Michelle

Hijacked – It’s Been a While

November 17, 2020 by Michelle Filed Under: Being a Mom Leave a Comment

There were several directions I could have gone with this post. I even thought about prefacing with a warning to read with your perkiest voice because I didn’t want it to sound whiney, like when my current three-year-old asks for something to eat because he’s starving….

But then I decided to completely switch directions. It’s been a while since I wrote about being hijacked by one of our kids 😉 It used to happen quite often, when they were little and got sent home for all the things…

Well, Reynolds got sent home yesterday because he was coughing in class. It was a classic hijacking by one of the Lucas kids!
We are following all the school’s requirements at this point and waiting for a test result to come back before he goes back to school, hopefully and Lord-willing, tomorrow.

In the meantime, we are enjoying our cough-free home time together today.

This morning he had completed all his school work by the time I got home from Pilates at 9am. NINE am. He asked, “Momma, can we go on a walk?” Why of course! That’s what was next on my to-do list. 🙂
He rode his bike, we took Bleu and enjoyed the cool weather together. It was a shorter walk than normal, when we made our way back into the front yard. I asked if he wanted to keep going or be back home and he said he wanted to put up his bike and go back out, walking with me this time.

Andrew and I could be super annoyed that he’s hijacked our plans and having to be home when he seems perfectly healthy. And honestly, if I was still working full time at my previous job, I would be completely stressed out with this twist in the schedule/plan for the week. But today, I’ve decided to embrace the fact that he’s home, he’s well {still waiting on a test result to prove that} and we are enjoying being with him. We have even watched Home Alone and Home Alone 2…because, why not?

Until next time, and hopefully sooner…

Friday Favorites :: Thanksgiving Edition

November 13, 2020 by Michelle Filed Under: Events, Friday Favorites, Life Leave a Comment

Y’all I can hardly believe that Thanksgiving is just TWO weeks away! So many people I’ve talked to in the last week have commented on how the first half of this year went by at a sloth’s pace – and seemingly got worse and worse as they days inched on, and now, we are less than two months away from saying “peace out, 2020!”
It’s really crazy. But, as the show must go on, so must the year!

This week’s, or month’s edition of Friday Favorites, I am sharing with you some of the things I love about Thanksgiving. Unlike some of you it is not my favorite holiday {don’t hate}. Christmas is my favorite holiday. However, I do enjoy a few things about Thanksgiving.

My Momma’s Pecan Pie. There’s nothing like it; not a bakery-bought one can come even close to the deliciousness of this homemade pie. A few years ago my friend Aimee shared a homemade Amish pie crust recipe and it totally took Momma’s Pecan Pie to the ultimate level of desserts. Message me and I’ll send you both recipes!

Our nephew loves this pie so much, I make one just for him.

2. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. There’s something nostalgic about watching the parade as our kids play in the den and the kitchen is brimming with the scents of Thanksgiving fare. It takes me back to when I was a kid and my mom would be in the kitchen with her apron on, with all the burners on the stove glowing…sweet memories.
According to the world wide web, the parade IS still happening this year {thank you, Jesus}, although I’m sure it will look much different than years past. Check your local listings, but it should start at 9am.

3. All things printable for my kids {and some adults ;)}. I love having activities for the kids to color and keep them occupied so they don’t argue as much and get all in my hair! Here are a few of my favorites for this year:
Gobble Gobble
Mad Libs for Kids
Placemat
Pilgrims & Native Americans

4. Thanksgiving wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without shopping, right?! I could tell you all my favorite stores, like Anthropologie, Loft, Athleta, etc. or I could be a good friend and tell you to write out your list now of all the things you want to purchase and set a budget. I know. I hate budgets too, but they are a necessary evil. When making your list of family members, friends, neighbors, etc. along with the items you want to purchase, don’t forget stocking stuffers and all those ‘little’ things that add up to big bucks! Sometimes I feel like those little stocking stuffers cost as much as the bigger gifts! And since this is a Friday Favorites post, I’ll tell you that we like using Mint.com to keep track of our finances. Now go make that budget.

5. Okay now we come to family time. Some of you love this, and some of you….well, we’ll just leave it there.
If you are lucky enough to spend time with family over Thanksgiving, here are some of our favorite things to do either before of after the tryptophan kicks in…
Go for a walk. I love walking with my family members because there’s nothing else to do other than talk when you’re on a walk. And sometimes this is the only time you can get some people away from devices or other distractions to speak words! This is where you may have to put on your listening ears if you’re normally a talker…
Find a nearby park for the kids to play or don’t forget bicycles if you are travelling.
Corn hole, soccer, touch football, badminton, horseshoes, croquet, hula hoops, jump ropes, frisbee…anything that can keep you moving and laughing in your own front or back yard.
If it ends up raining where you’re going to be {check the weather a day or two before!}, snag some good movies, puzzles, board games, decks of cards and UNO! Store smaller sets in an accessible basket for easy retrieval.

6. To round off this Thanksgiving edition of Friday Favorites, how about some lock screens? I’ve had my eyes on a few of these for a while now, wanting to share them with you. I love a Fall theme and if there’s scripture with it, well even better. Enjoy these:
Natalie Hilton
FBC Columbia Women
Kaitlyn Bouchillon
Emily Ley

I hope you’ve found something fun and possibly useful in this post – I’d love to hear from you and if you want those recipes, let me know!

Until next time friend…

Monday Muse :: My Little Yellow House

November 9, 2020 by Michelle Filed Under: Life 2 Comments

Almost eleven years ago I bought the cutest little yellow house, in the sweetest little neighborhood, across the street from one of the kindest men I’ve known in my life. Today I sold that cute little yellow house to a lovely older lady who’s been living in it the past two years.

I often don’t allow myself the time to reflect on situations, etc. so here I go and to keep from getting too emotional, I’m going to bullet point things for you 😉

I purchased this little house on my mom’s birthday in 2009
Andrew proposed to me inside, after watching the final round of the masters on April 11th, 2010
We came home to this house the day after we were married
He and I built a privacy fence in the back yard
We tore down a dilapidated building in the backyard
We planted three flower beds, including the front flower beds which still contain some of my mother’s Irises and Daylilies
We added a stone patio
We renovated the guest bathroom – which included a bigger window
Andrew nearly lost a finger during said renovation and spent 5 hours one Sunday afternoon in the ER across the street
We changed all the knobs on the kitchen cabinets and spent hours debating paint colors
We expanded the master bedroom closet
We painted several of the rooms
We replaced the hot water heater
We replaced and switched the in-swing of the front door
My dad rebuilt the railing on the front porch when he and mom came to visit when Reynolds was born
Reynolds…my first born, was brought home to this sweet little house. We were so proud of his room when it was finished.
We made homemade pasta in that house
We stayed up way too late a few times with friends playing Mario Brothers
We celebrated birthdays
We played in the snow – like 8 inches one year the day after my birthday
Lily was often found across the street at “Grandaddy Phil’s house” when we got home from work
We took many walks down to the little lake and around the historic neighborhood
We would sit for hours on the front porch talking to Phil, especially when it rained….
Andrew chipped and putted in the front yard
I used to soak in the jacuzzi tub after a long day’s work
I could go on…

So many memories were made in that little house. I/we only lived there three and a half years, but the memories far exceed the time.

In case you’re wondering, we moved in July after Reynolds was born, seven years ago, because that cute little house was so far away from our work {a 45 minute drive}. It was one of the original houses we started renting out – truthfully, because it was so hard to sell – and thankfully, the sweet lady who has been living there decided she wanted to buy it from us.

While there’s a part of me that is sad to have sold it today, mainly for the memories we hold there, I’m grateful that it now belongs to someone who loves living there as much as we did.

Thanks for walking down memory lane with me today, friend. I’d love to hear about a place where you once lived!

Until next time….

Expectations :: Marriage Edition

November 5, 2020 by Michelle Filed Under: Faith, Marriage Leave a Comment

This month is mine and Andrew’s anniversary month. In just 15 days we will celebrate our 10 year anniversary! And while our 10 years have gone by in a beautiful flash, they have not been easy. If you’ve been married to anyone longer than a year you probably know that marriage is not effortless or painless. It’s a lot of daily hard work and dedication.

I could go on and write a lot about this topic, but I’m going to save some of it for a later post. Today I want to focus in on a few things I’ve learned from my current Bible study, No Other Gods by Kelly Minter. She’s one of my favorite writers, especially of Bible studies – they are wonderfully drafted and cause me to really search the Scriptures as well as my heart.

This past week we were on session seven and each day’s study title is listed below. As you read the titles, pay attention to the person(s) you may think about as satisfying that <thing> for you.

He Satisfies Your Longings
He Rescues You
He Takes Away Your Sin and Shame
He’s the One You Can Trust
He Promises Blessing

Some of those are easy to say, ‘Oh I put God there, totally. He does that for me.’ But a couple of the others, it would be easy to sub in the name of your spouse or even a very close friend. I’ll admit to you that I have done that.

No one can truly satisfy these areas of your heart like Jesus can. I’m really bad at inadvertently casting my expectations and needs on others {especially Andrew}, and they constantly fail me. Andrew has failed me over and over in our ten years of marriage. Not because he isn’t a good husband, not at all. Rest assured he is one of the very best. It’s because he has failed the ridiculous expectations I have put on him and most likely kept those expectations to myself. How could he even come close to doing the things that only Jesus can do for me. I cannot put him on the same level as the Lord. Andrew cannot satisfy my soul’s deepest longings; he cannot rescue me from myself and the stupid mistakes/sins I often commit; sure I can trust him, but I cannot give my heart fully to him and expect it to never be hurt or broken, only the Lord can do that.

If you’re a believer and you’ve surrendered your life to Jesus, you know these things, but maybe you need a friendly reminder to put all your expectations and trust and hope in the Lord. He alone will satisfy your heart.

Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

If you’ve never surrendered your life to Jesus or you’ve never heard these things, know that Jesus is the only One who can fulfill the deepest longings of your soul.
I’m here if you have any questions or need anything.

Until next time dear sister…

A Little Blue Ridge Shopping

November 4, 2020 by Michelle Filed Under: Gift Giving, Travel 2 Comments

When we drove into Blue Ridge Saturday afternoon to check the restaurant situation, never did I dream that the shopping would be so wonderful! I took note of all the places I wanted to check out when we came back ‘to town’ on Monday and today I’m sharing some of those favorites with you! Disclaimer: I didn’t get to go into every shop on the strip, but the ones I did go into were definitely some of the best. I can say that because I left with a shopping bag from almost everyone on this list 🙂

First let me tell you that Eliza Jane and I had a blast in the little shop of Lily and Coco. We walked in and as I stood in the doorway with my eyes dazzled by all the sparkles, I heard a lady passing by say how cute the store was. I turned to her and her friends and with a giant smile on my face, I said, “THISISTHECUTESTSTOREI’VEEVERSEEN!!!” They may have laughed with me… Dubbed as having fanciful finds and whimsical whatnots, I wanted everything for Eliza Jane’s room but settled on a few sweet finds for her and her friends – all put away for Christmas.

We also found a sweet little store called Gather where I was able to find a few unique home items. Next door to Gather was Blue Ridge Cotton Company where I literally could have spent half the day. So many cute/quirky t-shirts and hats. Pretty home goods and uncommon finds were around every corner and downstairs. Places like that can overwhelm me, but I was really enjoying the discovery.

Across the street from Gather and Blue Ridge Cotton Company I found New Blue and wanted to outfit my house with all new furniture and decor from their shop, it was all so beautiful! I did purchase a lattice planter and another fun find, that will go in the lake house we are renovating.

Just down from New Blue is Mitzi’s on Main and y’all…all things farmhouse were in this shop! And they were decorated for Christmas so it took everything I had not to buy up the entire store!
{I wish I had taken more/better pictures of the things I found so I could share them with you!}

I grabbed a latte at Das Kaffee Haus while Andrew and the kids watched the Blue Ridge Scenic Railway get ready to depart {that will be another blog post because we did end up getting on the afternoon ride :)}. Oar, which was a men’s fine gifts store and owned by the same folks as Lily and Coco, had a few things Andrew really wanted to check out, but by this point the kiddos were getting restless so we jumped down to the indoor putt putt spot to have a little fun.

Like I stated in the beginning, I didn’t get to go into every store – there were a lot – but it was definitely a fun experience and I came home with several gifts. If you’re going to Blue Ridge anytime soon, you’ll have to check out some of these spots and if you find another shop, please tell me about it!

Until next time…

Making Memories in the Mountains

November 1, 2020 by Michelle Filed Under: Life, Outside, Travel 2 Comments

Over the years I would often wonder what people enjoyed so much about going to the mountains. Call me naive, ignorant, whatever you will. I just couldn’t understand, with kids especially, why you would go and what on earth would you do.

Being in the middle of no where with small children seemed like a nightmare to me. Kids bored to tears asking ‘what are we going to do’ a thousand times a day was not my idea of a family getaway or any level of what I would call fun.

That was then…As Andrew and I have had the great privilege of taking our kids to the mountains three times now this fall, each trip has been more wonderful than the last. We’ve had different destinations, different reasons for going, thus making each adventure totally unique.

This past week we were doomed to quarantine like so many have had to do over the last ten months. Once again we were stuck at home doing school, playing and trying not to make each other go completely bonkers. Some sweet friends of ours who have a mountain house in Blue Ridge, GA found out that we were quarantining so they reached out and told us to go isolate at their home in the woods. {We all tested negative, FYI}

The kids were thrilled with the prospect of going to the mountains again because to them the mountains meant hiking through the woods because that’s a lot of what we’ve done so far on our little trips.

We packed our bags quickly and hit the road Saturday morning to make the trek across South Carolina into the north Georgia mountains. The closer we got to the house, the more beautiful the scenery became. The Toccoa River snaking her way around the mountains, cows and horses dotted the green landscape. Trees just past their Fall-colored prime and the clouds resting just below the peaks of the mountain tops. Ah, this is why people come.

The scenery. The peace and quiet. The sounds of the birds and the rooster crowing in the woods. The slower pace. The not-having-to-rush-around doing all the things. The adventure of the unknown in the forest. The discovery of new things and places and people, and being with my people.

I get it now.

So far we have hiked, roast marshmallows and made s’mores, carved pumpkins, sat by the roaring fire and read books, eaten out at new restaurants, mined for gems and gold, and met a few of the neighbors. I guess you could say it’s been everything I hoped for and more.

I’ve heard it said that the best memories are made in the mountains, and while I’m not yet fully convinced of it…we are well on our way to finding out.

Until next time…

Be the One, or One of the Few

October 30, 2020 by Michelle Filed Under: Friendship, Life 1 Comment

I was reading something the other day from Jennie Allen about community. The gist of the piece I was reading was about becoming a better friend and finding healthy friendships. One thing she said in the article that resonated the most, with this current season in my life was, “It’s impossible to invest in dozens of deep, intentional relationships…So we have to become intentional with a few.”

I’ve shared with y’all this week especially how I’m taking specific, intentional actions to be in touch with and available to the people who are in my closest friend circle. {If you didn’t read that post, you can read it here.} And when I’m talking about friends, I’m in line with Jenny. I mean the few gals who I share deep relationships with – we know each other’s faults, we speak truth to one another {even when it hurts} and we are there for each other – whenever and wherever.

I have recently befriended someone who lives on the other side of the U.S., that I met through a writer’s group, and though we have not known each other long, we have already become fast friends. The cool thing about most of my friendships is that Jesus is at the center. And if Jesus is your common ground, it doesn’t take much to care for, love and trust and have those things reciprocated back to you.

This particular friend reached out to me last night via text and all she said was she had had a really bad day, was in need of prayer and was going to bed. I didn’t need to know anything else. I wasn’t going to pepper her with questions about her day: why? who? how? She didn’t need that. She just needed me to be one of her few, to pray for her. And so I did.

I think I am sharing this with you today just to say, be the one, or one of the few that your friends know they can reach out to, and that you have their back. I think that’s what we’re all looking for in life – to know that there is someone who doesn’t need to ask all the questions or know all the answers, but who will just be there for us whenever we need them, right?

I hope we’re in the same company with those thoughts. <3 I’d certainly love to hear from you either way.

Along with this topic, I received a beautiful card in the mail this week from a dear lady in my Bible study group. She has the gift of encouragement because enclosed in the card was this little piece of paper. This doesn’t describe who I am – by any stretch, but rather who I want to become.

In my post from Monday – and it was a long post – I stated at the end that I would do a drawing for someone to win a 2021 Powersheets Goal Planner from Cultivate What Matters. I’m so thrilled to announce that my sweet friend Nicki Hunt is the winner of that planner!!! {cue the confetti bombs!} Woohoo! Stay tuned for more giveaways in the coming weeks!

Until next time have a beautiful weekend…

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