The Weekender

Happy Saturday, friends, and Happy New Year! I hope that you had a happy and healthy holiday season.

Where have I been?

OMG, I caught the worst bug right before the holidays and then another right after Christmas and it has all had me down! I really was just trying to get through.

I am finally feeling back to my normal self after a month of misery. Whatever got me got me good! On top of all of that, my husband had another surgery in December that has taken him a month to recover from and I had to take care of him and his needs. All I have been able to do is stay on top of my actual day job at Vitality.

I had the most amazing time at my Broncos Cheerleader reunion in December and, yes, we did perform at half-time! It was so so good to see all of my amazing DBC sisters and what they are up to! They are truly amazing women that inspire me every day!

I have a cute story to tell.

I was walking out to my car after the performance and a family was also walking to their car. The little girl was about 5 or 6 and when she saw me she recognized that I was a cheerleader because I had my poms in my hands and also wearing the adorable reunion jacket.  She kept turning around and looking at me and pulling on her dad’s arm to tell him that I was behind them.  I asked her if she loved watching the cheerleaders to which her dad replied that she liked that more than the game. She was in such awe with me standing there that she was speechless and it was so adorable! I asked her if she would like to have my poms (I already have some at home) and handed them to her.  She was so so happy! I wished them happy holidays and went on my way.

Later on, her dad messaged the cheerleader organization on IG and said how that touched him and his wife, and even though they didn’t know the name of the cheerleader that did that, their daughter’s year was made and told us how special that was for all of them.  He went on to say how amazing this organization is and the women that are a part of the team are truly wonderful role models for young girls.  And that is what drives each one of us, current cheerleaders and alumni, to be our best no matter what we are doing and to represent the organization well! The team is made up of talented and hard-working women who deeply care about the community. Community service is a large part of what this team does and it is so much more than the uniform.

Be cognizant of what you do and say every day and how you treat people. You never know how or when you will touch or inspire someone.

 

In other news, I am still seeing Christmas lights and trees up around our neighborhood and am feeling pretty good that I have finally put away all of my Christmas decor and now I am planning a new year full of projects!

First up is my master closet. In case you haven’t been following along on IG, I tore apart my master closet to take it from dysfunctional builder-grade to fabulous. (Highlight here!) We have 10′ ceilings throughout the house and I wanted to maximize the amount of space we have from floor to ceiling. I tore out all of the shelving and did a hybrid mix of IKEA Pax units and custom-built other pieces including a 10′ tall shoe cabinet!

Here is where I started! Does this look familiar in your life? I have never been more disorganized! I can’t wait to share all the details of everything I have done with you all!  Don’t worry, there will be an entire series on this closet build with tips and tricks and helpful info!

I was in the middle of this project mid-November, but was feeling such overwhelm with the holidays coming up that I decided to do what was best for me and clean up and put everything away. We had shoes and bags in our bathtub, bags and boxes of shoes all over our bathroom with a path to our sinks, and clothes in piles all over our bedroom. The mess was making me feel very stressed out! So, with a half-finished closet, I put all of our clothes away in our drawers, hung up all of our other clothes, primed the shoe cabinet and installed the shelves, and put all of our shoes away. Then I put all of my tools back in the garage and I was able to enjoy the holidays with a clean room and peace when I walked through our bathroom.

I am about 70% done. So what is left to do?

• Add crown moulding
• Add baseboards
• Finish painting the shoe cabinet
• Caulk everything
• Patch the wall and skim coat
• Wallpaper
• Fill and paint newly installed trim
• Build and install barn door

I am sharing all of this to encourage you to give yourself grace and do what is best for your inner peace at the moment. I was feeling so much pressure to continue to finish the space and it was completely self-imposed! Nobody was coming to judge me, nobody was going to show up at my door to tell me that I am a failure. And having a stress-free space that I got to walk into at the end of the day during the holiday season was more important to me than finishing this project on my self-imposed deadline.

Needless to say, now that we are all healthy, everyone has recovered, and the holidays have passed, I am ready to pick the project back up again and GET IT DONE! I have the drawer fronts painted and ready to install this weekend and found simple and beautiful knobs that I can’t wait to share. I will be sharing it all on IG so be sure to follow along!

Here are my top projects for 2023!

1. Complete the secret project I am working on that I can’t WAIT to share with you all!
2. Finish the master closet (drawer fronts, painting, skim coat, wallpaper, make barn door).
3. Caulk and paint the trim in the basement (that I finished two years ago).
4. Paint all of my outdoor furniture and make new cement table tops and new cushions (we have a lot).
5. Makeover the master bedroom with my dream of wood beams, a brick wall, and possibly a fireplace!

This list is a good place to start! I have a lot of dreams for our home and I honestly don’t know if I will ever be done dreaming. How long is your list this year and what is at the top of it?

Things that are inspiring me right now?

Watching Lindsay build her beautiful living room from scratch and decide on a side table. She has done such a beautiful job!!

This beautiful account and her unapologetic love for home and Christ.

My FAVORITE household cleaning products!!

What is inspiring YOU?

I hope you have the best week ahead!