6 Simple Things that Changed Everything

With Jeff being in session, there are many times where I feel overwhelmed by the duties of the day ahead of me. Making meals, doing homework, running carpool, giving baths and - let's face it - just keeping these little people alive in general. So this year I have tried to implement a few changes that simplify everything for me, keeping me on task - or at least close to it.

1. A Load a Day

After I had Charlotte, I found that one more small person brings a lot more laundry and I easily got behind. I began reading Fly Lady's website and she has a motto that I try to keep in my head : A Load a Day Keeps Chaos Away. It is so very true.

Now with three kids - some of which have sports - and a husband that runs all the time, staying on top of the laundry is absolutely vital in keeping my mind sane. There is nothing that will ruin my attitude more than having four loads of laundry to do. I don't make sure I have empty laundry baskets every day, because that would require me checking everything several times a day, but I do make sure to run a load through - all the way to the drawers - once a day. (Within reason, people!)

This also allows me to be able to push Jeff's laundry through quickly on the weekends and allows for my laundry room to remain semi-clean. This will make your life easier even if it's just yourself. Yes, you feel like you're always doing laundry, but in reality folding a load of 10ish pieces every day is way less daunting than folding a load of 40+ pieces twice a week. (I see you rolling your eyes but nodding in agreement at the same time, friend.) Trust me on this.

2. Making Lunches the Night Before 

This one is difficult to maintain as routine for me, but I am always thankful when I do it. That's my mantra when I start to get all of the supplies out. I will not regret this in the morning. Oh, but all I want to do is park myself on the cozy couch over there with my book... but no. I WILL get this done.

In order to stay motivated, I set my timer for 15 minutes. I race around getting their lunches packed and then tidying up quickly. I almost always have time leftover when I'm all done. This one isn't fun to read about and it, honestly, isn't fun to do - but it is totally worth it.

3. Getting Up Before Everyone Else

Long-time readers know that this is my number one priority every day. More so than exercise (I mean, hello!) and even more than reading my favorite book - I have to get up before everyone else in the quiet of the morning. This is when I have my time with the Lord, but this is also just a time for my heart and mind to get settled into the day ahead of me. I might not get another quiet moment all day... it's just the reality of this season of life. The only consistently quiet and (mostly) uninterrupted time I can count on during the day is before everyone gets up.

I highly suggest finding a consistent time that you can just be alone in the quiet for a few minutes. Whatever that might look like for you, do it. It has become something that I look forward to and something that I make a priority in my day. Even when we were on vacation, I made time to go downstairs to the lobby, put my headphones in and just sit with my coffee. No, it wasn't quiet, but it wasn't my people hollering at me that they need a snack or help finding their shoes. It was just me, my coffee and The Show Ponies and it was marvelous.

4. Meal Planning // Prep

My week goes so much smoother when this happens. As much as I adore cooking, this is my least favorite step in my week. Meal Planning. I have read all of the tips and tricks about making this easier. I have bought apps. I have tried a calendar where I plan out an entire month of meals. But it never fails that when I sit down to meal plan I come up at a loss of ideas and end up making the same thing that I know my people will eat - or at least not cry about eating.

My meal planning strategy looks like this : I sit down with my calendar and my bullet journal. I look at what we have going on for the week and decide which nights I need to prepare meals. Then I start to think of what we could possibly have. If I'm planning a meal for every night, as opposed to one night picking something up due to to activities or what not, I spread out my work load as follows.

I have one frozen meal, one big meal (where I cook everything from scratch), one crockpot meal, one version of breakfast and one version of tacos. The frozen meal could be frozen pizza or a frozen pre-made casserole. The big meal - when I'm on my top of my game - will make enough for me to freeze half of it so I can have it a future week for a frozen meal.

Breakfast night and taco night are my kids favorites. Taco night comes in all shapes and sizes :: Fajitas, quesadillas, a nacho bar or build your own tacos. Breakfast night consists of waffles, pancakes, or biscuits, eggs and chicken sausage. If I'm feeling generous, I'll throw in some chocolate chips to the waffles and add some bacon on the side. That's when the kids feel especially loved, y'all.

5. Walmart Grocery Pickup (This is NOT an ad, but it should be!)

So this has quite literally changed my life. You might be saying, "Becky, stop! You're being dramatic!" To which I would say, "No, y'all! This is a real thing! It will change yours too!" I don't care who you are, this is one of those things that you will say you don't need, you'll wait forever to try it, but when you do you will kick yourself for not trying it immediately after hearing about it. I swear to you.

So here's how it works :: You go to walmart.com and you create account. You have already meal planned, because you're awesome, and you have your list next to your computer. You start to type in the things on your grocery list. Cheerios, turkey breast, applesauce, vanilla.... Wait. Don't you already have vanilla? You go to your refrigerator, open it up and there she is. A brand spankin' new large bottle of vanilla extract! You just saved yourself $4.39 from buying an unnecessary bottle of vanilla to make those cookies for your neighbor. Congratulations. Now go buy yourself something pretty!

Seriously, though, this system is great for so many more reasons than the scenario I listed above. I only buy the things on my list, I don't have to get my cranky toddler out of the car and pacify him with incessant snacks and iphone games so the elderly ladies look at me like a bad mom. I don't have to go searching for random ingredients! And when it's raining, y'all - they still bring it out to me!! I don't even have to get out my car!! If you're a work at home mom, work out of the home mom, stay at home mom, career woman without kids, wife that stays at home, single person... this could not be better for you!!! Try it and then tell me about it. I dare you.

6. Leaving My Planner on the Counter

This is such a simple thing to do, but it still doesn't happen every day. When it does, my day runs so much smoother, all of our appointments get made, errands get run and people get picked up and dropped off as they should. I have used the Erin Condren planner in the past, but this year I went with the Get to Work Book and I am LOVING it. It's very simple and clean, but it's great for all of my writing projects. I highly recommend it!

I hope all of these ideas help you simplify your crazy life like it has mine! Let me know what you try and if you have any of your own ideas! I'd love to hear about them!!!

5 Things to Take to a New Mom

If you're like us, you find yourselves in a season of life where everyone is having babies! Your neighbors, your sunday school class people, your friends, your siblings. One of my favorite ways to love on a family is through food, I mean, I grew up in a Baptist Church - that's just what you do. I thought I'd put together a little wrap up of my five favorite things to take to a new momma! What's your favorite thing to take to a new mom? What was your favorite thing to receive?! 

Beth’s Italian Wedding Soup

This is one of the easiest things to package up and give to a new momma for her lunch that is solo. This doesn’t go with my “meal” but it’s super comforting - just what this sweet woman will need to carry her through those long days after the sleepless nights! It lasts for several days, only getting better, and I dream of the day I’m able to throw some homemade bread in there with it. 

Honey and Lime Chicken Enchiladas (plus frozen taquitos if they have little ones already)

This is one of my very favorite recipes to make for a dinner party or to take to anyone who needs a warm meal. It is so tasty and so simple to make. The recipe is here, but I have begun to make a few changes over time. I like to use whole wheat fresh from the bakery section at my grocery store. They add a little texture, but are still soft unlike gritty corn tortillas. I also add 1 teaspoon ancho chill pepper to the marinade because that is my favorite spice of all time. It adds a bit of heat too, but you can add red pepper as well if you want to add more! I also like to use monterey jack cheese when it’s readily available. 

Prep all of it in an aluminum pan and wrap it up and foil. I like to write in sharpie on top the directions to baking so it’s super easy for them to just grab out of the fridge and put in the oven and bake it. 

Chips and Homemade Salsa

My very favorite thing to make - especially in the summer time - is homemade salsa. It makes two pint size jars and seems fancy but is, in actuality, extremely easy. I use to be so good about having a jar or two in the fridge at all times (cold salsa is totally my jam) but in recent years - perhaps since I’ve had Landry - I haven’t been as faithful. If you don’t have time to make homemade salsa, our family’s very favorite store-bought salsa is called Texas Texas Restaurant Style. We don’t like the chunky kind. 

Author Note :: Have you ever tried guacamole salsa? I don’t love guacamole, but this is one of my friend’s very favorite things to bring to a chips and salsa party, and it doesn’t disappoint!

The BEST EVER Chocolate Chip Cookies

I cannot rave about these cookies enough, and man I wish I could take credit for these. (I will take credit for telling you about them, though!) We make them all. the. time. AND they make a TON of cookies and the dough freezes quite well. I used my smaller scoop last time and they made 75 cookies (and it would probably make more because we ate a bit of the dough… oops!) Chocolate chips, butterscotch chips and toffee chips. Need I go on? You need to get to the store right now and make these cookies. Take them to your neighbors…. freeze extra balls of dough and make them a few at a time (not that I have ever done that). You and your new momma friend will be thanking me profusely by the end of the day for introducing these cookies to you. 

Homemade Gift

This is one of my favorite things to add to the little package. I typically add a painted sign (duh!) or even something I have sewn… burp cloths, a little blanket, even some onesies. This doesn’t always happen - so when I don’t have time for something handmade, I like to add diapers or even a candle to the mix, something a little extra to make this momma feel super loved on. If they have siblings, I try to get something tiny for them too… think hot wheels, bubbles, crayons, etc. Just something a little extra, y’all, goes a LONG way. 

I typically package up my meals in a Central Market (or Trader Joe’s) paper grocery sack, tying it - if possible - with ribbon or a scrap of fabric or twine… whatever I have on hand. I stick a bagged salad in there with everything, because they’ve got to eat their veggies, and it sort of rounds out the meal!! Who can you bless this week with the gift of food? (Now I'm hungry and need to go make myself some enchiladas!)

Finding an Outlet

“Don’t think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it’s good or bad, whether they love or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art.” —Andy Warhol

I started experiencing physical symptoms of stress a few years ago, sneaking up on me after having our third child. A few months in, I finally went to see a doctor for the “weird tension” in my neck and shoulders. He looked at me very gently and said bluntly, “it’s chronic stress.” 

I was dumbfounded. I was not stressed out. No way. Only wimps get stressed out. Only worry warts could feel physical symptoms from stress-induced anxiety, or whatever he called it. That was not me. 

Until I got a second opinion, I was sure I had a tumor and my lazy doctor had not diagnosed me properly. Unaware that I had already asked my GP, my OB confirmed his diagnosis of my physical symptoms. Stress.

It felt so vague. Short of taking medication, there was no “quick fix”… and even with the medication, it could still be a long road. She explained to me, through my tears, that life is just plain hard sometimes. 

I sat there begging her to see that I wasn’t stressed, that my life wasn’t any harder than anyone else’s life - in fact it was probably easier. Yes, I had a husband with an odd set of demands that can sometimes feel lonely and yes, I had three kids now (which I am still recovering from) but I didn’t feel like I could at all quantify my life as hard. 

Her response was not what I bargained for, and it still echoes in my mind when I feel guilty for feeling stressed. She said, “Becky, just because it’s not as hard as it could be doesn’t mean it isn’t still hard.”

Think about that for a second. Just because life isn’t as hard as it could be, doesn’t mean it isn’t still hard. Just because I have healthy kids and a loving husband and a happy-ish home and the woman down the street lost her husband and a mom at school is going through a divorce doesn’t mean that kids, marriage, career tending and homemaking come easy all the time. The demands of all of our mundane, everyday lives can get extremely overwhelming. And that’s okay, in fact it’s normal. 

And I needed to get a freakin’ grip. 

So I asked her for a prescription and instead she gave me a remedy. 

Many of the things she suggested were obvious and I felt frustrated even thinking about them. Exercise… I mean, I had a brand new baby. Yoga? Please. Ain’t nobody got time for that. Hot baths? My bath tub is full of baby toys. Eating healthy? Unfortunately, eating unhealthy was my coping mechanism. 

But finding an outlet? That one was tough. 

I had an outlet… many outlets, in fact. I write, I paint signs, I run (when I can), I cook and I garden. So why wasn’t any of that making it better? 

I discovered that all of these things I was doing out of necesity, obligation or for the enjoyment of someone else. I wasn’t doing any of these things intentionally just to settle my mind. I wrote with a purpose (you’re reading that here). I painted for a business. I ran because I was told it was good for me - and it was the only thing that I didn’t HATE doing. I cooked because my people needed to eat - and it was always a battle.

How could I do something just for me… something that would have no expectations, no limits, no one criticizing, no one watching? How could I find that time? 

I didn’t until I decided at the beginning of 2017 that I had to make that time. I had to force myself to take time to do something that might feel fruitless at first because it wasn’t serving a purpose. But now I see that it was - it is - because it’s serving me. 

As women, we can get incredibly caught up in serving everyone else. Even if you aren’t a natural servant, I bet you still find yourself serving someone else throughout the day. We were created to be helpmates, and that is what we do all day long. So when we are doing something that isn’t helping someone else, it feels unworthy of our time. But that’s not true. It’s a lie. 

When I paint just for me, I somehow feel my mind settling. As if the insides of my mind are just starting to untangle. Sometimes I talk to God as I paint, sometimes I listen to worship music or just sit in silence. Sometimes - and don’t tell anyone else this - I crank my Spotify up real loud and rock out to Bruno Mars and Maroon 5. 

It’s not always a Holy experience, is my point. 

It is, however, an experience that makes me feel encouraged, uplifted and like my soul is being tended to. Yes, God gives me everything I need on a daily basis emotionally, spiritually and physically - but He also created me with a need to create. Just like He created you with your own needs too. I’m wondering if you need an outlet just like I did.

How can you carve time out for it? You just do. You just have to. It might be five minutes, it might be nine. But just set your timer and do it. Get up ten minutes earlier. Go to bed ten minutes later. It doesn’t have to be huge… just start with something. Let God speak to you as you unwind your mind through reading, cooking or catching up with a girlfriend. Find a release this week and see what it does for the depths of your soul. I bet you won’t be disappointed. 

Let's Dig Together /// A Gardening Series

It’s that time again! Time to plan our gardens and this year I have big changes in mind due to lessons I learned last year and I’m terribly excited to get started on this year’s crop!!!

I have received several questions from beginner gardeners over on Instagram, so I thought I would start a little series here that goes through things I think about each year when planning a garden. So keep reading for bi-weekly updates on how our garden is doing and what you can be doing to excel (by trail and error) in your own garden.

DISCLAIMER : I am by no means a professional gardener or am actually trained in anything. I am just a gal who loves to dig in the dirt and I want to share that experience with y'all. So buckle up and get ready to dig in your own dirt!

First things first though. You might be reading this post thinking “why in the world would I ever garden?” Or you might be one of those - sitting where I was - thinking that you could never have your own garden… that you would never be able to keep up with it, you’d kill everything or it would be a total waste of money…. STOP!! Let me tell you… YES you can!!!!!

I garden because I love to plant something and watch it bloom. I love to sit in my backyard and literally enjoy the fruits of my labor. I like to feel the sweat on my back as we dig and bury and weed and water. My very favorite process - until the dead of August - is getting my cup of coffee before the kiddos get up and getting out to water with the hose. It is maybe the most peaceful time of day ever and perhaps those are also my most peaceful times of the year.

Y’all, I long for that time right now… when the green leaves spring back to the water and the blooms carry the droplets like tiny little crystals of jewelry. I mean, let’s be honest, I could get out there right now and water but nothing would enjoy it. It’s all brown, crunchy and dead. Watering that isn’t the same as watering something that is growing… there might be a sermon in there, right?

Okay, so let’s start at the very beginning.

THE BASICS

First, you need to find out what zone you’re in by looking at this map. That was pretty simple, wasn't it? Also, know that I’m in zone 8.

Next let’s do some definitions :

Perennial : lasting or existing for a long or apparently infinite time; enduring or continually recurring. (Also known as the plants that come back year after year).

Annual : plants with a life cycle that lasts only one year. They grow from seed, bloom, produce seeds, and die in one growing season. They then need to be replanted each spring.

Next, you need to evaluate where you want to plant.

Do you have a patio or do you have a yard? Do you want to plant in your beds or do you want to build something? Do you have a lot of sun or do you have a lot shade? Mine changes from spring to summer - nothing terribly dramatic - but keep that in mind. What is your water situation like? Can you move a hose to wherever you want to plant?

A few thoughts here before you get overwhelmed.

First, container gardening is MY personal favorite. I would much rather plant in pots, or baskets or whiskey barrels, than plant in a bed. In fact, there are only a handful of things I’ll plant in beds now because I feel like they are definitely harder than keeping something alive in containers. The BIG advantage of container gardening is that if you see something wilting in hot sun every afternoon, you can move the container! How genius is that? If you have something in beds, it’s not as easy, although I have done it before. If you are a TRUE beginner gardener, I would stick with containers.

Okay - so next you have to decide what you want to plant.

FLOWERS

Do you want a cut flower garden? Do you want big blooms or do you want a variety (that’s what I like!) Do you want to stick to a color theme? Do you want to plant perennials (the kind that come back every year) or do you want to do annuals that you plant every year, or do you want to do a mix of both?

I have one flower bed by my living room window that I did almost all perennials in with big blooms. I had Lavender Butterfly Bush, Salvia and Texas Sage. I filled in with some Lantanta (which is essentially a perennial in Texas). All of these are pretty drought resistant and that is a necessity for us in Texas, unless I plan to be out there all of the time. These all did well and are already turning green this year. Also know that perennials tend to be hardier than annuals.

EDIBLES

The number one question here is this : What do you (and/or your family) like to eat that you can grow? I mean, I like cookies, but I can’t grow those… fortunately for my weight. Most edibles require FULL sun, so keep that in mind if you are working with some shade. There are a few that don’t necessarily care all that much, like herbs, but most flowering plants like FULL, HOT sun!

Here are some easy (from my experience) first time edibles to grow.

Basil, Rosemary (a perennial), any kind of pepper, Cucumbers, bush beans.

Your assignment for this week is to grab a cup of coffee, a piece of paper and start answering these little questions for yourself. Start scribbling down what you really want. It might not be what you end up with, but it gives you an idea of where you want to start.

Take a trip to your local nursery and see what they have available in terms of seed and small plants, but DON'T BUY ANYTHING YET. This will get your mind inspired for planting and give you a better idea of what grows in your zones. Don't be discouraged if there isn't much available, it's still very early in the planting season.

Take a look at gardens over on Pinterest. Beware to not spend too much time there, though, or you might get overwhelmed and disappointed that your yard can't look like the picture you see. It can still look awesome, and it will become your little baby soon enough.

The bottom line is to get inspired and to tell yourself that you CAN do this!!

Next week, come with your answers along with your ideas and we will starting putting a plan together for your yard! Let me know if you have any specific questions you want to answer in next week's post and I'll put them in there for you!

Letting Go at 35

I have been forewarned by several people in my life that 35 is a rough birthday. I guess that's the good thing about being the youngest in your group of friends - these wise souls have gone before me and can tell me what to expect when I get there. I say that with a smile on my face because I love being the youngest. I love looking forward with them and being challenged with how they are living out their lives. I love being the youngest.


But this youngest friend is turning one year older in a few months (exactly two) and I've been doing a slight bit of reflecting on life. The things that I love, the things that I want to change. Mostly, I have no regrets - I don't really look back and think "I wish I had done ___" but I do do a whole lot of dreaming about the future. I might not have regrets, but I do want to make some changes - and if there's any time to make adjustments - it's a milestone birthday.

So here we go.

5 Thinks that I want to let go of at 35.

1. My 25 year old, pre-kids body image.

It’s not even about weight, y’all. It’s NOT. (wink face, hand on my hips). It’s about this image I have in my mind of what I looked like when I was 25. How unreasonable is it for me to think I should still look like that! Of course I look different now! Who wouldn’t look different with 10,000 more miles and 3 kids and 10 more years of marriage under their belt? (The secret answer here is someone who has had major plastic surgery and botox, but that's neither here nor there for the time being).

I want to let go of that image. I want to stop trying to “get back there” and instead journey forward to wellness, whatever that might look like on my 35 year old body.

2. Fear of Offending Others.

I’ve only recently realized that my fear of offending others has held me back from many friendships over the years. In an effort to not put myself out there, I generally say nothing at all which then makes me seem like someone I’m not. I want to thoughtfully mean what I say and say what I mean. I want to love others well - this includes the people who are hard to love.

By letting go of this fear, I can diversify my friendships, my Christian walk and my parenting style. This is by no means an effort to say whatever is on my mind without thinking about others' feelings. This is all to say that I don't want to supress the Holy Spirit anymore. I want Him to fill my mouth, my heart and my actions and remove all fear.

3. Striving for Perfection in our Marriage

For too long, I have tried for "the perfect marriage" instead of the best marriage I can have. I am letting go of the idea of perfect because our marriage, with the mess and the love, the fullness, the disagreements, the makeups, the imperfect child-rearing and the falling asleep in the first 15 minutes of a movie that drives me nuts…. that kind of marriage stretches me, y'all. It makes me better. It spurs me on not only in my walk with the Lord but also in my walk toward my husband. It endears him to me and me to him.

It is not my goal in life to be comfortable. I don't want an easy life (on most days). I want a life that points me to the Father and I am so grateful I get to walk with Jeff on that path. Gosh, I am humbled thinkng of how God ordained our marriage. How dare I think that it's not enough?

I will strive to be consistently content with the state of marriage. The easy and hard times. The pretty and the ugly. I will serve Jeff more and let go of selfishness.



4. “My” Time

At some point after having kids, I started to refer to certain hours of the day as “my time”. I know that any momma out there knows exactly what I'm talking about.  We all need it - especially those of us who are introverts, but over the years I have begun to get irritated when My Time is interrupted. I’ve so fiercely guarded this that when the kids come down stairs too early the first thing they hear is me hollering “it’s not time!” I hate that, y'all!!

I will let go of it being “my” time and realize it’s all HIS time. That does NOT mean that I will give up getting up early and setting aside time for myself to write, pray, think and paint. It just means that if (and when) it gets interrupted or needs to take a back seat for my kids, for a sick neighbor or a household chore to get done, I don’t want it to make or break my whole day.

5. Keeping Houseplants Alive

It’s gut-check time, y’all, and this is an area that has frustrated me for 15 years! I have grown a relatively green thumb when it comes to plants outside, but when it comes to the plants I have inside, y’all, I just kill them. There is the rare exception (the plant that has miraculously stayed alive for over a year) but for the most part, they just die a sad and slow death.

The thing is that IKEA has really cheap house plants. And so do Home Depot and Lowe’s. So instead of forsaking all things green and alive in my house, and instead of getting worked up and frustrated when things look sickly and die, I’m just going to set aside some time and money to be able to replace them when they die. It may seem like a terrible waste of money, but it is proven to make the air in your house cleaner. Or something like that. And it helps in the winter time with a mood boost.

As I grow older (and wiser), I want to be able to make adjustments in my life for the better. I want to easily let go of things that aren’t working and welcome new ideas that add to our quality of life. God is so gracious to grant me another year on this precious earth to live for His glory, so why would I want to live anything short of all out?!

Do you have anything you want to let go of this year? Anything new that you are adding into your routine? I would love to hear about it! It might be just the thing I need!

Easy Tips for a Better Winter

January and February are usually rough spots for me during the year. When the darkness of the cold weather + the very short days combine, they make a truly lethal combination for my spirit. It’s a real thing, y’all. Depression comes over me year after year during these months and I feel like I'm walking in a perpetual spirit of gloominess.

It actually IS a thing… SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder). Since I went to school for interior design (did y’all know that?), I studied it in school. And I know other people that experience the same thing - maybe you do too - but I’ve recently recognized that I go through this every single year.

So every year, I gear myself up in the cheerful month of December for the next January, knowing I’m headed into a little dark period. But this year it hasn’t hit me NEARLY as hard as it usually does, even with the hard of a traveling husband and the hard of three kids (and a toddler that is going to make me lose my ever-loving mind eventually). I've implemented a few strategies this go around that have helped me tremendously, and I hope will do the same thing if you struggle with this same sense of winter gloom.

SUNSHINE

This momma loves herself some sunshine. I mean, hello, I live in Texas where the sun is hot and the kids are always barefoot. We do have a few GORGEOUS days in January and February, followed by ice storms that leave us stuck inside for 3 days, but the gorgeous days DO come. So this year I’ve decided to stop W H A T E V E R my plans are for those days and spend a significant time outside soaking up the sunshine.

We’ll walk to the park, ride bikes in the cul-de-sac, meet up with friends to play in their driveway or simply pull out sidewalk chalk and play in the backyard. This Vitamin D has played a significant role in carrying my mood from a gorgeous day into a gloomy one.

Side note for those of you who don't get Texas winter weather :: these gorgeous days aren’t all good, because it makes me forget about homework, throw caution to the wind and declare that it’s almost summertime, so forget about nightly reading… oops. I may be a rule follower, but I do get a little adventurous like that sometimes. 

EXERCISE

Alright, so this one might be a no-brainer for y’all, but for me it is a freakin' beat-down. Of course, I know it's good for me physically but I just haven't ever been able to wrap my mind around consistently sacrificing time to do it. But a wise woman one stated that “exercise produces endorphins. Endorphins make people happy... and happy people don’t just kill people.” Thank you, Elle Woods.

Unfortunately for me, though, she’s right. Let's boil it down to this : People who exercise don't kill people. And there are a lot of people in my life who might be a lot happier if I exercised. Happy people don’t just kill people. PTL.

Over the past month and a half I’m gone from exercising occasionally - think, once or twice a MONTH - to exercising 4-6 times a week. You might be sitting there with a baby in your lap reading this and thinking - OUT. But if I can do it - you can do it too. I am a total exerciseophobic (totally not a word, y'all). I hate it all. Everything about it. I have found, though, that it is totally doable for a stay at home mom and it doesn’t require you getting up at the crack of dawn either. As much as I want to have those excuses, I just can't anymore.

This is a HUGE mood-booster. I hate to admit it, but now as much as I hate the time it takes for me to workout, I look forward to the feeling afterward. And when I get to run outside, it’s the BEST, because I'm killing two birds with one stone.

INFUSING GREEN

So this might be the biggest secret for me, a home-maker, this year. I've spent about $25 and bought myself several small-ish houseplants. They'll probably end up in the trash can, sad and lonely in a month or two, but for now, they bring our house so much joy and LIFE in the dead of winter. 

I look outside our big windows and even on a beautiful sunny day, it's brown and dead outside. I see twigs and brown grass. But inside? That's another story. My eyes can hit on plant after plant... green grass. New leaves. Beautiful life happening right inside this little coffee cup. It is the best $25 I've ever spent. Now every room has at least one plant... maybe two. This will be a game changer for those of you who need a little life-giving jolt this winter!

Do you struggle with feeling SAD in the dead of winter?? (See what I did there?) I think it's completely normal, scientifically proven and probably easier to deal with if we acknowledge it! I hope you find these simple and easy tips to be helpful mood boosters!! Let me know if you try them and how they work out for you!!! 

An Impromptu Birthday Party

Our sweet Landry is the typical third child. He's just along for the ride in our crazy family - especially in the fall with football and soccer and the campaign! He is so flexible, though, and brings so much laughter to our family! I wasn't sure I wanted a third, but I am so glad that God knew exactly what we needed!

For Landry's first birthday we literally sat on our kitchen island and sang happy birthday as a family of five while he learned what cake was. Then Charlotte and I headed to the Taylor Swift concert and Daddy + Brady played Madden the rest of the afternoon. 

So when his second birthday was coming up, we thought, we ought to do a party. And then suddenly it was a week and a half before his birthday and we hadn't planned anything yet!! So we agreed to invite our family and neighborhood friends (who love our sweet boy as their own) and watch some football. That was our plan. 

And then this momma got on Pinterest like she never has before, trying to erase some of that momma guilt that was settling in, and threw together a little impromptu football themed party that turned out so fun, and truly wasn't a ton of work!

We made a Nacho Bar and a Hot Dog Bar with all of the fixins' for everyone to make it like they want it. We had queso and a million different kinds of salsa... and of course, popcorn and huge stadium-like pickles. We also had a football toss through a ladder, like you see here, for the big kids. 

My sister made the darling Popcorn Bags that were filled with Boom Chicka Pop popcorn. The hot dogs were done in a crock pot, as was the queso. The penalty flags were actually tootsie roll pops that were wrapped in yellow tissue and tied with twine.

The goodie bags had a whistle, a rubber football and some football tattoos in them along with a gold coin. I used black and white straws to make the little flags... I just felt like they needed something extra. Oriental Trading Company had tons of cute black and white things, but I was too late to order them!!

 

We had a fun time and it was just what our little football afternoon needed! This could easily NOT be a birthday party but just a weekend football-watching party, right?! Super easy and so much fun!!!! I hope y'all are having a great weekend and I hope it involves some football, fellowship and FUN!!!

3 Things NOT to Do At a Craft Show

With the Craft Show season upon us, I thought it might be a good time to have a good laugh and discuss "Craft Show Etiquette."

This year Little Branches isn't participating in the craft show season, but most of my sweet maker friends ARE!

Let's start with pointing out the obvious. Craft shows are a TREMENDOUS amount of work, y'all! Whether the maker is working solo, or has (many) helpers, there is simply a lot to do.

Think about it... one person (or one + helpers) has to :

Buy + Plan for Supplies
Price everything.
Plan the booth setup. Make props if necessary. Allow for adjustments, because the booth is never what you think it's going to be.
Pack up said supplies + booth props.
Set up the booth up. Make sure you have cash on hand. Make sure your Square is working.
Work the show. Answer the sweet questions. Remind yourself to smile and say thank you and be beyond friendly. (Because even if that is you naturally, after the tenth time of having the same conversation, it begins to feel fake - even though it's actually not!)
Clean up after the show.
Inventory. Ship. List.

And this doesn't even include MAKING THE STUFF, y'all!

I cannot express to you in words how much joy it gives me to be a maker. It is a true blessing, and it fills the weary parts of my soul. God created me like that. The shows are honestly my very favorite part! They are where are customers have faces and names and we get to have conversations. Craft shows make the process beautifully personal for the maker and the customer. So if you didn't know this before, although I'm sure you did, now you can appreciate the work even more when your eyes lay hold of the beautiful handmade products at the local craft show!




And oh, gosh, I know that none of y'all would ever say anything like this, for obvious reasons, but let's just go ahead and get it out of the way anyway, just in case. I want to talk about what shouldn't go on at a craft show.

1. Saying, "I could make this."

Even if you can, y'all. In fact, I bet you can! I bet you can make signs and knit sweaters and paint clay pots! I bet you could make completely beautiful things, but again, these makers - whatever they made - put time and effort into their craft so that someone - maybe even YOU - could appreciate it, love it and buy it. They are hoping you might say "oh - this is exactly what _____ would LOVE for Christmas!" So, please don't say I could make this... even under your breath, or to your neighbor, because that sweet maker will hear it.

She knows you could make it, but the fact is that she did make it... and put her own spin on it. These items are more than likely her heart and soul in physical form, so be gentle, friends.

2.  Directly asking the maker "How did you make this?"

This just puts the maker in an awkward position, y'all. Of course they are excited about their product, but the reality is that they probably failed many times before coming up with whatever final product there is. If you have a specific question - for example, what kind of yarn do you use in these sweaters - I know would have loved to answer that. But asking what pattern they used and how they frame up their sign is just tough for someone to answer. It's like you asking Kentucky Fried Chicken what the recipe is for their batter. You just don't do it.

***Note : If you have a question about starting a business, or how they got started making _____, please ask those questions! I know that I loved talking about my heart on our business!!

3. Take pictures - especially when you are trying to act like you aren't taking the pictures.

I know you would never do this - but this is just a reminder. There are too many people copying other people's work these days. Don't even look like you're one of these people.

***Note : If you do want to send it to someone to ask if they'd like it for Christmas, or if they would want to buy it for someone else for Christmas (because we all do that) just ask the maker. The likelihood is that they would never say no to that. And mostly, they'll appreciate the ask! I promise!

Above all, if you attend a craft show of any kind this fall, be overly complimentary to these sweet ladies (and gents) that pour their blood, sweat and tears into these weekends. They love being there, but what makes it over-the-top fun is when their are fun people that love their items, love their craft and love their story. Make conversation - even when you know you aren't going to end up buying something! It will make your day far more interesting than it would have been just going from booth to booth!!!

Here's to the Craft Season, y'all!!!