Blogtember 2015: Letter to Me

Hello,

You should know that sixteen is just as sour as it is sweet. Soak up those moments with  the 'parallelogram'. I know it's hard for you to believe but those girls won't always be your best friends.  (Don't worry, in your 20s you'll find yourself surrounded and supported by some incredible girls. You will do life with these girls and love every moment.) Try not to take yourself too seriously, it's important to work hard but that doesn't mean you need to stress about perfection. Be diligent when it comes to taking photos and scrapbooking, guard those memories and preserve them as best you can. This will be last summer you spend as a camper and the last you ever spend at MP. You will be devastated and heartbroken beyond anything you could ever imagine. Let yourself be sad.  Let the experience inspire you and motivate you. The truth is, it gets worse. It will lead you places that you never would have went had everything gone according to plan. Trust God's plan and know that He knows exactly what your purpose is here on earth. (Those girls you'll do life with, you meet them because you lost MP.) Do your best to stay connected to the communities that you value, even if you can't always be involved, stay connected.

Life has a way of working itself out. It takes awhile and sometimes it feels like you'll feel like a hot mess forever but it will work out. Give it time. When you turn 25 you still won't have it all figured out (and have come to realize that nobody has it all figured out) but you will be happy with where God has lead you. You're not at the finish line yet and your head and heart will be full of ideas and big dreams. Keep going. Stay motivated and inspired and surround yourself with the people that you love. Remember to relax and rejoice when necessary.

Keep moving forward. Everything happens for a reason and God will bless you in ways beyond what you can imagine (Ephesians 3:20).

Love,
2015 Donna


Linking up with Blogtember.

Blogtember 2015: Ode to Summer

It seems fitting (and a little bittersweet)  to write about how much I love summer after the last unofficial weekend summer. Today, Bailey Jean asks us to talk about our favourite season and for me, my favourite season has always been summer. 

Bright summer mornings, leisurely summer afternoons and nights spent with friends gathered around a crackling fire. Walking barefoot in the sand and grass. Listening to crickets and birds. 

I spend as much of my summer as I can near water. I love going for evening strolls on trails that meander around the shore line and no afternoon at the beach is complete without a walk in the sand. I love being able to be outside and snapping pictures without worrying my fingers will freeze as I snap away! The perfect summer afternoons are spent near the water with a novel or a notebook, letting myself escape the world or focus on reflecting. 

Summer sunsets deserve an entire post of their own. Most of my summer days are spent at camp, helping to facilitate amazing summer memories (and creating some of my own in the process). While I love my job, sometimes I really need a moment to myself away from all the chaos and noise. Sneaking away for 5-15 minutes to watch the sunset is where I find time in the day to breathe and take a moment to reflect and recharge. 

There's something magical about summer and it will always and forever be my favourite.

Blogtember 2015 : Grace & Galoshes

This has been my view for the majority of the last couple of days. I'm spending Labour Day Weekend fully appreciating summer and absorbing some Vitamin D. I'll be back Tuesday with a full weekend recap complete with the many reasons why summer is my very favourite season. 

If you're visiting from Blogtember and are wondering why I call my little corner of the internet "Grace & Galoshes" the answer is rather simple! When I decided I wanted to make blogging a serious hobby I sat down with a pen and paper and wrote down dozens of words. Some adjectives that I thought described me, some that I felt a connection to and some that I just thought sounded pretty. I focused on 'rainy days' because I love rain and rainy days are some of the best days for writing. Those seemed too wordy and after a lot of thought the word 'Galoshes' came to me which is a common name for rain boots around here. I knew I needed another word to go with it and I anticipated blogging about my faith, I also like alliteration and so "Grace & Galoshes" was born. I love that the name of my blog incorporates or hints at things I love; rain, outdoors, faith...and that it doesn't limit me to one specific genre. I've never once regretted my choice or considered re-branding and becoming something different. 

I hope everyone is enjoying their extra weekend day!

Blogtember Day 4: Passion

What are you passionate about?  It's a question some people struggle with for the entire life. I on the other hand sometimes struggle to choose just one (although if I had to pick #1 would be camp). All of my passions are intertwined though, together they build to guide and direct me through life. 

Camp is my ultimate passion in life. I love the atmosphere, the community, the tradition. I truly believe that there are two kinds of people in the world: Camp People and Non-Camp People. It shaped me in unfathomable ways into the person I am today and the person I will be 10 years from now. 

Disability Awareness/Inclusion. I have had the privilege of meeting and befriending so many smart, funny, happy and kind people who identify as having a disability. And it frustrates me that so many people in this world are overlooked because others don't take the time to communicate with them. There's a perception that people with disabilities need a lot of help. The reality is we all need a lot of help and just because someone uses a wheelchair or needs extra time to complete a task doesn't mean they need your sympathy. People are people and the world would be a much better place if everyone would treat each other with more kindness, respect and understanding. 

3E Love

Food. It breaks my heart that there are so many people have no idea where there next meal is coming from. And that the options they have are pre-packaged and almost void of nutritional value. Food education should be more of a focus in school and people shouldn't have to choose between buying 10 bags of chips or 1 bunch of carrots. On a more personal level I love cooking and baking and being able to provide healthy and tasty foods for the people around me. 

Children/Youth. It sounds lame but in all seriousness children/youth are the future. If they grow up surrounded by loving and supportive people and have their basic needs met (nutritious food, safe home etc.) then the world will become a better place. If children/youth don't have access to those things then bad things happen. I love camp and other extra-curriculour activities because it provides children/youth with so many opportunities to explore and grow in a safe, supportive environment.

Faith. I'm not sure how to expand on this or put it into words. My faith and trust in Good is crucial to my life and impacts my choices and interests.

Honourable mentions go to photography, writing, memory keeping, family and friends.

Return to Stuff & Things

* I have become completely obsessed with puzzles. R. and N. introduced me to them this summer. N. always has one on the go at her cottage that everyone works on over the course of the summer. R. typically has one in her classroom that she gets students to work on when they finish their work early and one at home that she works on herself. I don't have great spatial reasoning so I always assumed that puzzles would be super frustrating for me and not at all enjoyable. Turns out I love the organization part of it all, sorting the pieces into colours and edges and finding pieces that fit together and solving the whole thing gives me a huge sense of accomplishment. Plus, turns out puzzles are great brain exercise! 

* Lately I've been watching more movies than usual. Mostly documentaries about K2 and food but I also watched Wild (not as good as the book), What to Expect When You're Expecting (Alright, but kind of dumb, Shopoholic (started strong but never did finish watching). I've also been catching up with the wider world outside of camp, which leads me to the question, am I supposed to find Amy Schumer funny?? 

* One of my unwritten goals for September is to establish a really good bedtime routine. I'm working on decreasing screen time right before sleep and replacing it with journalling and reading. 

* I ordered 160 photo prints from this summer. Last summer I was scrambling to collect photos from other people to supplement my own. This summer I grabbed a few from H. & R. but for the most part I have more than enough to create a Smash/Scrapbook documenting this summer. It seems like a weird thing to be happy about but it thrills me that I've documented the everyday and made steps towards preserving memories. 

* I don't have much else to write about today. I'm passing on today's Blogtember prompt because I don't want to make a mood board from my blog. I love my current layout, I enjoy writing posts and I'm not looking to attract the masses and gain a billion followers. 

I am linking up here & here for Stuff & Things, I've missed this link up over the summer and am excited to be back at it! 

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. 

Blogtember 2015 : Hello!

Today is day one of Blogtember and that means it's time for introductions!

My name is Donna. I'm from a small community on the East Coast of Canada. I grew up surrounded by water, sky and forest. 

I spend my summers (and sometimes parts of the spring/summer/winter) working at camp. I grew up going to church camp and worked there for a few years before becoming a more senior staff member at a camp for people with disabilities. In between camp seasons I tend to work a wide variety of contract jobs, some of them related to recreation, some of them not as much. My dream job is to direct a Christian year round camp and retreat centre somewhere close to my hometown. It's a lofty goal, and I'm okay with working hard and being patient in order to make it happen someday.

The cast of characters you'll hear about most often around here are my friends R., H., and N. as well as my boyfriend J.. The easiest way to describe my blog is "20something lifestyle" which is really just about as vague as you can get. I do blog mostly about daily life and whatever thoughts and ideas are floating around in my head on any particular day. I enjoy participating in link ups to meet other bloggers. I love cooking and being creative so sometimes I share recipes or projects I've been working on. I enjoy photography, reading and being outdoors. I also appreciate a night of Netflix and some snacks. 

I gravitate towards "mommy blogs" because although I would love to work in camping year round I also have a strong desire to be a wife and mom. My daydreams are often filled with co-ordinating my future daughter's outfits and I'm embarrassed to admit how many secret Pinterest boards I have designated to child related things. I also love meeting bloggers that are in more similar seasons in life to my own. 

You can also check out my About Me Page for a less detailed run down of what I'm all about.