I've always wanted to try these things & with all the time at home right now - it may be a good time.
They have different themed ones of these but I like this vintage poster one. Favorite Video
Is anyone else loving these videos from John Krasinski?
Such a bright spot in a crazy world right now.
... plus, Alexander Hamilton
Favorite Recipe to try
Again, with staying at home, I've always wanted to try & bake some bread.
This one is a No Knead recipe - none of that pushing & pulling & tugging.
& simple ingredients.
Yep... I may have to try this one
Favorite Hat
Because all the reading outside when its warmer!
Favorite Shoes
Favorite Pet Treat
These are a go-to for our dogs - Deer Antlers
We love KONG brand - but you can also find natural shed antlers in your pet stores & even some online. If you get them online - make sure you get the split ones. Dogs enjoy it more.
Favorite Key Chain
I mean, dont ever loose your keys if this is holding your credit cards
... but I really like having things where you can grab & go & dont need a purse.
Favorite Hair Clips
Favorite Bank
I think this is made for parents to teach their kids how to spend & save
But heck, I want to do it myself... like one for you, one for me, one for you, two for me :)
Favorite Baby Picture
Because I've been on a roll with posting these cute poses lately
Favorite Funnies
... when the Hubs has to work & he's stopped for carry out on his way home
... me watching idiots protesting State Capitols / Governors to open businesses
... ANDDDDDD we're still trucking through this crazy time in life...
Still looking for the light at the end of the tunnel... looking for peace of mind... looking for security ... looking for answers. & always looking for gratitude & the good things in a day to get us through.
So here's some things I'm thankful for this week:
Job
Still working & grateful every day when I hear the numbers of unemployment that keep raising
Click List
FINALLY got in line for groceries. I still dont have my groceries - it's like a week's wait- but I'm OK with that. Saves me the hassle of going in.
Grocery Store Workers
God bless all the people who are working in the grocery stores who are keeping our homes full of food. They are in the presence of so many people every day - putting themselves are risk. What would we do without them.
Easter
I know some people were really upset about it but I didnt mind it & found some blessings in it all. I'm just always thankful for the time where we get to remember & focus directly on the resurrection of our Savior. HE IS RISEN!
Technology
What we this all be like if we couldnt connect over computers, phones, tablets. The way so many can work from home during this. The technology to stream all the church services LIVE.... I feel like we are doing so well at staying connected even when distance has to happen.
Snail Mail
While there's technology, there's also the good ole snail mail. I've loved getting it & also sending it this past week. We need some fun surprises popping up where we can get it. (Thanks Patti for my sweet surprise!)
Hulu
I've started back on Season 1 to watch me some Smallville during the way while I've got my TV on while working. I have loved looking back at this - I was OBSESSED with it when it came out & still loving it. Work Surprise
I get a daily delivery from work & went to open up my package on Monday & found my sewing work friend was at it once again. She sent a note that this was absolutely it - she has no material left. I told her I'm sure she got the most use out of this fabric than any other she's ever purchased. She agreed. & I've enjoyed EVERY SINGLE creation with it.
Tell me something good in your crazy COVID life week!
It feels funny to keep a planner up right now, but life still goes on, right? & while working at home, there's still things that need to be noted. Let's not forget all the ZOOM meetings too - for me, I have them at LEAST once a day, if not two or three a day. So yeah, Planners are still important to me.
Even more important in this time is a FAITH PLANNER. My work sister Liz sent me something on Instagram about someone's Faith Planner & it just gave me all the motivation I needed to pull out the one I bought for 2020 & never really implemented. I've put it in use this month... so keep an eye out for it in next month's post. .... & can I add in that I love Planner friends & Planner people that share the ways they use planners - it really is motivating & gives you new ways to use these things in ways you may not have thought of before - exactly why we do this monthly link up.
Setting up my Faith Planner for the week
& by WE - I mean the awesome Alexandra & Lauren who also host this link up... be sure to visit them as well!!!
OK - Let's take a look at last month's planning pages... the month that the world sort of put on its brakes & took a big 90 degree turn.
So you'll see this month, I started doing my weather differently - I usually put it in the side bar... but I changed that. My sidebar, I've been using for prayer requests so I can see it daily & lift up a prayer & carry them forward the next week or check it off... I've covered the prayer requests for the most part on each week because hello - privacy... (& as usual, I've marked out some confidential things - it may look blank in some areas because THANKS PHOTOSHOP & your matching skills)
I like having the weather in the daily areas because it gives me bigger windows to draw the icon to match.
Arent those flowers around the bottom so pretty? I really like this lay out
Week two....with more flowers. I was all about my floral books lately - call it Spring sinking into my soul.
But this is where we started getting into COVID-19 terriroty & things started getting canceled. That big NOPE sticker. I was ready to dig into all my sticker books & find all the NOPE & CANCELED stickers .....
Iron infusion canceled.... I still need to do a blog post on an update on all that hot mess.
& yeah, its crazy to think I havent been to church since before March 15.... that was our first canceled Sunday.
St. Patrick's Day week.... I was excited that I had JUST bought some gold glitter washi tape - perfect for the pot at the end of the rainbow.
& this is where the COVID really starting effecting life. Work was shifting to at-home status.....
Isnt this little St. Patty girl just the cutest little thing????
& yes - I was one of the last hair appointments before everything started shutting down - Thank God! Now I'm wondering if my next appointment will even happen. I seen the meme that says, Next time, can we agree hair stylists are considered Essential employees? YESSSS
I also love a Navy look.... & with working at home, I have toned down the decorating a lot & I dont mind it really. Simple but still works. Its like the COVID life lately - just basic & simple.
I had to add another cute little sticker lady to represent my working from home. Though, lets get real - I need a sticker with yoga pants, tee shirt & messy bun. This sticker is #goals
... & yes, its come to walking my drive way every time for some good fresh air.
My Mood tracker took a turn in March too with all this COVID talk. Green represents Stressed/Overwhelmed. Guess its good March is all about the color green because that's basically what every day is. You should see my April one so far.
And just for reference, someone asked me what pens I use in my planner. These seem to be my go-to, along with my Mildliners, of course. I tend to use the Paper Mate Flairs for most things. I have some in different colors & will write with those on special events.
I've been using my Sharpie Pen a lot in my Faith Planner this week.
& the Tombow Calligraphy pen is just so fun to do some pretty lettering - they make them in hard tips & soft tips - I recommend the hard tips for beginners - the soft seems a little TOO soft if you're new to pressure in a pen.
So tell me - are you using a planner right now - or just throwing it all out until this passes?
Is your schedule busier being home with kids & organizing home life?
Kicking off my 4th week of working at home (HOW DID THAT HAPPEN SO FAST? - BUT THE WEEKS FEEL SO LONG????) I'm actually starting to get the hang of this gig. Still has its challenges, but now I know what to expect & can tackle them better. Just grateful I'm still working.
Did it feel like the most bizarre weekend to everyone else with Easter being totally different than usual? I'm actually going to admit it here though... I honestly didn't mind it. I really didnt....
But let's not jump to Sunday just yet.... let's back up to Friday.
I was ready to shut my computer off on Friday & yell "WEEKEND" because that is now the way to mark it the official weekend when you dont walk out of an office door on Friday. The dogs are starting to know what that means because they grabbed the ball & ran outside ready to play.
I ended up making a big ole dinner for us (look at me becoming Ms. Domestic) & we enjoyed it & then got settled in for Good Friday service online. It was so good. I have always just loved Good Friday service before Easter. It really sets the tone & gets me in the mindset of what we are celebrating. I heard Steven Furtick say one time, "you cant have the resurrection without death first" - which is really powerful if you think about it. But the message was really somber & made you really reflect on the heartache & sadness that Good Friday held all those years ago.
I spent the rest of the evening catching up on some shows while keeping Bruno up & moving & letting him stretch those old old bones of his.
Saturday, I woke up super early ... like 5:15am early - I just couldnt sleep. So I turned on the TV & got caught up on Survivor & then started watching The Politician on Netflix. I love Ben Platt. His voice is like butta....
I worked on some yarn projects, did some laundry, played a few games of Yahtzee with the Hubs...read some... did some Bible Study.... you know, just ordinary quarantine stuff.
I keep seeing where people say to take this time & do something you dont usually do - learn a new skill. Well, I've been wanting to learn how to sew for years. YEARS. I think I tried it one time & it took me so long to thread my machine that I said, FORGET IT - & put the machine back up.
Well, now, all we have is time, so I pulled it out- got my computer with YouTube tutorials out & I was like, I've gonna do this. ....
.... & over an hour later, I FINALLY got my machine threaded. GEEZ MAN... I felt like a complete idiot just doing that.
But then it got worse because the video was like, "OK, let's sew something & see how your machine works"... & this is what I got.
I was so aggravated. Texting people I knew that could sew & sending pics & asking for their help....& 30 minutes later, I was able to do this!!!
YAHOOOO....
I also found out that material matters. I was using knit material - like t-shirts, which you need different needles for & different stitches for. WHO KNEW? Obviously not me. But now, I'm wanting some real fabric & I am wanting to learn how to really use this baby.
While I was working on this.... Ricky took on a project of his own.
He was originally going to tear down a tree house we've had in our back yard since we moved here. We've seen so many kids run up that ladder & play in there. There's actually STILL coloring book pages taped on the wall that my friend Stephanie's grandkids did when they were little. For perspective - they have ALL graduated now. That's how long they've been hanging.
So Ricky went out to start destroying it... & found that it's really still in pretty decent shape - just needed some repairs.... so this became his quarantine project.. We figure with lots of littles & grands still around, it can still get a lot of love poured into it - so why not fix it up.
I told him that if there are no kiddos over here, I may go up there & fix it up myself... it'd make a great reading nook - right? Hang some battery powered lights in there... get a fan.. put a nice little bean bag chair in there - I may never come down.
Saturday, I ended with another ZOOM bible study with one of my HSM kiddos...still trudging through Proverbs... & then it was bedtime. Ricky & I were both pretty exhausted from all the skill / labor working.
Sunday - HAPPY EASTER!!!!
I was kinda bummed that there was no sun rise in our area. Gray skies all day long. I LOVE the sunrise on Christmas morning & Easter morning - both days representing the LIFE OF JESUS COMING INTO THE WORLD!!!!
No sunrise, but that's OK... I made us a big ole breakfast to enjoy... & then it was time to settle in for Easter service online.
It was just the BEST message. So relevant for what the world is going through today. If you get a chance, seriously - check it out. LINK HERE
I know a lot of people have been really upset about the idea of being at home, tucked away, not going out & doing all the usual Easter things. Well for us, it really wasn't much different than other Easter's. I mean, yes, we usually go to church, but we dont have little kids around here anymore so we usually just come home after grabbing something to eat. It didnt feel too different - & I kinda enjoyed eating a big breakfast & then getting a cup of coffee & snuggling on my couch in my comfy clothes, hair not brushed, relaxing & having my notebooks & bibles & highlighters all around me. To take the "show" out of Easter - the need for new Easter clothes, the wait at restaurants that are long on a holiday, the hunt for candy to put in containers around the house.... it just felt nice to relax - listen - take in the message in the stillest way possible. Yep - I didnt mind it one bit.
After it went off, Ricky went back out to work on the tree house some more & I ended up working out... & then did what everyone should do after working out - I made brownies.
Fun fact- I didnt have vegetable oil & wasn't sure how I was going to make them - because I'm not THAT good to make them from scratch. Box mix all the way baby. But I googled & found out you can use the same amount in melted butter. UMMM - YES PLEASE. I'll do that from now on because these babies were DELISH.
The smell of chocolate was so yummy in my house. The Hubs had just came in from finishing up outside & smelled them & I'm not even joking when I say, this is what the brownie pan looked like in less than 2 minutes after I pulled it out of the oven.....
I had to take a few bites myself.
The rest of Easter Sunday was just laid back. More crafting... more reading... trying to find beginner sewing projects online.... tucked inside since it has turned chilly & rainy.... played another few rounds of Yahtzee & FINALLY got Ricky to play me in a new game I've been wanting him to try, Qwixx (that's why I made the brownies - bribery) ... got my planner together for the next week, which basically has no plans.
So all in all, I had a really nice weekend. Crammed lots of stuff in... things I wouldnt normally do if life was 'usual'. I know a lot of people were bummed out about Easter being so different, but I hope everyone found a little silver lining about it & felt the presence of the Lord wherever you were & however you celebrated it.
& a big shout out if you actually got dressed for Easter. I applaud you. With a brownie in my one hand.
So tell me something good about your weekend....
Did you celebrate Easter?
Was it as good/bad as you thought it was going to be?
Are you learning a new skill while tucked away at home?
I love these! We are forever trying to keep sticks of butter wrapped up - but this is perfect.
Also loving the cheese ones. Cheese is expensive & I hate when it goes bad or gets those hard edges on it.
Favorite Eyewear Helper
So you put this on the nose piece of your glasses or sunglasses & it prevents them from sliding down your face!!! WHAT??? How genius is this?
Favorite After Shower Item
I have 2 of these & have used them for YEARSSSS
The elastic is getting a little stretched out so I need to get some more.
Favorite Hair Ties
I always love a little bow, ribbon, tie around the ponytails
Favorite Song
Because how does Adam Sandler not make you smile in this mess
Favorite Tee
So yes, I live in Indiana- but I feel like I'm more involved in Kentucky's policies since we're just over the river & I work in KY - but every day at 5pm - everyone gathers around the TV & watches Kentucky's new Governor, Andy Beshear - he's just been amazing. He's leading with such calmness but enforcing things... There's a site that has the best KY shirt right now too.
You can click the pic for the link to that shirt or HERE for all the KY shirts
Bonus Shirt
Favorite Funnies
... after another work from home day
... when I remember my dad always told me I would help people out in life & I finally feel equipped to do it
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