The Wifey Life

Sometime last week while cooking a yummy dinner I blurted out loud "I'm killing it as a wife this week!!". I didn't mean to sound so arrogant. Let me rewind, Carl had caught my cold from the previous week and bless him he had no sick time left so he had to work through it coming home exhausted each night. I made him rest, take essential oils, drink echinacea tea, take vitamin C, drink lots of water and in bed by 9pm (he gets up at 5.30am). We had just gotten back from grocery shopping and I was cooking dinner, I started running through the list of things that needed to be done around the house, errands and social engagements coming up, when I realized I was ahead of the game;

Grocery run - done

Laundry - done

Washing up - done

Housework - done

Monthly budget - done

Meal planning - done

Taken care of sick husband - done

Birthday celebration plans - done

DMV appointment - done

Documents ready for USCIS interview - done

Worked out - done
Bake yummy goods - done

For the recipe click here

That's when I blurted out my big headed statement that I was a self acclaimed rad wife. What is funny is that I don't usually have it this together. I am always trying to get a million little things done at once and without fail end up forgetting to do that one important errand. Lately we have had a very full social calendar of weddings, birthdays, memorials, weekends away, baby showers and so on that is why I am was so proud of myself this week.

The wife life is definitely different than the girlfriend life. It is more house work, cooking and keeping track of social events for the both of us. I genuinely enjoy it, it weirdly makes me feel like more of a woman. Even though he is more than capable of doing all those things on the list above (and he does), he works really hard putting in a lot of hours at work and his job demands that he pays constant attention to small details. I love to serve him and it is so simple of an act to do.

Every women reads Proverbs 31 and woah did it make me feel insecure and inept as a single woman. Now that I have someone other than myself to care for I actually feel like I have a fighting chance to be that woman. I want to empower women to be the woman and wife God intended us to be, to serve God and their husbands in every aspect of their lives. Being a Proverbs 31 woman is not about being “perfect.” A woman who serves her husband and her family will never look perfect or be perfect but we can try our hardest to do whatever we can.

Husbands- don't think this lets you off the hook! We still need help, so be the loving husband we adore and help us when we ask for it or surprise us from time to time.

(Sheinside -  Top / Hume - His Top)

I adore being a wife and I hope you do to!

These are a few of my favourite things

We all have those few favourite products that we can't live without. Personally I am not a big fan of a lot of products in my hair and prefer a more natural make-up look which is why I really only have a few favourites but they are seriously the greatest finds for me.

1. Lucas' Papaw - This is an Australian ointment that my sister turned me on to. While she lived in Sydney she discovered paw paw, I use it as a chap stick but it has many uses burns, nappy rash (diaper rash for the Americans), cuts, and dry skin. Its a miracle in a tube.

2. Wet Brush- If you have hair that gets tangled easily or it's super thick or get knots this is the dream product. The wet brush can get smooth out your hair no problem (without the yanks and shrieks). I have thick hair and immediately brush out my hair after stepping out of the shower, no pain, no fuss and best of all it is so inexpensive.

3. Boots Coconut & Almond oil leave in conditioner spray-  First of all it smells so good! I have used this for years, I know some people are scared it will make your hair oil but it most definitely does not. Every time I would go home to Edinburgh I would stock up and bring home a suitcase full but Target just started carrying some of the boots line and I am hoping this gem will pop up on the shelf soon. It moisturizes leaving you with smooth, soft and tangle free hair.

4. Johnson's baby powder-  We all know this product very well, some actually use it on your babies but I use it in my hair when my roots are starting to get a little greasy. It absorbs the oil and makes my hair look fresh! You can buy this product literally anywhere.

5. Maybelline Fit Me Powder- I never knew that you need to set your foundation with powder, why did no-one tell me? My makeup now lasts longer and looks so much smoother and even toned. I do use the Maybelline Fit Me foundation as well, but this product "fits me perfectly".

6. Bedhead curling wand- I recently cut my hair short into an long aline style and quickly discovered my curling iron was not going be an use. My hairstylist and amazing friend answered my question on what size   would make my hair get a wavy curl in it. I went with the one inch wand and it's perfect. 

7. Aveeno- This is such a good moisturizer for your whole body from top to bottom. It absorbs quickly, , smells good (not overly scented) and keeps my skin hydrated for a couple of days before reapplying. I swear by this stuff.

8. Essie - The nail polishes of nail polishes!! First of all they have the most amusing names (I want that persons job who gets to name colours).They have a wide range of colors and they last for a long time. My favourite colour is 'Butler please'.

See ya!

Fickle Faith

Faith

noun\ˈfāth\

: strong belief or trust in someone or something

: belief in the existence of God : strong religious feelings or beliefs

: a system of religious beliefs

No matter whether you have religious beliefs or not, we all have faith in something or someone.
Without faith what is the point? I have faith in God, in myself, in my husband, in my family, in my friends, in my future, and so on. What happens when it is tested? Someone tragically passes away, there is injustice done to you, someone is diagnosed with a serious illness or you are simply let down by someone you love. Our first reaction is always defeat, we simply give up! It is so easy to only see the negative side in situations. What we should really be looking for first is the positive; what good has happened today? this week? month? year? I am an optimistic person, it is an attribute I believe God has gifted me with. I usually, not always, see the best in situations or changes. What I am not is one of those annoying optimists that refuses to see the bad or negativity that is very evident in my own or others lives but I choose to see the positive. "Choose" is an extremely important word because we are responsible to how we manage our emotions, reactions and decisions. You don't choose your circumstances but you can choose how to respond.

When my faith is tested I run through sadness, anger and defeat quickly and then ground myself by reminding myself of what is true and right. My faith is in God and I know that He is good, loving and merciful. Sometimes I may not feel very friendly towards God because I don't understand why something has happened, but my faith never waivers. My faith is strengthened when I sit and mentally take note of all the blessings in my life and that God never abandons me. No matter how bad it gets there are always countless blessings that are consistently happening in our lives. I am so thankful to have my supportive husband, close friends and family that know me so well, that when I begin to unravel and lose faith they know the exact ways and words to build me back up and restore my faith. Those who are close to you see more of your faith as you battle out the good and bad with each other day in and day out. It is important that when we see our friends beginning to lose faith that we remind them of the goodness of God and the great things that have happened to them. It is easy to forget the good.

Faith is fickle in that we may give up on it over and over again but it is always restored with the smallest reminder of good.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 

Married Life

Photography by Natalie Lynn

 My husband and I have been married six months! 
I know that is not long or something that is a big celebration, but shouldn't it be? Unfortunately in this day and age some people barely make it six months or a year. I think we should celebrate the win of having a good healthy marriage.

There are always people giving advice to engaged or newlyweds on how to make a marriage work. My husband and I were told on many occasions, "the first year is the hardest" or "you really don't know each other til you live together" or "you will argue about your partners quirks that you used to think were cute". Those statements became real fears for me, I would tell Carl we have to really communicate I don't want to fight all the time. When finally he told me "That isn't us! You have to stop letting people put fear on you or our marriage. We communicate well, know each other and we will have a good first year". So here is my advice; everyone has a different relationship style. You can not blanket all newlyweds with fear of failure neither can you expect it to be paradise. Love each other as best as you can. Listen, respond with grace and forgive entirely.

Our six months of marriage have been a dream. We love each other more, accept each other more, respect each other more, understand each other more, I could go on and on. Don't get me wrong we still have disagreements, get on each others nerves but we have learned how to navigate those moments with each other with a lot of grace. Carl and I were just discussing why we have had an easier time than others have? We nailed it down to three important things 1. Communication 2. Letting the other be themselves and 3. Having mentors. We are so thankful for having a great couple to mentor us, they have been married for twenty plus years. They have lived in the honeymoon phase, the hard phases, kids and all the ups and downs that marriage is. We actually met with them for six weeks before we got married and went through a book called "Seriously dating or Engaged" by Dr.Roger Tirabassi. It is rad and I encourage couples to go through it!! It addresses several important topics from finances to resolving conflict to parenting. It highlighted our weaknesses and strengths, gave us solutions, practical tools etc to help navigate our individuality within our unified marriage.

"Be completely humble and gentle; Be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace."- Ephesians 4:2-3

I am a huge fan of letting men be men! What I mean by that is, that it is natural for men to be the master of the house, lead their families, make the final decisions on important matters etc. In doing that we honor them in being the man that God made them to be. I believe women who do those things (amongst others) are highly respected by their husbands and more so treated as an equal partner. I don't want that to come across as husbands should dominate their wives. It is about letting your husband do what he was made to do. Being married means being a unified team. Wives have such an important role, we are what keeps it all together and working. I joke all the time about the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding, "the man is the head but the woman is the neck. The neck turns the head".

 ^"Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself." Ephesians 5:22-33

Though it may be just a handful of months we chose to simply recognize this small landmark in a lifetime commitment, being happily married for six months. On October 5th we slept in late, and after all our morning silliness finally got our butts up and dressed. There are some amazing hiking trails in Laguna Beach, we love a particular trail which is marked by Alta Laguna park. The park leads to the trail head which then leads you to a lot of trails varying from easy to extreme. It was a stunning day we could see Catalina Island as clear as day surrounded by the gorgeous deep blue ocean. I wouldn't quite go as far to say we hiked because we basically walked for 20 minutes and then said it's too hot and I am starving (fastest hike ever!). Okay, if you haven't been to Roses Bakery Cafe then basically your life sucks (sorry but it's true). You are missing out!!! It is in Corona Del Mar right on PCH, you can't miss it. They have delicious breakfast burritos, Pancakes, Donuts, and Good coffee with free refills (hello...all the coffee you want. I told you it's the best). Carl and I always stick to our favourite the California burrito, I get a coffee and he gets some OJ. Down on the CDM cliff edge there are two benches and before we got married (before we were even dating) Carl brought me down to Roses to get burritos then we came and sat on those benches. It was a gorgeous morning, cold, sunny and a clear beautiful view of the calm morning ocean (so romantic, he is a master pursuer). Anyways, it has now become our tradition to come down, sit on our bench and enjoy sweet moments together there. As well as getting mad at people who are in our spot, we stand at a distance whispering "get off our bench", eventually getting our way and feeling triumphant when in reality they moved on their own accord. That was it, a simple adventure that celebrated our commitment we made six months ago.

And they lived happily ever after!

Liebster Award

Hello,

 I was nominated by Christine of Moxie for the Liebster Award (read here for more details on what YOU have to do if I nominated you!). It's an award given to new bloggers in an effort to promote them and help them to grow. As a very new blogger, I am very honored! This is a fun way to help promote other bloggers like myself and to get to know other upcoming bloggers. Make sure you check out all of the bloggers I nominated below! We all put so much ourselves into our blogs, and I appreciate the support it given from other bloggers in the community. Without you, our readers, our blogs wouldn't exist! Find us all on Instagram too and follow along!

My answers to Christine's Questions:

1. How tall are you?
Average 5.7"
 

2. Who takes the photos for your blog? 
My husband is learning to find the angles and tell me the truth about my faces ha. Christine Bennett aka Moxie...she has been amazing helping me with photos as well as other tricks.

3. Who is your favorite blogger? 
Jenna aka Puebird. I just love her style

4. What's your guilty pleasure when it comes to food? 
I have a huge sweet tooth, so probably chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream (my husband and I always have a tub in the freezer).

6. What are your favorite shoes in your closet? 
I don't wear them all that often yet I love them so much, my mid-calf fringe Minnetonka moccasins.

8. What's your go-to outfit? 
My H&M boyfriend ripped jeans, beige Birkenstocks, white tee and a statement necklace.

9. A song comes on the radio in your house, no one's home, and you start dancing around the house. What's the song? 
Right now it is a toss up between 'All about the bass' Meghan Trainor or 'Bang Bang' Jessie J, Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj.

10.What do you do to relieve stress? 
I work out! I am a member of an MMA gym so we do a lot of boxing, feels so good to punch out your stress. 

11. What's your dream vacation spot? 
I have traveled to every continent except Antarctica but I have always wanted to go to New Zealand. It is stunning scenery, no deadly animals and rad accents.

  12. One fun, random fact about you:
 I had open heart surgery when I was three years old to repair a hole in my heart. I have a scar then sits underneath my chest horizontally.

 Blogs I nominate:

Each one of you ladies inspires me in some many different aspects of life; adventures, fashion, parenting and so much more. Thank you for being you and sharing a little piece of yourself through your blogs and instagrams.

 

 1. The whiskey Wolf

2. FoxandGypsy

3. The_dressy_mess

4. Taylorbriannblog

5. Haileyanela

6. Pennyslittlelane

 7. Loveangelarenee

QUESTIONS FOR MY NOMINEES:
 READY GO!

1. What/Who inspired you to start blogging?

2. Who takes the photos for your blog?

3. What is your favorite clothing store?

4. What's your favorite beverage?

6. What are your favorite shoes in your closet?

8. What's your go-to outfit?

9. What is your favorite holiday season?

10.What do you do to relieve stress?

11. If you could live anywhere, where would it be?

12. What is a secret quirk that you have?
 

This is such an amazing award where were get to help each other be discovered and keep paying it forward by nominating your fav new bloggers. 

Congratulations & have fun ladies!

Double trouble

This was a fun little shoot that I did with one of my best friends Christine, otherwise known as Moxie with our matching tees & coffee .We had so much shooting these self timer photos, the outtakes were hilarious.

We attended Nectar clothing's re-lauch party on Saturday night for their new website, it was rad!! The venue was in the cutest Jazz bar, out back in the beer garden (that is what we call them in the UK) it had a fire pit, DJ, drinks, food and lots of good looking bloggers, friends and family. Nectar has super cute clothes and at prices we can all afford with a store in Redlands and another in Orange. Christine and I were lucky enough to be given one of their tees with the slogan "giving back is the new black" on it. I love that slogan as it is a reminder for me to be aware of the needs of those around me and to give as much of myself as I can.

 Christine has been a fashion blogger for about six months now, if you don't follow her you should!!! We have been friends now for 8 years, we met when I first moved out here from Scotland. Instantaneous friends we bonded over the beach, fashion, and coffee. We lived together for 5 years along with one of our other friends, watching endless amounts f.r.i.e.n.d.s, painting our nails, and eating homemade granola and ice cream. We both married younger men who are both the absolutely best and most handsome then marrying them with six months of each other. Now we are on to the new adventures in life...blogging (and still drinking coffee).

I am wearing:

Nectar:  Tee / Forever21: Black acid washed distressed shorts / Husbands Flannel

UrbanOutfitters: Sunnies / Birkenstocks (thrifted)

Christine's outfit:

 Shirt: Nectar Clothing here; Flannel: Hurley, similar here; Shorts: Forever 21; similar here; Birks: Urban Og here; Sunnies: Silvano Apparel here

The Oh so comfy t-shirt dress

H e l l o ,

So I quickly realised this summer that I did not have any cute throw on and go dresses. The last year or so, my dress purchases have been for weddings, conformations and a million other formal occasions. I would go to my closet and say "No...no...no...no...no...no...BABE I have nothing to wear.", my husband Carl would roll his eyes and say "You have so many there has to be one." I would inevitably end up in high waisted shorts and a top. Finally, I discovered The T-shirt Dress!!!!! I purchased this cute dark blue striped t-shirt dress from CottonOn for only ten dollars (love finding rad deals). I ADORE strips! I had to consciously stop buying striped clothes a few years ago, but somehow they sneak into my closet.

 

 The star of this outfit for me is this gold stag necklace that I happened to find on Amazon by accident for only three dollars (Click the amazon link below to buy your own). If you haven't figured out from some of my previous posts, I love nature. Wild animals are so majestic and beautiful, I would love to see stags, bears or a moose in the middle of the habitat. This piece is the perfect statement necklace as it is so unique. I just love it!!

Forever21 never fails me. Every summer I go in to find the perfect style sunnies for a steal of around five bucks. I am pretty accident prone, so breaking them is almost a given; but that is the best part, I can go and by a new pair and won't break my bank. My brown open toed chunky heels were one of those purchases that I wavered on but decided at the last minute to buy them. I am so glad I did. They go with so many outfits and are really comfortable.

Have a rad weekend lovelies!

 CottonOn: T-shirt dress / Target: Fedora / Forever21: Open toe heels & Sunnies 
 Amazon: Stag necklace

The High Sierras

(Cottonon: Trousers / Forever21: Sweatshirt, Beanie & Sunnies / Urbanoutfitters: 5 panel 
 H&M: Denim shirt / Minnetonka: Moccosains)

The High Sierras hold a very special place in our lives. The Sierras is where my husband grew up camping and fishing with his family, and it is also where my wonderful husband asked me to marry him in the middle of Tuolumne Meadows on a bridge over a creek (that I nearly fell off of while in shock and excitment). The Sierras never disappoint us with it's breathe taking mountain ranges, unpredictable weather patterns, peaceful fishing excursions and friendly locals.

We just returned from a short family vacation up to June Lake to celebrate my step father in-law's 60th birthday. A three day weekend was too short but oh so worth it. We stayed in a cabin that had an extraordinary view of the mountains that included two waterfalls. I soaked in that majestic view every morning while sipping on my morning ritual coffee and scrumptious breakfast. What a way to start my day off, right? Our feet were itching to get out the door and into the wilderness, so we got dressed quickly, layering on cozy clothes as a storm was rolling in that day, we were expecting thunder and rain. We packed the Osprey pack with essentials and piled into the car to head over to Lundy Lake. It was a fairly easy hike up rocks, through the woods and across marshes, you know, just a normal everyday hike (hee-hee). At the highest point of the trail we stood on the cliffs edge taking in the beautiful waterfalls below when low and behold it started to snow, it was magical! We pushed on having fun walking across logs and beaver dams. We hit the end of the trail and turned back luckily before the storm started to roll in. As it started to down pour on our way home we decided what better thing to do in the rain than to stop in at a local coffee house, Latte Da, for a quick pick me up. It was so cute, pumpkins lined the steps up to a porch swing, inside a few tables circled around a fireplace with board games and old books. My husband and I snuck outside to sit on the porch swing, sipping our hot beverages and sharing a giant chocolate chip cookie while it poured rain. It was a little piece of heaven.

Monday came too fast but we had planned to take off in the morning to do some fishing before we headed home. First stop was Lake Ellery, probably my favourite lake up there (of what I have seen so far), it is so peaceful as you look out on to the still lake and your eyes pan across the beautiful snow dusted mountains that surround it. I am new to fishing, but I can do everything except tie a leader line, touch the fish, and gut the fish (basically I can cast and reel in ha). I enjoy fishing but since it's more work for my husband to help me every five seconds, I decided to sit this trip out and watch him fish his heart out. It brings me so much joy seeing him bright eyed with an extra bounce in his step, the Sierras are truly his happy place. We often turn to one another, somewhat jokingly saying  "We should move here?", and without hesitation the response is always the same "okay" followed by a gentle I wish smile. Our hearts were content taking in the gloriousness of the mountains that surrounded us but time never stands still when you want it most, time to pack up and get moving.

We had one last stop, Schat's Bakery in Bishop. It has the most amazing bread and all sorts of yumminess. We quickly stock piled as much bread and sweets that are arms could hold, grabbing some garlic cheese bread, cinnamon swirl bread, peach rings, two sandwiches, and two donuts (don't judge us) along side another loaf of chill cheese bread for my best friend, and alas, hit the road home.

 
Til next time Sierras! Which will potentially be very soon.