2013 Best & Worst

Posted in Life, Milestones by bscott517

2013 was a great year. In some ways, it was the hardest year I’ve ever had, but it was also the best.

In 2013:

Patrick turned the big 3-0. He gets better looking every year, darn him.

After being off anti-depressants for almost 3 years, I ended up going back on them. I am happy and thankful for modern medicine. Having a chemical imbalance does not mean I am crazy, but it does make me act that way. If you are struggling, run – don’t walk – to your doctor. Life is too short to struggle with that battle on your own.

I gave up alcohol. Alcohol is not a friend of depression. People constantly question my decision, but I stand firm beside it and it makes me a better person.

I totaled my Jeep Compass but came out completely unscathed. Gap coverage paid off my Jeep AND gave us money back. I was able to buy a newer car for half the payment. That, my friends, was definitely a God thing.
We welcomed a new family member to the family… a brindle Pitt named Bolt. Alston named him after the Disney movie. He sleeps with the boys and he will eat you if you try to mess with them. Best $45 I’ve ever spent.

I had a couple of rough patches at work, but made it through alive. Barely.
I also had my two very best days at work ever: Superhero window washers & Craft Day with patients. Amazing.
I started running and did my first 5k. With two kids in a jogging stroller. I’m not gonna lie – I walked it.

I read too many books to count. Some were fabulous, some were terrible. My absolute favorites include The Fault in Our Stars, The Book Thief and Forgotten God.
I went on a fabulous beach trip with my best girls from high school. I swear it added 2 years to my life expectancy.
We made a trip to visit my (HUGE) family in Missouri for the 4th of July. Best family vacation. Ever. (Even with the puppy poo incident.)
I celebrated with friends at our 10 year high school reunion. I do not feel old.
I went to the Circles Design Conference in Grapevine, Texas and came back inspired and refreshed.
Patrick officially started his own business (finally!) and has had much success. All thanks to God.
We paid off some debt. More thanks to God.
We decided to put our house up for sale by owner and did some house projects we had been putting off.
We celebrated Alston’s 5th birthday and Eli’s 2nd. These boys are growing up too fast, but make our life crazy fun.
I went to several movie marathons with my bestie. She’s the bestiest. The Beautiful Creatures Debacle of 2013 will never be forgotten.
I learned the importance of the 2nd Amendment after a weirdo followed me home. I am armed, so weirdos beware.
We got to have my brother Logan with us for Christmas. He has grown into such an awesome young man and I am super proud to call him family. Eli is infatuated with his “Unter Wodan”… I’ve never seen him warm up to someone so quickly. Except, Aunt Katelyn… Unter Wodan’s equally fabulous other half. 🙂
And had way more fund and too many wonderful adventures to list them all…

Yes, 2013 was amazing. And hard. And wonderful. I fully expect 2014 to hold more than I could ever imagine. Have you ever met someone who was excited about their thirties? Well, this girl is. This is my last year of my twenties and I can’t wait to see what it brings. Happy New Year y’all!

2Dec2013

The Best of October

Posted in Alston, Eli, Life by bscott517

The morning of Alston’s 5th birthday…

Annual Birthday Zoo Trip

Pawpaw, Mammy, Aunt Jo Jo, Josie and Ally joined us this year…

Train ride…

Watching the sea lions practice their show…

Monster Birthday bash with our friends!

Alabama vs. Tennessee

“Dog don’t talk.” -Eli

Halloween Ice Cream with Mammy and PawPaw

Scary Skeletons

10Oct2013

Laundry Room Mini Make Over

Posted in Our House, Projects by bscott517

For a while now, I’ve been going through our house, one room at a time, and organizing and getting rid of stuff that we don’t use. I’m also trying to find uses for stuff we already have and discovering things I had completely forgotten about. I started small with the pantry. Then moved on to the coat closet in the living room. This past weekend I tackled the laundry room. I found things I had tucked away for later and decided to find a use for them now. What used to be my least favorite room in the house is now one of my most favorites. I actually enjoy spending time in there now.

Before (The horror!)

After

It could still use a little work, but I’ve kept it this way for quite a while, so I’m pretty proud of myself.

{I started this post a REALLY long time ago and decided it was time to add the pictures and share.}

9Oct2013

Art (and food) Wednesday

Posted in Art, Life by bscott517

Last week, on my long (but therapeutic) drive to work, I had a brilliant idea to inspire more creativity in my life. I haven’t visited many of the local galleries and decided that, as a local artist myself, I probably should. So I grabbed a few of my work friends, and set out on an adventure. We visited Melt (A Grilled Cheese Food Truck), had a sidewalk picnic, and then set out on our first gallery visit. The week I chose Space One Eleven. Why? Because it was the first one that popped up in Google. Very scientific.

I was more interested in the children’s art installation pieces than the actual show in the gallery.

Roast Beef Grilled Cheese

“Posters without Borders”

Children’s Art Installation “Our City”

PS… Today is Alston’s birthday… he is FIVE. We are celebrating accordingly. 🙂 More to come on that!

8Oct2013

25 Days of Love {Revisited}

Posted in Uncategorized by bscott517

So back in July I challenged myself to do one random act of kindness a day, for 25 days. Easy enough, right? Not really. I bought someone’s gas, their breakfast, left a hefty tip at a restaurant… but started to realize that there was only so much I could do to give away one of those little cards. So I made an effort to show love to everyone. I smiled at everyone I made eye contact with, I tried not to get aggravated with people, I let people cut in front of me in line, etc. One thing I’ve learned is that I should be making a general effort to show love to everyone I meet every day… not just during a 25 day challenge. I mean, isn’t that basically what the entire Bible is about? Loving people? Let me tell you, its not easy. Its a daily struggle. But that is part of being a human.

I hope you enjoy this video as much as I do. Happy Tuesday!

http://youtube.googleapis.com/v/dg9zvwPPntQ&source=uds

10Jul2013

25 Days of Love

Posted in Uncategorized by bscott517

We just started a new series at church called Change Your World. The message was amazing and exactly what I have been wanting to hear. {You can watch it here.} The basic point is that, as Christians, it is our job to be the change that we want to see in the world. Cliche, I know, but so very true. This message really spoke to me and it has inspired me to commit to 25 Days of Love. I will be challenging myself to find one stranger to love every day for 25 days. Find a need and fill it. Find a hurt and heal it. Pretty good stuff. Monday was day one. I’m using this blog as a way to hold myself accountable. I plan on reporting back with a complete list of my 25 random acts of kindness. Hopefully, this will ensure that I do them and inspire others to love a stranger as well. Happy Wednesday!

9Jul2013

Declutter & Do Better

Posted in Uncategorized by bscott517

Its been awhile since I last checked in… In the past couple of months, I have really been trying to work on myself: as a Christian, a wife and a mother. I have started clearing out the clutter and the excess… the clutter of the world that hinders my relationship with God, the excess of time wasted on things that aren’t important, the excess of unhealthy behaviors and choices, and even the clutter in my house. I have to say that its a struggle, but its totally worth it. And the longer I do it, the easier it becomes. Am I finished? Certainly not. And I never will be. Can I tell a difference? Absolutely. And I hope everyone else can, too. I have realized that my purpose in this world is to love people – all people – no matter how difficult they are to love. To do that, I have to love me first.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”
2 Corinthians 5:17

4Jun2013

Bloglovin…

Posted in Uncategorized by bscott517

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

I’m sad the Google Reader is leaving, but I really love Bloglovin, and now it has an app. I’ve gotten back on the band wagon and I will only be posting whats meaningful to me… I’m not trying to post every day, or every week even, if nothing exciting happens. But at my house, something exciting happens everyday. Like at 12:30 am, I was on my front sidewalk in my pjs with my thirty-eight revolver. See, every day there is excitement of some kind or another. One day I will tell you the whole story. Until then, check out Bloglovin.

3Jun2013

Hello, June

Posted in Uncategorized by bscott517

This weekend we enjoyed the spoils of summer… Gardening, sprinkler fun, ice cream, shrimpboil, Church of the Highlands online, a car wash and some reading in the sun… I couldn’t have asked for a better weekend… Welcome June!