The poppies are almost gone now, but they were beautiful this spring.
Here are a few other things I found worth sharing this week.
When you know saying “let me know if there’s anything I can do” won’t help, read this…
What I’m taking to my Memorial Day celebration this weekend…
Reminding myself to do this…
Fun blog I added to my Google Reader…
So? What do you think? Let me know if you like my link love. I’m looking forward to sharing my weekly finds with you!!
I’m back!!
And this is where Girl Grows Up gets real.
I’m not talking real-name real (let’s not get crazy, people). I’m talking real-life real.
Why? Because I often find myself on the “About” page of blogs that I discover, scouring the page for some hint that the writer is living a life similar to mine….someone I can relate to. So…
If you’re an exhausted mom to little ones, especially one who works outside of the home, I can relate.
If you’re a wife who wishes she had more time to spend with her husband, I can relate.
If you are a Believer who struggles with studying the Bible, putting others’ interests first, making this world make sense, oh how I can relate.
I’m a mom who is learning/making-it-up as I go.
A wife with not nearly enough time to spend with my husband.
A girl who just wants to paint her toenails instead of checking voicemail.
And a daughter to One who thankfully has unlimited grace, which I access daily.
My plan for Girl Grows Up is to post twice a week moving forward.
My first weekly post will be about something I’m learning, or trying, or struggling with – a glimpse at real life – and will fit into one of the following categories:
The second weekly post will be links to things I’ve found particularly inspiring or fun during the week. Maybe a great blog post or a new recipe or something I find on Pinterest.
I promise not to link to anything snarky or condescending. I’ve been directed to one too many posts by bloggers lately that have ended with me feeling icky. I won’t do that to you! I don’t find humor at the expense of others funny, nor do I think putting down others’ choices to elevate oneself is in any way productive.
And if you’ve been reading Girl Grows Up and this new direction doesn’t suit you, well, the beauty of the blog world is that you can quietly slip away without causing a ruckus. And I won’t hold it against you.
I do hope you’ll stick around, though, and even invite friends. I so appreciate that you spend time reading Girl Grows Up.
Tell me, what do you think about all this real-life stuff?
I’m still getting my act together blog-wise and life-wise, but I couldn’t miss the chance to wish all the moms who are reading these words a happy, love-filled Mother’s Day.
Maybe you’re serving a helpless infant by meeting her every need or a grown adult through your unconditional support when life’s potholes abound…or maybe you’re missing your own mom and wishing you still had time to tell her that thing.
Whatever it is that you’re doing as mama at this time in your life…YOU, mom, are worth celebrating today.
No one can love like you.
No one can hug like you.
No one can fix hurts like you.
No one can encourage like you.
Simply put, you are irreplaceable.
Now go wrap your arms around the one(s) who never calls you by name.
And to my own mom this Mother’s Day…thank you for all you’ve done and all you continue to do. Without you, getting my act together would be an impossible task.
Happy Mother’s Day.
~theGIRL
I’m linking up with 1000 moms!!
PS – While I know my act will never completely be together, I do expect to get it together enough to return to the world of blogging soon. Thanks for sticking with me.
You may have noticed a few things changing around here.
Or maybe you haven’t noticed.
Either way, things are looking different because I’m in the midst of rethinking this whole blog thing.
So, I’m taking a few weeks off to figure out the future of Girl Grows Up (without the pressure to post while working through it).
I also have a couple of offline writing projects that I want to devote my writing time to for the next couple of weeks.
So stay tuned. I truly have no idea what to expect when/if I return to blogging. I just didn’t want to disappear without warning.
Until next time,
~theGIRL
I’ve said it before. The best parts of my “favorites” posts are your comments. Do you read them?
Melissa left a great tip…
Method all purpose natural surface cleaner…grapefruit! Whatever you do, don’t try the lemon verbena! After cleaning the counter 20 times during the day with 4 kids, I actually read the label of a previous brand I was using and it said something along the lines of “do not use around food or food surfaces” and to “disinfect area
after spraying” if I wanted to use it around FOOD. I don’t eat off the counter, but I am sure all of my kids drop food and eat it. I threw out that bottle and switched to the non toxic spray, and the grapefruit smells incredible! Target sells it for less than $3
And if you have flat hair, check out what JoAnn suggests…
1) Aquage Uplifting Foam. Flat hair no more!!!!!!! Spray at the roots, massage in, dry your hair, tease it up a little bit and there you have it! It’s even good for the next day when I don’t wash my hair (I wash every other day and thank you for the Suave Dry Shampoo heads up…I was using the expensive Bed Head stuff until you mentioned Suave!)
Good stuff! Thanks for playing along, ladies.
More great favorites can be found in the comments section of all of my “favorites” posts.
Like squeezable herbs!?! Seriously, be sure to read them!
~theGIRL
It’s time for more of my favorite things. For some reason, I feel the need to wait until I have five things to share. Seems silly now that I’m sitting down to write this monster post. Maybe I won’t wait so long next time.
Oh, and please remember: I only tell you these things so I can guilt you into telling me about your favorites. (I’m totally using a Revlon foundation thanks to a comment from Melissa last time around!) So share the love by leaving a comment!
There seems to be a bit of a theme this time around…wake up, make coffee, drink coffee, cram in a workout. Oh and have gorgeous fingernails while doing it.
Sleep Cycle Alarm Clock iPhone App
This app is the best thing to ever happen to my early morning routine. Totally worth the ninety-nine cents they charge for it. Here’s how it works…
You set your alarm for the time you must get out of bed, then put your phone on you mattress by your pillow (I turn my phone on airplane mode). The app senses your light and deep sleep cycles throughout the night, and wakes you up during your lightest sleep stage within 30 minutes of your wake up time. That way you wake up feeling rested instead of like you got hit by a bus. There’s even a bunch of gentle music to choose from to wake you up – no blasting alarm buzzer. It’s a beautiful thing!
Keurig
You know about this, right? If not, I invite you out from under your rock to learn about this coffee revolution. I received a Keurig as a surprise gift after dropping a few hints. (Very few, mind you. In fact, I was only days into my three-month campaign to receive one for my birthday.)
Let me tell you, besides the amazing coffee the Keurig brews up, it doesn’t need daily washing!! As you may recall, I am the dishwasher, and it was a struggle to keep my old pot clean!
Shutterfly Personalized Travel Mug
This one made the list because it made me smile everyday, but then I lost it. Actually, I left it at church and it hasn’t turned up in the lost and found yet. I’m holding out hope!
Anyway, I treated myself (thanks to a $25 gift from Shutterfly) to this travel mug shortly before returning to work. During the two months that I used it, it made me way happier than it should have. I carried my pictures of lilBRO and bigSIS around all morning while sipping on my delicious flavor-of-the-day Keurig-brewed coffee.
And, I just-this-second discovered that they have iPhone cases now, too! Stop it, Shutterfly. I just can’t take the cuteness!
16-Minute Workout
When you have to wake up before 5 a.m. in order to fit in a morning workout, efficiency becomes crucial. That’s why I love {to hate} Jillian’s 16-minute workout. Sixteen minutes of pain means that I get to sleep in 14 minutes longer. I’ll take it.
Shellac – CND
If you follow me on Twitter, you may have seen my funky manicure several weeks back. If not, I’ll just say, it was a bit out of my comfort zone. But theBOY insisted, so I went for it. Then, the nail technician insisted I try Shellac. Oh, why not?
Well let me tell you, there’s no going back. If you’ve been around here long, you probably know about my nail polish obsession. (Curious? Here. Here. And here.) Well, my quest for the perfect long-lasting polish is over. If you’ve been on one, yours is too. Stop what you’re doing and go get a Shellac manicure. And make it a French one. It’ll last f-o-r-e-v-e-r.
Here I am on day 14.
Day 14 close-up. You can see that my nails have grown quite a bit, but with the French manicure you can get away with it. I’m currently on day 19, and I’m just now starting to think it’s time for it to come off. (And I’m a little crazy about my nail polish. As soon as I see a hint of something chipping, it all comes off!) Want to learn more about Shellac?
There you have it, folks. Your turn! What’s your new {or old} favorites!? I can’t wait to hear.
~theGIRL
My hope is that each one reading this celebrates more than spring this Easter Sunday.
The hope of spring is fleeting.
But the hope found the morning that stone was rolled away is eternal.
Wishing you a happy, reverent, joy-filled Easter.
I’ve had experiences lately that have me thinking about life’s big picture. And you know what I think?
A man would be wise to treat every women he meets as though she is his own daughter.
And you know what else?
A women would be wise to interact with every man in her life like she would expect her own daughter to in the same situation.
Wouldn’t that save a whole lot of drama and pain? I think it would. I think it would allow for a whole lot more respect, honor and gentleness in the world, too.
And beyond treating others like they deserve to be treated, what about how we treat ourselves?
I’ve had a few rough patches lately, and I found myself imagining what advice I would give to bigSIS if she was in my shoes.
I don’t ever want her to settle for less than she deserves or accept being treated inappropriately. I don’t want her to give up on her dreams or let other people affect her self worth.
I know she is worth far more than rubies.
But for some reason it’s hard for me to believe those things for myself.
Somehow, it’s easier to see a situation clearly when I imagine she’s the one in it.
Yet another beautiful gift I’ve discovered since meeting her.
-theGIRL
Four and a half years ago I had an 80 degree day that changed my life.
Sitting in my humble office that August afternoon with the afternoon sun beating through the window and beads of sweat forming in all kinds of places, I knew it was time for a change.
I can’t possibly work under these conditions.
Why can’t they just fix the air conditioning already?
The repairman had visited {in vain} yet again, and I could hear the fan blowing – yet no relief.
I can’t possibly work under these conditions.
There’s gotta be something else for me. Right?
I mean, I’ve been at this for five years now. What was it I had heard? Stay three to five years, then move along?
It’s decided.
I applied just once. That was enough.
Three months later I was plenty cold. A chilly December of newness.
Yes, it seems to always take an uncomfortable, icky 80 degree day to get me on board with change.
As I’ve mentioned, I don’t like change. But there comes a time – an 80 degree day – when I know a change is drawing near.
It’s been an unseasonably warm February.
How about you? Can you remember an 80 degree day that changed the course of your life?
Maybe it came in the form of a conversation that’s seared into your memory.
Or an image that broke your heart.
Or news that you stopped hearing before they stopped talking.
When the heat becomes unbearable and my breath becomes stifled? I’ll look for the shade, the cold glass of water.
And if the heat is still too intense?
Well, then maybe it’s time for a change.
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. (Psalm 23:1-3 NIV)
Five things I discovered after having bigSIS and lilBRO…
1. Getting back to your pre-pregnancy weight does not also mean your pre-pregnancy pants will fit. Things shift. If you’re lucky, they’ll shift back within 9 months or so.
2. At about 12 weeks postpartum, your hair may start falling out. Like, a lot.
3. The first few days home with your new baby you may get sad over the most random stuff. And I do mean random. R-A-N-D-O-M.
4. Just because you carried a baby for nine (long) months and then delivered that baby does not mean you know what to do with it when it arrives. Read lots and ask questions. All babies are different, so you never know whose advice will be what you need to hear. Four different people told me random tidbits that I needed to know. I didn’t realize I needed to know when they told me, so just soak it all in. When you need to remember, you will.
5. If you’re anything like me, your perspective on life will do a 180. You’ll see everything differently. I could go on and on about how being a mom has changed me. I won’t tonight because I’m too tired, but I could.
Are you a mom with something to add to my list? I’d love to hear what you learned after having your baby.
