September favorites

I cannot believe October is tomorrow!! this year is flying by. if only Charleston would get the memo that it’s fall and cool down….

but before we think about all the cozy months ahead, I wanted to share a few September favorites/finds.

We are in the process of redoing the girls’ room and I’m so excited for it. We already found the beds on Facebook Marketplace, so now it’s just getting all the finishing touches. Here is some of my inspiration (via Pinterest)

I’ve been in major purging and organizing mode and it is the best thing ever. I feel so much clarity every time I go through our things and get rid of what we do not need. I have a method that’s been working really well that I’m going to share with you all soon!

ps did you know you can send clothes to ThredUp for credit?! changed my world.

we have also been rearranging furniture and making our home more us which is also just so fun!

lunch is the hardest meal of the day for me. I’m usually trying to feed hangry and tired toddlers so I am always trying to set myself up for the healthiest and most convenient lunch. otherwise I wouldn’t eat and that’s not an option—nourishment is so important.

lately, I’ve been meal prepping either a big salad or soup on Sunday and then eating it throughout the week. I know it’s not the most exciting to eat the same thing everyday, but I have to work with what I got. soups have been my go-to lately. Here are a few of my favorite recipes lately:

my favorite salad ever

crockpot sausage soup

black bean pumpkin turkey chili

chicken taco soup

lastly, I have to share: good pjs make all the difference.

I recently got the girls pjs from Dreamland Baby and y’all…they are the softest pjs ever! the girls are obsessed with them. I have a code too: KATHERINE15-VHC

I highly recommend if you are looking for the coziest jammies for your littles

okay this was so fun to write—I think I’ll have to do more posts like this :) enjoy, my friends!

always growing

every moment of every day I’m learning and growing and praying, seeking God to heal me, bring me closer to Him, and take every thought captive.

I’m thankful. I don’t want to ever get to a point in life where I think I “have it all together” because that is a lie. no one does. we all struggle and have hardships and are in need of a Savior.

I wanted to share one of the things I’m learning right now: we can’t always change our circumstances, but we can always change our attitude.

that goes along with this calling we have to take every thought captive. we can be positive on the outside with our mouths, but if we are always complaining or comparing in our hearts, that will soon spill forth.

I’ve easily let the circumstances of my life over the past few years dictate my demeanor and mindset and attitude and I have had to repent of that.

life is hard and we can never control what comes our way. but we can control our mindset and Who we run to for help.

it’s not easy to have a good attitude when running on few hours of sleep dealing with toddler tantrums, or whatever your circumstances are. but it becomes “easier” when I check my spirit and work on my heart’s attitude towards it. allowing the Holy Spirit to breathe life and peace and grace into our souls gives us the needed strength to carry on.

I’m preaching to myself here and just wanted to share in case you also are in a season of growth.

toddler learning

image from a recent newborn session

I have two little girls, two and three years old and lately I’ve felt like I’m not doing enough “schooling” with them. after a little reflection and observation, those thoughts and insecurities dissipated.

our little ones learn so much by observing what we do, how we talk, coming with us on errands, helping and watching what we do around the house, and just everyday life things.

image from recent newborn session

it may seem ordinary and not exciting, but it’s acutally so good and crucial for their development.

on top of that, reading to them, playing outside, and allowing them to have free play is key at this stage too.

image from recent newborn session 

there’s a little song we learned at the library story time that has these five elements to include in your everyday with your littles: “talk, sing, read, write, play.”

talk: talk to your little one and narrate the day, include them in conversation

sing: singing songs together is so good for their little brains

read: reading books aloud together is one of the best things you can do

write: this is just coloring and letting them free hand and be creative with crayons, pencils, etc

play: of course giving your little one ample amounts of time for imaginative play

I always try to include these in our day to day life and I hope this encourages you that you are doing exactly what you need to do with your little one.

image from recent newborn session

image from recent newborn session

creativity and clutter

here’s something I recently re-learned…I feel more creative and have more space in my brain for creating when my home feels less cluttered. you may be thinking that’s obvious, and I’ve known this is the case. but we have moved a lot over the past few years and these major life transitions really stunted my ability to do the simplest tasks.

our mental state truly takes a toll during tough seasons and that’s normal. it’s a time to give yourself grace and just do the best you can.

now that I feel we are settling and getting into a good rhythm, I have more capacity to declutter and design our home how I truly envision it.

since I have been in this mode of purging, I truly feel more mental space to create. I feel more capacity to dream. it’s so nice!

we often get caught up in day to day tasks that we don’t take the time to really ask ourselves if everything we have is serving us well. we are called to be stewards of whatever we are given and that includes our homes and all that is within them.

once we eliminate that which we do not need, we can then have more space for living into our calling and whatever creativity seeks to burst from within.

all images from a recent family session on Sullivan’s Island