What's on my side table? (Episode 3)

Here's what you'll currently find on my side table:
To Be :

1. Kisses From Katie by Katie Davis (currently reading)
2. Passion: The Bright Light of Glory by Louie Giglio & others
3. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
4. Grace Filled Marriage by Tim Kimmel
5. A Million Little Ways by Emily P. Freeman
6. A Billion Reasons Why by Kristen Billerbeck

On the iPad (to be read also)

1. Believing God by Beth Moore
2. Jesus: the One and Only by Beth Moore
3. When Godly People do Ungodly Things by Beth Moore
4. Praying God's Word by Beth Moore
5. The Explicit Gospel by Matt Chandler
6. What Did You Expect? by Paul David Tripp
7. Crazy People by Jennifer Cruse

So the Divergent series made a big dent in the "to be read" list! I actually finished all 3 of them in about a 2 week period and were done with all of them a month ago. I know my last update said I was currently reading Kisses for Katie, and I was, but then Divergent jumped ahead. See, it was my goal to have them all read before I saw the first movie, or at the very least, be finished with the first book before it was released in theaters. I finished the books, got really excited to see the movie.... and of course.... Jordan goes out and sees it with his friends. Without me. 

Meaning I STILL haven't seen Divergent, which chafes me.

I digress.

Back to the books. I enjoyed them. They were a great, easy, fun read that kept my interest. They compare really well to the Hunger Games series, in that the protagonist, a teenage female living in a futuristic society where people are divided by their traits, is somehow remarkably different from her peers and sparks a revolution that overturns her entire life. Basically, Katniss and Tris could be second cousins.

The first and second books are narrated by Tris (Beatrice). They both have what I would consider to be a pretty substantial amount of violence for a "young adult"... but who am I kidding, I read Stephen King when I was in middle and high school. So maybe it's not that bad, but you can expect for many of the primary characters to get injured, tortured, or killed. There is some romance between characters, but I felt like the author did a good job of being discreet with details that could've potentially been explicit. Like, when I heard the movie contained a sex scene, I was a little outraged... THAT wasn't in the book I read! There is zero foul language.

Here's a little side note about the author, Veronica Roth: Did you know she is my little sister's age? Well, technically, Casey is nearly 6 months older (at a ripe old age of 26, making Roth still 25). If that didn't make you feel like you've done nothing with your life.... she wrote Divergent while in college. And had a movie deal before graduating. Let that sink in for a sec.

The third book is substantially different. It's told by alternating narrators, which despite being told who was narrating, was often confusing to me. The writing style between the two characters was very similar and it just felt unnecessary. I didn't really gain anything from hearing half of the story from another "point of view." Also, there are several ugly words in the third book. The circumstances are different (I won't reveal too much for those of you who haven't read yet), which I understand, but I also thought the language was unnecessary. SO MANY PEOPLE were upset with the ending of this book, but truthfully, I felt like the entire series was leading up to it. I may have even been disappointed if it had ended any other way. Final Grade for the series: A


Now I'm fully back into Kisses for Katie and should be finishing shortly. It's been a wonderful book and I look forward to talking about it more in the future. In fact, I think I'll go curl up with it while Isaac finishes his nap!

18 Months!!!!

I can't even believe it! A year and a half! My sweet boy is 18 months today and what a journey it's been so far. Each stage and every new experience has brought such joy and laughter to my life. I just choose not to think about his second birthday being right around the corner. That cant happen. It seems like last week we had his first birthday party. This has definitely been the greatest age so far, but I think I've said that about him from the beginning! I just adore my little guy.

Isaac, you are on at 100% from the moment you wake up, to the second your head hits the bed. Although some days, mama would like to curl up and snuggle with a movie to watch, you prefer going outside and getting dirty. You love going to the park to swing and go down the slide. You love running in the backyard and blowing bubbles. If for some reason, we're inside the house (you already have a better tan than I do for all the time you spend playing outside! I'm thankful you got your dad's complexion.), you're playing with cars. You love making them go Vroooooommmm on any surface in the house that will allow it.

You're a ridiculously good eater, sometimes eating more at a meal than I do. We're still working on using utensils, but you're getting better (but not less messy) each try. You have recently started dipping your food... chips in salsa, french fries in ketchup, chicken nuggets in Chick-Fil-A sauce. It's really hysterical to watch, but you love it! I am so thankful for a kid who is a great eater.

You're saying tons of words these days, I don't even think I could remember them all to write them down here. Most often we hear you ask to go outside for bubbles or to swing, but you also talk about cars and the dog pretty frequently. You're getting better at saying please (when prompted). Despite having an ever expanding vocabulary, there are lots of things that you still can't quite get out, which makes you very frustrated. Unfortunately, your mama is quite stubborn and known to be very hot headed, which I'm so fearful of when I see these qualities come out in you. I pray you will grow out of the toddler temper tantrums and have your dad's easy going temperament instead.

Even though you have a little fiery streak, you are such a sweet boy. You love giving kisses (even to the dog) and if it's not time to play, you've become very cuddly as well. Anytime you let me rock you, I try my hardest to soak in every tiny second of our time cuddled together. You like to fake-sneeze anytime someone else sneezes, stick out your tongue at yourself in the mirror, and dance when there's music playing.... you are so funny! You definitely don't like being touched by strange people, but I don't either, so we have that in common. Ha!

Because we got your first MMR vaccine late, we won't go to the doctor until May, so I'm not sure how much you weigh or how tall you are currently. You're in size 4 diapers, wearing size 5/6 shoes, and wearing some 18-24m and some 2T clothes. We thought you might never get up and walk on your own, but now that you're upright and moving, we can really see how tall you are! It wouldn't surprise me if you were still in the highest percentiles for height and head circumference.

Isaac, you make my whole heart light up with a big grin or a silly giggle. I pray that you will forever retain the ability to find wonder in the world, to laugh often, and to love the people around you. I hope that your dad and I are doing everything we can to point you to Jesus each and every day. We love you so very much.

Easter Fun

We had a wonderful Easter this year, celebrating the resurrection of Jesus! We took a few photos in the backyard, but I wish we had gotten a photo all together! And not only did we take our pictures separately, but shortly after I started getting photos of Jordan and Isaac, the camera battery died! Mom Fail. I totally should've been more proactive to charge the battery and get photos of all three of us while we were at church and could get someone to help us out.

Regardless (rant over.), we had a wonderful day. After church, I cooked a big Easter lunch (Ham, Mac & Cheese, Green Beans, Collard Greens --which were done by Jordan--, and Apple Dumplings) and we invited our pastor and his wife and family over to eat. Their kids are a few years older than Isaac, but they were so good at entertaining one another! Isaac was so cute playing whatever they were playing and following their every move. It was sweet. While the kids were playing, we introduced Scott & Kimberlie to Killer Bunnies! I don't know if they're hooked yet... but we had a great time.

After they left, we ate some dinner, bathed Isaac, put him to bed, and invited some college kids over to play more Killer Bunnies! (I think we're the ones who are hooked) We stayed up late playing and laughing and catching up with some of our out of town college friends. Our day was full of laughter and happiness!

Then yesterday, after a couple of hours in a stylist's chair, I left feeling much lighter and more free!!!

Bye Bye hair! I think I cut 4-6" off and it was a welcomed change! The old 'do was all grown out and faded out, but instead of just getting a trim and color, I chop-chopped it! So far, I love it! I haven't been able to wash and style it myself yet, but I am looking forward to a much faster blowout and easier styling. The selfie in the car (not driving! Notice I'm in a parking lot!) doesn't do a lot of justice to the color, but I got that refreshed as well. I'm so glad that after driving to DFW for 2 years and then trying 5 different stylists in the Corpus Christi area, I've FINALLY found someone I really love going to! It's tough having to find a new stylist!

I hope all you lovely readers had a wonderful Easter weekend! We serve a risen King!

Five on Friday: Stitch Fix Edition!

I was SO excited to receive my second Stitch Fix! The first one was so much fun and I'd heard and read that more fixes equal better boxes as your stylist learns more about you. This was definitely the case this month! 

New to the Stitch Fix concept? You can check out my first box, but here are the basics: Become a member and fill out a style profile questionnaire. Schedule your Fix and a personal stylist will put together a box of 5 items (clothing & accessories) based on your style profile. This box comes straight to your doorstep along with styling cards and a message from your stylist explaining her choices for you. Keep what you love, send back whatever you don't love in the envelope provided.

And now…. Here's what I got!

This was cute, but not a home run. It went back.

This is a really awesome top! I especially asked for fun prints and my stylist really came through on this one! Definitely a keeper!

Never in a million bajillion years did I think a mail-order stylist service would be able to send me jeans that fit. But y'all…. these jeans…. they fit perfectly. Like, so fantastically comfortably perfect that there was no way I could let them go. They were a shoo-in keeper. 

This top was my least favorite item in the box. The print kind of reminds me of a Magic Eye. Do you remember those? Like if you stare "through it," something 3-d will pop out at you. Plus, it didn't really fit all that well around… ahem… my for real 3-d features. It went back.

I really liked this maxi dress also! The color is a very springy mint green and the fabric is that awesomely comfortable jersey cotton. As a major bonus, Jordan specifically asked to keep this item, because he really liked it! Score! Another keeper!

And here's each item all styled up!

Stitch Fix top + my own white jeans (Old Navy) and necklace

Stitch Fix Top + Stitch Fix Jeans + My own Earrings and Bracelets

Stitch Fix Dress + Stitch Fix Necklace

All in all, I am so pleased with the outcome of my Fix this month! How can you argue with awesomely cute, personally selected, one-of-a-kind items delivered to my doorstep??? Even though my gift card is long gone, I'm kind of hoping to budget this in as a monthly treat! 

I would give Stitch Fix two enthusiastic thumbs up! If you'd like to get your own Fix, you're welcome to use my referral link here. 

Easter Cuteness

Earlier this week, Isaac's MDO class had an Easter celebration day, hunting eggs and getting a visit from a baby goat. Isaac didn't so much get into the egg hunt thing. Mostly, he just enjoyed banging the eggs together, throwing the eggs as far as he could, and putting them in/taking them out of his basket. However, he was the only kid in his class who interacted with the baby goat, feeding and petting him (her?) until they had to go inside. Thankfully, Jordan was there with Isaac and the baby goat, as I probably would've held Isaac back a little in case of an errant nibble on baby fingers by a hungry goat. Later that night, I was told a lovely story about a class of children (not any of our MDO classes) who all got lice from petting a goat. 

So I'd say this was a win-win-win: Isaac loved petting the baby goat, but avoided a bite AND lice. 

It was unseasonably cold that morning, so instead of wearing a cute, spring outfit, I had to pull out some jeans, long-sleeves and his superhoodie. Nevertheless, Isaac is still so stinkin cute! I just can't get enough of this sweet boy! Enjoy some fun pics of the egg "hunt" and baby goat.

Passover Seder

This Easter Week, our church was fortunate enough to hold a Passover Seder. The Seder is a Jewish ritual feast that marks the beginning of Passover and is a retelling of the Israelite redemption from the hands of the Egyptians in Exodus. It was the Passover time during the final days of Jesus, which means Jesus and the disciples were partaking in the Passover Seder the night Jesus was arrested. I found the entire evening absolutely fascinating and because I believe Jesus was the Messiah, the Passover Lamb, it was especially eye-opening. In my experience, everything pointed to Jesus, our atoning sacrifice.

The Elements: Unleavened Bread, Baptist Wine (aka: Grape Juice), Maror, Karpas, Saltwater, Charoset

From the top, clockwise: Charoset (fruit & nuts), Maror (bitter herb; here it was horseradish), roasted egg, lamb shank, and Karpas (Parsley) 

The Matzah and the Matzah plate

Blessings over the meal before the first of the Four Cups (didn't get pics of that)

A look down our table - we were provided with handouts that explained many of the elements and included traditional readings and songs.

Handwashing (Ur'chatz) before the dipping of the Karpas

I didn't get pictures of the entire evening, but I am so thankful for the opportunity to sit and learn. I was definitely overwhelmed at the amount of work that was put into this evening, making sure each element held closely to tradition, even down to singing in Hebrew! Many thank-yous to the people who spent days preparing our Passover Seder.

Tired but Joyful Hearts

We are back home again from a whirlwind trip to Augusta. As always, our time there was just not quite long enough. I desire leisurely visits with quality conversations, but so often our visits home are hurried.  Our days are jam packed full and rarely do we ever get to see all the people we love. Despite this conundrum of time, our trip this time was wonderful. Absolutely exhausting, but wonderful.

Isaac hanging out with his namesake, Papa Ed

Isaac sitting in the very place Jordan and I were married

We specifically went to Augusta to help host a baby shower for one of my dearest and most wonderful friends. She is expecting her first girl in June and I wouldn't have missed this opportunity. This sweet baby Hannah is so very loved. It also allowed for some awesomely fantastical girl time, which was so good for my heart!

3 of 4 generations: Nana, Grammy, and Isaac

Papa, Me and Isaac

Isaac could play on the pool table all day long. 

We stayed at my dad's house for this visit, which thrilled Isaac to death. My dad gave him full reign over his pool table, so that meant pool balls flying through the air. I'm pretty sure that by the end of the trip that he had learned the difference between rolling and hurling the pool balls. He also had access to a golf cart (his favorite! He still says golf cart over and over and over again during the day), a dump truck and a tractor. Basically, he was in boy heaven. And my dad was equally tickled to entertain him.

Me & My sister

The Two Hollie/Hollys

We introduced our favorite game to some new people, which meant that every night we stayed up until the early morning hours playing Killer Bunnies. Holly and her husband, Andrea, and Casey's husband Duane all got to play for the first (and then second, third, and seventh) time. Maybe these perpetually late nights had something to do with our exhaustion by the end of the trip. Regardless, it was a majorly fun time, even if the game is baaaaad for my competitive ways. 

Isaac and Dad on the golf cart

Thankfully, we can now rest for a little while. A nap would be lovely.

Julep #3

Once again, it's Julep time! I am loving each fun little package that comes across my doorstep each month! We all know I have a soft spot in my heart for make up (nail polish is included in that, right??), so of course I would be stoked!

This month, for the first time, I opted for the "Classic with a Twist" Box. I wasn't in love with the colors of polish in my usual Boho Glam, and I love the option to choose a different box. This included Mariska and Caitlin (polishes), as well as the Glow Pore Minimizing Blush in Peach Bellini.

Mariska in the bottle and on the accent nail. Apologies for the crummy lighting.
Lets just all pretend that these colors are super bright and fun.
mmmkay.

Mariska is a bright tangerine orange with a barely noticeable shimmer. It also dries to a nearly-matte finish, which is slightly strange. The shimmer makes it not completely matte, but it's also not shiny or sparkly. Add a top coat and SHABAM... it's shiny. It's a really fun summery color that will look fantastic on my toes. The first coat is a little streaky, but it's opaque in 2 coats.

Caitlin in the bottle and on all the other nails.

Caitlin is a bright fuchsia hot pink (the Julep site calls it "Hibiscus pink") with a golden shimmer. I adore this color. It is fun and happy and easy to wear. I also love how well it pairs with Mariska-- I'm kinda digging the accent nail this time around. It is almost completely opaque in a single coat.

Lastly, the blush was a total surprise. Just like I was thrilled with my lipgloss last month, I am really happy with this blush. Also, like the gloss, this was a completely customizable item, which I appreciated. I opted for Peach Bellini, which is a nice, natural, glowy color on my exceptionally fair skin. I am kicking myself for throwing away my old blush brush when I did some spring cleaning last month. I've used gel blush for yeeeeeeears... and maybe now I'm converted back to powder. So until I get a new blush brush, you'll have to forgive my imperfect application!

If you're ever interested in checking Julep out for yourself, I'd love a little referral love! Check out my referral link here.

Ps. I uploaded this from my phone. Ive never used the blogger app prior to this post... Hopefully it'll all work out!