Love Notes {crafts}

I love writing notes. Especially notes of encouragement.  And I have friends all over the world this summer.  I wanted my sweet friend Brooke to be able to have some words of encouragment for her trip in the Czech Republic.

A couple of years ago a friend gave me notes in a creative way.  I decided to recreate it to send with Brooke.

I started with 3 envelopes,

A glue stick,

Notecards,

Colorful pens

Super simple!

I didn’t take step by step instructions.  Just glue the envelopes end to end.

And then write your love notes and stuff your envelopes!  You can decide to poke holes in the front most envelope and tie it all together.  {I had to mail mine so I decided against it.}  You could also tack it to a wall for a cascade of pockets

 Do you prefer paper notes or an email?

Those things called the Olympics

via

A couple of weeks ago I disclosed that I don’t really watch much TV.  Yeah…when the Olympics are on that changes.  

I remember as a little girl being allowed to stay up late to watch the women’s gymnastics team.  Somehow in my little mind, I could someday be on that team.  Being the realistic adult that I now am, I know that that would never happen.  Again, I admit that I can’t do a cartwheel.  Many years of failed attempts and I have finally accepted that I won’t be a gymnast.  I’m impressed and awed by the stunts that they can do.  I think my favorite is the floor routine… {subject to change}

Then there is swimming.  Yes, for some reason, I the child who had trouble keeping my face in the water during swim lessons, decided I might be able to contend against the fastest swimmers in the world.  I love childhood dreams.  I have developed a love for swimming, but I am very humble in the fact that I do it for exercise {and the fact that one year of swim team made it so I don’t know how to do anything but swim laps in a pool} and for  the pure enjoyment of gliding through the water.

The Olympics are something that unites people and I love that!  I love that this year I discovered sports I’ve never heard of, or sports that I forget are a part of the games.  I love that cultures collide and people meet others from around the world. 

There are things that I don’t like and would love to change {or sometimes just want to smack the commentator or news anchor on the side of the head}.  But overall, that’s not what makes the Olympics exciting. 

I will say that sitting watching people makes me feel like a lazy bum.  And I will say that I would love to travel and see the people from all over the world meet in a spot for a common goal.  Isn’t that what makes the Olympics motivating the athletics and the travel?

What is your favorite summer Olympic sport?  And what team did you hope to be on {real or in your childhood dreams}?

Dear... {Friday Letters}

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Dear Weekend I’m excited you’re here, but I don’t know what we are doing together.  Should be fun!

Dear kiddos, I’m excited to see you Saturday night.  I know that your curious little minds are going to ask me about Italy again.  What story will we tell this time?

Dear Sunshine, I’m missing you.  Date this weekend?

Dear Siblings, You can come back now.  I want to hear stories of houseboats!

Dear Greek food, Yum!  You are delicious! {garlic fries with gyro meat on top and zucchini fries}

Dear YL community, thanks for last night.  I needed that.

Dear Life, Will you please slow down?

Linking up with Ashley at Adventures of Newlyweds

Sometimes and Always {White Collar Edition}

I am not a big TV watcher.  I've gone weeks without watching it.  I love movies, but TV, eh.  It could be partly that through out my entire life I have had cable for about a year and a half.  Total.  And I didn't pay for it, so I was ok with it. 

 I do however have access to Netflix...  yeah. Now I can watch 'good' TV, without the commercials. 

 Enter in White Collar.

Now you know what I'm doing when I'm not writing for the blog.  Family bonding time.  Otherwise known as watch white collar, and go to bed too late.

This is a pretty pointless post, but you had to be let in on the secret.

Sometimes: I am fine with not having cable and TV at the tip of my fingers

Always:  I usually don't know what shows people are talking about

Sometimes: I think I'll just watch one more episode

Always:  It's a war. To sleep or not to sleep? I've lost way too much sleep over a TV show...

Sometimes:  I wish I hadn't heard of this show

Always:  I see the benefits. There are some great family nights that have centered around this show.

Sometimes:  Neil Caffery, you are great.  Wish you were real.  You would keep me on my toes ad drive me crazy :)

Always:  I don't think I would trust you completely.  But I know you would have my back.  {how does that contradiction work?}

Sometimes:  There's whining. You started it without me?!?

Always:  We forgive each other.  And then we laugh at all the one liners.  {We love each other, can you tell?}

Sometimes:  I wish Netflix would hurry up and get season 3

Always:  I'm glad for a break.  I don't need to watch a show.

If you are looking for a time consuming, witty, not much blood and gore, action packed show...check it out.  But you've been warned :)

Linking up with Megan's much more insightful and deeper Sometimes & Always series

Feeling Behind, but Looking Ahead

This whole blogging thing has got me learning and questioning at every turn.  Here's how I see it:

I could blog about that! It's going to be such a good post...now I have to find a picture

or

daydreaming and writing in my head {usually in the car or shower, you know the most opportune time to use a computer}...oh, now I have to remember that so I can type it.  and wouldn't it be fun to emphasis this point and link to that site...

or 

I wait for an event and then it happens and then life gets in the way...{all the time}4th of July, I'll be happy if I review it in July.  it was a great day...

or 

wow that was really deep.  does anyone understand what I tried to write, that just went though my brain?  does anyone even care?  probably not, but would said reader understand...? ugh

Needless to say I feel constantly behind in my blogging capabilities.  There are things I'd love to do like create a blog button, and figure out how to do fun things like a new blog design. and I'd love to have more of a direction.  I don't want to be in a box of what I have to write about, but I would love to have a direction. 

Now we are going to move on, because this blog is not a pitty party.  

It is a place to share adventures and life experiences.  

and I am excited to share some of my heart, some happenings.  Here we go; to not feeling guilty for a non-everyday post {cause its going to happen a lot}, 

to a little more planning for said posts, 

and also to learning about running a blog and 

making this space welcoming just like the title...

Benvenuti! 

Friday Letters

Dear Friday, I'm really glad you're here...but I'm kinda more excited for Saturday this time around.

Dear Dance Show, you are going on this weekend and I am so excited to see you in all your amazingness.  Please, go off without a hitch.  I know my sister has put a lot into you.  

Dear Summer, you are flying by and I am along for the ride. Slow down just a tad, please.

Dear summer Project List, would you please become easier to tackle?  Oh, and have lots of fun projects?

Dear Organization Motivation, thanks for hanging around.  Can you stay for next week too?

Changing Your Perspective By Being Gone

There’s a lot of directions I could go with that title, but we are going to go with what a friend emailed with today. 

"As I continue to let the fact that I am halfway across the world sink into my system, I am coming to realize how much this opportunity...will change my life forever, including my views on culture, luxuries / necessities, food, and life in general."   

And it made me smile because this is what I try to tell people whenever they ask about my time abroad.  What do you want me to tell you?  That it was amazing, wonderful, and hard.   That I learned.  That I’m different.  I’m changed.   

These changes just happen.  Just like the way that you change as you grow up and maybe the way you were in second grade with your best friend is not going to be the way that you are when you are 45 with your best friend.  Let’s hope not! There is something valuable about being gone.  About placing yourself outside a situation and outside what is going on in this country, in this city, at this time, at this specific place.  I think that's why we have imaginations.  And I think that's why God created our imaginations to be a tool.  They can help us to be able to adapt to that place.  He gave us imaginations and other tools so that he could change us.  That might be a round-about way of saying that...let me know if I need to connect the dots better. Everything we do, every situation that we are placed into changes us. 

While writing this I even found some of my own perspectives changing.  I’m not a fantasy person, I love The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe, but that's as far as I go.  I like things to be logical.  And let me tell you the imagination is not logical, but my imagination is a tool.  It allows me to empathize with others and envision what life might be like say...in Torino, Italy…right now.

Things I've Learned

...by working in market research

People, companies, have really interesting websites

Some people are still kids at heart and even though you’ve never met them…you can tell. 

A website can tell you a whole lot about someone. Just think what your facebook or blog says!

Don’t be afraid to name your company something crazy.  I’m not giving any examples, but use your imagination {or someone else’s}

Some jobs you do to get done, others are all about the process not the ending

You can make a business out of an idea.  Literally. Think about the cloud, it is an idea turned into reality {Sort of}

Spelling is important, but not all the time {yay for me and my horrible spelling and grammar}

Graphics are important.  It is also important to have easy navigation of a website.  This is how you get people to stay and stick around {I know I need to work on this here on the blog, not to worry, already noted}

Put your leadership team or management team on your website.  It makes it more personal.  And when you put them up there with titles listed they are making me happy and my job easier.

You can learn something from any job you do.  Seriously, you are going learn something.  Take it from a newly working woman!

What job did you learn the most from? or What was the most important lesson you learned on the job?

Liberia {intro to a story}

There is a beautiful {in its own way} country on the west coast of the continent of Africa.  This country has captured my heart to the point where if I talk about it I can get a faraway look in my eyes and little pools make my eyes glass over.  I call it love.  

Liberia, like many countries it shares the continent with, has been devastated by civil war, unemployment, malnourishment, lack of resources and lack of attention.  Almost 4 years ago I got to spend a week there learning, growing, and serving. 

Last week a friend who serves children there and in other third world countries around the globe had a night of sharing about Liberia.  There were stations to inform and ignite excitement into people that maybe had never heard about what is going on there and might want to help.  There was a place to break rocks which many children do to survive, facts about Liberia, finding the country on the globe and creating its flag, playing a nation favorite soccer, and eating authentic Liberian food.  Rice and greens.  It wasn’t completely authentic but pretty close and it did taste the same.

the soccer players

Though it is not usually very far in my mind, Liberia has been particularly closer these last few weeks. What have you been thinking about and revisiting?

Random Sillies

Since I haven't posted all week I figured it would be good to go into the weekend with a little bit of fun.  I have plenty of posts written, but they need a little bit editing and hopefully some pictures.  Next week should have a better track record.

Now serving some randoms and sillies....

I have an office chair because I sit at a desk {obvious, I know but we had to clear that up}.  Said office chair is a mystery to me.  It barely slides under the desk, and even being the smart highly capable person that I am I have yet to figure out how to lower it.  It makes me question calling myself smart and highly capable.

It should be noted that I love to write letters, good old fashioned pen to paper and snail mail letters.  Somehow I can't seem to get them in the mail.  I was so excited last week when I wrote, addressed, stamped and mailed a reply letter the very next day.  Its the little thing sin life right?

I was searching for something in my email inbox the other day and found emails from jr.high.  wow.  what a great time in life.  when I was going through jr.high, I knew that it would be silly looking back on it.  I am so glad that I had that forethought, but I don't think it changed much of what I said or did!  I am so glad I can laugh at the silliness.

Lately I've been noticing people's laughs.  I love a good laugh and when people are genuinely joyful, so full of glee.   I got the treat of meeting some new friends this week.  We had a great time bonding over some good laughs.  Bring on the silliness! 

Hope you have a wonderful weekend full of laughs and fun sillies! 

Feel free to share a silly from this week in the comments section