu slippers as a gift from my best friends.
- Requesting favorite foods for birthday dinner. Mom made my current favorite dinner and vanilla cake with chocolate icing, Nana brought potato salad, Grandma brought jello salad and Great Grandma brought the banana cake. These are still my favorites.
- Waiting for my grandparents to arrive to birthday dinner. We have photos of me waiting at the window when I was turning 2.
- My 24th birthday when I decided that I was going to make cheesecakes a tradition.
- One year when my parent’s house was being built, we were staying at my grandparents and every picture of me was complete with no pants. I also got a Barbie sleeping bag that year.
- My 18th birthday consisted of a surprise in my high school locker from a Secret Admirer (aka my now husband). It was a sweet note and a bottle of perfume. I still have both.
- My 25th (and most recent birthday) involved us celebrating a big promotion at work and my sweet friend decorating her house and hosting a game night.
- My parents going above and beyond every year I’ve been in Columbia by coming up to take us out to lunch! Truly, I am so thankful for that.
Now you know why I couldn’t pick just one – all of my birthday memories bring me so much joy!
Want more info on the Blog-tember Challenge? Check out Bailey’s blog by clicking here!
Journaling on the Go
It took me a while, but I finally think I found a perfect (and inexpensive) on-the-go travel case for my journaling supplies. I had been on the hunt for a while, trying out different pencil cases and bags but none of them seemed to be a good fit for what I was looking for – big enough for my supplies but small enough to carry everyday. Last year, when we went to Chicago, I took a deep pencil case, trying to fit all of my necessary supplies and it turned out to be quite a hassle, which resulted in me dumping out the contents any time I needed to use something. Fast forward to this year, I was looking around on pinterest when I found myself clicking through to this Travel Organizer. I am under the impression that it’s intended to be used to carry a passport and boarding documents for trips, but it seemed to be perfect for a couple packs of stickers and photos. I bought, filled it, and manage to carry it with me almost every day. This is about the same size as my Chic Sparrow “Narrow” (which also happens to be the standard midori size), so carrying the two together works brilliantly. This also zips, keeping all the junk contained perfectly inside.
Here’s what I carry:
Left Side (from top to bottom):
- Peerless Watercolors – I bought a pallette of Peerless watercolors on Etsy, but it looks like they have all been taken down due to copyright laws. Here is a tutorial on how you could make your own.
- Word Stickers – that I downloaded from this free printable
- Random Alpha Stickers – favorites are from Studio Calico and JoAnn’s
- A small pair of sizzors and a piece of cardboard wrapped with washi tape (here’s a tutorial)
- Tiny Teresa Collins Alpha Matchbook – here: http://www.allaboutscrapbooks.com.au/shop/scrapbooking-ranges-papers/teresa-collins/basically-essentials/teresa-collins-basically-essential-matchbook-alpha-white
- Brass embossing stencil – Emma Lowercase – I use this for tracing letters
- Page Flags from the Target Dollar Spot
- Post its
Right Side (from top to bottom):
- Project Life Overlays
- Amy Tangerine Stickers that were cut from a sticker book I purchased a few years ago
- A few photos
- A roll of washi tape (this was is the second one shown in this set)
- Listers Gotta List Prompts cut into stickers
Pen Loop
- Retractable Pilot V7
- Tim Holtz Water Brush (not pictured)
On Top
- The Tape Runner – this doesn’t fit in the pockets, but I can set it on top and zip it up without it going anywhere.
Since it’s already set up and ready to go, I don’t even have to think about what I need to add before I hit the road, coffee shop, or couch. This kit allows me to turn any space into a creative one and that’s important to me.
Highridge Ranch – Wood Floors
One of the first projects Kevin and I decided to check off the list before was moved into our new house was to refinish the hardwood floors, this using tips and advice from woodworkingtoolkit.com was very useful for this. When we viewed the house the first time I could tell right away that the floors were original and had been very well loved over the past 60 years. These floors had some scuffs, paint splatters of various colors and had been nailed through for carpet installation. It definitely didn’t need to be done right away, but we figured that doing it prior to moving our stuff in would be a lot less hassle than doing it one or two years down the road.
First, here is the before and after. It’s kind of hard to tell (so you’re gonna have to take my word for it) but the photos above are of the exact same spot. The “after” looks a little more grey toned in this picture than it does in real life, but this is a good side-by-side. They look brand new!
This is the only real before picture that I have. We were trying to move fast to get in the house as soon as possible, so after trying to choose between doing the floors ourselves and hiring someone to do them, we decided to go the faster (albeit more expensive) route. In the end, I am really happy with that decision, it allowed us to move in quicker and ultimately gave us time to do other things that were on our to-do list at the same time. Plus having someone else do it meant that we didn’t have to haul any bulky equipment or remove any of the trim (he did that for us)! We got the floor guy’s name from from a friend and I had the chance to see his workmanship before we even met him, which really helped me feel confident in letting him touch our beautiful floors.
As our floor guy progressed, I took pictures. It took about about 4 passes with the sanders to get some of the scratches and stains out. As he went, we noticed that the raw floors were ABSOLUTELY stunning and made Kevin and I want to leave them bare with just a top coat.
Even Chloe was a big fan! The color was the exact same as her!
After the initial sanding was done, it was time for filler. (And more sanding.)
We thought that choosing the color was going to be the hardest part, but it turned out to be hilariously easy since Kevin and I had the exact same color in mind. Since he was mixing the color from scratch, we got to show him some photos from pinterest and choose the base and any additional colors we might want to add. We both wanted a pretty true brown with no red/orange/purple, so on the third try of adding the brown color we were both happy. It took all of three minutes. I asked the floor guy later how long it typically takes for clients to choose and he said on average 45 minutes and sometimes people even have to sleep on it. HAHA!
Here it is half stained, half raw! Each time he put on another coat, he did it by room which ultimately lead to “painting himself out of the house”.
He came back a few days later to put the first coat of polyurethane on. Despite how the picture looks below, we chose a middle of the road type – not too glossy but not matte either. This stuff had a terrible odor, so we opened every window we could without walking on the floor to get some ventilation going.
The final poly coat took about 48 hours to dry, which was perfect timing for us to move in 3 days later! We could not have been more happy with how it turned out and I don’t know if it was the color we chose or just sanding down in general, but the wood grain and knots seem a lot more prevalent now. We love that the color doesn’t take away from the beauty or character of the house and it looks great with our new furniture!
This post is part of my challenge to post every day in July! To see them all, click here!
Twenty Things About Me
- Coffee is one of my favorite smells and least favorite tastes. Each weekday, we wake up to our coffee pot brewing and it always reminds me of airports, which makes every morning happy.
- I dabble in way too many hobbies – Traditional Scrapbooking, Project Life, Journaling, Planning, Painting, Decorating, Stamping, Blogging, Bible Journaling, Gardening, Baking, Cooking, Exercising, Photography, Sewing, Crafting…the list goes on and I’m always adding more.
- I have blogged at least once a month (but often more) for six years straight.
- I married my high school sweetheart, whom I met in fifth grade.
- I’m a classic Leo and ESTJ who also happens to dabble in all the creative things. So that’s confusing.
- My favorite travel destinations are St. Lucia and Hawaii, because beaches and warm weather are my jam.
- I’d rather listen to Podcasts and YouTube videos instead of music because they make me feel like I’m learning something.
- I enjoy reading historical fiction and my all time favorite book is Gone With the Wind.
- My favorite color changes every day – today it’s turquoise.
- I like nature because it’s perfect even when it’s not and you can find symmetry everywhere. It’s so beautiful and mysterious, which makes photographing it the most interesting.
- I don’t have a favorite movie.
- I collect stationary and love sending snail mail to my family and friends.
- It takes me approximately 32 minutes to get ready in the morning, including taking care of our dog and making the bed.
- I didn’t pump gas for the first time until I was 18.
- My favorite flowers are easily peonies and the only thing I know about them, other than how beautiful they are, is that they aren’t in season in March.
- The last time I wore a full face of make up (ok…more than just mascara) was my wedding day.
- I’m terrible at making small decisions like choosing what to eat for dinner but making big decisions like choosing a house or car to buy feels like a breeze.
- Relaxing is always on my to-do list.
- I’ve visited 38 states.
- One time I tried to make a capsule wardrobe with 40 pieces of clothing but I had to stop because I didn’t have that many items.
This post is part of my challenge to post every day in July! To see them all, click here!
About
Hi, I'm Jacqueline - believer, learner, and all around hobby enthusiast. I'm married to my highschool sweetheart, Kevin, and we live in the midwest with our sweet pup.
On this blog I share all kinds of things about my life - from my faith journey to the garden in my neighbors backyard. I've been blogging for almost eight years and use this space as a way to document my daily life.
Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the internet.