March Blogness // The Truth About Her Square Life

My name is Jessica and you might remember me from one the Jenn's earlier posts. I shared with you a little bit about my life as an etsy shop owner. Today, I am thrilled to take part in Jenn's wonderfully transparent The Truth About My Square Life series.

If I'm being honest, I am not very interested in Instagram/Twitter/Facebook. This has not always been true. This time last year I was a full on social media addict. I would wake up and scroll through Instagram, sit on Twitter in class, etc. I remember telling Jenn that I should give up social media for lent, but that I didn't want to...I was being a brat.

I was being lazy with my free time. I don't think social media is a bad thing; I think it can serve a wonderful purpose. But I was using it as a way to fill the empty spaces in my life. I finally got to a point where I wanted a radical change - I deleted all my social media apps.  I replaced the time that I had spent mindlessly scrolling through social media feeds with sermons.  I would listen to sermons on my Sermon Audio app instead. It made a huge difference in my personal growth as a Christian.

I've since been able to re-download all my social media apps and am back on social media, but no longer feel addicted to it.  I use it to keep up with the people I care about, read posts that inspire me, and share the authentic version of myself.

For me, Instagram was once a mindless waste of my time; hours that I could have spent learning and growing as a person were spent searching my newsfeed for beautiful photos.  The comparison game was stealing some of my joy, but the real issue, in my life, was the total waste of time. 

Several months ago I posted this to Instagram:

What it looks like is going on: Waking up to a snowy morning with my coffee! Loving life. Being cozy.

The truth about my square life: It took me like what felt like 234,324 tries to get the just right picture.  By the time I snapped the picture that I felt worked best, I realized how cliché the picture actually was, and I wished I had spent those moments just enjoying the early morning snow.

I've missed so many special moments because I was busy trying to take a trendy picture.  Pictures are great. Trendy, beautiful pictures are great. And Instragram really is great.  But, I still need to work on appreciating the moments that are given to me by God and not trying to filter them into something that I think will get a lot of likes.

March Blogness // You Are Enough

Today, I am so excited to introduce you to my person (seriously, we've been watching Grey's Anatomy together since season two - we have a standing Thursday night text date), Amanda.

Amanda is a newlywed, a doggy-mom to Penny and Rocky, a total #GIRLBOSS in the Air Force, and a total inspiration to me. Amanda embodies shine theory, laughs with her whole body, and sets big goals for herself, but shows herself so much grace when that's what she needs. And, she's a seriously talented writer. Today, she's here to remind us that just because we can have it all, doesn't mean we have to have it all.

“We are a generation of young women who were told we could do anything and instead heard that we had to be everything.”
-Courtney E. Martin, Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters

Being a twenty-something is hard, and being a twenty-something woman in 2015 feels even harder some days.

Our mothers and grandmothers and great grandmothers fought to level the playing field. We can do anything and be anyone! But when did that mean we have to do everything and be everything for everyone?

We’ve been encouraged to go through every door that has been opened, seize every opportunity we’ve been given. Be leaders. Go forth and conquer. You are the future leaders of America!

But wait, as you’re rising to your full potential and becoming a role model for young women everywhere… all the while you can still be a mom, pursue your Master’s degree, maintain that bikini bod through daily yoga, cloth diaper your homemade-pureed-peas-fed baby, sew your man a t-shirt quilt before baking him a four-course dinner you saw on Pinterest, serve it up on a table you made from reclaimed pallets, and simultaneously kick up your trendy-boot-clad heels after work because your laundry is folded and the house is spotless.

Confession: my life looks nothing like this Supergirl standard. More like: Hi, I’m Amanda, and I’m a stressed, 24-year-old woman currently working full time in the military who feels like I’m not doing enough or accomplishing enough in my life.

I’ve certainly struggled with the pressure to meet the standard of the “effortlessly perfect” woman. But here’s the thing – it’s unreasonable, destructive, and impossible to expect this from ourselves and each other. 

My life is surrounded by competitive, vivacious, accomplished, clever, impressive, educated, gracious, beautiful women. Yet, we often get so caught up in playing a comparison game with each other that we fail to see these great qualities in ourselves. We’re stressing ourselves and each other out. And ladies, this stress is exhausting.  

Jenn’s blog has already done such a beautiful job of capturing the comparison game in her series The Truth About My Square Life. It’s a perfect lens for breaking down some of the “Instagram-worthy” moments on which we’re basing our Supergirl standard.

We need to take those square moments with a grain of salt when we reflect on our own life and accomplishments. We need to build each other up when confiding in one another, rather than re-enforcing the self-doubt that we’re not “where we need to be.” We need to remember that we do not have to be everything for everyone.

I charge you today to give yourself a break. Keep in mind that so much of what we see in each other’s life is that Pinterest-worthy highlight reel.

There is something to be said about the opening quote: you CAN do anything! I don’t know you, but I know you have all the strength and capability to achieve any goal you set for yourself. But please rest assured, we are all bumbling around trying to figure it out. Your journey is yours alone. If you try to be “enough” all the time, whether self-inflicted or based on the journey of those around you, you will never feel it. But trust me, you already are enough.

Jenn Loves Books: 2015 Reading Wish List

20 Something, 20 Everything // Don't Worry, It Gets Worse // X vs. Y // Adulting // #Girlboss

The Fringe Hours // Women of the Word // The Best Yes // Love Does  // Restless

City Girl, Country Vet // The Girl On The Train // Now I See You // Little Known Facts // Where'd You Go Bernadette

To Kill A Mockingbird // Slaughterhouse-Five // Pride & Prejudice // The Cather in the Rye // Twelfth Night 

Lead Small // The Story // Make It Happen // Freefall to Fly // Chasing God 

Ghettoside // The Boys In The Boat // The Romanov Sisters // Wild // A Royal Experiment

The Opposite of Loneliness // The Smart One // Girls in White Dresses // Deathly Hallows // Play It As It Lays

If I Stay // Insurgent // Looking For Alaska // Mockingjay // The Spectacular Now

I'll Drink To That // Double Down // Flash Boys // In Defense of Food // Yes Please

 

What books are on your 2015 reading wish list? Does your list include some rereads, like mine, or are you strictly trying to read new books?

March Blogness // The Truth About Her Square Life

This morning I am so excited for you to meet my friend, Helen. Helen is not only one of my favorite people, and a fellow blogger, but she's also my little sister from our sorority. Helen always has a story to share to make you laugh, including the time she tried to take her cat, Mimo, on a walk. Spoiler alert: Mimo wanted nothing to do with that. Or that time, she got in a fight with a sea urchin. Helen's life is full of adventures, and a couple misadventures. She is beautiful, and kind, and can always sense when someone needs to hear about one of those misadventures.

And today, Helen is here to tell you the truth about her square life - because it's not just my square life that is full of half-truths and best-foot-forwardness.

 

 

Hi there! My name is Helen and I blog over at Hel On Heels. When Jenn asked me to write a post in her series The Truth About My Square Life, my response was, “Of course, but my life is perfect.”

I was, of course, kidding! My life is not perfect and I actually had the perfect square picture to prove it.

A few weeks ago, I posted this picture:

 

 

Too Sexy for our helmets.

What it looks like is going on: My boyfriend and I are super adorable and adventurous and go on dangerous go karting adventures in our spare time.  

The truth about my square life: This was one of the worst experiences of my life. I had a broken tailbone and was heavily medicated. I bought passes for the fastest go karts in Georgia for my boyfriend’s birthday before I broke my tailbone and didn’t want to cancel. So I went. It was SO painful. Then to top it off, the guy in charge was super mean to me because the woman at the desk didn’t give me a receipt and someone else was in the kart I was assigned. My tailbone hurt so bad, I was practically driving Miss Daisy and hugging the wall. It was miserable.

Be sure to stop by Helen's blog and give her some love! And if you're here from Helen's blog, welcome to my corner of the internet, I so hope we can be friends!

Welcome To March Blogness!

{image}

Welcome to March Blogness friends! Over the next three weeks, while I'm in the height of tax season, many of my friends, and fellow bloggers, are going to be showing up here to share with you while I'm hustling to finish this tax season in victory.

I'm so excited for you to get to meet so many of my dear friends over the next three weeks, and I'll still be popping in from time to time to share a post or two.  These friends of mine are all incredible writers and incredible women, and I think you're going to love each and every one of them.

Some women are opening up about the truth about their square lives, some are sharing the honest struggles of being a twenty-something, some are going to talk about books they love. All of them are going to encourage you, and I hope you will love on them well.

Spotlight On: Cadi Griffin

This morning, I am so excited to introduce y'all to one of my dearest friends, former roomie, Cadi. Cadi is so kind and funny and organized.  She challenges the people around her to rise to their full potential. She also works as a middle school counselor and is so passionate about her job and her students. In addition to being an incredible friend, and awesome school counselor, Cadi also makes super cute, and very well priced, wire-wrapped bracelets! Be sure to read all the way to the bottom of this interview to be entered in a giveaway to win one of Cadi's awesome bracelets!  

What prompted you to open your etsy shop?

I truly never intended to open an Etsy shop. I started making bracelets after seeing some from a popular bracelet maker and thinking how outrageous their prices were. After I started making my own, I had friends that would ask about them and want me to make them one. It was actually a friend that suggested I should put some on Etsy!

How do you stay organized?

I live by my yearly Vera Bradley planner! If I don't write something down, chances are it will be much later when whatever someone wanted me to do pops up in my mind. I'm also a big fan of sticky notes!

 

What's the one product you can't live without?

This is a hard one! Most of my friends know that I am a huge Ulta junkie! but a girl can never have too many nail polish or lipstick options!


What's your favorite part about designing and making bracelets? The hardest part?

My favorite part is seeing the finished product and people loving it! The hardest part is choosing the beads or stones. Since I order most of my beads and stones from other sellers on Etsy, instead of purchasing them in person, it can sometimes be difficult to imagine what the end product will look like.

How do you unwind at night?

Before bed I usually watch a little bit of TV and read the daily She Reads Truth devotional.


What's one thing you want to accomplish in the next three years?

Within the next three years I would like to go back to school and work on my specialist degree.

What does your typical day look like?

A typical day starts with me, very slowly, getting up and getting ready for work. My workday is never typical! I work as a middle school counselor for 700 students, so no day is ever the same as the last! But I love the variety; I couldn't imagine doing the exact same thing everyday for 30 years. After work, when I get home, I love scrolling through social media (a terrible habit), sometimes I'll work out, or my roomie and I will go out to eat. After that, because I'm not a morning person, I read my daily devotional!

What would you tell 15-year-old Cadi?

I would tell my 15-year-old self the same thing I frequently tell my kiddos, to just be true to yourself, no matter what others think, and do what makes you happy! Because ultimately your happiness is all that is going to matter!

What is on Bible verse/passage you cling to?

It's hard to pick just one, but as my phone background I keep Psalm 91:4, "He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge." I love this verse because no matter how bad things are going or how unworthy we fell, it's a reminder that Jesus is always there for us, waiting to embrace us.

To enter for a chance to win one of Cadi's super cute bracelets, all you need to do is head over to Cadi's shop, look at her bracelets, and then leave a comment letting me know which one if your favorite?

My favorite of Cadi's creations are these cross wire-wrapped bracelets!

Good luck!

2015 Goals // Part Three // Fired Up. Saying Yes. Saying No.

After figuring out whatdid and didn't work for me in 2014, I started thinking about the things I'm most passionate about. The things that make my heart beat fast. The things that fire me up and make me feel alive. I truly believe the things that fire you up do so for a reason; those passions were built into your soul by God. And I long to live my life in a way that enables me to be purposeful about pursuing and participating in the things that truly fire me up. The list below of things that fire me is not exhaustive, nor is it in any particular order. 

• Loving on high schoolers
• Seeing people come to know Jesus
• Writing/reading/words
• Organization/organizing/cleaning
• The Bible
• Long talks with friends
• Slow weekends
• Praise music
• Grace
• Surprises for people I love
• Dance parties
• Witnessing God build communities 
• Time with my family
• Learning
• Dreaming about my future with Tyler
• Being in the mountains
• To do lists/planners
• Authentic conversations
• Laughter
• Making memories
• Travel
• Cooking
• Encouraging others 

Now that I have a more clear idea of the things that fire me up, as well as the things that did and didn't work last year, it is much easier to see the things in my life that I need to be saying "no" to and the things in my life I long to say "yes" to. 

• Comparison
• Accumulating more and more stuff 
• Making my life about my job 
• Reading the Bible as if it's a story about me 
• Not feeling like I am enough - smart enough, good enough, pretty enough
• Judging myself
• Snooze button
• Perfectionism
• Stifling my own dreams
• Netflix/social media all night long
• Phone after 10 pm
• Feeling like I have to say "yes"

• Boundaries
• Less stuff 
• Trusting God
• Knowing the Bible for myself 
• Phoneless date nights / phoneless time with friends
• Morning prayer time 
• Taking Luna on walks
• Finishing my novel 
• Time with the high schoolers
• Grace up grace
• Forgiveness (for myself and others)
• Working out/eating well
• Writing for fun
• Seeking God above all else
• Getting my financial house in order for good
• Dreaming big dreams over my life 
• Daily gratitude
• Margin
• Joy
• Reading 
• Believing that I can't, but God can