Miscellany Monday

I hope y'all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  We sure did!  We got to stay home and all of our family drove to see us! :)

It's been a while since I participated in Miscellany Monday, so here it goes:

I did this about a week ago.  It's been over 6 years since I've had my hair this short.  I wasn't quite convinced that I wanted to go short, but I knew that I wanted something drastically different.  I am glad that I went short...and I can wear it straight or curly. :)

Thursday, we hosted Thanksgiving for Tyler's side of the family.  It was low-key and somewhat non-traditional.  We didn't eat turkey.  I did love getting out my China and setting the table.  (I will be excited when we do purchase a formal dining room table and chairs.)

It has been a tradition for me to make the pumpkin pie.  It started when I was young, and I have enjoyed doing it.  This year was the first year that I had ever made the crust from scratch.  I was pretty proud of how it turned out. :)

The last three years, Tyler and I have gone Black Friday shopping on Thanksgiving evening.  It is such a fun, thrilling time.  This year, many of the things on my list were for our new home.  We had such a good time, got what we came for, and were home by 8 pm! :)

Tyler had the first present under the tree.  However, it was my birthday present. :)

This year, our birthdays fell really close to Thanksgiving.  Tyler's is the 29th, and mine and my brother's is the 30th.  So my family came up for the weekend to celebrate.  My mom made each of us a t-shirt quilt!! :)  

One of the most special things was when my Dad and brothers came carrying in my childhood piano.  I originally had said that we had a room in our house that would be perfect for a piano.  However, my mom had put up a fight.  My Granny purchased this piano for me when I was in 1st or 2nd grade.  I was really surprised when they brought it in my house!  I am honored to have it here, and I'm really excited about re-teaching myself how to play (I haven't played since high school).  

Our first Christmas in our new home!  I was so excited to buy a "big" tree this year!  I said I wouldn't until we bought a house....and here we are.  I have plenty of lights on it. :)

Linking up with Carissa today!

**Come back this week for a sneak peek into our new home!**

Miscellany Monday

Happy Monday!

I haven't really blogged in a couple weeks.

Hopefully in the coming days, I will be able to share with you.

For now, here are my randoms.

One.

Our weekend was jam-packed full of fun and celebration!

I hope to share more of that later this week {with lots of pictures}!

Two.

Not too long ago, I sold a scrap fabric banner from my shop.  I had been in touch with the lady who purchased it, and I knew that she would be using it for her niece's baby shower.  I was so excited that she purchased it in the first place.  But when I received this picture back from her last week, I was so happy.

How cute is that?

The banner fit perfectly in that window and went with the party decorations beautifully.

She's the first one who sent me a photo of how she used her handmade purchase. :)

P.S.  I've closed my shop down for several weeks.  Don't worry, I'll be back!  

To see sneak peeks and what you can look forward to, find us on instagram (@asimplekindoflove) or on facebook!

Three.

I recently finished up Betty Rocker's 30 Day Challenge.

Let me tell you...I've discovered a lot about my self this past month.

Some things I'm still trying to process and figure out myself, but there are other things that I'm excited to share with you.

One thing that I've learned is that as a woman, I look to the scale probably more than I should.  Fitness is not about the scale.

Yes, it is great and it feels good to see that number go down.

But honestly, it's not all that.

The weight difference in these pictures is about 0.6 lbs.  However, I lost 4.75 inches overall during this challenge.  To be honest, showing these pictures is a little embarrassing, but it's my life.  Stay tuned for some other lessons that Betty Rocker taught me!

Okay, so those are only a few things that are going on in my life right now.  I have a lot more to share!  So come back tomorrow!  And the day after...and the day after!  haha!!  I hope to get back to blogging, but at the same time I have to live my life!

Happy Monday, everyone!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend!

A Little Miscellany for Your Monday

July!

How'd it already get to be July???

This year is just flying by!

Well, since June is over, I thought I'd let y'all know that I finished the #56milesinJune challenge.

I didn't run every day, but 21 days out of 30 is pretty good!!

I finished with a total of 64.47 miles.

I'm 1/3 of the way to my pedicure!!

I will be joining in the July challenge which is #50milesinJuly.
I'm so thankful to have "met" Marta via instagram.
She truly is an inspiration and great encourager!

Are you in?

>>>>><<<<<

This weekend, my husband had to work.

It was a huge bummer, because he's been working a lot of overtime lately.

He has this huge account he's been transitioning {mostly} by himself.

He's been stressed out and not sleeping well for over a month now.

After this week, it should be better.

So while he was working this weekend, I decided to make use of my time by doing the things that needed to be done, so that when he does have time off, I can just hang out with him.

I got a lot of cleaning done.

Oh, and we got rid of our "giveaway pile" that's been in a pile for over a year now.
Yes...a year.

Thank goodness it's gone!!

>>>>><<<<<

Oh, and I met my goals from last week.
I walked 83,147 steps.
I finished the #56milesinJune challenge.
I worked out every day on the elliptical.
I gave the week my all.

>>>>><<<<<

Last night, Tyler took me out on a date.
It was actually really nice to "splurge."
We headed to one of our favorite places that we don't eat at often.
It was actually the first place he took me on a date. :)
Red Lobster.

Food is always photo-worthy. haha! :)
I can't wait to eat the chicken...it's my lunch today. 

>>>>><<<<<

I hope y'all had a wonderful weekend!!
Have a fun, short week!! :)

Our Weekend in Pictures

I'm a believer in taking pictures of everything.  Even the littlest moments of life.  I don't want to miss a thing.  Having a good camera on my iPhone has made this so much easier!  I know my mom doesn't want to have her picture taken unless she's "ready" for it...but even on the days when I look bad, I'm still grateful for the little things.  Sorry, Mom...I'm putting pictures on here to capture our weekend. :)

My mom came to visit for the weekend.  I'm always glad to have her, because she doesn't get to come very often.  When we lived in Springfield, she would come to town at least once a month.  She {and my dad} had obligations there, and it just helped that {all of} us kids were there.  My brothers are still there, and they still see them often.  But going from only living 80 miles from her and my dad, to now living over 280 miles away makes it a little more difficult to see each other on a whim.

Anyhow..back to the pictures.

1.  My brother returned with gifts from North Africa!  I was so excited that Mom brought them to us!  Thank you, Ben!! They are awesome!! I've already used one of the spoons you got us, and it is sweet!!

2.  Friday night, we headed to the pool at our apartment complex!  It was a gorgeous night, and the pool was actually a little chilly, so we ended up in the hot tub.  First time this season for a pool day night.

3-5.  We went to the Kirkwood Farmer's Market on Saturday morning.  I've been dying to go for the past month, and I took my mom with me.  They had such a variety of things, and the bread there is SO delicious.

6.  This was our haul from the Farmer's Market.  I LOVE having fresh veggies and fruit in my house.  My motto has been, "Fail to plan, Plan to fail."  So always having fresh, healthy food in the house is a great thing!

7.  Saturday evening we went to church.  Mom normally goes on Sunday morning, so it was a bit different for her.  I have to admit...it was weird for me too at first, but I really enjoy going on Saturday evening, especially since our friends go, too!

8.  We saw some fireworks in the neighborhood on Saturday night.

9-10.  Sunday morning, we {finally} planted flowers!  Mom helped me pick them out on Saturday night, and she taught Tyler and I her ways. :)  They look so pretty and give us some "porch appeal."

11.  Sunday morning we went to see Monster's University on the Mega Screen.  My mom was so enthused!  She doesn't go see movies very often, and the Mega Scree is huge.

12.  My mother is a saint.  Seriously.  She blessed me so much this weekend...she has such a servant's heart.  She came to hang out with us, but she also helped me clean.  She dusted, folded laundry, ironed, cooked supper, and just encouraged me as a wife.  I'm so grateful for her, and I'm so thankful that we have a relationship like we do.  It is something that I don't take for granted, because she didn't get to have her mom very long.  She is someone that I look up to, not just as a wife and mother, but as a Christian.

13.  We ate healthy this weekend!

14-15.  We worked out together!  I'm still truckin' on my #56milesinJune challenge...almost there!!

16.  It rained a lot this weekend.  I even got a video of the lightning and thunder to put on my instagram...I just had to try out the new videos (which I'm totally excited about). :)

I had a full weekend.  It was so good to just hang out and do whatever we wanted.  I am so thankful for our time together, but it was sad to see her go this morning.  I hate "see ya laters."  Oh well...such is life.

I hope you had a wonderful weekend!  Make the best of this week!  It's a fresh new week!

Randoms...Short and Sweet

Happy Monday, y'all!

It's definitely not my favorite day of the week, but it's one day closer to the weekend! :)

1.  I'm so tired today from the weekend.

We went to Branson for a family reunion and did a whole lotta nothin' which in turn makes me so tired.
Did you do anything fun this weekend?

2.  You should enter this giveaway.

There is only one day left to enter and you could win some great prizes...

including some credit to my shop!

3.  And speaking of my shop...

I'm going on "etsy vacation" next week, so I'm having a sale to clear out some inventory!!

Some things may not come back to the shop when I reopen...

so it's your last chance to get them this week!!
Here are some things you can find there:  

Randoms...

Friday evening was scary for most of us across Oklahoma and Missouri.

I was texting my mom from St. Louis when our tornado sirens went off.

At the same time, their county in Southwest Missouri, was under a tornado warning.

Talk about crazy!!

Thankfully, they were fine.

However, I was completely freaking out.

I'm not kidding when I say that I had a bag packed with my "necessities" that I could grab in a moment's notice.

I was wearing my tennis shoes and a sweatshirt, because I knew I would want some good shoes and a jacket if I had to live through a tornado.

I've lived in tornado alley my entire life and never once thought about what I would grab.

It seemed like we were the splitting point for tornadoes.

The "spotted rotation" was north and south of us.

North happened to get hit way harder than any other part of the county.

Saturday, I took this picture from the car as we were on the way to church.

They are some really nice condos that had their shingles blown off.

We saw lots of broken trees, where you knew the tornado had been.

We didn't go where the worst of it was, but I'm so thankful for the Lord's protection.

I am starting a new blog series on Thursday and I still have some room for some small businesses/shops if they would like to have a bit of free advertising.  

If you're interested, please email me.

I'll give you more details!!

The next randoms are a bit fitness related.

Someone posted this on their instagram feed, and I just loved it.

So I'm sharing with you.

Sometimes we just need a nice reminder.

A girl on instagram gives fitness goals for each month.

I've never participated in one, well, let's just be honest here.

I've never been motivated enough to try one.

But this month is different.

I'm going to complete #56milesinJune.

Want to join?

Find her facebook page here.

I've already completed 8 miles. :)

And while we're talking fitness...

Here are some of my stats from the past 5 weeks of the #branstetterlifestylechange.

Getting active and losing weight is definitely a process.

Considering all things, losing weight is also a bit more difficult for me than the average person.

But I'm doing it...and so can you. :)

Are you challenging yourself?

In what ways?

4 Things for Monday

one.

I am so thankful for the beautiful weather we had this weekend.  It was absolutely gorgeous.  We went to a Cards game, which turned out to be a good game, but we lost in the 10th inning.  Boo.


two.

I messed up big time yesterday.  I said something that I shouldn't have, and while it was all true, my heart was ugly.  I'm sure it could have come out differently, or maybe it shouldn't have come out at all.  I wept the entire church service yesterday morning, throwing myself at the throne of God, asking for forgiveness and giving it all to Him.

One of my instagram friends had posted these verses yesterday, and it was perfect timing:

When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered,I was senseless and ignorant;  I was a brute beast before you.  Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand.  You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.

{Psalm 73: 21-24}

Today, I'm grateful for grace.  Maybe I don't just need to work on giving others grace, but receiving it from my Father, as well.

three.

These are my brothers.  Brian is on the left and Ben is on the right.

My brother, Ben is leaving for Africa tomorrow morning.  He will be going with a group from Christian Campus House from Missouri State.  He will be gone for 2 weeks.  Would you join me in praying for their safety and that they might be able to reach the Lost for Christ while they're there?  They will be working with a team that has a close connection to CCH.  I hope to give updates as I get them. :)  I am incredibly excited for him!!

four.

So I know that I've shared that I've been on this lifestyle change journey.  Well, that face is for real! :)  I'm feeling pretty good!  Some of my favorite things right now are:  the elliptical (my ankle/leg doesn't even hurt at all on it), the iDrated app, my Fitbit, and a red, sweaty face.  I also love my #alittletoofluffytwo girls!  They are such an encouragement on instagram and through email.  We're in this together!

Monday's Randoms

Man, oh man. 
It's hard coming back to a Monday when we had such a great weekend.

First of all, the winner of the Summer Fun Jar is Breanna S!
Congratulations!
I'll get that to you this week! :)

Those of you who read my 10 on 10 {May} post know that we had a great Life Group Shoot Day.
That was just the kick-off to a great weekend.
Saturday morning, we got up and went to the park.
We walked the trail that runs around the lake.
It was a gorgeous morning, and lots of people were there...doing exactly what we were doing.
Exercising.
For those of you who follow me on instagram (@beth_elaine), I've been using the hashtag #branstetterslifestylechange with all of our pictures.
Check it out!

We tried out a new sub place.

It was yummy...but not as cheap as Subway.

Sunday morning, we went shooting at the shooting range.

There are perks going to the Saturday evening service at church. :)

I also updated my etsy shop!

There are a lot of cute things there!

I added several more Summer Fun Jars/Boxes.

Check them out!

Do you do anything fun this weekend?
Tell me about it! :)

I hope y'all have a great week!

Random Tidbits {and a giveaway}

This rain that we've been having is getting old, real quick!

I don't know what happened to our warm weather and sunshine!

Please come back!!

I hear we may have some sun for a couple of days...

and then more rain!!

I think my dad might be planting corn in June...hmmm.

My husband fixed my car this week.

Wanna know how?

...Google and Youtube. 

Seriously.

I've had this "hum" since last fall.

I got my tires rotated because I thought that might have had an effect. Nope.

Then I got all new tires {not to see if that fixed it, well, sort of...but also because I needed them}. Nope.

Finally, a couple weeks ago, it was so bad...like I can't go 70 mph because it "hums" so bad.

As in...I have to drive 62 mph or 73 mph.  There's no in between because it's so bad.

My husband...the smart, resourceful, techy person that he is, googled my problem.

Sure enough, other people had the same problem.

So Monday evening, he went out there, jacked up my car, took my brake drum off, and finally took the wheel bearing off.

He wanted to make sure that's what it was before he spent money on the part.

It was.  The part stores didn't have the part we needed.

Good thing too, it was $30 more than just ordering online ourselves.

And that's what we did.

He changed it out in the rain, too.

If that ain't true love, I don't know what is. :)
I love him, and I'm so thankful for him!

I won this phone case from the amazing Lindsay over at Pen and Paint.

How amazing is that?!?   I never win!!

This is her artwork on a phone case!!

I think it's pretty incredible.

Oh, you want one too?

You can get yours here.

She also has amazing artwork in her shop, which you can find here.

Last week, I mentioned that I wanted to do some organizing.

Saturday morning, Tyler and I went out to do some shopping, and I was in luck.

I found what I wanted!

I'll be sure to show you the finished product soon!!

I also got some new shoes for my workouts!

So far, I like them.

{I've only worn them once.}

Oh, and more of that home improvement?

Welcome to my front door, Cute Rug. :)

Ignore the dirty concrete...there are workers doing some exterior updates to our apartments and it's not the cleanest.

I put some new things in my shop this weekend!  

The Summer Fun Jar is the newest addition!

You can find them here.

Oh and get 25% off with code SPRING.

**Oh, and I forgot to mention that I'm giving a Summer Fun Jar away!!**

This Summer Fun jar has 35 fun ideas for your kids to participate in throughout the summer!

See below for rules and how to enter!

Speaking of shops...

You have GOT to check out Joy's shop!

She has new things in her shop including Scripture Slates and Mini Wreaths!

She is also giving away something from her shop on her blog today!!

Check it out!! :)

Oh and did you hear?
My Mini Pink Bow Garland was featured in a publication!!
To see the publication in its entirety, click here.

Photo used with permission

Also, I'm not a morning person.

I don't like getting up any earlier than I have to.

So preparing lunches in an evening "to-do" for me.

Sunday evenings are spent de-stemming grapes, cutting cucumbers, and preparing yummy strawberries for the week.

Then I bag them and put them in the fridge so all I have to do is "grab and go."

What did you do this weekend??

Summer Fun Jar Giveaway

To enter:  just leave me a comment!

For extra entries (leave a comment for each one):

1.  Check out my shop and tell me what your favorite item is!

2.  Share this giveaway on your blog, facebook, instagram, twitter, etc.  

Giveaway open until 5/10.  

Winner will be picked (using random.org) on 5/11.

Contest opened to US residents only at this time.

Linking up with Carissa and Sew, Mama, Sew today!

Miscellany Monday

Can I just be honest here?
When we moved into this apartment, I was secretly hoping we'd only be here for a year.
I didn't hang a whole lot on my walls. 
In fact, there are a couple of shelves that have yet to be hung because of that very reason.
However, we signed another year-long lease last month.


Lately, I've been feeling a bit convicted...in several areas of my life.

1.  Last year, I wrote a final post on my P31 Woman Bible Study I had been doing.
One of the things that I had learned was that housekeeping was important to her.
I'm not a very good housekeeper.
Oh, I am when we are expecting company...
I will clean and clean until our home is perfect.
If there is anything out of place, I'll just put it in our office and explain to our guests that it is our "junk room."

But I don't want to have a "junk room."  
I want everything to have a place and for things to be nice and tidy.
Being that we're in an apartment, that's somewhat difficult with the limited closet/storage space.
So I'm not on a mission to clean up our home, organize it, and to make it feel homey.

Just today I went out shopping.
I bought new drip pans for the stove, a new shower curtain {the one we've had has been through a move, 3 months of storage, and a year and a half being used...can we say, "ick!"}, a couple of new pillows, and a rug for just outside our door.
I hope to clean up and organize our office as well as my craft space {which doubles as our dining room} in the coming weeks.

I did start with the kitchen, though.  It looks pretty good, if I do say so myself.

I'll let you know the progress and unique things I can find to help develop this space into something pleasant and welcoming.
I see the P31 woman having a home that is organized just right so that when company comes at any time, she is prepared.

2.  I have also been feeling a bit lazy lately.
Not only with how things are going around our home, but in the physical part of life, too.
I need to get up off the couch and go do something active {hopefully this rain will disappear for a bit}.
So this weekend, I made a meal plan and grocery list for every. single. meal. this week.

Usually I only plan our suppers, but since I work full-time, I want to know exactly what I need to put in my lunch box.  
It's better for my sanity that way. :)

We now have a fridge full of healthy foods!!
Oh, and those are my last diet cokes for awhile...and no fear, they're made with Splenda. :)

Tonight, I hope to hit up a walk or some elliptical time...

3.  I've also been struggling with my quiet time lately.
I know that it's not what it could be, so I hope to remedy that.
When I first started this blog, I knew that the Proverbs 31 woman was who I wanted to strive to model my life of being a wife after.
She has so much to offer, and I have so much to learn from her.
I want to memorize her verses from the Bible.
I've posted them here if you'd like to read them.

4.  And for a little bit of light-heartedness, I've posted some new jars in the shop!
Take a look here!

5.  Also, if you've been following my shop's instagram feed (@asimplekindoflove), you'll know that I'm looking to highlight some small businesses!  
If you're interested in guest posting here about your shop {for free} send me an email at asimplekindoflove {at} gmail {dot} com.
I would love to feature you! :)