Guest Post :: Family Fun Outing

Today we welcome Rachael McAdams to the blog! Rachael is new to the SAHM community, new to the blog world, but has been writing for years. When Rachael isn't writing, she's normally chasing around her twin daughters, whipping up healthy meals, and trying to maintain a healthy active lifestyle. You can find her on Twitter.

Four Unexpected Fun Family Outings

There is something special about going on a family outing. Of course, like many others, when I was a kid there were times I felt like I was being forced. However, now when I look back on those trips or talk with my other family members who were along for the ride, we remember those trips fondly. Here are four unexpected fun family outings I guarantee your family will just love!

Be a local tourist!

How often do you check out what is right in your own backyard? For me living in New York City, there are so many great things to see that you take for granted when you live here. People from all over the world come here to see what is right here for us all the time! So why not just take your family to a local hotel and be a tourist for a few days right in your area? For me, I love walking through the historic South Street Seaport during the summer. Last time I was there I took a great photo of the Brooklyn Bridge and was able to upload it to TinyPrints.com and use it to make an iPhone case. I get compliments on it all the time; people think it is a professionally-taken shot! No matter what your age, going to FAO Schwarz is always so much fun! Make sure you pack a camera and take plenty of photos. This will be a chance to rediscover what makes your hometown so unique!

History class

We’ve all taken family vacations where our parents tried to squeeze in some education. Well, why not build an entire vacation around learning about a significant historical area? Gettysburg is an incredibly important part of America’s history. It is the site of one of the most important battles of the US Civil War and the largest land battle ever fought in North America. This year marks the 150^th anniversary of the battle so this would be a perfect time to see this historic area and learn about everything that happened there. Events are planned throughout the year to commemorate this anniversary, so no matter when you plan to travel, you’ll definitely have some wonderful – as well as educational – experiences. There is even an iPhone app that will guide you on a historic walking tour so you are sure not to miss anything. When you stand at the battlefield and just think about the significance of this ground and those who perished – it leaves you feeling multiple emotions. But most of all, it left me proud to be experiencing my country’s history firsthand. I think it is certainly a trip that your family will talk about for years to come.

Road trip!

Have you ever taken a road trip on the spur of the moment? If you haven’t, give it a try! Have everyone put an idea of somewhere to go for a long weekend in a hat and let one person pick. Then off you go! Make some minor ground rules – such as picking a location within 200 miles or a three-hour drive so the trip can be easily managed within two or three days. These trips are always great because you never know what you will discover along the way! When I was in college, a few of my dorm-mates and I decided on a Friday afternoon to just hop in the car and see how far we could get in three hours. No other plans were set; we just threw together a bag and started the clock. Three hours later we were in Cape May, New Jersey! It was in the fall, so it was a little cool, but it was still warm enough to enjoy going outside for a walk on the beach. We did a tour of all the different Victorian-era homes and ate at the Carriage House Cafe & Tearoom on the Emlen Physick Estate. We stayed at a really nice little bed and breakfast and then headed back to school Sunday night. It was a great trip!

Try something new

Have you ever gone tent camping? What about parasailing? Sailing a schooner? Throw caution to the wind and plan a quick getaway around something you’ve never done before. Jump out of your comfort zone and try something new! If you have always wanted to try sailing, then take your family to try the Community Sailing Schools at Mystic Seaport. Ever wanted to get a bird’s eye view of Lake George? Then try parasailing! The whole point is to try something you’ve never done before. It will be something you all get to experience as a group for the first time. All you need is a sense of adventure!

Thanks so much for sharing these great ideas Rachael!

summer gift guide

today we have a guest sharing about 8 perfect summer time gifts.

lets welcome Kristin.

I am a mommy of two and love to be active with my family, especially in the summer. I am a freelance writer and went to college to study writing as a minor. In my free time I write, bake, and garden.

8 Awesome Summer Time Birthday Gifts to Give

There is nothing I love more than giving a unique gift to someone I care about. I want the person to know that I really went the extra mile to fine something that fits their personality and style perfectly. When someone has a birthday in the summer, the possibilities are really endless. Here are eight awesome summertime birthday gifts.

1.     iPhone case: Everyone loves getting tech-centric gifts. Instead of just going to the mall and picking up a standard iPhone case, I like to add a personal twist to it. I order customized iPhone cases on Shutterfly.com. This way I can add photos to it or someone’s initials. It makes for a really unique gift and everyone knows you can’t just pick something like this up without some forethought.

2.     Tote bag: When summer rolls around, there will certainly be plenty of trips to the beach, the pool, or the lake. And a must-have is a solid tote to carry everything. While it sounds like a boring gift at first, you can really make it custom by creating the ultimate totebag from L.L. Bean. Their custom “Boat and Tote” bag is a personalized twist on their classic tote bag. You can pick the color of the bag, the color of the handles, and add the person’s initials or name.

3.     Sea glass necklace: Another great summer treat when you are on the beach is finding sea glass.  Sea glass is glass that has been weathered by the beach and either fresh or salt water. Over time the glass becomes naturally frosted. Many people collecct sea glass when they see it on the beach and some even use it to make jewelry. That’s exactly what White Light Productions has done. They create beautiful jewelry from sea glass.

4.     Baseball cufflinks: Nothing says summer like baseball. And the man in your life will definitely appreciate these baseball cufflinks. What makes these really unique, however, is that they are made from baseballs used at actual major league games. This will make for a impressive gift!

5.     Cruiser bicycle: When I was little, my first bike was a Huffy. I rode that bike until I was too tall for it and needed a new one. Huffy now has an awesome Panama Jack version of the classic cruiser bicycle. This is the perfect bicycle for the summer! Everytime I head down the shore I see vacationers riding up and down the boardwalk on cruisers. The special person who receives this as a birthday gift will definitely appreciate it!

6.     Baby beach chair: There are plenty of great summer birthday gifts for the kids. Every little boy or girl needs their own beach chair. It is also important to have an umbrella nearby to keep away the sun’s strong rays. What makes this chair and umbrella set unqiue is that you can have it customized with the little beach goer’s name and design! Whether they love going fishing or picking flowers, you can have this set customized to exactly their liking.

7.     BBQ sauce: Anyone who loves to grill in the summer knows that a quality BBQ sauce is critical. While it may sound like a silly gift, anyone who is a grill aficionado will certainly appreciate BBQ sauce from Rufus Teague. Even the pickiest of sauce fans will find something they like in this complete line of sauces. 

8. Grill: The ultimate summer birthday gift is of course the grill! And of course the ultimate grill will obviously come from the top grill manufacturer – Weber. The Performer Grill will surely impress any grill chef and is definitely the top summer birthday

thanks for sharing Kristin!
be sure to go follow Kristin on twitter to connect with her.
@InstaMommy

marriage on my minds: Alesha

Hello Life...Unscripted readers!  My name is Alesha and I blog over at Blessed to be a Blessing!  Amber is one of my favorite bloggers.  So naturally, I'm thrilled to be guest posting here today about my wedding (one of my favorite topics).

My amazing husband Travis and I got married last year on May 28th!  It was truly one of the best days of my life.

Travis and I met in youth group at our church during our sophomore year of high school.  We took several classes together during Running Start our junior year and were part of a very tight knit group of friends.  Near the end of our junior year, he asked me if we could start spending more time together, and so began some of the happiest years of my life! (To read a full story of how we met and how he proposed, go here)

I had always wanted a wedding with sunflowers, but since we got married in May, that was kinda out of the question.  So I needed a new "theme" to design my wedding around.  My favorite color is pink, so that was a must, and my middle sister LOVES (I mean LOVES) orange.  I thought it would be cool to let her wear orange.  So we ended up with pink, orange, and yellow, with Izzies soda as our theme.  I argued with my mom and sisters for MONTHS about what flowers we should have.  (I wanted roses, but they said daisies).  I am SO glad we went with the gerber daisies.  Aren't they beautiful?  And they really do go better with the Izzies.... 

What made our wedding special and unique was that we made it special and unique.  No duh, right?  Well let me explain.

1.  We saved ourselves for each other.  Our first kiss was on our wedding day!  We had a private moment after the "first look" to share our first kiss without 400 pairs of eyes looking on (yes, we had that many people at our wedding!)

2.  We personalized the reception.  There were pictures of us on every table.  The lunch and dessert bar (we didn't provide cake for guests) were labeled with tags telling the name of the food and which ones were our favorites.

3.  We made most things ourselves.  We had a friend make the bridesmaid dresses.  I had an "invitation making party" with close girl friends and my youth group girls.  We made the decorations.  Our families drank the Izzies so we could use the empty bottles.  We decorated the sanctuary and reception hall ourselves (with some creative inspiritation with another lady from our church).  A family friend (15 years old) made the cheesecake that Travis and I cut and ate.  Her mom arranged our flowers.  One of my best friends did my makeup.  A couple of sweet ladies from our church did our hair.  We picked the food (salads) from family recipes that we loved and had several family friends make them for us.

4.  I got my first ever manicure and pedicure the day before the wedding with my mom.

5.  We had music played by dear friends and picked non-traditional stuff that we liked.

6.  We had friends do our photos.  We were comfortable with them, so we were happy and relaxed resulting in TONS OF AWESOME photos!

7.  The entire bridal party (with the exception of the ring bearer and flower girl) wore Chuck Taylor Converse.  (I love converse!)

8.  We had a recieving line where we quickly greet, hugged, and occasionally introduced to each other each of the 400 guests.  It didn't take more than 30 minutes and we personally said hello to everyone who attended our wedding.

9.  We had our MC (also a good friend) announce us when we came into the reception and say that we were going to eat and would greet guest presently.  So we actually got to eat all the amazing food!  And we had already said at least "hi" to everyone so there was no stress about that!

Believe it or not, these simple, sweet little personalizations made it SO special!  We wanted the day to show us, who we were, and what we were like; it did.  The whole thing showed our personalities and love for God without it feeling put on.  They day was designed for US, NOT for our guests and so we were comfortable and relaxed.  It was special because we worked hard to make it that way and I am so glad that we did.

Advice for Planning:

Think about your guest, but not too hard.  This day is for YOU.  Make it comfortable for you and your fiance.

Advice for Your Marriage:

Approach disagreements as if they are a problem that the two of you have to work together to solve.  This way you are working together to fix the problem instead of arguing at each other.

Take time FREQUENTLY to talk and stay updated on every area of life.

Most Importantly

Keep God the center of your marriage.

When you are close to Him, you will be close to each other. 

So excited for you Amber!
 I hope that your wedding is all you both have dreamed it will be. =)

Be blessed.

Alesha <3
-------------------------------
Thanks so much for sharing Alesha and the great advice!
 

guest post: amber pless

Hey there all of you lovely readers! I am so grateful to be here on life...unscripted today! I am Amber and my sweet husband is Corey. I blog over at The Pless Press. We were both born and raised in the south and love our sweet tea, fried food, and country music. In all actuality, that last one is just me, but I most certainly do love my country music! The Pless Press is our story of faith, marriage, crafting, cooking, and living life. We would love to have you stop by and share in our journey!

 I love to sew, but when it comes to making something for myself I am incredibly terrified. But, I did it! I finally broke down and made my first dress. Despite all of the fear and anxiety of making something for myself to actually wear on my body, I did it. I am so happy with how it turned out! I was pleasantly surprised with how short of time it took me and how easy it actually was. I am so excited to share this tutorial with you!! 

Supplies -Tank Top or T-Shirt

-Roughly 2 Yards of Fabric (enough to wrap 1 1/2 times around your body)

-Roughly 1 Yard of 2" Elastic (enough to wrap around where you want the waist band to sit at)

-Coordinating Thread

 Step 1: Unfold the fabric so it reaches to the floor. Seriously, wrap the fabric around you 1 1/2 times. You may have thought I was kidding, but I really was not. Cut off any excess fabric.

 Step 2: Fold the design side of the fabric together. Sew up the long side.

Step 3: This part is up to you. I wanted my dress to be very flowy.  If you prefer for yours to be more fitted, then you can skip down to Step 8. If you are like me, then we are going to sew some pleats because they are my favorite. Be sure to look at your fabric and decide which side you want to be the top. That is the side we are going to sew the pleats onto.

Step 4: Measure out 6 inches. Take your 6 inch spot and fold the fabric in half from that point.

 Step 5: You are going to start about one inch out from that, and sew just a curve down about 5-6 inches.

Step 6: From that seem, measure 6 inches out and repeat all the way around the top of the skirt.

 

Step 7: When finished with the pleats your skirt top should look like this. 

 Step 8: Measure out the elastic to wrap around where you want the waist to sit. Cut it about 1-2" shorter than that.

Step 9: Ok, prepare yourself. This is the trickiest part of the whole ordeal. You are going to attach the skirt to the back of the elastic. Turn your skirt inside out. It looks better if you sew this from the front. Be very careful to make sure you are sewing all the way through the fabric as you do this.

Step 10: Here is the trick. You are going to pull the elastic as far stretched out as possible and sew very slowly and carefully all the way around. Once you have started a little bit, it is easier to stretch the elastic because you can pull it straight from both behind the machine and in front as you can see in the picture above. You will notice as you let go of the back that it will start to scrunch up and look like we want it to!

Don't get discouraged on this part. Just take it slowly and carefully.

Step 11: Leave a tiny bit of elastic not attached to the skirt so that it can overlap the elastic where you started. 

 Step 12: Set your machine to do a zig zag stitch. Set your stitch width to the highest setting and the length to the lowest. Do a tight zigzag stitch down the overlapped elastic to secure it.

 

Your skirt should look like this so far! But now, let's turn it into a dress! 

 Step 13: Based upon where you measured the elastic to sit, you will now measure your tank top about 1" down from there so you have some space to attach it to the elastic. I placed pins around mine and then cut right below the pins.

 Step 14: Again, sewing from the front, sew the tank top behind the elastic. The easiest way to do this for me was to actually slide the stand of the sewing machine (under the needle) through the neck of the shirt and just go around it as I sewed. I hope that made sense.

You are done!! You did it! Surprisingly easy? I sure hope so. 

You better believe I will be making a whole lot more dresses and skirts now that I worked through my fears of sewing something for myself. 

I hope you have a great day!
---------------------------------------------

Thanks so much for sharing Amber!
This dress is super duper cute.
I may just have to make one myself.

guest post: spring colours

Hello, lovelies! I'm Jacky, and you'll find me blogging over at The Sweetest Petunia.

I'm a newlywed who loves her husband, enjoys all sorts of creative projects

and seeks to be a Christ-follower above all else.

*****

Lately I've been feeling inspired by Spring colors.

There's just something about them that is so lovely, fresh and pretty!

source

source

source

source

What are your favorite shades of Spring?

Do you lean towards the fresh greens? The pretty pastels?

I can't seem to take my eyes off of those pinks & purples. ;)

Happy Spring, everyone! 

P.S. If you're looking for color inspiration,

design seeds has tons of lovely palettes to share.

-----------------------------

Thanks so much for sharing Jacky. 

I am loving those springy greens!

best dates ever!!

hi there, jordyn here! i blog over at intangible goodness and, today, i am happy to bring you a little out-of-the-ordinary tutorial. i do a lot of crafts and little cooking but i didn't feel like writing a tutorial on those things -- mostly because i've been spending most of my time outside enjoying this beautiful weather. instead, this is a tutorial about dating -- which is just as good as food and crafts, if you ask me!

you may read my blog, you may not, but if you do, you know that dating my husband is my absolute favorite thing ever. in the whole world! i mean, what could be better than going on an adventure with your favorite person? nothing. even though i am no expert, i will totally pretend to be one in order to give you some great tips on having the best dates ever. 

and so, without further ado, i bring you: how to have the best dates ever!

1. keep it cheap!

my husband is in grad school. i'm a teacher. we really have no other choice. luckily, being cheap has forced us to use lots of creativity in coming up with dates. go to target with three bucks a piece and buy your spouse a surprise. make coffee to-go and watch the sunset. play scrabble in a park. explore a different part of town on foot. you just have to think outside the box!

 2. forget fancy dinners!

fancy dinners are overrated. ben and i had all these plans to go somewhere nice & expensive for our one year anniversary but the day of our fancy date, i was craving some greasy, cheesy fellini's pizza {my favorite pizza place}. so we had pizza & it was way more fun and relaxed! it's okay to forgo all the fanciness if it makes you happy!

3. get outside!

outside dates are our personal favorite for so many reasons. God made this lovely, beautiful earth for us to enjoy, so enjoy it! hiking, biking, picnics, running, walking, bonfire-ing, & any combination of those make awesome dates. plus, they're the most budget friendly kind of date and i like that.

4. stay at home dates!

staying at home can be fun, too! some great stay at home dates that we've done include a living room camp-out -- complete with a tent, an air mattress, a movie and cookies, a homemade pizza night which included a trip to the grocery store to buy all kinds of crazy toppings for our pizzas, and our living room picnic date with a spread of delicious bakery goods.

5. coffee dates!

easy peasy, right? head to your closest starbucks or local coffee joint and order your favorite drink. biscotti is a must!

happy dating, friends!

thank you so much for sharing jordyn!!
i will be sure to remember these once i am married in 82 days :)

be sure to stop by and say hi to the lovely jordyn 

marriage on my mind: Everything Espey

Today for Marriage on my mind we have the wonderful Meredith sharing!!
________

Hi y'all! My name is Meredith and I'm the mastermind behind Everything Espey. My blog doesn't fall into one specific genre, but is more of a random assortment of (to name a few) of our daily (mis)happenings, my thoughts on faith, marriage, life in Utah, and being a chronic Target shopper and bargain hunter with a little bit of sarcasm and humor thrown into the mix. I'd love to get to know you! I was so pleased when Amber asked me to pitch in for this wedding series. Thank you for having me!

My handsome husband Charlie and I got married last June on a hot, sweltering Texas day. People warned me about getting married outside in the summer...but I didn't listen (20/20 foresight fail). It was "unseasonably" hot (read: 100+ degrees!) and humid. However, according to the New York Post, June 17, 2011 was the happiest day that year, and I wouldn't change the one we picked.

I wasn't one of those girls that had her wedding day planned out from the time I could walk. I knew I wanted to get married, but heck, the vision continued to morph throughout the months we were engaged. I knew a few things about what I wanted for the wedding day: for Charlie to be there (obviously crucial), to be able to eat Tex-Mex, to make it as inexpensive as possible, for it to be a fun party, and to bring glory to God through the events of the day. Quite a list, eh?

I feel like giving wedding advice is like walking a tightrope. When I was planning, everyone had an over-abundance of strong opinions about what I should or shouldn't do. And for me, that was really tough to hear constantly. But, I think it's good to encourage of other women because frankly, this experience is totally unique. So take my advice with a grain of salt, and if it doesn't work for you, chuck it. You won't hurt my feelings.

1. Your budget is your own.

Inexpensive is not a word often associated with weddings. Seriously, call it an anniversary party and you'll be able to save thousands. THOUSANDS! I'm a super cheap bargain hunter at heart and the many dollar signs in front of all things wedding was hard to swallow. But it's very do-able. Recommendations from friends were the best and most practical way to go about doing a wedding on a budget. We chose an inexpensive city garden that had a gorgeous room attached, had a (very talented) college student put together our flowers, a friend of a friend make the cake, a budding photographer cousin of a family friend take our pictures, and one of my bridesmaids and her husband sing during our ceremony. And the list goes on. But it made a tremendous difference in our stress level to be able to automatically cross items off our list because of price when we considered the big picture and our strong desire to not go into debt over a 5 hour party.

2. Pick your battles.

The decisions you have to make will drive you capital c crazy. "Do you want 4 tiers on your cake or 5? Buttercream or fondant? Do you want the bridesmaids to match? How many people per table? Assigned seating or no? Buffet or served dinner? DJ or band?" Just creating that list stressed me out. Learning to pick and choose what is at the top of your list for that day will make your life much better. For us, our ceremony was one of the most important parts of the day. We made it uniquely us and our goal was for it to be God-honoring. We signed a covenant instead of lighting a unity candle or taking communion. The covenant signified the importance of Christ in the new marriage that was being formed. It's a binding spiritual contract that brings together the three strands of Charlie, me, and God. The rest of the stuff? It has to get done, yes, but it pales in comparison when I remembered what the day was really about.

3. Plan for your marriage, not only your party.

This might be one of the hardest parts of wedding planning. The options are endless and the lists can grow exponentially as you get closer to the "big day". But as someone wise told me, it's an amazing day. But it's just that: a day. There will be hundreds of days that follow that will require the same amount of effort and prayer that your wedding day took. Charlie and I did pre-marital counseling with our pastor and I would highly suggest having some counsel prior to your wedding day. We really didn't want to get home from our honeymoon and stare at each other and think "well our party's over, what do we do now?"

4. Remember that you're not super woman.

It is vital to your mental sanity to have someone who can be in the trenches of planning with you. We did most everything ourselves, and with Charlie being out of state, I needed someone to do the dirty work with me and give me very honest feedback on the things we were choosing. It's easy to become obsessed with everything being perfect and thinking you're the only one who can do it the "right" way. But you can't do it alone...your head will definitely explode. And that person may be your fiance, MOH, mom, MIL, or your best friend. I found that so many people were excited for our day that they wanted to be part of tying bows or decorating the venue before the wedding, or throwing a shower. For me, my mom and my sister were my battle partners. I can't count the hours they spent with me working to make June 17 the best party. Thanks y'all!

5. It's okay if you feel stressed. It's worth it!

I kept hearing that this should be the most fun time of your life and you'll love planning. I felt like a mental case because it was hard for me. It's an overwhelming time, yes. And it may not be your peak in life. I personally hope I didn't peak at my wedding and it's all downhill from there on out. But, at the end of the day, the planning isn't what the wedding truly is about. The commitment you're making and the significance and joy of that will outshine the crappy days you may have had leading up to it. And...at the end of the day, you married the love of your life and had a very fun party. It's ultimately a win-win!

That's all I have for y'all today. Did I mention that I'm wordy? I'm impressed if you made it to the end. If you have more questions, be sure to visit me at my blog or feel free to e-mail me. Thanks again, Amber!

--

Thanks so much for sharing!!

tutorial: leave a love note

hello lovelies.
i shared this fun tutorial over at threadesque last week
and thought i would share it here in case you didn't get over to her place to see it.

i am loving the chalkboard trend right now and i am jumping on that train.

today i am sharing a cute chalkboard for leaving love notes {or any notes but love notes are best}.

so here we go!
{1}
{2}{3}
i am horrible at waiting for things to dry...
i need to start a new project otherwise i will just keep painting
{4}
you could add rosettes, ribbon, do some decorative painting, or what ever else.
it's kinda like a blank canvas.

hope you enjoyed this simple, fun tutorial!

Pin It

marriage on my mind: Finding Beauty in the Ordinary

hello lovelies!!
today we have the wonderful heather from finding beauty in the ordinary sharing a bit on wedding prep and newly wed life!


I met my husband, Joshua, at a movie theater. He was sitting next to me at Mel Gibson's movie "The Passion of the Christ" in February 2004. I remember exactly what we were both wearing. We talked the first 45 minutes of the movie. We became close friends over that summer of 2004, started dating that August, and got engaged exactly 2 years later, on August 19th, 2006. We had a 3-month long engagement and got married on the most beautiful day of my life, November 19th, 2006. It's been a beautiful 5+ years of married bliss! We have expanded our family this year with our German Shepherd puppy, Hartley, and now a beautiful baby on the way, due August 2nd! We love being married!

What was your favorite part of your wedding day?

My favorite part of my wedding day was simply having all of my favorite people in my life together in one place. It's beautifully surreal.

What made your wedding uniquely you?

I love water and grew up sailing close to the beach in San Diego. My favorite colors are the colors of the ocean-- blues and greens. So I wanted to incorporate a very tranquil, serene feeling through our wedding. Our bridesmaid dresses were a beautiful shade of teal. Our floral arrangements were hydrangeas submersed in water in glass fish bowls. And I walked down the aisle to a non-traditional wedding march: Enya's "Carribbean Blue." That was the best decision ever.
If you could plan your wedding again what would you do/not do over again?

Honestly, there is not much I would have changed other than possibly delegating more and having friends and family help so that they felt more included and not so much was put on my back.
What advice do you have for a bride planning her wedding?

Prioritize. Make a list and put in order the things that matter to you the most to the least. This helps you stick to a budget and prioritize where your money goes. The thing that mattered to me the most was photography. The thing that mattered the least to me was favors, so we simply went with an ornate piece of chocolate on the top of the plates on the tables. My wedding photos are a forever-keepsake.

What advice do you have for a newly wed couple?

You can't read one anothers minds. Communicate and be honest. Always make one another your biggest priority. Aim to serve him and lay all of your expectations aside. When you get married, he is loving you in a new way by putting gas in your car or washing the car. It's not always going to be a dinner out. Learn to see love in different ways. And always make him feel like he's your world. Oh, and lots of sex is always good, too :)
thanks so much for sharing heather and a huge congrats on the little one on the way.

you can find heather here as well
blog-facebook-twitter-bloglovin'

sponsor highlight day: Jen @ Arizona Russums

Hi y'all! I'm Jen and I blog over at The Arizona Russums. When Amber asked me to do a "day in the life" post, I was excited and overwhelmed all at the same time. I have been thinking about doing one of these for a while, but I have never actually tried it because my days are so varied. I could tell you what each day of my week usually looks like, but no one day looks like the other, which I love...

But I will tell you about my typical Tuesday because that's perhaps the most normal day of my week.

7ish - Wake up. On a good day, this happens at 6:45am, but good days are few and far between, and 7am easily becomes 7:15...

7:15ish - Brush teeth/straighten hair/put on make-up {on a good day the make-up happens in the bathroom; on a rushed day it happens in the car as I drive to school}

7:45ish - Coffee and Bible reading. I make myself a white chocolate mocha on my at-home espresso machine every single morning. I really don't think I could get through a day without these two things!

8:00ish - Leave for school. Again, this often sadly becomes 8:15 or even 8:30 and I pray on the way that I don't have to make any copies before class.

9:00onthedot - Teach my English 102 class to college freshmen. They are studying and writing about online communities and I love it!

10:00ish - Meeting

11:00 - 1:00 - Office hours... students rarely visit, so I talk to my office mates, answer email, and sometimes do homework during this time. Oh, and I always eat a lunch I bring from home. Preferably leftovers from Monday's dinner.

1:30onthedot - Class {as a student this time, not a teacher}.

3:00ish - Head to the gym on the way home. Workouts usually consist of 20-30 minutes on the treadmill, weights and abs.

4:00ish - Home to shower and fix dinner. I usually grocery shop on Mondays, but if I forgot anything or didn't go for some reason, I might stop by the store.

Evening: Fix dinner, do homework, catch up on the blog, hang out with husband. Stay up too late. Sleep.

So that's my life. It's a little crazy every day. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays I substitute teach, but I usually don't know which school I will be at until the night before or the morning of. On Wednesdays, I have an evening class and then rush straight to our Missional Community. I am always switching between roles: college teacher, high school teacher, grad student, wife... but I love every second of it. I feel so blessed to be in grad school getting my PhD! Thanks for having me today, Amber!

Please stop by and visit! I'd love to meet you!
Blog // Facebook // Twitter // Bloglovin

xoxo,
Jen