hey, all!
happy january. to be honest, january is one of my least favorite months. maybe even my least favorite. but this month has been so good, actually! and i think i can attribute that to a few things. i wrote more about that below, but first, a few fun photos!
happy january. to be honest, january is one of my least favorite months. maybe even my least favorite. but this month has been so good, actually! and i think i can attribute that to a few things. i wrote more about that below, but first, a few fun photos!
 |  |
^^ fran stood up in a wedding on the 4th in river falls and looked SO handsome. i enjoyed that wedding a lot because some of francis' old cru staff coworkers were there. i got to sit by them and i really like them. p.s. thanks for unknowingly letting me borrow your dress, paiger! ;)
in other news, francis made me pancakes one night for dinner and i asked for a heart :) thought it was cute. ^^
in other news, francis made me pancakes one night for dinner and i asked for a heart :) thought it was cute. ^^
^^ francis and i hosted my mom, dad, sisters & bro, and aunt wendy for dinner one evening and thought this lil board we put together was pretty. hosting is my favorite thing! peep the "f" coasters MADE by paige & dave, gifted to us for christmas!
^^ this past weekend i had the great honor of celebrating miss amy fredman, soon to be mrs. amy fredman-staley! the drive getting to the shower was a little dicey, but i was so happy to be there to cheer on one of my all-time favorite women. (she's the glowing one in white with the huge smile in the back!) also, we ate breakfast food and where there's breakfast food and some friends, i'm happy.
 ^^ amy is such a significant person to me. she's like the older sister i never had and she's been the one to cheer on and shower so many others before her. i'm so excited that it gets to be her turn. |  ^^ i also had the glorious delight of a slumbie with my dear friends, holl & isaac, on saturday night! it was unexpected, and this is the only photo i have to show for it, but my heart gobbled that time up so fast. oh my gosh. the three of us chatted about everything and listened to music and tried a veggie burger recipe (that was so beautiful) and watched the great british baking show and went to church together in the morning. mmh! |
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january.
i think the month's felt so good because on the first of the month, i decided to take a break from instagram. that might be the biggest reason it's been so good. what an amazing difference that's made on me, oh wow. i'm like shocked at how good that's been for me. as fun as the gram is, i would compare myself constantly and evaluate how good my relationships are with others and how other people are doing in relation to me. honestly, it was a winter-mental-health move to say goodbye for a minute. what a wonder.
i've also been exercising regularly which has made me feel so happy. it's such a good thing to move our bodies, and i forgot about that. i really missed it. i've seen a few friends this month, had meaningful family time, and i've been reading my Bible again. i took a big break from reading my Bible (i'm not totally sure why. there was a while there where i couldn't do it). but i'm back and it's been refreshing and beautiful. i think it's helped that i've started with one chapter every day. that way, i can really soak in it and re-read things and don't feel like i'm rushing through it. i don't know, it's working for me. i am looking forward to continuing all of these practices, looking different each month i'm sure, throughout the rest of the year.
oh! i started using the audible app in december. anybody else use audible? it's been so fun! i actually drive pretty often for my job, so it's nice to have books to listen to, usually read by the author which is fun! i've already listened to talking as fast as i can by lauren graham, homework: a julie andrews autobiography, is everyone hanging out without me? by mindy kaling, the magnolia story by chip and joanna gaines, and am currently listening to a princess diana biography, because i love the royal family, ha. i'm super excited to listen to all sorts of books!
on another, much sadder note, something hard this month was one of my classmates from the really small high school i went to, passed away right at the beginning of the year. it really shook me up. it was all of a sudden and out of nowhere, and some dear friends of mine are really hurting. the funeral was both incredibly beautiful and heartbreaking, as funerals often are. but this guy filled up a thousand-person church sanctuary. he was an incredible man and he loved Jesus with his whole heart. he had a big impact on people. one of those funny, outgoing, big-hearted guys. he had an amazing singing voice and i can still hear it in my head. the suddenness of his death really got to me. no one is untouchable from death and are we all living with others on our minds and with Jesus as the most beautiful thing we know?
how is your january going? what's been good? what's been hard? if you're reading this, please reach out to me! i want to host you! even if it's for a cup of coffee, because i got a milk frother for christmas :) and i have lots of cozy blankets. we could sit on my couch and chat! or fran & i can take you to my favorite restaurant in the cities because i got lots of gift cards there for christmas, too (my family's really good to me).
thanks for reading along!
hey, i brought comments back to the blog! leave me one, eh?! (:
january.
i think the month's felt so good because on the first of the month, i decided to take a break from instagram. that might be the biggest reason it's been so good. what an amazing difference that's made on me, oh wow. i'm like shocked at how good that's been for me. as fun as the gram is, i would compare myself constantly and evaluate how good my relationships are with others and how other people are doing in relation to me. honestly, it was a winter-mental-health move to say goodbye for a minute. what a wonder.
i've also been exercising regularly which has made me feel so happy. it's such a good thing to move our bodies, and i forgot about that. i really missed it. i've seen a few friends this month, had meaningful family time, and i've been reading my Bible again. i took a big break from reading my Bible (i'm not totally sure why. there was a while there where i couldn't do it). but i'm back and it's been refreshing and beautiful. i think it's helped that i've started with one chapter every day. that way, i can really soak in it and re-read things and don't feel like i'm rushing through it. i don't know, it's working for me. i am looking forward to continuing all of these practices, looking different each month i'm sure, throughout the rest of the year.
oh! i started using the audible app in december. anybody else use audible? it's been so fun! i actually drive pretty often for my job, so it's nice to have books to listen to, usually read by the author which is fun! i've already listened to talking as fast as i can by lauren graham, homework: a julie andrews autobiography, is everyone hanging out without me? by mindy kaling, the magnolia story by chip and joanna gaines, and am currently listening to a princess diana biography, because i love the royal family, ha. i'm super excited to listen to all sorts of books!
on another, much sadder note, something hard this month was one of my classmates from the really small high school i went to, passed away right at the beginning of the year. it really shook me up. it was all of a sudden and out of nowhere, and some dear friends of mine are really hurting. the funeral was both incredibly beautiful and heartbreaking, as funerals often are. but this guy filled up a thousand-person church sanctuary. he was an incredible man and he loved Jesus with his whole heart. he had a big impact on people. one of those funny, outgoing, big-hearted guys. he had an amazing singing voice and i can still hear it in my head. the suddenness of his death really got to me. no one is untouchable from death and are we all living with others on our minds and with Jesus as the most beautiful thing we know?
how is your january going? what's been good? what's been hard? if you're reading this, please reach out to me! i want to host you! even if it's for a cup of coffee, because i got a milk frother for christmas :) and i have lots of cozy blankets. we could sit on my couch and chat! or fran & i can take you to my favorite restaurant in the cities because i got lots of gift cards there for christmas, too (my family's really good to me).
thanks for reading along!
hey, i brought comments back to the blog! leave me one, eh?! (:
