October Currently

Reading... Almost finished As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride by Carey Elwes  and about to start Blood, Bones & Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton 

Playing... Can't say I'm playing much of anything!

Watching... Mostly documentaries, I've also been watching YouTube videos about Project Life organizing systems.  

Trying... To get organized and research some possibilities. 

Cooking... I've been doing a lot of experimenting with waffles.

Eating... Thanksgiving. Mostly stuffing and gravy with mashed potatoes because that's the best part. 

Drinking... Perrier! And Pepsi Next. 

Calling... Fellow Guiders trying to coordinate camp for this weekend and organize drives/supplies. 

Texting... The usual suspects. H. & R. and J. and N. 

Pinning... Lots of Spark meeting plans.

Tweeting... Is a very rare occurrence. 

Going... Camping this weekend! And I am super excited about it, it'll be cold but also a lot of fun. 

Loving... That I'm going camping this week. The only thing I love more than being outdoors is being outdoors with a bunch of girls who are essentially learning how to camp and enjoy the outdoors.

Hating... That winter is fast approaching. 

Discovering... I'm accustom to planning camp days and camp weeks and while sometimes it can feel like a lot of time to fill with fun. Sparks is only an hour each week and it goes by so fast! I'm discovering time management in shorter length of time is a challenge. 

Thinking...  Life isn't perfect...but I am pretty content with this season of life.

Feeling... A tiny bit overwhelmed but also thankful that I have so many things in my life that make life full.

Hoping (for)... A successful weekend camping trip. 

Listening (to)... The country radio station when I'm driving. Otherwise, not much of anything. 

Celebrating... I spent this weekend celebrating Thanksgiving and after this weekend I'll be planning some little Halloween festivities. 

Smelling... Fall is in the air! This past week the air has really turned crisp and has a chill to it along with leaves and a hint of fog.  

Ordering... I haven't ordered anything lately. Although I would like to enjoy one last iced coffee before it gets real cold.

Thanking... I love October Thanksgiving so I'm thankful I live in Canada. I'm also very thankful to the more senior Guiders who have been there to answer all my questions as I get my little group of Sparks up and running.

Considering... So many things! 

Starting... A lot of different projects! Some are pretty lofty goals, others are a little more short term and just about everything in between. 

Finishing... I've been starting a lot of project lately but I haven't finished many. I am close to finishing my scrapbook for this past summer. 

Blogtember 2015: A Day In The Life

Yesterday I remembered to take pictures for most of the day and document my Sunday! So grab your favourite beverage and welcome to my day!

I woke up on my own just before 8:30 a.m. I took a few minutes to read through Twitter and Instagram before getting up for the day. The first thing I do every morning is make my bed. I didn't always used to be that way but over the past couple of years it's become a necessity. I think it makes my room look so much tidier and it's nice to pull back the blankets and get into bed at the end of the day opposed to untangling covers and throwing them over myself. Once that's done I quickly brush my teeth, while I do that Peyton likes to get a drink out of the sink. Then I come downstairs and make coffee. I usually check blogs, watch the morning news and text J. or the girls while I drink my coffee. 

Yesterday I had a district meeting for Girl Guides so after I leisurely sipped my coffee and felt up to date with what was going on in the world I went upstairs to get ready for my meeting. While I was there Peyton was being kind of adorable so I snapped a couple of photos of her before I realized I needed to eat lunch before I left. 

I made a quick lunch with rice, veggies and chicken and ate that while I watched a cooking show. Then I headed to my car and drove to the meeting. When I got to the meeting we realized the hall had been double booked so while we waited for a group to finish we spent time outside and then headed in for our meeting. After the meeting I had to go pick up Girl Guide cookies for my unit and by that time it was 5:00. Since I was in town anyway I decided to pick up a pizza for supper. Once that was ready I headed home and enjoyed every bite of my spicy chicken pizza!

After supper I had dessert with my mom. I had an instant cappuccino I had leftover from camp and a brownie with carmel sauce & sea salt. Needless to say I was very satisfied and very full after last night's supper and dessert! I watched some HGTV and occasionally peeked out the window to look at the super moon. Around 10:00 p.m. I determined I was ready for bed so I headed upstairs to brush my teeth (Peyton helped herself to a drink out of the tap) and then climbed into bed. I wrote in my journal, read a chapter in my book and then turned on an episode of Good Eats to listen to while I fell asleep. 

Blogtember 2015: Real Life vs Online

Blogtember is digging a little deeper today. Asking us to write about the differences between our "real life" and our "online life". In all honesty there's not a huge difference I love coffee and cola (separately, not together). I love Jesus and summer camp (ideally, together). I have two best friends and one boyfriend. I'm not interested in fad diets or workouts but I love cooking for loved ones and going hiking. I like watching the evening news, reading books about other people's lives and listening to country music. 

I love blogging because it allows me to connect with people and it gives me an outlet for my writing. I will fully admit to maybe being a little more reserved here in Blogland, although I'm a pretty quiet person in real life too. I am very cautious about what information I share on my blog and I never share photos of people without their permission. And since I'm still firmly planting in the blogging closet, I don't have people's permission. In real life I love sharing camp stories and while I do that on the blog I am a little more restricted by confidentially agreements. I save all my specific photos and stories for my scrapbooks and journals. 

Maybe this revelation isn't as thrilling as if I were to write about some kind of double life. A blogger who loves Jesus and celebrates the simple things versus a rebel without a cause who hates everyone and everything. In the words of Kenny Chesney, "I'm what I am and I'm what I'm not, I'm sure happy with what I've got. I live to love and laugh a lot And that's all I need."

Blogtember 2015: What's In My Bag

This Blogtember prompt came at the perfect time because it was just the motivation I needed to finally get my purse cleaned out after the summer. I picked up my photos yesterday, which means that I can start Smash Booking/Scrapbooking/Project Life-ing this summer. In addition to photos I love including other little souvenirs in my memory books, many of those little souvenirs get stuck in my purse and forgotten about until September when I finally get around to cleaning out my purse. So this purse clean was productivity all around...blog post, scrapbooking supplies, clean bag...win, win, win!

I kind of hate that the photo turned out blurry, but I snapped it on my phone mid-clean and I didn't realize how bad it was until I uploaded it and I'm not willing to empty everything out again, so this will just have to do, I promise you're not missing out on anything super exciting!

I think the official name for my purse is something along the lines of the "Bedford Medium Satchel" I'm a big fan of it because I can use it the way it's pictured in the photo or I can pop the buttons on the side to extend it and attached the longer strap and use it as a larger cross body bag. I have the matching wallet which is also great because of all it's pockets and slots. I really like that it has a full zipper around it so everything stays put and if I'm running somewhere quick I can just grab my wallet and go! Enough about the vessels, let's move on to what I always keep on hand and what surprised I found during my cleaning spree.

My essentials are hand cream, lip balm, tylenol, bandaids, gum, a wet wipe and my spare keys. I always have a notebook in my bag. The green one was my failed attempted at using the Bullet Journal System and the gold glittery one was were I kept all my town lists for camp. Along with sticky notes, two pens, a mini sharpie, a binder clip and a couple of paper clips. Heaven forbid I find myself without a stash of office supplies. 

I discovered a baggie full of change and a nearly empty change purse, which was a little bit of a confusing moment. I had a pile of receipts that I tossed once I took a photo and a pile of mementos from the summer. That pile got moved to the box of things to scrapbooking and consisted of a few recipes that I wanted to save, a napkin for our favourite frozen yogurt place, a movie ticket stub, a parking pass from a day at the beach and a few little notes. I also found some coupons that I had forgotten about, which is always a win.

I thought about unpacking my wallet but there isn't much of interest in there the usual cards, cash, change and loyalty stamp cards. All in all I try to 'travel light' this is my running errands and out and about bag. When I'm going shopping or doing anything active I switch out this purse for a smaller cross body bag that keeps my hands free. I also want to be prepared though, so I never leave home without the basics, I'll never be one of those ladies that exits the house with just my keys, debit card and phone. 

Blogtember 2015: Friday Night In

To be honest, the vast majority of my Friday night's are spent "in". J. works on Saturday mornings so we typically have Saturday night dates or Sunday day dates. Leaving my Friday nights all my own, and my introverted heart is very happy that I have a night all to myself. 

I like to start off the night with something tasty for supper. Usually this is homemade pizza or chicken  with veggies and rice. Tonight I'm making tacos because I've developed a light obsession with them and I just want to eat tacos all day everyday. After supper I like to watch the evening news (possibly with a cup of tea and a sweet) and catch up with my parents. 

I've also developed a new found love for jigsaw puzzles. I've discovered that I get frustrated if I work on it for too long so I turn on a documentary and give myself the length of the movie to work on the puzzle. After that I put it away and move on to something else. At this point during my Friday night I like to take a hot shower and get into my pyjamas, even if it's still early. 

If I have a scrapbooking project in the works I'll probably work on that for another hour or so and if not then I might read for a little bit. My favourite Friday night treat is chips & dip with an ice cold glass of pop. If H. & R. are also enjoying a Friday night in then the three of us will Skype! 

Three different time zones makes Skyping a little challenging, by the time we've gotten caught up and factored in some general girl talk it's close to midnight in my part of the world. Once we say our goodnights and hang up I take a minute to jot down a few sentences in my journal before calling it a night!

You can share your favourite "Friday Night In" plans over at Brave Love!

Blogtember 2015: An Ideal Day

It's Day 2 of Blogtember and today Bailey Jean is asking us to share our Ideal Days.

My ideal day begins around 8:30 a.m., I'd wake up on my own and start the day at N.'s cottage. We'd leisurely make breakfast (bacon & hash browns) while we sipped our first cup of coffee. Once breakfast was ready we'd finish our second cup of coffee as we ate and watched the morning news. Then we'd get ready for the day and head into town. We'd make a trip to the grocery store, Wal-Mart and visit the local thrift stores before stopping in at Subway for lunch. I'd get my usual chicken teriyaki on parmesan oregano bread with shredded cheese, lettuce, onion, cucumber, a little bit of sweet onion sauce and southwest sauce. From there we'd drive back to the cottage and sing along to Taylor Swift for the duration of the drive. 

N. and I would meet up with H. & R. and spend the afternoon playing washer toss and enjoying each others' company and conversation. We'd need an afternoon snack, sprinkle donuts and ice coffee would be my top choice. After our snack we'd spend some more time outdoors, I'd have my camera and snap some photos as we chatted and read our individual books. For supper we'd come together to make homemade pizza. By the time it was ready the boyfriends would arrive and we'd all eat together. 

After supper J. and I would go for an evening stroll and spot some wildlife along the way. We'd spend more than a few minutes watching the ducks and I'd alternate between snapping photos and just enjoying the moment. After our evening stroll I'd get some introvert time and spend a few minutes jotting down moments from the day in my journal. I'd be done in time to watch and photograph the sunset. Once the sun went down everyone would reconvene around a campfire. We'd spend the rest of the night chatting, laughing and making s'mores under the stars. 

What's Up Wednesday : August Edition

It's the last Wednesday of the month (which is crazy) and that means it's time to link up with some of my very favourite bloggers for What's Up Wednesday!

What I'm Eating This Week...

Anything that I haven't been eating at camp all summer long! I have a major craving for some pasta with alfredo sauce, broccoli, mushrooms grilled chicken and maybe a side of garlic bread. It's been too hot for that though so I've been embracing BBQ hot dogs and burgers. I've also discovered a deep love for Chicken Tacos so I'm working on creating the best home version of those. 

What I'm Reminiscing About...

All of the fantastic things I've gotten to experience with H. & R. over the course of the last four summers we've spent together. We haven't done everything on our bucket list but we've accomplished a lot. Plus all of the spontaneous adventures that didn't make the list.

What I'm Loving...

Every summer it seems like I pick up one 'bad habit' this year that bad habit is flavoured coffee creamer. It started innocently enough with the carmel one, then it went to the tasty Double Double one and now it's escalated to Chocolate Mint Truffle...I mostly blame the fact that camp coffee is generally awful. The combination of the cheapest grocery store coffee available and making it in mass quantities doesn't exactly lead to a good cup of coffee. Coffee (and caffeine) is more or less an essential part of the camp day and the creamer made it drinkable. Once my current supply is empty I won't be buying more (unless it's a very special treat) but for now I'm enjoy every cup of delicious tasting coffee. 

What I've Been Up To...
As soon as I unloaded my car and took a good hard look at all my stuff I realized I needed to do some serious re-organizing. I've been researching the KonMari Method and I'm on a waiting list to borrow the book from my local library. I started with my DVDs because they're the one thing was was mostly contained in one place.

What I'm Dreading...

I'm actively trying not to dread anything. I am kind of sad that my friends are all scattered across Canada again and I have no idea when the next time we'll all be together. I'm sort of dreading another job hunt, but at the same time I'm not worried about it and I have some loose ends to tie up at camp. I'm confident that the right thing will come along with the timing is perfect.

What I'm Working On...

Getting back into blogging! I'm going to participate in Blogtember hosted by Bailey Jean over at Brave Love and I'd love to do 20/30 prompts for the month of September. I'm not willing to commit to doing all 30 but 20 seems like an attainable goal, especially if I can get organized enough to be prepared for some of the posts. 

What I'm Excited About...

J. and I are in the very beginning stages of planning a trip in November involving a road trip to Florida and then spending some time there before driving back. It seems a little daunting but also a lot of fun!

What I'm Watching/Reading...

I'm currently reading Primates of Park Avenue by Wednesday Martin. I'm only a few chapters in but so far I'm really enjoying the story. A few years back I watched the documentary Nursery University and was enthralled by the whole concept of competitive preschool for three year olds. In some ways this book gives a little bit of backstory to the whole phenomenon. After being away from TV for so long I've mostly been rekindling my love for the Food Network.

What I'm Wearing...

The humidity here has been intense lately (at least for my part of the world) so I've been living in sundresses and when those aren't an option shorts & tank tops are a must. And of course flip flops! Camp has a strict closed toe shoe policy for staff so I spend most of my summer in socks & sneakers. Now that camp is over I'll be wearing my flip flops and sandals until the snow starts to fall. 

What I'm Looking Forward To Next Month...
Getting back into a routine. Hopefully getting involved with Girl Guides again and if that doesn't work finding another community organization to volunteer with during the week.

What Else Is New...
I think that covers everything!

Favourite Back To School Tradition...
I don't have littles of my own but someday in a distant land when I'm sending them off to school I love the idea of having special breakfast with them. I also LOVE when all the mom's go out for brunch/lunch once the kids are all in school, I think that's an equally sweet idea as well.

Coffee Chat June 2015

I've been trying really hard not to drink coffee on an empty stomach and to sort of limit my carb intake. So if we're going to have coffee first thing in the morning chances are I'd also have some vanilla yogurt along with mine. 

The first thing we'd talk about is how camp is going. I'd sigh and respond that it's going well although I often feel like there aren't enough hours in the day. I might confide in you that it's near impossible to find time to talk to J. before 11:00 p.m. each night and by that point I'm practically falling asleep. These long distance relationship type situations are hard work. It is without a doubt worth the effort, but I'll be relieved when it's over. I'd ask about your experience with long distance relationships and hope that you might have some words of wisdom or advice to offer.

I'd tell you that I recently discovered a Vanilla Carmel flavoured creamer and it's been making my coffee extra delicious. I never use creamer at home but camp coffee needs a little extra boost. I know it's not a great choice health wise, but I think we all deserve an indulgence here and there. I choose to make mine Vanilla Carmel Creamer. And also thick cut, rippled, plain potato chips. What have you been indulging in recently? Or will your answers only make me want to rush to the nearest grocery store for more treats opposed to veggies?

If you're a regular blog reader you might ask how my summer goals are going. I'd be honest and tell you I was off to a really great start and then things quickly spiralled downwards. I haven't totally abandoned the blog and I've been getting to bed a little earlier than previous summers, plus most nights I read for at least 10-15 minutes right before bed. Lately though I've lost track of the Fringe Hours. I find myself acknowledging the fact I would love to spend 10 minutes taking photos of an amazing sunset and then hurrying away to fold laundry or prepare evening snack. I'm hopeful that this is the week I reclaim those minutes and use them for me instead of always prioritizing work.

I might share with you that my biggest, boldest, scariest and sincerest prayer right now is to find a full time position with a summer camp ministry near my hometown beginning this fall. I know it's a lot to request and in many ways it seems almost impossible, but I know that God can do the impossible. So I'm continuing to pray. I'm praying that specific prayer but also that God will lead me to the place He wants/needs me to be and that I can continue to trust Him. 

Even though I'd love to chat well into the afternoon or late into the night this month I probably only have time for one cup of coffee. Here's hoping that next month I'll be able to suggest a refill so we can discuss a few other things that have been on my mind lately. 

Sunday Social #95

Linking up with Ashley & Neely for this week's Sunday Social. 

What are the top 3 things you can't go a day without doing?

Praying

Texting

Writing

What are 3 things that scare you the most?

Never Falling in Love

Not Having Children

Forgetting

What are 3 places you want to see before you kick the bucket?

Stonehenge

Auschwitz

Cliffs or Moher

What are 3 movies you will always love?

The Princess Bride

Pocahontas

Harry Potter & The Goblet of Fire

What are your 3 favorite current songs?

Colder Weather - Zac Brown Band

Play it Again - Luke Bryan

I Will Follow You Into The Dark - Death Cab for Cutie

*These are my current favourites, the ones I've been listening to on repeat for the past few weeks. My "All-Time Favourites" is a totally different list of three!