Little Letters: Beach, 3 legged dog, & sanity

*photo by my talented man, Andrew.

Dear Spiders:  I can't wait until it's winter and I don't have anxiety about where you may be lurking all over our house and basement.  It will be too soon if I never see you again.

Dear Ingrid:  I'm sorry I'm missing your show at the State this Friday. A girl's gotta eat and right now we can barely afford that.  

Dear Beach Days: please last forever, won't you.

Dear creepy guy at the beach:  Since when is it appropriate to put a fish head in front of someones face when they're trying to sleep.  My friends and I will have nightmares foreverrrrr.

Dear 3 legged dog:  I wish I could've snuck you into my car and taken you home.  You were the happiest dog I've ever seen.

Dear Jersey Sheets:  I don't know how to quit you.  If it weren't for you, I'd actually get to work on time. 

Dear Mom: I miss you and cannot wait for you to visit in a few weeks.  We have lots of outdoor fun and shopping to do! 

Dear Sanity: I miss you too.  It'll be good when I feel like I have you back again.

Dear Self:  Stop being so afraid to dream big and work hard.  

Dear Weekend:  I've been dreaming about you since Monday.  It's me, you, and good book this time around.  Now doesn't that sound nice?

Dear Jenny Lewis:  Your new album is freakin' rad. 

Dear Coffee:  I'm glad Andrew made me finally try you 2 years ago.  You are the perfect start to a gloomy day. 

xoxo.

Growing Up

Last weekend I went home to Massachusetts to visit my parents, pick up the girls bridesmaids dresses, and celebrate my best friends parents surprise anniversary party. My parents were having a yard sale with a few other neighbors on Saturday and mom had pull out all mine and my brothers belongings that they've been storing since god knows when. I didn't have too much. I naturally love to clean, organize, and declutter so I rarely keep things I don't intend on loving forever. I am also extremely sentimental so I may not have all my old soccer balls, games, clothes, etc. but I had 2 boxes filled with journals, artwork, love notes from old boyfriends, movie & concert stubs, every birthday card I've ever gotten from family and friends. Some may call that crazy...which is true, I guess, but I am so glad I'm sentimental and kept all those things. 

 I had such a good time reading through old journal entries, revisiting my awkward middle school years (I "loved" a new boy every day apparently) and remembering old hopes and dream for my future self. Some things made me tear up; like notes from my grandma who passed away a few years ago, some journals during a time in my life when I was incredibly lost, and just general nostalgia. It made me think about how far I have come and also how far I still have to go. I was such a dreamer, then a follower, then completely lost, and then found myself somehow again. Life is a pretty weird, cruel, confusing, beautiful, amazing thing and I am so grateful that I wrote so many thoughts, experiences, and memories down. the good, the bad, the horrible, the perfect. I will cherish them forever (I seriously contemplated burning my middle school diaries though!)

Although, I still write in journals it sparked my interest to write in them more than just once a week - to not feel like I have to have a particularly great story in mind, but to write anything, everything down. for the joy of it; so years and years from now I can reread them and look back on my twenties the way I look back at my teens. And maybe someday my children or grandchildren will read them and see the real unedited me. 

I'm so used to pen & paper that it's been a struggle to remember to post on this blog. One of the main reasons I started this blog though was to document my life and share that with friends, family, and the blogging community. I'd love it if someday I could look back on this little blog and feel the same as I do about my journals. What are ways that you document your life? 

Happy Weekend! xoxo

Scattered

I'm feeling a little scattered lately. too much on my mind. too hard to focus. 

Since I'm a list maker at heart I was inspired when I saw this post from a blog that never fails to showcase all the beautiful details in this world. Work has been crazy with an upcoming event at the end of this month plus my mind is constantly in wedding planning mode. I haven't even begun to really think about the things I need to finalize for our honeymoon, and finances haven't exactly been great lately so budgeting and planning our expenses has been occupying my mind as well. yikes.  I need to go crawl under a rock for a bit. 

Eating / watermelon & cherries. oh summer, you make my fruit loving self so happy. 

Drinking / an iced chai that he made for me this morning (I should go away for a weekend more often! I think he missed me.) 

Practicing / patience and yoga 

Mastering / karate...just kidding...the art of slowly simplifying my home and buying smarter and less often. Learning / how to use my DSLR on manual. it has been a very slow and confusing process. 

Trying / to be a better version of myself. 

Playing / ladderball in the backyard with mom this weekend. 

Finishing / my to-do lists! (wedding list I'm talking to you!) 

Reading / "A Time to Kill". Next on my list is the final book of the Divergent Series and Neil Gailmans new book! Also, I think #GirlBoss would be a great honeymoon read. thoughts? 

Remembering / how lucky I am to have the friends, family, and life that I do. 

Wearing / the cutest pale violet/pink nail polish

Cooking / so many eggs. need to switch it up this week. 

Working / hard to be live healthier 

Traveling / to the London, Scotland, and Ireland in just over 2 months. eeeeek!!!

Wanting / to reprioritze my time so it involves more friend time and beach time. 

What a simple way to put my thoughts and in-the-moment-life down. xoxo