friday links.

{lovely garland made by Kristen of PomLove, with whom I'm going to be sharing a city in a few months! :D)

- was growing out my bangs but suddenly missed them desperately so I got banged

- have you guys seen this video of two guys undergoing labor pain simulation? They're actually two guys from my church, one of which is a good friend of my hubby's. they made it to play at services on Mother's Day. apparently it's going viral!

- really want these wooden clogs 

- want to try this paleo granola

- and this Alfredo-like sauce made with cauliflower

- loving these sandals made by Guatemalan artisans

- found this article about why French kids don't have ADHD to be really interesting. now want to read Bringing Up Bébé (eventually)

what are you lovelies up to this weekend? my family and i are headed to Grand Rapids to help my sis and brother-in-law move (apparently this is the summer of moving!) my sister just accepted a job as Director of a Boys and Girls Club camp and they will be living on the camp site - so proud of her!! 

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I've been so caught up in my seemingly never-ending to-do lately, that I've been neglecting to be in the present. Even when Joel and cuddle up on the couch to catch last week's New Girl or HIMYM, I find myself trying to do some other task at the same time, like last night I was making a grocery list on my phone. Ridic. It makes for an inward, joy-deprived way to live. One thing I've been thinking about this week is how I'd like to be more intentional about taking time out of each day to do something kind toward someone in my life (or a stranger), whether it be sending a card, an encouraging email/text, cooking/baking for them, making something for them, or whatever.. Trying not to beat myself up about being so terrible at it but rather work toward changing it.

On a somewhat related note, have I mentioned before how much I hate that busy-ness is so valued in our culture?! That we seem to have this belief that life is more meaningful/complete if you are super busy all the time? I envy Europeans' way of lingering over coffee, as Erika observed on her recent trip abroad. They don't seem to be constantly in a hurry like we are; they are there in the moment soaking up time with people in their lives. I think their priorities are much more in line.

And on a definitely unrelated note, some of my favorite links from the week :)

-- this knock-my-socks-off-beautiful Indian wedding
-- new adorable kid art from the lovely lisa
-- healthy food for camping or hiking
-- drooling over this chicken and rice bowl recipe (but keeping meals super simple (cheap) right now)
-- a helpful tutorial for a fun party (or decorative) garland

hope you all take the time to linger over coffee this weekend!

weekend links.

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- this wedding makes my jaw drop.
- hubby and i are trying to get our finances in order because they are a MESS. believe me, i am not exaggerating. love this idea of a spending fast.
- have you entered my giveaway yet??
- have you seen ordinary mommy's new sequin twist blow clips? aDORable.
- also - iviebaby's new geometric fabric line.
- making these tonight and plan to make this soon.
- obsessed with this dress from lalamagic. wishing my birthday was sooner.
- it's not often there's a movie in theatres that interests me, but i really want to see this one

hope you all have a lovely weekend! i will be spending time sorting & purging (can't start too early), making, relaxing and hanging out with a ridiculously adorable 2yo. i really should do some cleaning too, we'll see. i'm finding myself not caring as much about the state of our house since we'll be leaving it this year.

links from the week

{found my vintage wedding clutch while rummaging through bins of old stuff my mom brought over. spring cleaning is going down early over here}. 

Thought I'd jump on the bandwagon and share some favorite links from the week with you. This new year is off to a wonderful start. I'm back in a cooking kick, trying all sorts of new recipes using some new cookwear (woohoo), daydreaming about where we'e going to end up (so much excitement in our house right now!) and also I think my new year's resolution to rise early has really brought more joy, positivity and productivity into my days. Hope to gradually make it even earlier. 

 

- I've found a new go-to corn chowder recipe. Hubby is obsessed. Excited for leftovers tonight. 

- In case you're curious, so far the potential places we could be moving to this year are here, here, here, here and here. Apparently the West and NY are calling to us. The soonest we could know is early next month :o

- This is my new favorite way to prepare pork chops. Abso-freaking-lutely delicious. 

- I've just started reading this book (as part of my other new years' resolution to read before bed), and I really like it so far. 

- This carrot soup sounds delicious. I really want her cookbook. 

- Snagged this Anthro dress for free thanks to the 30% off clearance sale + the $28 store credit I received after getting a price adjustment on the present Joel got me for Christmas. A little tip: if they are out of your size online, call customer service & they will locate a store that has it & the store will ship it to you for free! 

Happy Friday friends! Hope your weekend is wonderful. 

a wedding + ArtPrize

If I could live anywhere in Michigan, it would definitely be Grand Rapids. I really love it there; I feel at home. It is vibrant, artsy, friendly and loaded with character, and has an array of amazing restaurant choices (many of which source from local farmers and offer vegan options). Also, my sister and brother-in-law live there :)

This weekend my hubby and I headed there for a college friend's wedding (where i got to meet up with Maggie for the first time since we were neighbors 3.5+ years ago). Lucky for us, ArtPrize was going on while we were there, so we got to take in some incredible art on Sunday, though only just a tiny portion of it.. there are 1517 total pieces in just within 3 square miles of the city! The horsey one below was my fave. Amazingness.

It seems every post lately is a weekend recap.. I really would like to work on that, especially considering I have so many post ideas in my head right now. I need to learn from my hubby's incredibly disciplined ways!