Take a Peek Into My Journal

One of my favorite hobbies is art journaling.  Art journaling is like a combination of scrapbooking and journaling.  It is one of my favorite ways to preserve moments in time and is fun to look back on and see where my heart was at during a certain time in life.  I have been taking a class online that offers different challenges and topics for each page created.  Sadly the class is no longer open, but this is a similar class and I hope to take it as soon as I am finished with this one!     I have shared several pages on our blog in the past, and thought it was time for another page update.  Some of these pages are from our time in Australia, and some I have made since returning home.  So here you go, a peek into my life via my art journal:

For this page, I was challenged to mix patterns of paper.  I had lots of little scraps that I loved and thought it was great how they fit together.  I was also supposed to write a note to someone.  I created this page for my love Dane.  I laughed when I found this drawing of a bearded tattooed man, and it pretty much sums up my feelings for my man, he is my amazing friend.  It was the perfect find!

For this page we were to pick one word that is speaking into our lives.  At this moment my prayers had revolved around the word freedom.  Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom.  I was also challenged to stitch on the page.  Instead of using thread I decided to use cording to add an earthy affect to the pages. I'm a big fan of anything natural or earthy on journaling pages.

For this page I was challenged to practice and use my own handwriting to create a title and to add an envelope on the page to store letters and mementos.  I dedicated this page to my beautiful mama.  Inside the pocket I included a note as well as all the notes she wrote me while we were in Australia.  Dane and I treasured notes from friends and family and so I thought it would be fun to have a special place to store these.  And yes that's my mom's senior picture.  Oh my goodness I love it but I also love how much I look like her...glasses, hair and all!

 This challenge was one that made me super nervous because drawing is not my strong suit, but I ended up loving how it turned out.  I was to create a comic strip of my day.  My favorite square on the entire page...waking up to a cockatoo!  I loved having a "normal" day of my life in Australia documented in such a way.

For these pages I had lots of challenges.  One was to create a frame with fabric and stitch on the page.  I was also challenged to use a picture within a picture and create a double page spread.  I decided to dedicate these pages to my nephew Corbin.  Being an aunt has been one of my favorite parts of 2014, and he's growing so fast, so I wanted to freeze a couple special moments in time.  

And there you have it.  A glimpse into my art journal.  If you would like to see some of my previous work you can check it out here and here and here.  What about you?  What are some of your favorite hobbies?  How do you document moments and memories?  Until next time!  Love y'all!

It's Hot Out There!

August has set in folks!  To be honest, it hasn't been that hot this summer.  I don't know if we've broke into the triple digits yet, and for that I am thankful, but today was close.  And when it is that hot, it is important to stay hydrated.  Here at our house we've been trying to keep it interesting by experimenting with infused waters.  We've always been a fan of the standard lemon + cucumber + mint water, but we decided to mix it up a bit and see what we came up with.  

Orange + Ginger

I had never experimented with ginger until moving to Australia, and all of my housemates cooked with it.  I came to love the flavor it added to foods and thought it would be fun to try in water.  This water was super refreshing and energizing.  Ginger is great for the immune system and orange provides natural energy!  So if you're feeling a little drained in the middle of the day, try reaching for this instead of a can of cola.  

Grapefruit + Rosemary

So we have been doing different infused waters to share whenever we have dinner guests over.  It has been a really fun conversation piece, and I'm a sucker for a good conversation starter.  I knew this combination would be a risk, but thought why not.  The results?  Well Dane and our dinner guests loved it, and I didn't care for it.  I felt the grapefruit was way too overpowering, and this is coming from a girl who loves grapefruit.  Everyone who loved it told me they normally don't eat grapefruit but found this drink very refreshing.

 Blueberry + Mint
This drink was created because I liked the colors.  When you add the blueberries they float around a bit, almost like a a lava lamp.  Sadly, the blueberries never really infused so the only flavor I really tasted was mint.  The blueberries were fun to eat though.  They exploded kind of like bubble tea tapioca balls.

Strawberry + Basil

Overall, I would say this has been our favorite one.  It doesn't take that many strawberries to get a fantastic sweet flavor in the drink and the basil adds an unexpected twist.  Make sure to drink this water within the day because the strawberries get kind of gross if they are in there longer than that.  I love how this drink turns a fun shade of pink...the perfect baby shower beverage right?

Now it is your turn!  Get a jug, jar, pitcher, and start infusing!  I would love to know what you try and how it turns out!

This post was inspired by a chicken.

(photo credit)

Yes the title of this post is correct.  I stood there looking at a whole chicken last night and thought, well here we go.  I had never roasted a whole chicken before, but according to my pinterest board, I have definitely intended to.

This all started about 3 months ago when I pinned a Jamie Oliver roasted chicken recipe over on pinterest, and received a comment from the beautiful Caley (by the way you should totally check out her blog, and tell them congrats...they just had an adorable baby boy!!!) that said, Christy you must try this, and be sure to use the fresh sage in the recipe.

So all spring and summer I've been in search for a good healthy sage plant.  (You see, I have this dream of having an amazing herb garden, with every fresh herb imaginable at my fingertips...but more on that later).  It never failed, I would find sage and it would be sad looking or a weird variety.  But finally, this week, there it was, a healthy looking sage plant in the most unexpected location...the grocery section of walmart.  So i scooped it up, had an interesting conversation with the checkout lady about it, and headed home, because I was about to try something new.

That evening I stood there at a sink, a whole chicken on one side, and a fresh pot of sage on the other.  Two ingredients I had never really worked with in life, but I dove right in, literally.  Thankfully the recipe said to clean out the inside of the chicken.  I mean, I had cooked turkeys before so I knew they left all the grossys inside those big bad boys, but chickens?  Sure enough, I reach my hand in and pull out all the little pieces, including the neck which made me laugh and think about Christmas Vacation and cousin Eddie, "Save the neck for me Clark."

As I was cooking, I was realizing that I was loving this.  It wasn't so much about the fact that I was playing with a chicken and recalling movie quotes, it was because I was doing something totally new and unfamiliar to my everyday life.  I couldn't wait to see how it was going to turn out.

It could flop, it could be the best darn chicken I've ever tasted (I mean the recipe claimed it was).  But overall it was about trying something new, adding a new adventure and experience to life.

And guess what, my new experience turned into something glorious.  Here I am with my chicken!  And it turned out so so so delicious.  Above and beyond what I even expected.

Now if you're still with me after all that talk of sage and chickens, then awesome.  I have a little challenge for you; get out there and TRY SOMETHING NEW!   Why?  Because our lives are way too short to waste on doing the same thing every single day, over and over and over.  We all are guilty of it, and I am the first to say, I love a good routine, but it is also super healthy to get a little out of box and try something new.  You know, spice it up!

So where do you start?  I think it is pretty simple.

Sit down and write out 10 new things you would like to try.  Now they can be lofty, like going sky diving, or they can be as simple as cooking a chicken.

Now, I want you to circle one.

Over the course of the next week, I want you to take a step in making this new thing happen in your life.  Say you wrote down, "learn to knit."  Well then make that trip to Hobbily Lobbily and pick out your yarn.  Or maybe you wrote down, "try out that new restaurant in town."  Well make a date with friends this week, get a reservation, and lets do this!    And some of you may have wrote down something seriously challenging like going back to college.  Well get online and start applying for those colleges and financial aid.  Just take one step in heading towards that direction.  Then next week, you can take another step.  Little by little, you will finally accomplish something new.

I would so love to hear what your list may consist of, what new adventure you are going to try?  So leave comments and encouragements for others!

(image source)

As for me, I have this dream of riding in a hot air balloon, so I'm off to take my first steps in planning that little trip!  Love yall :)

Our Little Home Sweet Home

This week we decided to finally take some pictures together in front of our first "home" as a married couple.  Ok true, we've been married for 2 1/2 years, but neither of us have felt like we have had the opportunity to live alone and actually establish a home together.  During our time in Australia, Dane and I would often talk about what we wanted our future home to look like.  I loved that when we talked, the conversations never really revolved around the number of bedrooms and granite counter tops, but more about the culture of a home we wanted to establish.

We both desired a home that was based around these words: peaceful, beautiful, creative, unique, us, full of laughter, open, fun, a space safe to try new things, refuge, encouraging.  So as we make decisions about how we use the space we have been blessed with, we try to ask if it fits into these categories.  And as many of you know, setting up a home takes a lot of time to get it just right.  We officially had all of our "stuff" Memorial Day Weekend (thanks to our amazing moving)!  And we dove in.  After a lot of paint (should out to the paint crews that have come through and helped us), some serious pruning, and love, I think we are finally beginning to settle in and feel like us.

Now for the house facts.  You know the stuff that would be on a realtor sheet:  We have a small front porch that overlooks our front yard.  We actually live on a pretty busy road, but I don't mind.  If you sit outside, there's always something to see.  Although the front of the house is busy, you can escape out the back door onto our covered deck which has an amazing view of the summer sunset.  And behind our house, a field which gives us just enough country.  If you came to stay with us, we'd have a bed for you, along with your own bathroom, and a kitchen where I love cooking up a storm with all my wedding gifts.  Dane is setting up a little music studio and I keep busy during the days in my office.  My favorite space in the house is a little "mud room" we've converted into a dining/game area, and our bedroom has super high peaked ceilings.

 So there you have it.  Welcome to our house!  Now, enter the cliche jumping picture!  Love yall!

Summer Weekends ♥

This weekend was just full!  The days were full of laughter and fun.  They were full of events on my summer bucket list.  As a result my heart was full and now I'm off and ready to run, refreshed for a new week.  My Uncle & Aunt from Iowa came to KC to join the family for a fabulous weekend.

We spent much of Friday exploring the West Bottoms, finding those perfect vintage treasures.  Here we are taking a little break in the shade and downing some of the best food truck tacos and fresh squeezed limeade I've ever eaten, thank you Crave!

 In the evening we were off to the casinos for crab legs.  Really the only great pic I have from the night is this bad boy right here, the ceiling!  The rest of the time my hands were so covered in butter and crab meat, I didn't want to pick up my phone!

 Saturday morning we were off to the City Market which was above and beyond what I expected.  Oh how I wished I was headed straight home at this point so I could take one of these lovely bouquets on the road with me.  I was so in love with the fresh flowers, produce as big as your hand and the spices, oh the spices!  Its definitely a must "stop and explore" if you are in KC on the weekends!

Saturday, the fabulous GALS from our church made a trip to KC to enjoy the West Bottoms as well.  We had a blast, then off to Arthur Bryants for some good ol' Kansas City BBQ.  I seriously love these women and am blessed to do life with them.

That evening mom and I took in some wonderful shopping and then we had quite the competition playing Shanghai Rummy.  Nicole, coming out on top this month, but I think we all are ready for a rematch!

Sunday was such a blessing.  I mean, first off, I woke up to thunder.  Man I love rainy Sundays.  We headed off to church to be a part of Corbin's dedication.  It was quite memorable, the power was out and we did the dedication in the dark, complete with the sound of rain softly falling on the skylight we were below.  Seriously a beautiful moment.  I hope this kid realizes how much he is loved!  Have a happy week everyone, I leave you with this!  Now, I'm off to scoop up some groceries...I mean it is Taco Tuesday!

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Christy's August Hello Sailor Picks

So some of you already know this, but I work at this really really cool place in Kansas City called Hello Sailor.  3 days a month they open their doors and share amazing vintage/antique goods, inspiration, and lots of fun with the world.  I do their social media and graphic design work, which also means I go over pretty much everything in the store with a fine tooth comb.  I always walk away in love with so many items.  Many of the items I am in love with we don't share on our social media sites, but I thought this would be a fun space to share all of my little Hello Sailor crushes.  

 We are in need of a really cool sofa in our house.  I'm hoping for something white or yellow, but this chaise would be super fun!

 Bike Crushes...Always and Forever.

 I'm a sucker for anything cubby!

 Most creative display I've seen in a while.  Gotta get your hands on some of these juggling pins.

 I would like to own 100's of these little pokey things (someone please help me with their real name!)

 I've been on the lookout for a fantastic round mirror for a while now.  I think the etching on this one is beautiful.

 Copper....it's kinda been my thing lately.

 And these are blowing up all over pinterest!  I swear every house pin i have put up lately has had one.

 How can I not be in love with this. 

 This drafting table stole my heart!  I know the perfect spot in my little house for it!

 This pic is more for Dane.  Someday we'll find one to hang in his studio space. 

And who doesn't love a fabulous chandelier.  This is my favorite in the entire store.

You can see more from Hello Sailor.  Just pop over to their facebook page, the blog at www.hellosailorkc.blogspot.com or follow us on instagram: hellosailorkc.  

Ok, now, I need to get back to shopping!!!!!