Renewal

Okay. It's possible that I suck at blogging. I am not good at keeping up to date with things like this, clearly.

But I'm going to attempt something new.

See, I think part of the problem is I don't have anything really concrete to blog about. The world definitely doesn't need another cooking blog or fitness blog or stylish living blog. And at the end of the day, other people are going to try harder and do better at blogging about those things anyway, and I doubt anyone cares immensely about my opinions anyway.

I want to write about something that will mean something to me regardless of whether other people read it. And at the same time, I'm working on this new thing where I try not to be so negative and cynical about my life. I don't want to ever look back on life and realize I spent it waiting around for things to get better before I really lived. If this is the only time I have, I want it to count. And one way I think I can do this is by reflecting on the things in my life that are great and good and lovely, the growing pains and the exciting things and even the things that take place while I sit at a desk for 10 hours a day. I want to celebrate my life and remember all the amazing and beautiful things that are part of it. So that's what I'll be blogging about from now on. You can read it if you care. If not, that's fine. I'll write it for me anyway.

If you, like me, are sick and tired of hating your life, frustrated by the seeming lack of joy in your daily routine or just feeling stuck where you are, I highly recommend you read the book Cold Tangerines by Shauna Niequist. It is a very easy read and I find it to be inspiring every time I read it. She has a knack for pointing out the loveliness of daily life.

To start off, here are some things I am thankful for at this moment:

1. No more cold weather here in Dallas!
2. The exercise ball I sit on at work that makes me feel a little less like a lazy bum all day.
3. Extra-sharp cheddar cheese (which was on my sandwich at lunch)
4.  Vegan overnight oats. Have you guys tried this? So easy and so delicious. Go get on Pinterest and figure it out!

Reflections from India

Oops, I haven't updated this in a while. Blogging fail. In my defense, I was far away. Like, really far away. See?

Okay. I wasn't actually there, persay. This is from February. But still. I was in the same relative location. Can I say that I hate this photo of myself? The guy who took it has a knack for capturing me from very unflattering angles.

Anyway. There is a point to this post. Mainly its just to decompress my mind from all the crazy thoughts that get stuck in there while I'm in India, and I never remember to bring my journal, not that I have time to write in it anyway. I have many things to say about India, many of which are not very nice. For more details, you can ask me in person. But what I have to say now is different.

I find India to be fascinating from a cultural perspective. It's very old, very distinct in terms of cultural norms and tradition and art and all. But I also find it to be very sad. Sad because there are too many people, and its just not possible that everyone will get a piece of the pie in terms of economic prosperity, living space, fame and success. Sad because I have never seen a generation of people so openly engrossed in personal success and wealth as the generation of Indians who are now entering the workforce (and that includes Americans). Sad because I work with kids with cancer, and seeing a kid with cancer is ten times worse when the kid is starving and dying because they can't afford their chemo drugs. And, primarily, sad because this is more than a billion people being born, living, and dying in darkness. They will never hear that there is hope, that the God of the universe loves them passionately, that the Son of God came to earth to rescue their hearts. They will never have the opportunity to fall in love with Jesus.

I don't want to let that lie. I don't accept it. I want my life to count for something. I hope that in the end, it does. Not for me, but for God and for these children of his. Pray for them. Pray for me.

L-O-V-E

I wanted to share... I was just perusing Pinterest [are you on it? you should be on it.] when I came across a photo of a lovely young lady wearing a miraculously simple + floaty + stylish smoky blue dress. So I clicked on it, and through that website I discovered my new favorite online boutique. Love is a brand that is sold by Topshop, which of course I do not get to go to because unlike my former Italian partners in crime Sydney and Lauren, I am not preparing for a move across the pond. But I do get to explore this website, and I am loving it! Here are some selections that I am currently coveting:

Okay, this needs to be in my wardrobe, like, now.

So cute for fall with a striped cardi and knee high boots... or bare

Cute military inspired jacket! I would wear it with skinny jeans and and booties.

What do you LOVE?

TGIF

It's FRIDAY!!!! I'm so excited... it has been a tough week for sure around these parts. After a relaxing weekend at the beach in Galveston [not the perfect white sand/blue water getaway I would have picked, but good enough for me - and a lot cheaper!], this week seemed determined to stress me out extra to make up for it.

But I will not be defeated by you, week. I will still find a way to relax and enjoy life, no matter how much stress piles on. This weekend [hallelujah, what a sweet word] I will be indulging in some or [hopefully] all of the following to rein in my stress and zen myself out for the week ahead:

photo from nomeatathlete.com

1. The weekly long, slow run - have you ever noticed how good it feels to sweat?
2. Breakfast with the boy - cinnamon raisin french toast?
3. A nice cup of coffee while sitting on my balcony before the temperature reaches 90 degrees. Come faster, fall! 
4. A fresh and fizzy summer cocktail or two
5. Something along the lines of this or this.
6. And hopefully this too. 
7. A Food Truck festival with some sweet friends. 
8. A nap. 
9. Errands! Even though they are annoying, I sort of love being able to check things off the to-do list: like washing the car, doing the laundry, and finding a slip cover for my new loveseat.

The dog days of summer + leaving for India a week from Monday [yikes] + long hours at work = stressful days for Kristin. But I am so blessed that I have these daily reminders that life is more than what I do in front of my computer all day. Amidst everything that goes wrong in my life on a daily basis, there is still a God who loves me and a lot of good that happens every day. I only hope that I'll be able to recognize those things as they come along and appreciate them as the gifts they are.

Happy Friday, everyone! Buona fine settimana!

Falling for Fall... Prematurely

Hey everyone! It's about one hundred and a million degrees outside these days, and I've just been thinking to myself how much I am starting to detest this never-ending summer. Normally I love summer, but when the heat just drags on and on, it starts to feel like everything bad in my life is related to this disgusting, sweltering weather... and did I mention the drought?! Rain, sweet Jesus, rain! So in honor of my growing desire for all things fall, I've decided to do a post on the fall style I'm looking forward to purchasing/wearing without dying of heat stroke... or not purchasing, based on my bank account. I can dream, right?

Iosselliani earrings via Refinery29

Elizabeth and James via Cupcakes and Cashmere

Lorah dress from DVF

Loving the Arrowhead skirt from Anthropologie

I am weirdly obsessed with this perfect fall plaid from J. Crew

 

 

Diamond Weave Pullover at Anthropologie

Clearly I'm loving rustic and tribal this fall. Anyone else excited?

Weariness and Resting

Well, I actually wanted my first "real post" to be something lighthearted, maybe with some pictures of food. But I don't have any pictures again, and I haven't baked anything lately in the interest of saving money, so you all get my 7 am philosophical musings instead. If I don't start posting soon, I'm sure I'll never get around to it.

I want to talk about how we (read: I) react to weariness. Since its 7:25 am, you can probably guess that this is coming from me feeling weary at the moment, despite the coffee I've been pouring down my throat since I got up at 5 am. But it's not just about the earliness of the hour. It's about being run down and burnt out by the happenings of my daily life. Work has been exceptionally crazy lately, and my boss seems to have mistaken me for a bio-statistician. Not that there is anything wrong with that type of work, but having very little training in that field, and not being a "math-brained" person, has led me to a place of great frustration recently. In addition, there are the other dramas of life that we all have at any given moment, created by money, family, friendships, relationships, etc. All of that combines to make me pretty exhausted at the end of the day.

I think a lot of times we get caught up in the daily panic of our lives, focused on what needs to be done now so that I can survive until tomorrow. Suddenly, the project we are working on becomes the most important thing in the world, and if we don't meet our deadline the universe will probably implode. But the thing is, that project most likely does not have a lot of eternal consequences. I typically let the things that might be more important, like spending quiet time with God, pouring into my family and friends, and/or living missionally in the workplace, take a backseat to that deadline, that meeting, those errands. And in no way does that allow me - or any of us who respond this way - to be refined into what God desires us to be.

Fortunately, there is a solution! Mt. 11:28 says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest." That is such a generous gift on the part of God. Not only does he promise numerous times in his word to be constantly with us and for us, but he actually promises to help us unload our burdens and be renewed. We are not responsible for bearing the load of our days all by ourselves. And simply taking time out to do the things that stir my heart's affections for God - whether that looks like sitting on my porch with a cup of coffee, going on a long run, or spending time with a friend - helps renew my spirit. So even though I'm still tired, and it's still really early, and I still have a long day in front of me, I know that there is an unending well of strength from which I can draw, and that the Lord has promised to sustain me through this day. That's what gives me the hope to carry on and remember that life on earth is not about life on earth.

I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday!

Entering the World of Blogging...

Hello All (and by "all" I mean the two people who are likely to read this)!

After a lot of deep thought and consideration of how I didn't really want a blog because everybody has a blog these days, I ended up deciding to start one anyway. So this will be (theoretically) a way for me to express my musings on life... although it will probably actually contain nothing but pretty pictures and very serious thoughts on things like baked goods and clothes I can't afford.

I don't have any pretty pictures today, though, so I guess the real posting will have to wait.

Please follow me!

Love, Kristin