Search Results for: round up

Words of Truth: Wateroak Design Co. (and a Giveaway!)

September 23, 2014 by HappyGoStuckey 12 Comments

One of my college roommates, Laura, had the beautiful habit of placing scripture all around our apartment. Sometimes written on a notepad, a dry-erase board on the refrigerator, a sticky note left for me by the front door, all meant to uplift and turn our hearts toward the truth.

I spent a very important year or two staring at these verses–

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior…” Isaiah 43:1-3a

This time it was copy paper, printed from the computer and placed in dollar store frames, Simple, sure– but the memory of looking at it more than daily has stayed with me for years. In times of both sheer joy and difficulty, there it was– just above the black and white stove which was crazy uncalibrated and had the habit of burning cookies.

I love how God uses people in our lives and specific scriptures to lift us, challenge us and turn our eyes to Him. I believe it is really important to surround ourselves with words of truth; they preach to our soul when we need it most. Now, clearly any form of writing these words “on the doorposts of our homes” will do– but when it can be done with beautiful pieces of art, even better! I love filling the rooms of our house with beauty and truth!

Well, since y’all know I love a beautiful scripture print– I cannot wait to introduce you to Wateroak Design Co. Logan and Taylor, the creative sisters behind Wateroak Design Co “share a passion for truth, color, design, and all things pretty. ” The girls behind Wateroak Design Co. loved the art they were creating on their own time and felt led to share it with others. Their sincere desire is that it will be “a venue for bringing joy, hope, and beauty to others.” And you guys, their art is beautiful!!!!

But rather than ask you to take my word for it— Look!

OH– I love this verse so much!!

I think this one would be so pretty in a kitchen!

And these gorgeous state home sweet home prints? They WANT to come live in my foyer, I think I would need one NC, one FL and one GA– to be fair to all my state loves. 🙂

The Wateroak Design Co. shop is FULL of other beautiful watercolor scripture prints in a variety of colors. (They also do custom designs.)

AND…. GUESS WHAT?!

They are offering a fun SALE this week– all of their prints are 21% off using the code HAPPYBIRTHDAY (until October 4th!)

AND—

Logan & Taylor of Wateroak Design Co. have generously offered to sponsor a giveaway here at HappyGoStuckey.

One sweet reader will receive this print in an 8×10!

Gorgeous, isn’t it?

To enter the giveaway, head over to their shop here and look around– choose your favorite

(and remember the 21% off sale–code HAPPYBIRTHDAY)

Then come back here and click on the Rafflecopter Giveaway below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*All photographs are the property of WaterOak Design Co.

UPDATE: Winner is Bethany!!!! Congrats, Bethany!

A Letter to My 17 Year Old Self

September 9, 2014 by HappyGoStuckey 4 Comments

In the midst of the normal every day wonderful-crazy, sometimes I forget that this life, the happy life that means you can always find a baggie of Goldfish in my purse and Barbies in my car, wasn’t always my reality.

At some point over the last few years I noticed something quite shocking. I grew up. And not just a little, but so much so that teenagers and young college girls look really young to me. And I can tell I don’t look so young to them– I can just tell. In the Target restroom, they pretend not to watch as I struggle with the olympic sport of– helping tiny people wash their hands without getting soaked.

The last time I feverishly ripped open a box of fruit snacks in the grocery store aisle to soothe the past-naptime woes of an assertive 2 1/2 year old, I noticed them. A group of high school girls watching me next to the granola bars. They looked inquisitive. They looked confused, as if to say– “why is that child doing that strange contortion with her body and whining and why does that mom have that HUGE vein popping out of her forehead?”

I resisted the urge to say, “Just wait…” Because, well, why? They aren’t even aware that their future sweet, innocent, precious darlings will one day make veins pop out of their side-swept bang-covered foreheads. Bless their hearts.

I know.

Because I was 17 once.

And I remember what I noticed. And what I thought as I babysat little ones.

Things like, “MY children will never eat frozen pancakes for breakfast.” (They did this morning, by the way.)

“MY children will never wear an abundance of character apparel.” (And whyyestheydo. And we all live to tell about it.)

So I wondered about what I thought then, and what I know now. And if I could go back, this is what I would say…

Dear 17 Year Old Me:

Hi. You may not know me but I’m you 15 years from now. I know. That seems like an eternity, but it’s really not. Regardless of how many times you watch Anne of Green Gables and calculate that she was about your age when she fell in love with Gilbert Blythe, it’s… gonna be awhile. So settle in a little bit. Enjoy what’s right in front of you. And stop thinking you’re going to find the man of your dreams around every corner. In fact, the next few corners you go around, just turn your head and look the other way. Trust me. Not. Him. Definitely Not him. And in a few more years? Not him either. Certainly not.

But in about seven years— Yes, that’s right… SEVEN years you will meet that guy. And though he won’t propose on a covered bridge outside an an Apple Orchard in early October, you won’t mind. And believe it or not, though his name won’t be Gilbert Blythe, you won’t want diamond sunsets or marble halls either. Just him. Trust me on that one.

And a few years later, when your college babysitting days are behind you–you’ll find yourself surrounded by those very little girls you’re hoping you have one day. They will be tons of fun and will come ready-made with the highest-pitched screams you’ve ever heard.

You’ll take a deep breath at about 3:00PM every day when your house is momentarily quiet. You’ll look around at the happy fallout of a life well-lived since 7am that morning and wonder if moving out would be easier than cleaning. It’s not.

Hopefully you’ll remember I said this when you get to that day– keep going, Mom. This life you have? It’s amazing. Those sticky maple syrup prints on the kitchen table? They were put there early this morning as two little sister-friends shared giggles and waffles (frozen, by the way) and they mean that those dreams came true. So clean them up with a happy heart, because your table will (God willing) be sticky again tomorrow.

Love, your Older, Wiser, Life-loving Self.

What I learned in August.

September 3, 2014 by HappyGoStuckey 3 Comments

Happy September!!! The official month when we pretty much call summer quits and we slowly start welcoming all the pumpkin and cinnamon back into our lives. Today, I am sharing what I learned in August and linking up with Emily Freeman over at Chatting at the Sky.

August was a knowledge-heavy month for me– it was also a whirlwind of activity leaving me with an average of a little more than one post a week… so there’s that.

1. I learned the JOY that comes in being someone else’s champion. This summer I’ve been able to take part in someone else’s dream. A close friend and confidante of mine is writing an amazing book, and asked me to help. Months of emails, texts and randomly timed phone calls led us to a nearly finished manuscript and a book proposal. I read Michael Hyatt’s book on writing a book proposal and then actually wrote my first book proposal. It was scary for sure, but exciting. One day I hope to write a book proposal of my own… but until then, this was so fun. There’s something really heart-filling about being someone else’s cheerleader– especially when you don’t have to wear a polyester uniform and royal blue bloomers.

2. I learned that I do not understand the hype with Cold Brew Coffee. I am an Iced Coffee Fanatic. I really only have one coffee a day, and it is almost always iced. Usually my husband brews a pot of extra strong coffee in his Chemex* and then we chill it. I have tried the Cold-Brew method several different times and I always end up with coffee grounds galore. I recently tried the Pioneer Woman’s version, taking every careful step to be sure I wasn’t doing something wrong. I strained it a second and even a third time with the cheesecloth, and still I got this:Not to mention a huge mess. I’m just not sure it’s a better method than what we are doing… but people rave about Cold Brew Iced Coffee. Anyone have any tips? I will happily try it again.

3. I learned that heat makes people cranky. This past weekend our downstairs AC went out, the temps topped 99 and we had the added holiday to delay getting it fixed– so we spent about three days without Air Conditioning. In Georgia. In the summer. Oh. My. We really did make the best of it, and we survived. We ate ice cream as often as possible and we introduced our kids to one very important thing– Magic Shell Ice Cream Topping. They also learned the joy of sitting in front of a box fan and talking into it for hours. Ha! Some things are just awesome no matter what generation you’re born in. I learned that when the internal temperature of a home is 86 degrees, butter softens very quickly and coconut oil remains at a liquid state.

As much as those things might be culinarily convenient, when one’s home feels somewhere around the temperature of, OH, I don’t know–standing-on-the-surface-of-the-Sun Hot, one tends to notice a change in their attitude. It’s amazing how something as simple as being perpetually hot and sweaty can make you cranky– but at some point, we did notice that we ALL were in fact… ILL with one another.

But most importantly, this all taught me how I sort of… appreciate a few days of frustration and NOT having something we tend to take for granted, because it gives me a good reminder– of all the amazing blessings we live with every day. Not having Air Conditioning for three days sounds so paltry, but it caused me to realize how much we DO take for granted. And THAT is a lesson worth learning.

4. In August, we celebrated our 7th Wedding Anniversary. In seven years, we’ve shared three addresses.

Two daughters. Two states. We have shared a little more than 2, 556 days as a family.

I learned that Seven years isn’t long enough to spend with your very best friend and that I’m quite sure 67 years won’t be long enough either.

Your Turn! What did you learn in August????

Walls and Community.

August 28, 2014 by HappyGoStuckey 3 Comments

In 2003, I moved away from home and into an apartment with two to three college roommates. We studied, sure– we went to class, but we lived life together. We shopped and cooked and ate together like a little family most nights. We made birthday cakes for the boys down the sidewalk in exchange for them looking out for us and our cars. We took trips to the Farmer’s Market, the Duke Gardens and the Mall.

Definitely the Mall.

We had all kinds of community. Not just because we studied Church History over Chicken Enchiladas, but because we were REAL with each other. I remember the first time one of them called me out on something I was doing. It was awkward and I did not know how to process it. But it was the love that shook me out of my pity party. She cared enough for me to risk the awkwardness. She was right at the time and now, nearly ten years later, I would do anything for either one of them.

***

When we first moved here nearly four years ago, I was happy to be a hermit. Most of my daytime words were spent on an 18 month old (who happens to be a chatterbox, now– so there you go.) and my usual Publix cashier. The experience of moving to a new city where my only “people” lived in the same 2 bedroom home was a bit shocking for this social girl.

God pushed us quite clearly into the arms of an amazing small group and it changed us completely. I wrote about the difficulty of moving and the joy of stepping out and finding that community here.

And then around the same time I wrote that in March, the landscape of our community changed again.

Our job and small group situation had to alter a bit and I found myself with a front door that wasn’t opening quite as much. More quiet. Less busyness. Less community.

And I felt it, all over again. Tentative. Wanting to Hermit-tize and just focus on what was inside these four little walls. Focus on what I knew. On what was easy and familiar.

But even in the change, even when all familiarity is taken away and we find ourselves “the new kid,” there is reason to be REAL.

The look of community may change as our circumstances change, but our need for it does not.

We were made for community. God made us to be in fellowship with each other and with Him.

When we hide inside all that is familiar in a desperate need to stay comfortable, we miss out. Period.

We miss out on the closeness. We miss out on bearing the burden. We miss out on growing in life together. We miss out on one of the main elements of our design.

Can I encourage you today? Take down a few walls. If you’re struggling, tell someone who cares for you. Admitting your need is braver than trying to handle it alone.

Instead of waking up and slapping on the “cope” face– be okay with not being okay.

And can I just say, if you think you are the only one that feels alone– you aren’t. I have been there. I have been at that conference, at that Mom’s meeting, at that playdate, at that new small group– where all I could do was habitually adjust my outfit and try not to make eye contact with anyone in hopes that someone would approach me.

We all want someone to reach out to us– sometimes the best way to find a community is to start by building it.

Open the door.

Tell them there is Hope. (FMF)

August 15, 2014 by HappyGoStuckey 18 Comments

So the internet. It’s been really LOUD this week. Perhaps I’ve struggled more with the noise since I returned home from the Declare Conference on Sunday. All I’ve wanted was a good long bit of quiet — time for processing and time with my three loves. But, Life.

Certainly I could have turned it all off, stuck my head in the sand and avoided the pain and the struggles and the sadness. But sadly, I do that far too often.

Last night as we readied ourselves for bed, I was overwhelmed. So much hurt. So much despair. So many sad events in just one week.

I absentmindedly said to my husband, “Wow. We (as a country) really need some good news. Something happy. Something positive.”

As I drifted off to sleep, it hit me like a blast of cold air in the face– We HAVE that good news. Something positive HAS happened. We have hope.

We have the hope of Christ and that changes everything– if we let it. We have the gift of prayer to a God who hears– but we have to go to Him. We have the biggest reason for crazy joy and peace and gift-counting ever– but we have to TELL THEM.

It’s hard not to feel utterly and completely helpless, because people are still hurting. Many of them love God and know true peace– but they are still HURTING.

And my arms don’t feel long enough to wrap around them all. My words feel as though they fall flat when I open my mouth to speak love. My fingers stayed paralyzed in front of a keyboard when I look at all else that has been said and wonder which of it matters. Is this even helpful? What can I do? I’m one small voice with a handful of followers.

But I’m choosing obedience today. And joy. And I’m choosing to tell everyone, every chance I get. That there is Hope. And there is a God who does not look at us in our brokenness and sadly shake His head.

He knows we are broken. He loves us in spite of it.

He knows we are flawed. He is the only One who is not.

He knows we are helpless. He is our only Help.

So as we look for some shred of good news in today, remember this:

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”

1 Peter 2:9 (ESV)

Linking up with Kate for Five Minute Friday! Same lovely group– new home!!!

4×4 for Declare

August 2, 2014 by HappyGoStuckey 11 Comments

In less than 5 days, I will be headed to the Declare Conference!!!! (YAY. Seriously. YAY!)

This will be only my 2nd Blogging/ Writing Conference and my first ever Declare. I am absolutely beside myself excited to go and spend time getting to know these other women with similar passions and hearts– but other than a few that I’ve met virtually, and a few that I met last year at Allume– I really don’t KNOW too many women going. Which makes the FUN link-up that the Declare Hostesses planned even more exciting. I have spent so much time going through and “meeting” other attendees, I’ve failed to write my own 4×4 post– so here it is (finally!)

4 Things About Me:

I’m the youngest of five children, (all brothers!) and still absolutely LOVE making the drive and going “home” to my parent’s house. Something about standing in my Mom & Dad’s kitchen in my socks, drinking coffee from “my” mug while my mom cooks breakfast. It’s simply perfect.
The moment I first met my husband is forever frozen in my mind just like a scene in a movie. We both worked for the same professor and I vividly remember every single detail of that afternoon when he first walked in. Goosebumps, I tell ya. Oh, and Aviator Sunglasses. Those too. I’ll never be the same.
I am the proud Mom of two little girls, ages 5 and 2. Our days are full of squealing and every bit of princess paraphernalia known to man. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
I very often hear songs in my head as a sort of soundtrack to certain moments. I’m an idealist and I do not care. I overuse explanation points. And maybe instagram. I over-gram. Be warned.

4 of my “Endearing” Quirks:

I have a problem unpacking suitcases. If I don’t do it in the first 12 hours after returning from a trip– it’s usually a real struggle to get it unpacked. It’s a problem I’m working to fix, because– you know… stubbed toes.
I am unspeakably horribly geographically challenged. I struggle with knowing where places are. It’s laughable, really. I can find my way around a city just fine– it’s more knowing where cities and states (and ok, countries) are. I’m pretty sure it’s because I sat right next to my best friend in 7th grade Geography and I don’t remember ANY learning going on. I blame that.
I’m hard to win over on new things– restaurants, foods, clothing trends, hairstyles, etc. and then once I’m won over– I’m the biggest champion for that thing. My husband rightly explains it this way: “You HATE something. Until you don’t. Then you LOVE it more than anyone.” I’m not this way about people though. I generally love everyone I meet. 🙂
I have so many quirks, I recently wrote an entire blog post about them.

4 Things About my Writing:

I’ve always enjoyed writing but I started writing a blog almost 8 years ago as a way to tell people directions for our wedding. From there it just never stopped.
I have written more in different seasons of our life than others, the happy and the difficult, but in the last 18 months writing has changed from an occasional hobby to a calling and an act of worship. It’s a life-giving exercise.
I write about... encouragement. Life. Grace. Mothering. Trust in time of difficulty. The hardest things I write are… affiliate posts. I’m trying to work at them, but they stretch me for sure.
Some day I would love to write a book about hospitality. I love cooking. I adore feeding people and I always have– even in college, I cooked meals for everyone and my apartment felt most like home when it was busting at its’ seams with friends and family sharing a meal.

4 of my Favorite Things: Only Four???

Chocolate. I recently discovered these Chocolate Covered Almonds at Target and WOW. And BONUS, you get a little protein from the almonds. Score. Find me at Declare– I will most likely have them and will gladly share.
Iced Coffee. I almost always prefer making it at home but I love, love, love Iced Coffee. It is, as they say– MY JAM.
These Fireball Stud Earrings from the JCrew Factory Store — my sweet lifelong BFF (yep, you guessed it– Geography girl.) gave them to me for my birthday this year and I wear them WAY too much. But they go with everything!!
Okay. these chips. IF you live near a Whole Foods Store, (I do not for at least a few more months) you need to go try them. (And no, all other brands are not created equal. They add things like jalapeño powder and sugar???)
Honorable Mention goes to this Benefit Cosmetics erase paste concealer (because four really isn’t enough.)
Such Fantastic coverage. And it lasts for eons. Literally, I’ve had it so long the packaging has changed several times. (affiliate link) I’m definitely packing mine for all those late night Declare chats!!

Fighting Rest.

July 16, 2014 by HappyGoStuckey 1 Comment

I have this little girl Abby. She is small and very funny.

(Yes, we watch a lot of Charlie and Lola around these parts.)

She loves life and fun and laughing and playing.

But she hates rest time.

I mean, truly– I almost have to sneak up on her to get her in the direction of upstairs before I tell her it’s rest time.

Because that girl– she will run and hide. No matter how tired she is.

She will ask for a drink. (she just had one.) A snack. (She just finished one.) She will ask to go potty. (She just did.) She will want some obscure stuffed animal that neither of us have seen in months. (her bed is full of them.)

And she will go from a snuggly two year old to a rabid porcupine as I try to carry her upstairs.

Upon nearing her bed, she’s even been known to say on several occasions lately and I quote, “I don’t want that cozy bed!!!!!!” “I don’t NEED a nap!!!! *huge yawn.”

She usually has to be distracted by the “animals marching two by two” poem and the drawing of an imaginary kitty face on her own little round face before she realizes she, is, indeed in her own bed.
And then I can see it on her own face– “Oh wow… this is comfy… maybe I’ll just lie down for a moment…”

By the time I get back downstairs and switch on the monitor, she’s out cold. And she stays that way for at least 2 1/2 hours.
But the IDEA of taking a nap? Taking a break from all the fun? No Way is she interested in that.

*****
And then there’s me.

I know I mentioned this before, but this summer has not been a “break.”

Not by any fault of anyone’s but it’s just been super full (of wonderful, amazing things!) but somewhat like a Carousel going a little bit too fast and never stopping for very long at all.

And about some point during each week, I find myself with an hour and no pressing deadline– and I just sit. And stare. Sometimes at the wall. Sometimes at my Instagram feed (because lately it’s been all precious new babies and pictures from where all of you are going and where you’re traveling to and what you’re eating.. and a few cats. There’s always a few cats, of course.) But it’s refreshing to just zone out in silence for a few minutes.

Often in the staring I think– I should really get up and do…..

And I probably should. BUT. there’s something to be said for REST.

And SILENCE.
And being REFRESHED.

And maybe I’m not kicking and screaming and having someone force me to rest… but that might just be what I need.

So here’s my plan. Since Summer is clearly almost over and I have a few deadlines that won’t come until the last few days of summer’s end– I propose something.

Perhaps, we shall make FALL a season of purposeful REST.

Can anybody out there use an Autumn with a return to a little bit of Margin?
I know I can.
So if you’ll humor me–
I am planning a few more posts dealing with this topic.
Rest. Quiet. Whitespace. Margin. Room for Whatever.

I won’t commit right now to how many or when–(because I might just start hyperventilating!) but– just Fall and a few!
Hope you’ll join me.