Thankfulness

November 27, 2014 Pamela Stephens

My sweet friend Amanda made a post this week about the miscellaneous and trivial things that she was thankful for, and it made me think of similar things. I started a category here on the blog for posts to focus on thankfulness and point out things of that nature…things that truly make my life more pleasurable but aren’t your average, everyday items to be grateful for.

Of course, we’re all thankful for our homes and cars and food and heat. We do tend to take those things for granted, but I wanted to this post to be about something smaller. Something not so fundamental that brings a tremendous amount of joy to my life. I couldn’t have made this post in a timelier manner, as I just received my first delivery of Happy Mail. You guessed it…the thing I’m thankful for today is STATIONARY!

I mentioned my love of paper products in the post about our moving announcements, but I didn’t mention how truly thankful I am for having beautiful/funny/witty/thoughtful pieces of stationary to send to my friends, family, and clients. The release of the A Beautiful Mess Happy Mail program might have been the happiest day of my life. Ok…I’m exaggerating a bit, but seriously. I was SO. EXCITED. I was also literally bummed when I realized that my first kit would arrive while we were in Nashville. I couldn’t wait to get home and open it to start planning what I’d use these beautiful products for. This post is filled with photos of the first month’s items, but feel free to watch their video if you’d like more details.

As I was thinking about being thankful for the small things, I pulled all of these new cards/items from the gorgeously designed mailer, and this post was a no-brainer. I am truly thankful for having access to such beautiful items, and I’m thankful to have the money to purchase them. I’m thankful for a husband that lets me sign up for programs like Happy Mail. I am thankful for having wonderful people to send these sorts of things too. I am thankful for a career in which I can use personal touches like this to grow my business. I am thankful to be able to show people that I care about them with heartfelt cards. I am also incredibly thankful when I receive mail like this myself. (Send me some!) I can spend hours and hours browsing the isles of stationary and journals, and I’m so thankful that people design such wonderful things.

Cards are how I show people that I care. They’re how I say things that otherwise might go unsaid. They’re how I try to brighten someone’s day or how I send support. Granted, this is a bit unconventional for a Thanksgiving Day post. However, I thought this would be a perfect time to share just how thankful I am for items like these that bring joy to my everyday life. I also took this opportunity to really explore what paper products mean to me. I know that I love them, but I hadn’t thought much about why. (See above.) Today, while I’m thankful for my family/friends/home/career/stability, I’m also thankful for paper products and the opportunity to receive a delivery of new items to my mailbox every month. Thank you, A Beautiful Mess!

P.S. If you want to get on my random-card-receiving mailing list, send me your address!

P.S.S. Here’s a link to what Matthew and I were doing last Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

Simmons-Wright General Store

November 20, 2014 Pamela Stephens

Sometimes on road trips you stumble upon a real gem, a hidden piece of wonderfulness that you’ll remember for years to come. This trip to Tennessee offered one of those experiences right out of the gate. While passing through Alabama, we stumbled upon the Simmons-Wright General Store in Toomsuba, a location that’s been in business since 1884 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. It certainly didn’t disappoint.

The exterior looked just as you’d expect an old general store to look. The sign out front advertised the daily lunch specials and you could see a variety of antiques through the front windows. When you entered the store, you immediately felt like you were taking a step back in time. Antiques, jellies, and plumbing supplies filled the downstairs. The signs were hand written on cardboard, and the owner sat behind the counter talking about the weather and football. The guestbook made of loose leaf paper showed visitors logging in from all over the country. You could smell lunch cooking from somewhere in the back. When we asked to use the restroom, we were given a key to a door outside that they referred to as “the outhouse.” The entire experience was very nostalgic and captivating.

One of my favorite memories from this quick stop was Reba McEntire’s Fancy coming on the radio. Amanda and I immediately locked eyes from across the room and erupted in laughter. That song reflects one of our earliest memories as friends, and it was so funny to see us search the store for one another as soon as the intro began.

The building was a two story establishment with an upstairs filled with antiques. I was simply amazed by the collection of old shoes from as early as the 1920s. There were books, kitchen items, games, records, and even a large collection of 8 track tapes. At one point I looked across the store and realized that we were each in a corner of the shop that was so fitting for our individual personalities. I was inspecting every pair of shoes in the vintage clothing area. Matthew was looking through the old games and records, and Amanda was scanning the old book titles. “How appropriate,” I thought! As silly as it may sound, I stood there for a minute and reveled in the idea of how different we each are, but yet so similar. Sometimes it’s little, minuscule moments like these that really bring light to the things around you.

After making a few loops through the store, I selected a vintage flag mug and made our way to the counter. (I mentioned wanting cool coffee mugs here and since receiving a few cute ones from friends, I think I might start a collection!) It wasn’t quite time for lunch, but the home-cooked food smelled amazing. Matthew got a piece of cornbread and I had a glass of sweet tea. You can’t stop at a place with home-cooking in the south and not get a glass of sweet tea!

The best thing about this stop was that we were searching for the next spot to take a bathroom break. We saw the sign from the interstate and decided to give it a shot, even though it was a 0.9 miles from the interstate. We couldn’t have been happier with the outcome! I think the moral of this story is to take time to “stop and smell the roses.” Sometimes taking a small detour off the beaten path can provide you with an experience you’ll cherish forever. (And tasty cornbread!) Sometimes, it’s doesn’t matter how busy your life is or how big of a hurry you’re in. Taking a minute to explore something out of your ordinary path can become a something that you’ll remember for years to come. It may end up being a bust, but you’ll never know if you don’t try.

Today I challenge you to stop at a new store. Eat at a restaurant you’ve never tried, or take a different route home tonight. You don’t have to be miles from home to try something new. It’s okay to shake things up a bit on a random Thursday. Doing something new and different can be so rewarding and is often what keeps me inspired and motivated. What can you do to mix things up today? Try something different and leave me a comment here with details. Even if it doesn’t turn out to be spectacular, I’ll still be proud of you for trying. What ideas do you have for shaking up the ordinary? I’d love to hear them!

Here’s a post from the archives with a similar message.

6 Comments Travel #maptennesse - 2014 - Amanda - husband and wife - travel

Moving Announcements

November 17, 2014 Pamela Stephens

A few weeks ago, Matthew and I mailed moving announcements with our new mailing address on them. The first set of announcements was sent to our family and friends. (If you didn’t get one, it’s because I don’t have an address for you. Send it over!) I mailed these announcements for a few reasons.

I love paper products and cards, so I’ll take any excuse to mail something of the sort.
I wanted to announce/celebrate the purchase of our first home together.
I wanted everyone to have the new address to make it easier for them when sending Christmas cards, shower invites, large sums of money, etc. (Kidding on the money, but please feel free to send some our way.)

This card was designed by the talented Nicole Meares at The Fletching Co. (Here’s the link to the actual product listing.) After Nicole finished the design, I had the cards printed locally at Associated Business Printing, and I ordered brown kraft envelopes on Amazon.

After mailing these to friends and family, I decided that it would be nice to mail them to my new neighbors, as well. I thought this would be a nice way to introduce ourselves and at least give the neighbors an idea of who we are. We’ve had a chance to meet a few people on our street but not many.

For this set of cards, I felt like there needed to be something else in the envelope. If they read the card closely, they’d be able to tell we were the new kids on the block by the address. However, I wanted to make it a little easier for them to determine why they were getting this card. I decide to include a little cutout that said “Howdy New Neighbor!” This cutout would go in front of the card in the envelope, so anyone who hadn’t met us yet would have an indication of why they were receiving a moving announcement from a stranger.

I must say, this might have been the most exciting part of this project for me. I used the A Beautiful Mess app to design the cutout and printed it on a dark orange card stock. My assistant cut them into little squares, and we were ready to mail! Isn’t that little guy the cutest?! There weren’t as many of these as the friends and family cards, so we hand addressed them and used this stamp for the return address. (Bo was incredibly easy to work with when ordering my address stamps, by the way. Highly recommended!)

Side note about the cards: Someone mentioned once that they’re jealous because I send out different cards and things like this. They said they felt like I “had it together” and they didn’t because of this. That’s definitely not true, and I never send out cards and such with the intention of making someone feel bad. Instead, cards and stationary are my thing. It’s what I love to do. I will almost always find time to do things of the sort because it’s my favorite. However, you’ll likely never receive a gourmet cupcake from me and there will always be shoes on the floor in every room of my house. The fact that I send out fancy holiday cards or moving announcements (which most of my friends had never heard of) isn’t intended to make anyone feel inferior. When you see someone doing things that maybe you aren’t good at or don’t care about, just remember, their thing is different from your thing, and you’re likely kicking their tail in some other area of life. Last week’s post on starting a family kind of touches on this. We’re all different but wonderful, so never forget how fantastic you are in your own way. You don’t have to send out moving announcements to rock at life.

I’m not kidding when I say that I’ve love, love, love cards and projects like this. I’ve been looking at Christmas card designs for months, and I may even be sending a few Thanksgiving cards this year. Did you ever have that aunt or grandmother that sent everyone a birthday card? That’s totally me…except I’m not doing too good in the birthday department yet. But a random St. Patrick’s Day card? I’m your girl. I actually just signed up for Happy Mail, and I’m so pumped! The thought of getting new cards and stationary in the mail every month makes me so excited. Most of you probably get make up. Not me. Give me all the cards!

Have you seen any other unconventional reasons for mailing cards? I look for any excuse to mail something fun, so if you see something interesting, please send the idea my way!

Update: Check out the sweet card we got from a neighbor in response to these announcements!

2 Comments Our First House #mapfirsthouse - 2014 - moving - my favorites

On Starting a Family

November 13, 2014 Pamela Stephens

I was sitting in the Starbucks drive through one morning and watched a pregnant lady stroll by in front of my car. She was probably 6 or 7 months pregnant. She was as cute as can be and looked so happy, laughing as her and her friend walked by. I’m sure her feet were probably swollen and she might not have slept well the night before, but she looked genuinely happy.

As I sat there waiting for my coffee, I realized that I don’t really have that overwhelming desire to be that woman. Don’t get me wrong, I do want kids. (As a matter of a fact, I want 5!) However, I realized that I don’t long to be pregnant. I don’t get that empty feeling in my stomach when I see a mom holding a new baby. I don’t lay awake at night thinking about starting a family. I do want a family, and I do look forward to being a mom someday, but I just don’t long for it.

On the other hand, when I see a woman in a suit speaking at a conference or leading an important meeting, I do get excited. There’s something about having a successful career that wakes me up inside. I have big goals and even bigger dreams, and I could talk business all day! When I look at myself in a futuristic way, business is what I see. As a matter of a fact, I can’t ever remember seeing myself at home with adorable children tugging on my apron. When I think back to my childhood thoughts on my future, I remember seeing myself standing before a projector in a Fortune 500 company, explaining some revolutionary breakthrough I discovered. Since I can remember, my idea of success has always centered around a predominant career.

The more I thought about my focus on career goals instead of family goals, the more guilty I felt. After all, I do want a family. I do want to bake cupcakes for school parties and go to every soccer game. The fact that I want to make a name for myself in the workforce doesn’t at all mean that I don’t also want to be a wonderful mommy some day.

As I thought more about this struggle between work and family, I realized that thousands of other women probably battle this same thing. I realized that each and every one of us have different goals or timelines for our lives and that none of them are “wrong.” Some women want lavish careers. Some want to be at home everyday raising beautiful babies. Some want both. Some do one or the other and some do both. Some moms bake after-school snacks from scratch and some pick up snacks from the drive through.

It was in that moment that I realized that it’s ok to want both. It’s ok to focus more heavily on one or the other, or it’s ok to fight for a balance between the two.

The fact that I’m not longing to have children right now doesn’t mean that I’ll make a bad mother someday. It doesn’t mean that I’m less of a woman than the lady standing next to me with a sweet two year old looking up at her. It just means that I’m different. And you’re different. We’re all different, but we’re all still amazing in our own ways. There’s nothing that we can’t accomplish, regardless of what those goals are. Whether you’re a stay at home mom or a successful business woman, it doesn’t matter. You’re still a wonderful, amazing woman who has the opportunity to make a difference in the world. The difference that you make may come through in cupcakes and kissed bruises, or it may be through a successful marketing campaign. Either way, you will make a difference to someone.

Deep down I know that I’m writing my own story and that I’ll always be thankful for sticking to my guns and following my own timeline. However, sometimes it’s hard to not be discouraged when people question your plans. It’s hard to not feel inferior when people ask, “when are y’all going to have kids?” Yes, having children is the next apparent step in our story, but it’s not a step that we have to take now. If you’re curious, I don’t plan to have kids until I just can’t stand not having them any more. (Obviously, I know that we can’t plan everything in our lives. Actually, I’ve always said that my first child will most likely have to be unplanned.)

I mentioned starting a category here on the blog for things that I’ve learned, and I think this is a big one. I’m slowly learning that it’s ok to not follow the norm. People will likely talk and ask inappropriate questions. And inevitably, someone will unintentionally make you feel bad about yourself at one point or another. It’s ok. I’d rather live my life in a way that I feel passionately about than succumb to tradition.

If you want to have lots a babies right away, please do! If you want to travel the world, do it. If your dreams revolve around finding the next big thing, keep searching. If anything, this post is about celebrating, and more importantly, respecting the differences in our dreams. We don’t have to all look and act the same. We don’t have to want the same things, and we don’t have to follow the same path. We each have a purpose in this world and the paths to get there will most definitely be different. That’s what makes this ole life so interesting!

Today I charge you to not judge people for being different. Instead, make time to celebrate the difference among us. If at all possible, try to encourage the women around you, even if their dreams might be a little different than yours. They most likely need it.

Thank you, Naomi, for letting me borrow a photo of your sweet Adley.

1 Comment Inspiration & Thoughts 2014 - family - What I've Learned

I’m Thankful for a New Home

November 10, 2014 Pamela Stephens

The month of November seems like the perfect time to focus on things to be thankful for. I started a series a while back focusing on things I’m thankful for to help myself draw attention to the positive things in my life. A month or so ago, I started a note on my phone with a list of reasons that I’m thankful for our new home. I thought this would help me to not get discouraged with the mountains of boxes and updates we hadn’t gotten to yet. I didn’t really intend on this becoming a blog post, but since this is the month to focus on thankfulness, I thought I’d share with you.

Remember, just because I’m sharing some things that I love about my new home, doesn’t mean that there aren’t negatives. Instead, I’m just choosing to focus on the positive. Hopefully this post will encourage you to search for the positive in your homes too. Even if your current residence isn’t the house of your dreams, I’m certain that there are things you like. Let’s focus on those.

We’ve lived in our new home for a little over three months now. We’ve made a ton of changes in a short amount of time and still have lots to do. In this short amount of time, I’ve found several things that I absolutely love about this house. Here are a few of them:

Natural Light & Blinds: This house has a TON of natural light. The entire living area is filled with light the majority of the day. Windows are abundant, and the blinds are easy to open. I’ve learned that being outside and having lots of light is sort of the key to my overall happiness. I mentioned that a little in this post. If I were forced to live in a dark house with few windows, I’m fairly certain that I’d have to be medicated. Having this abundance of light and connection with the outdoors has been such a blessing to me.
Windows That Open: If you can’t tell, I’m really thankful for my windows…even if they are still dirty. Our old house had a lot of great windows, but they were painted shut. I didn’t have the opportunity to open them on nice-weather days and actually couldn’t hardly open the blinds on some of them. Even though it had decent windows, that house still had an overall darkness to it. I honestly think the windows here have increased my overall mood dramatically. I love being able to come home and open those windows on days when the weather is nice (which is like twice a year in Louisiana).
Hot Water: This may seem like a joke but I’m seriously pumped about the abundance of hot water here. At our rent house, I’d be in big trouble if I had to take a shower right after Matthew. If I needed to wash my hair and shave my legs, I had to prep for a marathon first. I’ve seriously never shaved my legs as quickly as I did in that house. Before you knew it, you’d be struck with freezing cold water. This was especially true during the winter because the water heater was outside and apparently not insulated very well. Today, I’m so thankful to be able to take a full shower without having to race to the finish line. I can even take a shower directly after Matthew and still have plenty of hot water! It’s the little things, folks.
Bathroom Heater: Speaking of bathrooms, this house has heaters in the bathrooms and that’s amazing! Our last bathroom didn’t even have electrical outlets so we didn’t even have the option to plug in a space heater, much less have one built in. Instead, we took showers in a freezing cold bathroom with little to no hot water. Doesn’t that sound like paradise?? I’ve already used the bathroom heater twice and I’m pumped about it…even if the master bath heater does rattle a little much. Noisy heat is better than no heat! (We also have plugins in both bathrooms….modern conveniences are amazing!)
A Clean Kitchen: Our new kitchen may have old cabinets and basic appliances, but it is soooo much better than our last kitchen. I’ve never shared pictures of that old beast because it was so dreadful. I can’t even appropriately describe its awfulness. Having a kitchen that is a good size and CLEAN without floor tiles on the walls has been a joy. I don’t mind being in there, and I’ve even cooked since living here! One day I may have the courage to show that old kitchen, but it’s still too fresh. Just know that it was bad. With a capital B.
Painted Walls: The walls in our rent house were all the same dreadful color of tan. Every. Single. Wall. was the same color. This wasn’t even a good tan. This was that tan that sort of looks pink. They were full of nail holes and bad patch jobs. Even though I had scrubbed every surface, the walls still had this dingy, dirty look to them. Our new house has fresh paint and no nail holes. Plus, the rooms are different colors! It is so refreshing to walk into a room that doesn’t look exactly like the room you just left. I already want to repaint some of the rooms here, but nonetheless, I’m pumped to have good paint on the walls.

As I’m writing this post, I realize that old rent house might have been sucking the life out of me. I knew that towards the end, I sort of hated being there and I was never, ever inspired by that space. Yes, I’ll always love that little house and the memories we made there because it was our first. However, I’m incredibly thankful to be in a new home that feels like it has endless possibilities. This house is so much more inviting and inspiring, and I feel so lucky that it’s mine. Again, it’s not perfect. However, my goal in life is to draw on the positive. I don’t want to focus on the negatives. I want to be thankful for this place and what it’s already done for me in this short time.

What do you have to be thankful for in your home? If your mind immediately starts thinking of the things you hate or wish were different, stop it!! Tell that negativity to leave and instead try to list some of the positive things. Focusing on the positive has a profound impact on your qualify of life. Make a list or leave a comment here with at least 5 things you’re thankful for in your home. After all, we all have so much to be thankful for.

5 Comments Home - Our First House #mapfirsthouse - 2014 - thankful

Joyce’s Journey: Six Month Checkup

November 6, 2014 Pamela Stephens

It’s time for a #JoycesJourney update! This past week Mom went for her six month oncology checkup. It’s been almost nine months since her surgery and six months since she was cleared by the doctors. I’m happy to say that we have good news to report today!

Last week, we had an appointment with the surgeon, Dr. Werner, in Shreveport. He said that her incisions are healing very nicely and everything seems to be just fine…better than most actually. She’ll return to him in three months for another check.

On Monday, we visited her oncologist, Dr. Weinberger, for the biggest of the tests. He said that all of her blood work looked good. Her white and red blood cell and platelet counts are all good. Her kidneys and liver are both functioning properly. He didn’t hear any issues with her lungs and didn’t feel any trouble with her lymph nodes. All of the signs say that we are healing perfectly and cancer free!!

Of course, Mom was a little nervous about these appointments, but we’re thrilled to have gotten a good, clean report. We’ll see the oncologist again in February and have another colonoscopy then. If everything looks good in February, she won’t have to be checked again for another 3-5 years!

Both my mom and I appreciate everyone’s thoughtfulness through this process. This time last year, we were kicking off chemo and radiation treatments. It’s simply amazing how much can transpire in a year, and how much the encouragement of others can help during tough times like these. My family and I are so incredibly thankful that we can report good news just one year later. We can’t thank you enough for taking this journey with us. Feel free to leave a comment for Mom here. She loves to come and read them!

To read the full story, click here.

P.S. Mom still has a little trouble getting around sometimes because of her knees. (Surgery prep for knee replacements is actually how we found the cancer.) This photo was taken at Wal-Mart as she learned to drive the motorized scooter. This was her second attempt at driving a scooter, and let’s just say it went much better than the first! She’ll be a pro in no time!

1 Comment Inspiration & Thoughts 2014 - cancer - family - Joyce's Journey

November Goals

November 3, 2014 Pamela Stephens

For the past two months, I’ve posted monthly goals here on the blog and I’ve had a ton of success with accomplishing things once I’ve shared them here with you. This month, I am simply thrilled to announce that I accomplished EVERY SINGLE ONE of my October goals!! If you’re not jumping up and down with me right now, then apparently we’re not really friends. I am seriously so pumped to be able to say that I got all of these things done (or at least mostly done) last month. Here’s a quick review:

Put up fall/Halloween decor. Check!
Host a Halloween party. Check!!
Begin using the master bath. This barely happened, but I took my first bath in our bathroom this morning!
Empty every box in the dining room. Done! And I think I should get to take the rest of the year off just for accomplishing this one.
Bring the dining table in from storage. Check! (I don’t like it in the room like I thought I would, but it’ll do for now.)
Do something with the boxes in the foyer. The stuff from these boxes doesn’t really have a permanent home, but the boxes are no longer there. I call that a win!
Finish all kitchen boxes. There may be a few things in random cabinets, but there are no more boxes in the kitchen! Another win!
Put down another rug. Done! I’m still in the market for a new living room rug. Send the fabulous ones my way!

As I began thinking about November goals, I realized that I didn’t really want to set too many goals for this month. Instead, I really wanted to focus on being in the moment. I love the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday seasons, so I shift into holiday mode as soon as November rolls around. I set a few small goals for the month, but my main goal is to attend all of the events and spend all of the time possible with family and friends. Besides drinking coffee and wearing sweaters, here’s what I’m hoping to do this month:

Purchase five Christmas presents. Honestly, I should have more than five bought by the end of the month, but like I said above, I’m planning to take it easy on myself this month.
Spend a week in Nashville while working as little as possible. The beauty of my business is that it can be done from practically anywhere. That can sometimes be a negative as it’s hard to get away and take a break. This will take a lot of pre-planning on my part and help from my coworkers, but I’m hoping to leave for a few days while my business keeps rolling along here.
Find a coffee to brew at home. I haven’t talked much about my relationship with coffee here on the blog yet, but it’s coming. I’m a relatively new coffee drinker, and I can’t really make my own coffee to suit my taste. I’m going to be on a mission this month to make a coffee at home that I’ll actually drink. Wish me luck!
Review my 2014 goals. I may end up pushing this one to December, but at some point, I’d like to spend a little bit of time looking back over what I wanted to accomplish this year.
Finalize 2015 goals. Now this is one I’m excited about! I started working on my list in October, and I’ve actually already started working towards some of them. This is partially why I’m kind of over 2014 goals, but that’s ok. This month, I plan to decide which goals get to stay and which will go for 2015. It’s right around the corner, you know?!
Enjoy this season. If you notice, none of this month’s goals are really house focused, which is quite the opposite of September and October. In last week’s post, I mentioned that I felt like I had finally hit a point where I could take a break and relax a little. Things felt ok around the house. While I’ll definitely continue to work on the house here and there, I plan to give myself a break. This month, I want to focus on making some memories and enjoying this lovely time of year. Who’s with me??

Leave a comment Goal Setting 2014 - goals - monthly goals

Happy Halloween!

October 30, 2014 Pamela Stephens

It’s Halloween! When I planned out my content for the past few weeks, I penciled in “Halloween post” for today. I figured I’d post pictures of our Halloween decor or details on our costumes, but as I began writing, I quickly realized that this post was going to be very different.

On Saturday morning, I sat down on the couch after cleaning up from Friday’s Halloween party. I could have written about how exciting it was to host our first get-together in our new house or about the fun we had with friends. However, after finishing the dishes and cleaning the spots of who-knows-what from the floors, I sat down and realized something profound.

This house is ready.

First of all, let me clarify what I mean by “ready.” In this case, ready does not mean perfectly decorated or organized. It doesn’t mean that everything has a definite place to go and all of the gold light fixtures have been replaced. Instead, it means that my dining room and foyer aren’t full of boxes. From where I was sitting, I couldn’t see a single piece of cardboard and that’s amazing! In this story, “ready” means we have shower curtains hanging in both bathrooms. Even if I don’t like them, there are curtains hanging. Today, “ready” means that even though closets may be stuffed a little full with things I still need to address, there aren’t piles of stuff sitting here and there on tables and countertops.

One of my October goals was to host a Halloween party. Of course, I wanted to have this party to be able to spend time with friends and to dress up because it’s my favorite. However, the main reason for my decision to host this party was to give myself a deadline for getting this house unpacked. Even though I was knocking things out one box at a time, I still felt like the boxes would never end. I’d never get around to putting away those paint cans, and we’d never get the floors clean enough to put those rugs down. I knew that if I agreed to invite 30-40 people to our new home, I’d really make some magic happen. And we did. The week before a party would usually be spent hanging holiday decor and planning a menu. Ours were spent reattaching light fixtures, moving in furniture, and trips up and down the attic ladder.

I’m certainly thrilled that everyone came in fabulous costumes and we spent the night laughing with friends. However, now that everyone has gone home and the remnants of a party are cleaned up, I’m so incredibly thankful to have made it this far in the process of setting up our home.

I’ve written a couple of posts that I’ve yet to share about how my goal is to get to a point where we’re not always working on and cleaning this house. Today, it feels like I’m there. I still have lists of updates to do, and I haven’t even made a small dent in the decorating, but now that the boxes are done, I feel like I can spend my time working on the fun things like searching for new furniture and pretty things. I’m thrilled that I can sit down on a Saturday and not feel guilty for resting. I’m excited that I can tackle one packed closet at a time until they’re finished, but there’s no immediate rush to get it done. I feel relieved for the chance to do fun things with my free time instead of feeling pressured to work on this house nonstop. If you’ve moved recently, you can probably relate to how I feel. And if you’ve accomplished something major lately, you can likely relate to how I feel in this very moment, which is amazing!

I mentioned last week that this blog is where I tell my story. I really thought that today’s post would show snapshots from last week’s party or links to some of the Pinterest projects I attempted. Instead, this Halloween party gave me so much more than material for a crafty blog post…it gave me peace of mind. I’m walking away from this experience feeling so incredibly accomplished and relaxed. I will still make this home beautiful over time, and I will empty those closets. However, I will take a deep breath before doing so, and I’ll sit back and enjoy how far we’ve come. Today, I’m thankful for progress and for motivation. I’m thankful for good friends who can look past works in progress, and a husband that’ll work nonstop to help me knock out my massive pre-party to-do list. I’m also thankful for the ability to host gatherings of this sort for my friends.

I hope you have the happiest of Halloweens. Be safe and make lots of memories!

2 Comments Home - Our First House #mapfirsthouse - 2014 - Halloween - thankful

Grown Ups Buy New Mattresses

October 28, 2014 Pamela Stephens

If you were to make a list of those totally non-glamorous adult decisions/purchases that you have to do when you’re a grown up, buying a mattress would be on the top of that list. As a matter of fact, it’s a little disheartening to spend your hard earned money on something that no one else will even see! Buying a car is exciting…you can show that off. Fabulous new living room furniture…people will see and use that. Even new bedding can be exciting…you can share a pic on Instagram and folks will see it when you give a tour of your home. Spending thousands of dollars on a new mattress? Not that exciting.

However, I can honestly say that spending what I’d consider a large amount of money on this hidden gem has been one of the best decisions we’ve made! Neither Matthew nor I have ever bought a new mattress. (Raise your hand if you’ve lived with hand-me-down mattresses too!) Even the king sized mattress we got when we were first married was given to us by his parents when they had to buy a new one. Personally, I just couldn’t ever justify spending my money on something like a mattress when there were cool shoes to buy and vacations to take.

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with hand-me-down mattresses, but Matthew and I were in desperate need of a new one. You see, my wonderful husband doesn’t roll over gently when he sleeps. Instead, he flops. There are seriously no words to describe the way in which he does this. With our old mattress, I’d bounce around like a little baby on grandpa’s knee and wake up every. single. time. he rolled over. Not only was the bouncing an issue, but I’d constantly be pulled into the dip in the middle. With Matthew being so much bigger than me, I’d have to fight being pulled to the middle whenever he’d get into bed. All night, I’d fight gravity pulling me into a hole and trying to stay asleep when he decided to roll over. I don’t even need to mention how badly our backs hurt when we woke up in the morning and how we were the exact opposite of well-rested. Needless to say, it was time.

It took us months to make the commitment, be we finally selected a Temperpedic mattress with Breeze Technology. (I get terribly hot when I sleep, so anything that’ll help me to be cooler when I sleep is a blessing.) When I say that this mattress has changed my life, I am only barely exaggerating. It does take a bit to adjust to the feel of a Temperpedic mattress, but within just a week or so, I was adjusted and in heaven. I do NOT feel Matthew flopping around and sleep peaceful through the night. Most days, I don’t even wake up when he gets out of bed! We both wake up feeling much more rested and without all of the aches and pains.

We were in Lafayette a few weekends ago and it was our first time to stay in a hotel since getting our new bed. Not fun. After the first night, I completely remembered what it was like to sleep in our old bed and missed our new one terribly. I told Matthew that there should be a website where you can choose a hotel based on whether or not they offer Temperpedic mattresses. (Take note of that, Temperpedic. Let me know when I can register on the new site.)

For the record, I was not compensated in any way for writing this post. (Although, that would have been nice.) I just wanted to share with you how very much of a difference this mattress has made for me and that I regret not buying it sooner. If you’re considering a new mattress (or other furniture), I highly recommend visiting Sleepy Hollow Furniture at 900 Louisville Avenue in Monroe. Their showroom is great and they’ll let you try different options for hours (speaking from experience). As a matter of a fact, I’d suggest asking for my friend, Benay. She’s the absolutely sweetest and knows her stuff! (She’s also not one of those crazy salesperson types which we all hate.) Y’all know that I always encourage shopping local when you can, and this would be my top suggestion for furniture after just going through the process myself.

If you’re interested in reading about other grown up purchases that Matthew and I have made, check out the post about buying a car and of course all of the posts about our first house. Guess I’ll go shop around for some 401k packages and car insurance…

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My Favorites: Makeup Edition

October 23, 2014 Pamela Stephens

If you would have asked if I would share anything about makeup or beauty products on this blog, I would have probably laughed at you. I kind of want to delete this post right now because I feel so silly. With the exception of shampoos, beauty products and makeup are not really my thing. I have never been the girl with tons of products and a makeup bag full of options. Ulta stresses me out a little, and to be honest, I don’t even know what to do with most of that stuff. I suppose that I show my personality through clothes and accessories instead. However, I’ve come across a few products that I love lately, so I thought I’d share. You can mark this in your calendar as the day Pamela got a fever and decided to talk about makeup.

Maybelline Full ‘N Soft Waterproof Mascara: Amanda introduced me to this mascara a while back. Since then, I’ve tried 6 or 7 other options (including the non-waterproof version of this same one) and none of them have even compared. I love the simplicity of this mascara…it goes on smoothly and doesn’t clump. (I HATE clumps.) Also, it doesn’t flake off as the day progresses. One of the options that I tried would leave little black specks on my cheeks or in my eyes as the day went on. Not cool.

L’Oreal Visible Lift Eye Concealer: I just recently discovered this concealer after reading about it on a blog. I usually scroll past those makeup posts, but for some reason, I read this one. Honestly, I haven’t even worn concealer for years. By years I mean since high school. I know, I know…all of you people with the fabulously applied makeup and contoured cheeks are probably screeching. So sorry! Even though I haven’t worn concealer in years, I’ve been searching for something to help under my eyes. They’re pretty much always a purple-blue color regardless of how much sleep I’ve gotten. When I saw the post about this concealer, I loved that it was made just for eyes and that it came in a cool little roller tube. I definitely don’t want anything to complicate my process any, so the simpler the better here. After using this product for a few weeks, I can report that I LOVE how easy to apply it is and how it’s not the least bit cakey-feeling. (I know that’s not a word. You totally know what I mean though.) It blends well and covers up my dark circles wonderfully. I even rub it on my eyelids for a little extra coverage.

Make Up Remover Wipes: I mainly wear waterproof eye makeup, so I need something to remove that in the morning. I’ve been a long term Mary Kay user and have always kept their remover in stock. However, after forgetting to order more, I had to find another, what I thought was temporary, option at Walgreens. Since then, I’ve tried a few different options and have settled on two products that I really, really like.

1. Neutrogena Hydrating Towelettes: I just recently tried this version of the Neutrogena wipe and it’s by far my favorite. (I’ve tried all of their waterproof options, including the grapefruit which smelled amazing but was too harsh on my skin.) I tend to have dry (and sensitive) skin so the hydrating formula works well for me. I absolutely love how my skin feels after using this wipe. I also really like the smell of this formula. I hate eye make up removers that are greasy feeling, and this one seems to do a good job of removing the makeup and hydrating my skin without leaving behind that greasy feeling. I can’t say that I won’t go back to the Mary Kay version at some point, but I definitely love this new option.

2. Pond’s Evening Soothe Towelettes: I’m also in love with these wipes that I use for cleaning my face before bed. If I’m completely honest again, for many years past high school, I didn’t even wash my face at night. I know, I can hear your gasps! I’ve always had pretty decent skin so I didn’t really feel like I had to. I shower in the mornings, so I just take my make up off then. I finally came to the conclusion that I could have even better skin if I’d go back to washing my face before bedtime. I stumbled upon these nighttime wipes, and I love so much about them. I love the quilted texture of the wipe and the smell. Lots of smells trigger my migraines, so I have to be careful. This one is light and easy but has a nice, clean smell to it. After using these for a bit, I’ve started to associate its smell with bedtime, so I begin to relax once I use them. This isn’t a wipe for waterproof makeup. Since I remove my eye makeup in the mornings, this is only for my skin.

As I mentioned above, I’m pretty shocked that I’m even posting something here about makeup/beauty products. I definitely wouldn’t say to expect a new one anytime soon! However, I’ve really come to love these four products and thought I’d share with you guys. These are all relatively inexpensive products that can be found at your local pharmacy or Target. If you happen to try any of them, please let me know what you think!

5 Comments Fashion 2014 - makeup - my favorites - What I Wore