dear hair...

dear hair,

it's no doubt that we have a strained relationship. i admit my thoughts about you aren't always the kindest. and on that note, i owe you an apology. 

i'm sorry that i compare your flat fine and thin tresses to ladies with more voluptuous manes...in doing so i have accused you of not being very feminine and that is just not fair. the truth is, the girls with the "voluptuous manes" would kill for your utter sleekness and naturally pin-straight tresses. your silkiness makes you fine...and i'm not just talking hair-type-fine...i mean, really, you're fiiine. 

i'm sorry that i have accused you of looking like dirty dishwater. i have been angry with you for not making up your mind of being blonde or brown. i try to take pride in being "natural" by not coloring you and then there i go criticizing you for not being the color i want. i can be so wishy-washy sometimes. and from this day on, you shall no longer be called "dirty dishwater," but "caramel blonde." 

and finally, i'm sorry for hating your crown on the back of my head. i must sound ridiculous... here i am, a girl who loves princesses, yet i have hated the very crown you have bestowed upon me. oh, the irony. from now on, i shall think of it as my mark of royalty...even if it does create hair-styling complications. 

the truth is, God made you and you are a part of me. if He says that i am wonderfully made, well, then you are a part of what makes me wonderfully made. and while i may take you in to the salon in a few weeks and have you adorned with color to "change it up," you really are beautiful the way you are. God even says that you are my glory. so thanks, hair, and i will strive to take care of you and to use kinder words when addressing you.

love,

me

p.s. my husband just said you look nice... how did he know i was writing to you?? 

via

so obviously, i was having a rough time with my hair and being a little critical. and i realized that i can be very harsh with myself. do you ever find yourself being overly critical about your body? or even your quirks, tendencies, and actions? have you ever stopped to recognize the tone you use with yourself? 

 so while this post was me kind of making fun of myself a little bit, i really do hope it inspires you to use kind words about how the Lord made you.... and to remind you that you are Wonderfully Made. 

girls day numero uno.

today was a wonderful afternoon with these ladies:

they have been so good to me since moving to the area and today they took me out to explore downtown toledo a little, as instructed in my scrapbook! 

 we were craving pizza, so we we didn't go to tony packos, but we did eat at a delicious place called pizza papalis! i had a yummy tuscan chicken flatbread and it was fantastic. 

libby glass outlet was a lot of fun... there are TONS of dinnerware and kitchen finds there for great prices. the wheels in my brain were turning the whole time about coordinating gifts and making crafts out of their items! i will definitely be going back.

 we also went to a fun candle/antique shop. here are some of the cute antique pieces: 

thanks ladies for a fun day and for loving me! i cant wait to try the other adventures in my scrapbook!  

approaching every day like Christmas morning.

Remember Christmas morning as a child? Remember the magic of shiny paper & bows, of full stockings, of bells & twinkling lights? Nothing can replace the enchantment of Christmas as a little one. There is just nothing like it. 

Confession: Even at 23 years old, I’m still the first one awake Christmas morning. I’m the annoying one who drags her husband, younger siblings, and parents out of bed so we can get the day started. After tossing and turning all night out of sheer excitement, there comes a point when I just can’t take it anymore, and we are all getting up now, whether this family of mine likes it or not!

I have been reading 1000 gifts, by Ann Voskamp. When reading this morning, the chapter was about humility and child-likeness. Children are excited about everything. Everything is wonder and joy and bounty to them. When you are small like a child, everything is big to you. Maybe this is why God commands us to have the faith of a child...why He says that the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who have this kind of faith. Maybe this is why He says that the humble will be exalted, that the meek will inherit the earth...because when you’re like a child, everything is joy! When everything is joy, your heart receives gift after gift. The whole point of the chapter was about stooping down low and abandoning expectation in our lives. Our job is to be small. God’s job is to be big. The smaller we become, the bigger the Lord is to us, and the bigger the gifts we receive are. 

I’ve been told that I am child-like... not childish, but child-like in my joy. I consider faith to be one of my spiritual gifts. However, I’ve noticed these virtues slowly fading. Maybe it’s from new adult responsibilities and burdens, maybe it’s from witnessing so much brokenness around me, maybe it's from simply growing up (don't grow up...it's a trap), but bitterness and discontentment have slowly crept in and gotten the best of me. It’s become a gross kind of pride that I hate and I know the Lord hates it even more. 

Back to my reading this morning... as I was reading this chapter, God impressed upon my heart that in His Kingdom, every day is like Christmas morning. There are surprises and gifts in store for the day. There are presents to open. We only need to lower ourselves before a big and Mighty God to receive them.

My new years resolution this year is to "open" 1000 gifts and record them all. Here are a few presents I have opened:

11. warm forehead kisses that take me by surprise

12. decaf cupcake lattes in glass mugs

14. raindrops popping on the roof like popcorn

16. going out with no agenda except to explore

Yes... my Heavenly Father's heart is bursting with love for me... He is always giving! 

wake up every morning to this  via 

He must become greater; I must become less. -John 3:30

what i'm loving: city craft fabrics.

check out these gorgeous and whimsical fabrics from city craft. here are a few of my favorites: 

typewriters gold

can't you just imagine some place mats made out of this?! 

buck fushia pink

i am seeing a tea-towel and an a-line dress with this one! 

cycling green

a dress. definitely a dress. 

fair maidens natural

this would make an awesome throw blanket or pillow in a little girl's room. or a table cloth for a little round table with the perfect tea-set on top. can you see it?

zebra natural 

this would make an amazing summer-time table cloth!

oh goodness, i could go on an on. are you in love yet? 

article: "how modesty rules hurt women AND men"

hey friends... remember this post about how both men and women need to step it up to end our cultures objectification of women? well i just read this today and think it's a wonderful compliment to the idea. please read for some more insight! it made me so angry and gave me a burden to change the way things are in our culture and sadly,  in some parts of the church. 

quotable.

Beauty isn’t an airbrushed face, a perfect body, or a wardrobe that’s always in fashion. Rather, beauty is under-eye wrinkles from smiling often. Beauty is hands wrinkled from years of serving. Beauty is knees covered in dirt from working the earth. Beauty is wallets empty from giving, and well-worn houses from hospitality. It’s the worn out pages of a Bible. It’s cracked voices from singing so much, broken hearts from loving so many, and bruised feet from dancing so frequently. Beauty is bittersweet. -SARALYN WEITZMAN

This morning, with her, having coffee

-Johnny Cash, when asked for his definition of paradise

I think we all speak a different kind of language

than each other, but you sound a whole lot like coffee on a 

Sunday morning and the rain is falling bitter against the windowpane and your elbows are making holes in the countertops, and I only want to tell you that I wish I was as close as the threads of your t-shirt, and if I can’t be that, then I’ll be content with drinking my drink beside you, with the rain sloppily open mouth kissing the roof, trying to dismantle the etymology of a conversation that falls out of the realm of words.

— “He Loves the Rain,” Shinji Moon 

She’s being kind. Which is much more a sign of character than mere niceness. Kindness connects to who you are, while niceness connects to how you want to be seen.

— David Levithan

To everyone wanting a safe, untroubled, comfortable life free from danger, stay away from Jesus. The danger in our lives will always increase in proportion to the depth of our relationship with Christ.

— David Platt 

I just wonder what it would do in your heart and your mind if you really believe that God delighted in you.

— Matt Chandler

Living elegantly is about adding a sparkle and a wink to your daily life, so that you’re not simply trying to get through the day, but savoring moments of every day.— The Little Pink Book of Elegance

mama-daughter visit.

earlier this week my mom came to visit along with our family friends. it was such a wonderful, relaxing visit full of yummy food, catching up, and encouragement. 

eating a scrumptious italian lunch. 

later in the evening after italian, coffee, and chocolate treats, we settled in for a movie with caprese bites, tea, and a movie. i am just now realizing just how much we ate! 

my friend annie and i sported the cardigans our mama's gave us for christmas... they had sewn cat elbow patches on and we're kind of obsessed. 

we made breakfast the next morning and i realized that that was the first time our table had been used in our new apartment. 

i feel so spoiled... the day before these lovely ladies came my daddy surprised me with a visit and dinner because he was passing through on a trip. ive loved getting to see my family so much lately... but oh how i miss everyone now that they have left! 

now it's saturday and boo and i are going to hang some shelves, picture frames, and etc. on the walls. happy weekend!

happy new year!

a little recap of how brian and i celebrated out first FREE new years eve! 

got a little snazzy for a dinner out

set my mouth on fire with jalapenos topped with spicy tuna and cream cheese

reminisced 

baked snickerdoodles

read our "2012" jar... over the course of the year we filled it with good, sweet, and funny things that happened and didn't read them until the last night of 2012. it was so fun remembering these together.

my hopes/excitement for 2013:

1. i am so EXCITED for my two best friends' weddings/celebrations

2. i HOPE to find a full time JOB, preferably in teaching 

3. i HOPE to adopt myself a baby orange kitten

4. i HOPE that by the end of the year our student ministry has GROWN

5. i am EXCITED for what the Lord is going to do this year

here's to 2013!

christmas highlights.

1. driving back to cinci late christmas eve night and starting off our celebration with a gingerbread house

2. staying up late catching up with my brother and sister long after my parents and boo have gone to bed

3. being sneaky with my sister and shaking our presents under the tree

4. christmas morning breakfast and coffee with whipped cream & sprinkles

5. all of us gunn kiddos getting a framed picture of our beloved baxter

6. the crazy cat lady sweaters i received from my mama... pictures to come! 

7. baking nutcracker cupcakes with my mama

8. seeing les mis as a family

9. snow & walking our pups through it as a family

10. meeting our nephew for the first time

11. watching our niece experience ice skating for the first time

12. warm drinks after ice skating

13. a snowy run and post run breakfast with my college roomie

14. brown paper packages with sparkly ribbon

15. receiving a SWEET scrapbook from my friend "D." it is full of fun things to do around the toledo area and a bucketlist of things to do together in 2013 (she says she is not creative or crafty... uh, whatever!) i just love it!!

i hope everyone had a wonderful christmas season! here's to the new year! 

happy 2013! starting the year off with a guest post.

happy 2013 sweet friends! today i am blogging over at my friend allie's blog, Allie in Oz. when i first "met" her in the blogging world and saw that she adored glitter as much as i do, as well as had a passion for ministering to younger girls, i felt like we were kindred spirits. she asked me to blog about my experience moving for her [Away from Home] series and it couldn't have been more timely for me. so go check it out and read through her other many adventures!