What's Up Wednesday: May 2016
It's happening y'all. Summer is here. May is gone. We're only 25 days away from celebrating the 6 month countdown to CHRISTMAS. Yes...you read that correctly. I am already excited about Christmas. If I wasn't planning to move soon I would seriously be regretting taking down my Christmas tree, and I can honestly proclaim that I live with no regrets so the idea that I am borderline regretting taking down my Christmas tree is a major thing. ;) That's how fast this year is moving!
Today I am linking up with Shay and Sheaffer to share what I've been up to this past month. I am grateful for this post so that I myself might also know what I've been doing to make the time fly by.
What I'm eating this week:
I think I've never noticed that the question is for "this week". Oops! This week I am eating lobster, crab, scallops, fish, etc. I have been on the north east coast and definitely took advantage of the fresh seafood! The rest of this week I will likely resume eating my general Whole 30 and Paleo type of food although I am considering a different approach to incorporate dairy and eliminate fruit for a few weeks, sort of like low carb. I only have three weeks until Napa and it will be difficult not to eat cheese while wine tasting. Plus, I think it's time to shock my body with something different after almost 8 full months of Whole 30 eating. Oh, and I wil no doubt seek out my beloved Tex-Mex. Even the shortest of trips can make me miss Mexican food!
On Monday I will resume sharing recipes and have a Vegan (Whole 30, Paleo) minestrone soup to share!
What I'm reminiscing about:
Honestly, I'd have to say the month of April and May. What happened? Where did it go? I have to look back through my calendar to remember everything I did. I'm also reminiscing about trips I took in May in former years. Both Shutterfly and Facebook remind me now of "on this day" type of stuff. In the few previous Mays from 2013-2016 I visited Cancun, Napa, Spain, France, Galveston, Fredericksburg, and New Braunsfels, TX. It's amazing how life changes so much year to year and I can't even remember where I was the years before that! I think I need to make a list of places I've traveled to.
What I'm loving:
Southwest Airlines. First of all, this airline flies out of Houston's smaller (and closer to me) airport, allows two free checked bags, and allows you to cancel/change your flights without a fee. Those right there are something to love. The prices can be comparable to some of the United Airlines flights, but Southwest does actually have amazing sales that pop up whereas United rarely has a true sale (for places I look to fly to). However, what I am loving about Southwest this month in addition to these things is that they recently reached out to me from a Twitter post I shared that I didn't even mention them in and gave me reward miles...for doing nothing.
How cool is that?!?! I have all of 20-ish followers and thus my new "Twitter" account isn't the most active account (and likely never will be), but somehow Southwest airlines found that post and gifted me miles!
So, in return I thought I should give Southwest a little shout out in a Twitter post on the 22nd and sure enough they responded to that "Tweet" too and sent me free wi-fi codes to use in flight! I'm diggin' the love.
Quite frankly I don't care if they're the only ones to "like" my "Tweet", it makes me feel special. =)
What I've been up to:
I visited with Cyndi when she came to town and when I went out to east Texas to visit with her, her hubby, and my three (of five) God children that I failed to get pictures with on this trip. The yellow missile looking picture is from the road trip out to east Texas.
I got to enjoy my friends for Cinco de Mayo festivities. Hello guacamole and margaritas!
I enjoyed dinner and Casting Crowns with my dear friend, Elizabeth one weekend and another weekend enjoyed visiting with @missy_nessa95 at Carrie Ann's Mother's Day celebration.
In between these things I visited with family, dealt with a health issue and hid a bit, had dinner with other friends, traveled to east Texas as mentioned above and to Boston & Cape Cod. It's been a fruitful month!
What I'm dreading:
Nothing except the inevitable Houston heat and humidity.
What I'm working on:
Myself! As always... I'm also working on the blog by slowly getting back in to the marketing course I set aside last fall. I have one of two options - follow the course and pray that my blog improves as well as grows, OR I put it on hold for a while so I can just focus on life that is happening so rapidly I can barely keep up. All good things. I couldn't feel more blessed to be this "busy"/fruitful and trust that the things I agree to do are for God's glory in some form or else He would prompt me to stay home and be silent. =)))
What I'm excited about:
The month of June! I have been slowly getting rid of furniture and things so I can begin moving over the next couple of months. I am beyond ready for the next chapter that God is preparing me for. I am excited about the friend's I'll get to see (finally), the down time I am blocking off in my calendar, and for my upcoming trips this month! I'm also looking forward to starting a Beth Moore bible study called "Entrusted".
What I'm watching/reading:
I suspect you all know the answer to these so I'll keep it quick:
Watching - reruns if I turn on the TV at all, although I rarely sit down to actually watch it.
Reading - The One Year Bible and a PDF called Every Good Marriage Begins with a Funeral that I received from Gary Thomas, author of one of my favorite books Sacred Marriage, for signing up on his street team a while back to pre-read Cherish before it was released.
In the last month we have covered: Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel, finished Luke, and are currently reading 2 Samuel, John, Psalm, Proverbs. In case you're not familiar, the One Year Bible allots about 15 minutes a day for readings split between the old and new testament with Psalm and Proverbs every day as well. I absolutely love it!
Treadmill reading - I finished Attached - and goodness it is so interesting. It was my second time reading it and it's enlightening to see which attachment style you fit into as well as recognizing where you were in other relationships and how it can affect your relationships.
I also breezed through A Nantucket Christmas for the 2nd time just for fun, and am now reading An Island Christmas for the 2nd time. Reasons: they're light and easy reads, I love Christmas any time of year, and I had the trip planned to Cape Cod and had hopes to make it over to Nantucket but ran out of time. I plan to read more of Nancy Thayer's books I think. Easy to let your mind go. Those two are filled with Christmas imagery so much that I had a very detailed dream about Christmas decor one evening and struggled to refrain from listening to Christmas music the next day. =)
I decided to put away Life After the Storm that I mentioned in last month's What's Up Wednesday because I just couldn't relate to it right now. There is great information in there about grieving all kinds of losses but ultimately I missed the boat on reading that late last year/early this year when it would have been more applicable and helpful in my situation. If you or anyone you know if going through a loss of some kind, then I would recommend checking it out. It serves a purpose in the right moment.
My goal is to read the 21 Day Financial Fast beginning June 1st (tomorrow!) but I know I won't be able to fully abide by the no eating out rule. I will curtail shopping though and know I need NOTHING for my two trips in June. Mind over lustful online sales and shopping. EEEEK!
What I'm listening to:
Spotify's Praise & Worship playlist. It is soooo good! And of course my favorite band, Hillsong United, is in that playlist. I don't know if the link will work that I inserted but it's worth a shot.
I'm also still listening to my podcasts: Hope City, Breakaway Ministries, Joyce Meyer, Bayou City Fellowship, and Marriage Today.
What I'm wearing:
I'm surprised that this section feels difficult, but this month has been a blur. I had to look back through pictures to see what I wore! And that's even with the 2+ weeks of canceling most of my plans because I wasn't feeling well. Y'all, I have got to slow down!
I wore things like this MinkPink dress and ADA belt that I bought at Carrie Ann's. You can stop by her beautiful boutique to take a look or click on the picture if you'd like to purchase it online.
I've worn my black 1822 Denim Butter jeans a dozen times because they feel like pajamas.
I sported this Free People Alana sweater in beige and red from Macy's for 40% off or something like that and love it! (I'm using stock photos because I'm having to create this post prior to my long weekend and get back late on Tuesday and thus will not be able to add in real pics of me in my new duds).
I picked up the following shoes for my trip to Boston/Cape Cod because we planned to do a lot of walking:
Puma Vikky suede sneakers: like velvet cushions on my feet.
Converse Chuck Taylor Allstar Shoreline in charcoal: comfortable alternative to the boat shoes I love and wanted but would have torn up my heel. These Chucks stayed put because of the elastic heel and were comfortable.
What I'm doing this weekend:
I had to look at my calendar again! Gosh, which way am I going? This weekend I am having a low key Friday night, taking a freebie dance/work out class Saturday morning, having dinner with a bestie Saturday night, and visiting with my girl friends by the pool on Sunday. =))) I refuse to add more to that list other than church and sleep.
What I'm looking forward to next month:
Visiting with my friends and seeing my family, a cool inauguration of a USS ship in Galveston, celebrating one of my five God children's birthdays, my trip to Napa and to Knoxville where I will see all my family to celebrate my Mammaw's 92nd birthday! I'll also get to hold and smooch on my four perfect & beautiful nieces! Give them to me. Give them all to me. Tia Becca needs muchos besitos!!!!!
What else is new:
I think I've summed it all up for now.
How was your month of May? Anything fun and exciting to share that you did, ate, or traveled to? Are you excited for the summer to kick off? Comment below!
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XOXO
