Harry Potter Series

CHECK!!!  One more item from my 30 before 30 list crossed off!  That means 11 items down and 19 to go.

I attempted to start the series in college when everyone was raving about the books.  I have always been one to want to find things in my own time and so when I picked up the first book I think I was unimpressed due to all the hype.  At the time the writing in the first book felt very childish and it didn't catch my interest so I barely made it 100 pages and then walked away.  In the process of creating my 30 before 30 list I wanted to have a variety of items and in making the list this book series surfaced as one of those things I just felt I needed to experience.  I was nervous about adding this item because 7 books with over 600 pages each isn't a small task especially if my impression from my first attempt at reading them in college held true. 

Thankfully I was sucked in almost immediately once I started the series again.  I still feel that the first three books were at a much lower reading level but I also understand that the author did this intentionally.  I think from the start she knew she wanted to grow with her audience and that was one of my favorite parts of reading all seven books back to back.  The mystery, danger, and intrigue increase steadily as you go.  I will say that having seen all the movies first I did find myself picturing the actors and sets from the movie rather than what my mind might have envisioned but in this case it didn't bother me as much as it usually does.  I enjoyed the extra detail that the books offered; it was like seeing something that was previously in black and white in color.

I don’t know that I had one book that I favored over all the others.  I think the Goblet of Fire and the Rise of the Phoenix were my ideal balance of whimsy and danger.  The first few books are a bit childish and the last two books are pretty dark and heavy and while I enjoyed them I think the middle of the series were the most enjoyable reads for me.  Kyle is very glad that I finally finished them since I am a binge reader I get very absorbed in the books I read and the other night he mentioned that he felt like I’d been reading these books forever.    I started reading them in early-December and finished the last book by the end of January.  I’m happy I took the time to read them and honestly enjoyed them a lot more than I thought.  Of course rereading them makes me want to go back and watch the movies again.  It also makes me want to go back to Universal Studios in Orlando to see Harry Potter land again!  

Take That Junk Corner

I have found that over time our little junk areas have been confined to smaller and smaller areas in our house.  About a year ago we did a full redesign of our second bedroom and tackled most of our clutter and unwanted items during the process.  As part of the redesign we were stuck with one corner full of items that we just couldn't seem to get rid of.  While moving from a whole junk room in our loft to one corner was an improvement that corner has been bothering me a while.  The main issue that we have a lot of paperwork that we were storing in a really bulky ugly filing cabinet and we didn't know how to get rid of the cabinet so we built the junk corner around that filing cabinet.  We still have a little ways to go with the paperwork problem but we have a plan and hope to finish that task this weekend. 

Back to the troublesome corner – it had become a stack of toiletry making supplies, paperwork, unused home decor items, and overflow photo/CD storage.  I found this great little bookshelf on sale on the IKEA website for $25 and decided it would be the hero in our corner saving adventure.  I was bummed that the shipping was almost as much as the bookshelf but either way the bookshelf made it to us for less than $50 which I think is still a pretty good deal.  I knew storage containers would be key to achieving order and balance between the eclectic groups of items that this bookshelf would house.  I purchased one item from the antique store down the street.  It is a tiered votive holder which I knew would be perfect for separating craft scissors, markers, and jewelry making supplies.  I was thrilled when after some additional purging in other areas of the house I was able to complete the rest of the project using storage and decor items we already owned. 

I was unable to make the large containers of toiletry items look prettier so I put them at the bottom and used a frame to conceal most of the items.  The next shelf cleverly disguises the miscellaneous supplies in two black file folder holders and I organized my fragrance, flavor, and essential oils in a long rectangular basket.  The middle shelf has all sorts of stationary hidden in the floral storage box and the antique candle holder I purchased is housing my craft supplies in a way that makes them easy to access and easier on the eye.  I also decided to put Kyle’s new Star Wars Vinylmation characters on display in front of the craft supplies since I liked how colorful they are and they are keeping guard over my craft supplies.  The shelf that is the second from the top is my favorite.  I was a little less practical with this shelf and let it be the “pretty” shelf if you will.  I put the flower pens from our wedding in a small class like a bouquet, showcased the D initial I received for Christmas from Anthropologie (I love that store so much), and showcased one the other framed Any Given Moment CD.  The top shelf still feels like a work in progress to me, right now we have a handmade Jones sign that Anna made for us and a botanical arrangement but I think it is still missing something.  Overall I’m thrilled with the outcome and can’t wait to move on to tackling other cluttered areas of our house.  I’m coming for you junk – one nook of our house at a time!

Disney Trip 2013

Disney really is one of the most magical places!  This past weekend we headed down to Orlando with 5 other friends for a weekend full of fun and Disney magic.  One of my best friends has been working part time with Disney as a second job since college and she wanted to use her benefits in style and spend the weekend playing in the parks with us.  I've been to Disney as an adult but hadn't been with a group of people since the capital one bowl trip in college which was spent primarily performing in parades and at pep rallies.  Due to our grown up jobs we only had two days at the parks but we were determined to make the most of it.  For the first two nights we stayed at the Disney Coronado Springs resort, it was a beautiful Spanish inspired hotel.  They had a man-made lake on the property with a running trail around it which I took full advantage of to stay on track for the Diva Dash which is right around the corner.

On Saturday we went to Animal Kingdom and Epcot.  Animal Kingdom is my favorite parks.  This is probably because of my love of animals but also because I love how much attention to detail was paid to the entire park.  It truly feels like you have left the continent and are roaming around in the jungle.  The safari ride and the Finding Nemo show were my absolutely favorites.  Anytime giraffes are involved I am a happy camper.  Afterwards we headed over to Epcot to finish the day.  We got there at about 2 PM and shortly afterwards embarked on the task of drinking around the world.  As the evening wore on it became increasingly clear that this task has become very popular!  I did not take on the full quest of a drink in every country but instead picked select libations from the countries with the best menus.  I ended up partaking in Mexico, China, and France.  To be a good sport I did at least try the items Kyle got from each country so I’m telling myself that counts.  The only shortfall to my plan was that at the end of the night I ended up escorting the less coordinated members of our entourage back through the park.  It was fun telling everyone about the stories the next day though and to wake up feeling great the next day!

Day 2 was jam packed!  In order to get into the parks we met one of Larissa’s coworkers at Epcot so we began the day there.  After riding Spaceship Earth and eating lunch we headed over to Hollywood Studios.  Due to my claustrophobia I spent the afternoon walking around the park, shopping, watching the shows, and taking silly pictures around the park.  Since Megan didn't like Tower of Terror she kept me company for part of the day.  I met Wreck-It Ralph and Vanellope and immensely enjoyed walking around the park.  After Hollywood Studios we headed back to Animal Kingdom for another chance to ride Everest.  We got to watch the sunset over the park and it was truly beautiful.  We ended the night at Magic Kingdom for extra magic hours.  We stayed in the park until 1 AM and acted like kids again.  My favorites were the teacups and the new Little Mermaid ride in Fantasyland.  We were all incredibly tired at the end of the night but we all had so much fun!

We stayed at the Disney Animal Kingdom Lodge for the last night.  It is one of my favorite hotels I have ever stayed at.  The inside is incredibly beautiful and rustic.  They paid attention to every little detail and it made for, excuse the cliche, a very magical experience.  We spent the morning before driving home in the hot tub, watching animals from the Savannah Overlook (including giraffes, zebras, pelicans, flamingos, and gazelles), and soaking up the last of the Florida sunshine.  The drive back consisted of reminiscing about the trip, laughing about inside jokes, and of course dancing in the car.  I am incredibly thankful for such a fun break and for such wonderful friends!  Kyle and I were already scheming about when we will be able to come back to Orlando and we are definitely staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge again.

MLK 2013

Be Mine Conference 2013 - Planning

A wonderful woman from our church who I've had the pleasure of serving high school students with for several years now started an awesome event last year.  This event was called the Be Mine conference and it was all about helping young women understand that God loves them, that God see's them each as one of His original masterpieces, and that He has given them tremendous strength and gifts to change the world. There were about 60 middle and high school students that attended last year.  You can find my post about the conference last year at this link: Be Mine Conference 2012

The conference is scheduled this year for February 2nd and I'm already beginning to prepare my talk and praying for the students that will attend and experience God's love through this event.  I'm going to be speaking about "Dropping the Mask" and the importance of being genuine in your relationship with God and with others.  That the person we try and project to others, if it is not a true reflection of ourselves, will prevent us from having meaningful relationships.  When we drop the mask it helps the people around us drop the pretense as well and allows for us to support and love on another on a much deeper and more meaningful level.  God didn't create us to cover up his masterpiece, He wants to use us exactly as we are and the sooner we get comfortable with that idea and embrace it in our lives the sooner He can start changing the lives of others through us.  We want these girls to be the best version of themselves not a second rate version of the person they think they ought to be.

One of the really cool things for me about the conference this year is that my husband is going to speak as well.  Kyle is going to speak about the truth about the way Christian guys see girls and what they find beautiful and it isn't the same things society tells us make us beautiful.  He is also going to talk about the way Christians should interact in dating and the way young women should be treated in relationships.  As part of the talk the guys from our youth group helped make a video for the girls and it is so touching.  I did not always feel like this is what guys were thinking and looking for but I hope that it gives the girls courage to be themselves and not to cave to the pressure of society.  The right kind of guy will see the masterpiece that God created and won't need skintight clothes or lots of makeup to notice how special they are.

Friend Map - 2008 vs. Now

Growing older has meant a lot of changes but one of the hardest for me to adjust to is some of the friends that we love moving away.  It is bittersweet, I am overjoyed for them to be pursuing their dreams and following their hearts to new places and adventures.  It takes a lot of courage to uproot your life to pursue a career or relationship.  But as someone who has planted roots in Atlanta it is not easy to see people move away.  It has proven to me that true friendships are not limited by distance and life changes, something I wasn't so sure of earlier in my life.  It also makes for fun trips to go visit friends in their environments.  I decided to map out the migration patterns of our friends and you will see quite a change in our friend map from 2008 to now.  

Boot Camp

As part of the Diva Dash they offer training sessions on Sundays through West Stride and the Boot Camp Company.  I went to the first session on Sunday.  We began with a half mile jog and then went through a 45 minute boot camp workout at the Westminster track.  They said they started out easy on us for the first week but my body completely disagrees.  The lunge walks, squats, and sprint exercises in particular have done a number on my legs.  They also offered spots in their morning boot camp class which I signed up for, call me a glutton for punishment.  The morning session is tomorrow at 5:45 so I’m hoping the soreness in my legs dies down a bit before I subject myself to more punishment.  I’m reminded of the Kelly Clarkson song “Stronger” (what doesn't kill you makes you stronger), I’m working to become one strong chic in 2013. 

I will post an update tomorrow after the workout. 

2013 Golden Globes

I love award season, it is such a fun escape from my ordinary routine to watch celebrities walk the carpet in beautiful fashion and accessories.  Watching the dresses on the pre-show is my favorite part and has become a shared past-time with my best friend.  The Golden Globes fashion did not disappoint.  I saw several gowns that were truly breathtaking and several that were memorable for other reasons, I've found that mix makes for the most interesting combination.  My favorites were Clair Danes, Jessica Alba, Sofia Vergara, Julianne Hough, and Heidi Klum.  My least favorite dress choices for the evening included Sienna Miller, Taylor Swift, Amy Poehler’s red carpet outfit, and J Lo’s risque dress.

I also really liked Zooey Deschanel’s ensemble; the red dress, simply pearly strand, and her movie themed manicure which was a very cute touch.  

Pinterest Craft Night – Accessory Edition

My obsession with Pinterest continues to grow.  It has been a source of ideas and inspiration and a mindless way to waste time after a long day.  Due to the wall space constraints in our house I decided to make this craft night all about accessories.  I did find that the instructions on the accessories were lack luster but thankfully I've been making jewelry with mom for several years so I was able to figure out the basic steps and make it work.  We made decorative bobby pins, embellished hair combs, a stretch bracelet, and embellished headbands.  We had a few frustrations but we got creative and ended up with some beautiful new accessories.  Here are the pictures of the items made by Larissa, Megan, and I!

30 Before 30: Diva Dash – Training in Progress

So I am determined to make some progress on my 30 before 30 list early this year.  I feel like a lost a little momentum on these items in the second half of 2012.  One of the big ones that I have been putting off is running a 5k.  I am not a runner; I vastly prefer dance and yoga which are the polar opposite of running.  I have always admired the physical fitness and mental resolve of runners though so I included this item in my list.  My friend Joanna and I decided it would be a lot more fun to run a 5k together.  We searched the ones in our area and came across the Diva Dash. 

It is a 5k for women only.  It is sponsored by SHAPE magazine and involves running and obstacles.  It sounded like fun and we decided to sign up.  I was nervous since the race is on 2/23 giving me only 7 weeks to train and go from no running experience to being able to handle 3 miles.  The positive spin on the short time frame is that it hasn't provided me the chance to slack off nearly as much.  I've been using the Couch to 5k Android App to train as well as doing the official training sessions through West Stride running store and the Boot Camp Company on Sundays. 

I still have quite a ways to go but it continues to get easier each time I work out and I’m slowly building up my endurance and stamina.  Only five and a half weeks left now so I need to buckle down ever more to get ready in time.  Wish me luck!

Just One Month

I saw a meme on the internet that was focused on tackling objectives just one month at a time.  It is based on the concept of trying to eliminate something that is not useful in your life by focusing on one item at a time for a month.  The larger idea is that after going a whole month without something you have reduced your habit of doing so and should therefore make it easier to reduce that action or habit throughout the rest of the year.  Kyle and I decided January would be focused on not eating out.  It will be healthier and cheaper and should jump start our year.

The only bummer is that we can’t fully test our plan since we have vacation plans on January 19-21^st.  To counter balance this we decided to simply tack on a few extra days in early February.  Our initial hesitation was that we feared this would make us less social which was not the goal.  After some consideration we decided we can just invite friends over for dinner or go over to someone else’s house during the month. 

Based on our average habits we were eating out about 3-5 meals per week.  The potential both from a healthy lifestyle perspective and from a cost savings is huge.  I’ll of course keep you posted on our success towards our goal.  This will also force me to try my hand at some new recipes so we don’t get sick of eating the same thing over and over again. 

* The first 3 days have been a huge success! *

Happiness Interview

Gretchen Rubin, the author of the Happiness Project and Happier at Home, often conducts Happiness Interviews with people she meets or admires.  I’m always interested in the responses so I thought I should pose these same questions to myself.  Nobody is more in control of your own happiness than yourself so I thought perhaps reviewing my own responses might be very helpful.

What’s a simple activity that consistently makes you happier?
Helping other people regularly makes me happier.  I have also noticed that learning new information or skills regularly increases my happiness and self-satisfaction.

What’s something you know now about happiness that you didn’t know when you were 18 years old?
I used to think that I had to everything perfect in my life to be truly happy.  I have found that sometimes the imperfection is even more delightful and much less stressful.  I am much happier being my goofy and less restrained self than when I am putting on my “perfect” face for others. 

Is there anything you find yourself doing repeatedly that gets in the way of your happiness?
I am too critical of myself.  There is a quote I stumbled upon that goes like this “Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good.”  I often fall into this trap.  If I feel that I have fallen short on something I will focus on the unachieved goal rather than the progress made towards the goal.  If I want to work out 3-4 times a week and only go twice I find my natural instinct is to beat myself up for being lazy and missing a day or two, instead of seeing that going twice is better than not at all.  This trait is both a blessing and a curse.

Another thing is that I often get lazy with my eating and exercise habits and this routinely affects my mood, energy level, and confidence level.  When I make good choices with these areas I often feel much more energized.  It is a struggle not to choose the immediate gratification of unhealthy choices.

Is there a happiness quotation that has struck you as particularly insightful?
“You cannot achieve happiness by changing others, you must first affect change in yourself”
I came across this quote in the Happiness Project and really loved it.  I have a much higher degree of control in my happiness and increasing my own happiness will naturally brim over into the lives of the people around me. 

If you’re feeling blue, how do you give yourself a happiness boost? 
Sometimes I get so focused on others and on work that I neglect my need for personal time.  Often spending a quiet afternoon at home reading a book, taking a bath, and enjoying a quiet dinner in helps me hit the reset button and helps recharge my batteries. 

Is there anything that you see people around you doing or saying that adds a lot to their happiness, or detracts a lot from their happiness? 
People who are thankful for what they have no matter how much or little that may be always seem to be the happiest and most peaceful.  People who are always driving for more and more always seem to be the most at odds with their current situation.  There is a lot to be said for drive and ambition but it must be countered with an appreciation for where you are at the current moment.

Do you work on being happier? If so, how?
Yes, in waves.  I struggle with seasonal affective disorder and find that I have to work very hard at maintaining my happiness in the winter months.  The key for me was learning my trigger signs for unhappiness.  There are certain thoughts I have and changes in my mood that are clear signals that I need to focus on boosting my happiness levels.  It helps a great deal that my husband has learned these as well and often helps me rebound from them if I get carried away with a bad mood or negative thoughts. 

Have you ever been surprised that something you expected would make you very happy, didn’t – or vice versa? 
Yes, I had always considered my extravert.  To me this meant that seeing friends and family would always be a guaranteed pick me up.  It turns out that while I am often an extravert if I go too long without taking time out for myself that I find myself feeling very drained and irritable.  For me it has been about striking the right balance between the two sides of my personality. 

Something that gives me little bursts of happiness which I did not expect is writing this blog.  I have never considered myself to be a great writer but jotting down my thoughts has been surprisingly fun and rewarding way to stay in touch with myself.  I also get tremendous bursts or joy from crossing items off my to-do list; I love the feeling of accomplishing a goal even if it is small.