faith + inspiration

I was out walking yesterday with Ayla strapped to me in her Ergo carrier (which we love, btw)…and she was just bouncing along in front of me, looking around, cooing her approval every once in a while. I kept leaning down to kiss the top of her head or tickling her feet or holding her little hands, and I just felt so overwhelmed with the preciousness of this little girl. I always felt that I wouldn’t make a very good mama to girls, and I would have said that I would much rather have a house full of boys than a house full of girls…but now? A house full of girls sounds just fine with me. I never knew I could love having a daughter like I do.

As we were walking, I whispered this into her ear:: I hope you always know that you are beautiful.

Tell me this…why does it feel so difficult and even wrong to believe that we are beautiful? Like, for me to actually think and believe that I am a beautiful woman just feels…wrong. Is it just me? Maybe you can easily believe in the truth about yourself, and honestly, I hope that you do believe in your beauty and worth as a woman. But I think most of us struggle with this. Most of us live in a place where we feel so negative and derogatory about ourselves that to think anything else feels foreign and just wrong.

WHY IS THIS?!?

I actually don’t really know the answer to that…you could say it’s because of the media and images that are endlessly photoshopped and cultural expectations and Victoria Secret models…and maybe that’s partly true. But maybe it also has a lot to do with the war that the enemy of our souls has waged on our hearts. Maybe it’s because he knows that if he can get us to believe the ugly lies that are constantly bombarding our minds, then we lose our essence as a woman. If we believe we are beautiful, then we walk in confidence, power, and authority. If we believe anything else, then we walk in insecurity and weakness.

When you believe that you are beautiful, your eyes sparkle and you feel alive and you want to kiss your husband and you get creative ideas and you want to wear pretty things and you want to love people more and your life is just better, fuller, happier because of what you believe. We need more woman whose eyes sparkle in this world, right?

So, dears, it’s ok to believe that you are beautiful.
You’re actually supposed to believe it.
It’ll make your eyes sparkle.

What about you: what do you think blocks us as woman from believing that we are beautiful?

I’d love to hear your thoughts!

…slowly getting into the fall spirit. Normally, I’m pretty ready for the briskness of fall weather and cozy sweaters and hot drinks all day long…but for whatever reason, this year I’m having a hard time getting “into it.” Don’t leave me yet, summertime!

… trying to decide on a kitchen style. We want to update the kitchen in our new home, both for our own benefit and for resale value down the road. I’m both excited and a little terrified about doing this, because as I’ve said before, decorating and paint colors and flooringandcabinetknobsandcountertops andcoordinatingitallsoitlooksright is not my thing. Ok, sorry…I just got a little overwhelmed there for a second. Anyway, it needs to be done and so we’re trying to work on deciding on all of that. We have a tiny kitchen so I don’t want too many dark colors going on that make it feel even tinier…so I’m thinking white cabinets, medium dark flooring, and no ideas yet on the countertop. #sendhelp

…loving my new things from ThredUp. I haven’t actually found anything for myself, but I’ve gotten quite a few things for Ayla…all for free, thanks to a few people who used my referral link to grab their own free $20 credit (thanks, dears!). You know how most times when something sounds too good to be true that it usually is? Well, a totally free $20 to spend on clothes is pretty fun, and as I’ve found out, actually totally true. Can’t lose with that!

…still drinking smoothies almost every day. It’s turning a little chilly, but I can’t stop making my mid-morning or afternoon smoothies! My current favorite is blending frozen bananas, coffee ice cubes, milk + coffee, a few heaping tablespoons of cocoa powder, maple syrup to sweeten, a good dash of salt, vanilla extract, and a dash of cinnamon. It’s so yum and the perfect little pick-me-up.

…enjoying a week at my parent’s house in South Carolina! Ayla and I drove down on Monday, and it’s been a fun week full of family time and going out with friends. I had lunch out with a friend on Tuesday and a night out with more friends last night while my mom kept Ayla, so I’m feeling pretty spoiled! We sleep in and take extra naps and spend the afternoons sitting in the sunroom…it’s like a vacation, hehe!

…attempting to be more intentional about taking time to just sit and be. I have a hard time just sitting without doing something…I’m either scrolling through my phone or reading a book or magazine. I’m not talking about getting into meditation or anything like that…but just sitting without doing anything else. I especially want to be more intentional about this when I’m holding Ayla. She doesn’t very often like to just sit and snuggle for long, but lately she’s been a lot more snuggly and will sit on my lap longer. I love it! But too often, I get distracted during these special moments with other things (laptop, books, phone, etc.) and so I’m learning to make myself just let it all go for the sake of just being. Just holding her, doing nothing else.

What about you: what are you trying to be intentional about doing and/or changing right now?

I’d love to hear your thoughts!