BLOG-TEMBER :: FINALE

Hey there last day of September! I'm a big fan. Mostly because October is TOMORROW!! 

I'm joining in on my first Friday Favorites post with Narci, Erika and Andrea. Woot woot!!!

Y'all....it actually feels like fall here (Dallas). I think it was 75 degrees when I was out earlier. SO so nice!!! And tomorrow? Bring on the pumpkins and all things fall. I just couldn't get myself into the spirit in the 95 degree weather. 

It's also the last day of the blog-tember challenge. I'm sad!! You can see that I have major struggles with blogging regularly...but I just love having a built in prompt everyday. I'm going to try and use some of the days I missed as a continued challenge for October!!  

But today, I wanted to share some words of wisdom.

I just love this...taken from Isaiah 54:10: 

For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed,

but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,

and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”

says the LORD, who has compassion on you.

Can I get an AMEN? Sometimes (lots of times) I get stuck in situations where I feel like there is no way I'm going to make it through. But the great thing about grace is that you can make it through. And, you will. Whatever season of life you are in, whatever personal obstacles you are dealing with...you are wrapped in God's love. You are covered in HIS peace. You will make it through. I saw a quote the other day that said something like "you have survived 100% of your most difficult days". Wow! Just keep pressing forward!!!

It's my nephew's birthday weekend. His 11th (!!!) birthday is Tuesday, but we are celebrating him all day Saturday. He has a football game in the morning, but then it's pizza, gifts and the Ranger game tomorrow night!!

Y'all, this is the last week of my first ever Bible Study. We have been doing The Armor of God by Priscilla Shirer at church. I was so NERVOUS to start it. Not because of the study, but because I was going to a class where I didn't know anyone. That is just so outside of my comfort zone!! But, the lessons have been amazing. And, I've made a great friend who invited me to an additional study on Monday nights. We are doing Uninvited by Lysa Terkeurst. I'm so sad I put off Bible Study this long!!! 

BLOG-TEMBER :: FAVORITE BLOGGERS

Well, who has dropped the ball on blogging? ME ME!! 

But, I couldn't miss the opportunity to share some of my favorite blogs for today's blog-tember prompt.  

 Kenda at Chill It's Only Chaos

Kenda is C's cousin....but I love her like she is MY cousin. Her family moved to Georgia last year, and we miss them SO much. It's always a treat when they come back for a visit. They have become quite the little weekend explorers...having visited several amazing state parks since their move. Making the best of their new surroundings!! We love following along (and living vicariously) with them. So grateful that she has become such a good friend!

Melissa at Little Mrs. Married

Melissa and I started reading each others blogs a few years ago. We would comment on each other's blogs. And then reply to those comments via email. And those emails kept getting longer and longer. Now, we text several times a day...almost every day. Her friendship has been SUCH a blessing. 

Melissa at The Grimes Life

So, I've been reading Melissa's blog forever. Seriously, I stumbled upon it way back when I first started blogging and realized we had gone to the same college. We'd never met in person until about 6 weeks ago. She has been this amazing blessing in my life since then. She is so encouraging and motivating. I mean, she ran 15 miles this morning!!! And, she has more style than I could ever hope to have...and lucky us...she shares all of her fashion finds on her blog!!

Julie at Julie Leah

I've been following Julie's blog for a while, and I was kind of bummed when she took a break from blogging. But, she is back!! She is adorable and has great style. Her posts always leave me feeling super inspired. And I love following her on Snapchat too (julie-leah)!!!

Crystal at Hall Around Texas

I think I stumbled upon Crystal's blog in a previous Blog-tember post a few years ago? She lives fairly close, so it's fun to see some of their local adventures (as well as her Texas Bucket List, which I love). She is amazing photographer and her posts never disappoint.

Who are your favorite bloggers?

BLOG-TEMBER :: FAVORITE POSTS

Love that today's blog-tember prompt is to list some of our favorite posts we've done. I love it because some of my favorite posts....ARE BLOG-TEMBER POSTS!! If you follow my blog for any time at all, you'll see that consistency is something I struggle with. In blogging and general day-to-day life (insert eye covering emoji here).

But, I love that Bailey gives us all these great topics to blog about, and the community to share our posts. It's definitely much more motivating than going about it on my own.

It was so fun to go back and look at my music posts from each year. This is one area of my life I am very consistent in! You can see my post from this year, last year, and the year before.

Another favorite is the "what I want to be when I grow up" post. I'm still referring back to that one for ideas. One of these days, I might figure it out!

all the sources are in the original post

This is probably one of my favorite mood boards I've ever created. It's SO me. Still.

sources linked in original post

 And this is probably my favorite "fashion" type post. To be perfectly honest...my personal clothing choices these days are less than inspiring. Mostly because I refuse to buy clothes until I lose some weight....even though I struggle feeling confident with the clothes I currently own. But that's a sad post for another day. Today...I thought I would share this post...because I would glady wear any of these cute outfits any day!

Two years ago, I stretched my initial blog-tember success into 31 days of blogging about a single topic. I chose to blog about my weight loss. You can check out the original post to see a link to all my 31 posts for that month. I'm sad to say that I'm STILL in the same boat, struggling just as much, if not more, than I was then. But, it has been motivating to go back and read through all my posts. I'm seriously considering doing this challenge again this year...to get myself by on track! 

BLOG-TEMBER :: THE SWITCH

So today's blog-tember prompt is .... If you could switch lives with someone for a day, who would it be? Why? Fun, right?

I couldn't pick just one. In fact...I probably thought of about 10 different people that I'd like to experience their life...just for a day. But, in true over-thinker form...I realized I wouldn't want to experience ALL facets of their life. Ahem, Jennifer Aniston. I could not deal with the constant paparazzi. Probably not even for a day. 

So first up, Joanna Gaines. I just ADORE her. Her style, her talent, her business sense. Her relationship with her husband and kids. Her faith. ADORE. I think it would be so fun to get an inside look at what it's like to be her, what her design process is. I'd also like to raid her closet...Ha!

And Carrie Underwood. I can not carry a tune to save my life. It's bad. So, I would probably spend all day singing. EVERYTHING. My coffee order, my phone conversations, my play by play of whatever is on tv. I think her style is equally fabulous and she just seems like a down home girl. So while it would be a huge departure from my everyday life (in just about every way)...it'd also be sort of comfortable. And, my legs would look amazing for 24 hours! 

BLOG-TEMBER :: INSTAGRAM INSPIRED AND BOOK LOVE

Happy Monday!

I'm a little behind on my blog-tember posts. So, I thought I would combine yesterday's post (Instagram Faves) and today's post (Book Love).  Totally fitting...because scrolling through IG and reading are probably two of my favorite things to do. Especially when I should be doing other things. Can I get an amen!?

First up...Instagram favorites.....I have several friends that are obviously my favorites...but I'll highlight them later this month. And, I thought I would save my favorite weight loss/fitness follows for another post as well. For today's post, I'm sharing my favorite fashion, travel, home decor and other random fun follows!

SoulScripts by Jordan Lee....such a sweet girl.

KellyPurkey...I used to follow her scrapbooking...but now I follow her for all her travel pictures.

Alyson_Haley....of the blog Sequins & Things. Love her style. And she is spending some time in London right now...so that is fun to follow.

Gladys.Warden of the blog Steeltoes and Stilletos. A (gorgeous) Texas girl with great style. And a cute dog!

Hunted_Interior. LOVE this blog and IG account. Such great style. Makes me want to paint all my walls black and have super chic furniture. ha!

MegDuerkeson...of the blog Whatever. LOVE her fun colorful life!! So much joy!!

MrsAaronWatson...as in the singer Aaron Watson's wife. Kim is one of my favorite follows. Her kids are precious. I love her husband's music...and she has the best heart.

TheHappyGoose...Lindsay is a local girl and just looks like a sweetheart.

And now...BOOKS!!!

I just read Sting by Sandra Brown. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Sandra. She lives in my hometown...and I usually get sucked into her books immediately. They do follow a similar pattern...and there are usually a few scenes that are a bit much for me. But...I just always look forward to her newest release. She actually served on the PTA with my Grandmother back in the day. My Gin (grandmother) was the librarian at my elementary school...and Sandra's kids went to the same school.

Anyway...Sting. It was good. Not my favorite of Sandra's...but it did keep me guessing for a bit...and actually surprised me in the end...so that is good.

I am currently reading Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. I got it the day it came out, but I am just now sitting down to read it. I've read mixed reviews...and I think that has given me some pause about reading it quicker. But, I am excited to revisit some of my favorite characters. And yes, I am in my (late) thirties. It's fine.

I'm also in the middle of our Ladies Bible Study. We are doing Armor of God by Priscilla Shirer. So far, it is really challenging m.e. I've gone through quite a funk the last several months (years?!) and this book is really opening my eyes to a lot of places I've not been spiritually strong. Especially my prayer life.

Liane Moriarty's Truly Madly Guilty, Beth Moore's Audacious, and The Nest by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney are all on my to-read shelf.

BLOG-TEMBER :: DESTINATION GETAWAY

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True story...I've always been SUCH a homebody. I do like to travel, in so much as I can be back in my bed in a few nights. Day road trips are my jam. And while C and I have been several places together, we have spent most of our time at home.

But, y'all...in the last few months, I've been bitten by a travel bug. I want to go to ALL THE PLACES. I can remember people telling me they wanted to go to China, or Fiji, or Brazil or wherever...and I would smile and nod...all while thinking WHY??!!! But now...I totally get it.

We are going back to Las Vegas (we went about 10 years ago) this December. And we are talking about making a trip to NYC soon. I have a cousin that lives there that I would like to see. We've also been seriously brain-storming a BIG trip next summer. I love following Victoria's summer trips. And Merritt does some fun travel stuff on snapchat. 

Some of the places on our dream list (I couldn't pick one...not yet anyway).....

one / two / three / four / five

I would LOVE to go to Greece. Or Amsterdam. Or Ireland (this is on C's top 5 as well). The Amalfi Coast is gorgeous. And...Paris is a must. I'm not much of a Mexico/beach type of girl...and that is where all my family and friends seem to vacation. I probably shouldn't knock it until I try it though.

BLOG-TEMBER :: HOME INSPIRATION

I LOVE decorating. LOVE it. And I get so giddy when bloggers do home tours. So today's blog-tember prompt is SO FUN.

We are about to move (again) and basically everything we own is in storage. I've already decided we are going to completely overhaul the living room situation. We have had our furniture since before we got married...and it is just time for some new stuff. Daphne (the cat) had to be trained not to scratch EVERYTHING...but that was a costly lesson. RIP couch. And coffee table. And leather chair. Sad times.

So, while I wait to have a new space to play with...I've been dreaming up some ideas. I thought it would be fun to share what I've got in mind for the living room.

We probably won't do much beyond the living room...until we buy a home. But...that doesn't stop me from playing with the idea of redoing our bedroom. I think I really just like pretend shopping...almost as much as the real thing. 

BLOG-TEMBER :: SOUNDTRACK

So today's blog-tember prompt is a soundtrack. Confession....I don't really listen to music that much. When I first bought my car, we had a little trial thing of satellite radio. And I loved that. I mean I guess I love music...but I hate switching out cd's and I am horrible about downloading songs to my phone and then syncing all that. And I HATE commercials. Ha. Oddly, I love sports talk radio. So, that is what I listen to in the car.

But, I thought it would be fun to highlight some of my favorite cds. Most are a few (or more) years older. But, if you told me I could only grab a few cd's to listen to the rest of my life...these would probably be the ones I picked. It was fun to go back and look at the ones I blogged about last year and the year before.

When we had satellite radio last year, Eric Church had a show debuting his new cd, Mr. Misunderstood. He shared the songs and the story behind each one. It was SO good. They replayed it several times and I would always get so excited when it was on. I guess C told my mom about it and I got the actual cd for Christmas. It's the only cd that has been in my car since then. And I'm shocked it still plays. The whole album is SO SO SO good. I literally LOVE all the songs. Record Year is my favorite though.

1989 is such a fun cd. I love me some Taylor...and actually got to see her last fall.

I also love Adele. I like her new cd (which my mom also got me at Christmas)...but 21 is just the best. I thought it got stuck in my Jeep..and I legit panicked. I can still listen to it over and over.

Any and all Elvis.

Same with Pat Green. The man can do no wrong as far as I'm concerned.

Jason Boland!! We saw him at a benefit when C and I first started dating. I had no idea who he was...but became a big fan immediately. LOVE all his stuff...but this is the cd that started it all...so naturally, it's my favorite.

Guns N Roses. Such a huge reminder of my childhood. I'm not sure how or when I became a fan...but I was really young. Like 10? It probably came from staying home and watching MTV back when they played music! (How old do I sound right now?! LOL)

Love me some Sam Hunt.

Speaking of love...Chris Stapleton. Traveller...such a great song. The whole cd is. Reminds me of Urban Cowboy (which is one of my favorite movies!).

Randy Rodgers has THE BEST VOICE. He could sing the phone book and it would probably be my favorite thing. I was at Billy Bobs when they recorded this cd, and I have probably played it at least 1000 times. Lost and Found is my favorite RRB song.

Any Miranda Lambert cd would work, but revolution has Dead Flowers...which is one of my favorites. I also liked her with The Pistol Annies.

If I had to pick only one cd...I'd probably pick a George Strait cd. Right? And the Pure Country soundtrack would probably be the one. I Cross my Heart? Overnight Male? Yes!!!

So we are going to Vegas in a few months (wohoo). And we are going to see Rock of Ages and I could not be more excited. I was super young in the late 80's, early 90's but hair bands are some of my favorites. I have played the soundtrack SO many times...just making sure I'm prepared. Ha.

BLOG-TEMBER :: FAVORITE BIRTHDAY

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I'm a big fan of birthdays....even as I near a decade that absolutely seems wrong in every way (because I'm still 24, right? RIGHT?!!). As a kid, I'm sure the presents were a big part of that. Now, it really is about being surrounded by the people I love most. And cake.

Okay, and the presents.

Some of the ones that stand out the most...

#7   I took my first airplane trip to Florida with my Grandmother and cousin. We went to visit my Aunt and spent the week at Disney World and the beach. Not too shabby.

#18 Our senior prom was on my eighteenth birthday. My mom took me out of school the day before and we played hooky. We met up with my Aunts, Grandmother and a few friends for a lunch at La Madeline. This was my favorite place to eat back then. I always felt super fancy eating there!! Makes me laugh now. Her and my step-dad also gave me an emerald (my birthstone) and diamond ring.  And two weeks later, I graduated high-school!! Hooray!

#22 This was my first birthday since dating C. He was super sneaky and threw me a big surprise party at his sister's house. I'd never had a surprise party before and I was just SHOCKED. Such a good memory.

#33 We went to this little sports bar to listen to a few bands play. And PAT GREEN showed up. It was such an intimate little gathering and he was just right there doing an acoustic set. Kind of amazing. And...what makes it the most memorable was that my mom and step-dad came with us. My step-father passed away 10 months later. He never missed a birthday, and I think I sort of took that for granted. Lord knows I miss him desperately. BUT...I have such great memories of him that day. I think it's a constant reminder to really enjoy ALL the moments. You never realize the ones that will seem so big later on.

I suppose my favorite birthday of all was my 28th. The day after my birthday, I FINALLY graduated from college. To be fair, I had taken several years off.  But what makes the birthday THE MOST SPECIAL is that a week prior to graduation, C proposed. The best yes I ever said!!!

BLOG-TEMBER :: CURRENTLY

SOURCE

Reading... Sting by Sandra Brown


Playing... Candy Crush. I know. But I have it on my Kindle and occasionally, it's just fun. In an annoying, there is no solution, I hate this game, kind of way. 


Watching... Friends. I watch it every night before bed. It just never gets old. I think I have seen some of the episodes at least 50 times and I still crack up. 


Trying... to get caught up with my blog-tember posts!! I should be back on track tomorrow!


Cooking... nothing, lately. But, one of my goals is to try 4 new recipes this month. 


Eating... some ice. It's so bad for my teeth, but I'm addicted to it. 


Drinking... Coke. Like, the real thing. Oops. I may not sleep tonight. 


Calling... nobody. I hate talking on the phone (do I post this every month?)


Texting... about 10 people tonight after I walked 1.5 miles IN THE DARK. Who am I?!!


Pinning... workouts, clothing ideas, recipes and decor. Same ole, same ole.


Going... to start the 30 Day Shred tomorrow!!! EEEK!!!


Loving...  Miranda Lambert's new song, Vice. 


Discovering... coconut oil makes your eyelashes grow!! Did y'all know this?


Thinking... about our Vegas trip in December. I'm so excited for a vacation!


Feeling... motivated!!! I have done so good with working out...but I am wanting to make some big changes with my diet. 


Hoping... I'm able to stick with the 30 Day Shred. I'm so nervous. Ha. 


Listening (to)... Daphne snoring. Friends on Netflix.


Celebrating... my grandmother's birthday! Excited to spend time with family. 


Smelling...  perfume samples. I always throw the ones that come in the Ulta mailer in my purse. 


Ordering... (thinking of ordering) this cute shirt for my nephew's football games. It's SO cute, right?


Thanking...  Melissa for keeping me accountable to my workouts!!


Considering... cutting my hair. I want a change. But I'm not sure I want a big change. I'll probably still be considering this next month. ha! 


Starting... to fall asleep. Praise hands. 

Finishing... the blog-tember posts I missed this weekend. Should be caught up tomorrow!!

BLOG-TEMBER :: SUMMER FAVORITES

We moved at the beginning of the summer. And in a lot of ways, it feels like that set off a chain of complete chaos that is never ending. In other ways, it feels like a few days ago. All this to say that this summer was different than most. I am looking forward to Fall like never before, but I don't wan to miss some of the sweeter things from the last few months.

Drop Dead Diva. This show. So at the beginning of the summer, we watched both seasons of Bloodline. It annoyed me to NO end, but I still felt lost when it was over. Ha. So we fumbled around with a few other shows, not getting that excited. Until, we watched Drop Dead Diva. It's perfectly cheesy but oh so cute. I can't believe C watched it with me. But, we spent all summer watching it. I don't want to spoil it for anyone, but we really enjoyed it...until the last season...but it was still a sweet show that we are glad we watched. If you are looking for something lighthearted to watch...try it out!

Kitty snuggles with Miss Daphne. She is the sweetest girl. We have cuddled a lot over the last few months!!

Torchy's Tacos. We were SO late to the party with Torchy's. But, we finally tried it out at the beginning of the summer, and have only been back an embarrassing amount of times. The chicken fajita taco is my favorite. And the ice. I love the ice.

My Day Designer from Target. I got one last year and LOVED it. And, apparently, so did everyone else near me. I had to go to about 10 different Targets to find mine this year...I nearly laid down in aisle to cry when I saw it. It's a little bigger than the traditional one. I also like the plastic cover, as opposed to the chipboard one. And it's cheaper. LOVE it. They are sold out of the daily one, which is the one I have. But they still have some weekly/monthly editions.

The floral crown filter from SnapChat. So much better than the dog, right?!

Essie Watermelon. My signature color. Ha. Seriously, it just reminds me of me. And summer.

July 4th weekend. It was just such a sweet time with my husband. We went on a little road trip/shopping adventure. Went out to eat. Watched fireworks at our church. Probably one of my favorite weekends from the summer.

The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty.  I didn't do a lot of reading this summer, but this book immediately sucked me in. I can't wait to read some of her other stuff. Emily Giffin's newest release was also another favorite from the summer.

Country drives. These are always a favorite. But after the rains from the earlier part of summer, everything was so lush and green. Made for some great drives.

When I sat down to write this post, I was worried it would be boring. But, I'm so glad I looked back to remember some of the better moments. I also realized I need to get better at taking more pictures...but that's a story for another day!

BLOG-TEMBER :: GOALS

Technically, it's the final hours of day four and I'm just getting to the day two prompt. All you ever needed to know about my personality can be found in that one sentence.

But...now that I've got that out of my system (ha!), I'm determined to get caught up over the next few days and finish the month strong!! Yay.

For the last few months, I've really been focusing on trying to develop good 'habits'. I work from home. I have for the past seven years. For some, this would be the perfect opportunity to get tons of things done. For me, it's been an opportunity to develop LOTS of bad habits. Habits that I'm having a difficult time shaking. So, I decided to make this little graph with all of my daily/weekly goals and then I'm able to check it off during the month. I'm a visual person...so I figured this would be great. And it was, for July. I'm not sure what happened in August...but that little plan didn't work out for me. But, I'm going to try it again in September. Some of the goals are kind of silly, in that they should be natural (water, activity, church, fruits and veggies), but for whatever reason (laziness, probably), they aren't. Others are things I'm just trying to make a part of my life (Bible time, Spanish lessons, reading, step challenge, etc). Transparency, the first four days of this month have been SO busy...and I've not yet made my graph...BUT I WILL!

I've also got some other fun things I want to accomplish this month, and since that is the prompt for today (err, Friday) I thought I would share those.

SEPTEMBER GOALS
1. Make my daily habits graph. And then, do all the things on it!
2. Complete the Blog-tember Challenge.
3. Read 5 books.
4. Go to Bible Study at church (and keep up with weekly homework).
5. Start the 30 Day Shred.
6. Go to Weight Watchers every week.
7. Stay on track with weekly workouts from Melissa.
8. Finalize costume for my nephew's wedding reception (Halloween weekend).
9. Try 4 new recipes.

What's on your to-do list for this month?!

BLOG-TEMBER :: HEY Y'ALL

Hey y'all!! I'm Tricia. I'm so excited it's blog-tember time!!! This is my 3rd year to participate...and it's about the most consistent time of blogging for me. So yay for Bailey coming up with and hosting this fun little online gathering!!

I'm a Texas girl...married to my Texas boy. We don't have any kiddos (maybe one day!...I'm still holding on to hope!!). But we do have a precious little (well, not so little) rescue kitty, Daphne. She is just about the sweetest thing ever...I love her so.

We love to take random little road trips. I love country back roads. We also love live music out on a patio (plus chips and salsa!!) It's just about prime patio weather...yay!  I'm a big Dallas Cowboys fan and kind of nerd out during football season...but it is my favorite time of year!!  I love reading and have been talking about writing a book for years. One day I might actually do it.

I'm a dreamer of big dreams. I'm trying to break out of my comfort zone and actually tackle some of the things on my list. I'm much better at dreaming...but accomplishing things is much more fun, right?!! I've basically been on a life long journey to get in shape (ha!) but I am feeling ALL the motivation right now. I hope to share more of my journey with that this month!!

I'm a freelance graphic designer...mostly blog design now. When I first started blogging (like 10 years ago!!) I found a way to fancy up my boring template. Then I started helping friends change up their blogs...and before I knew it, a fun little hobby became a job. So grateful for that!!

Super excited to get back to blogging this month. And really pumped that I got a couple of friends to join me!! Be sure to check out Kenda and Melissa.