gift guide: stocking stuffers

One of my favorite things to do when giving a gift is to add something small as an extra touch - something I'm loving or that really reminds me of that person. In other words, I like to tack on a stocking stuffer :) 

I rounded up a few of my favorites from this season - some might be a little bigger than the average stuffer, but, as far as I'm concerned, if you can jam it in to the stocking, it counts!

1. doTerra lavender oil: I love it because it smells amazing, helps you sleep, relieves tension and you can add a drop to your mascara to lengthen and thicken lashes. All from a tiny bottle! 

2. Simply Gum: Confession: I haven't actually tried this one, but Sam introduced me to it and I'm obsessed with the concept. It's 100% natural and made with only six ingredients. I can't wait to try it. 

3. West Elm Enamel Mugs: Melissa got me these for Christmas and I love them. They remind me of the dishes our neighbors had growing up. They're perfect for hot chocolate, I must say.

4. Batty's bath charcoal soap: Super natural, gentle way to wash your face. My skin has been really clear ever since using it. I love Batty's products, but make sure you sign up for the email list if you want to purchase - they'll send a free shipping code. 

5. Spartan shop Fletcha Tea Mug: Beautiful & happy! And I love a handle-less mug. 

6. Tarte Amazonian Clay Makeup: For the first time since I was 20, I recently switched to this makeup after hearing rave reviews. And the verdict? I love it. 1,000 people really can't be wrong. 

7. Perfect bars: I eat these every day for breakfast. They are the perfect on-the-go meal. No prep, full of vegetables and so tasty. On Cyber Monday I bought $100-worth to get me through the winter. Oatmeal no mo!

8. Hario hand grinder:  I actually got this for Chris for our one year this week. He's working to cut his Starbucks runs down and I've heard that grinding your beans is a game changer. Hario is supposedly the best affordable option, so I went for it, and he was obsessed. Cannot wait to grind those beans!

9. Brookfarm General Store Denim Roll: I'm always looking for little ways to keep things extra organized and I think this would be awesome in a purse - stick some lotion and cards in it and it's the perfect option to move from purse to purse. 

What are your favorite stocking stuffers? Happy gifting!

:: the happiest of labor days ::

With the dearest friends.

Who brought personalized koozies & tumblers (because they're just one of a kind). 

And brunches at Parish and Rosebud.

And Shooting the Hooch.

And {a leetle} football watching (but mostly just talking). 

And some pool time. 

And JCT's Sunday Supper with Chris after they left (so sad!). 

And a little more pool time to make sure we soaked up the unofficial last bits of summer. 

And tons of laughing.

I hope your Labor Day was unlaborious and full of sun! 

the start of something good // summer

One of the more underrated things about Atlanta is, in my opinion, the holiday weekend. Everyone leaves - heading to the Carolinas and the Panhandle - leaving Atlanta noticeably emptier. Since moving here, I've never spent a Memorial Day in town and this year, after a spring full of travel, I was so excited to try it out. 

On Friday night, Chris hosted a cookout to kick start the weekend and welcome two of his friends, Walker and Claude into town. 

Saturday,we went to brunch at South City Kitchen (my first time there --> so good!) then headed over to his aunt & uncle's pool in Buckhead. They were out of town for the weekend and so kindly offered us the place as a staycation of sorts. 

Saturday night, we went to the Dave Matthews concert at Aaron's amphitheater (ATL Summer Bucket List #6). It was absolutely perfect weather for an outdoor concert. 

Sunday, we got up and headed to our friend, Katherine's, house in LaGrange Georgia to go boating (ATL Summer Bucket List #3). 

Her family couldn't have been more gracious hosts - they were so accommodating - driving us around on the boat all day and constantly reminding us to eat and drink anything we saw. It was such a lovely day with great friends and great weather. 

And now, here we are on Monday with a mini week ahead of us and the lovely realization that it is, unofficially but practically officially: SUMMER.

a new year // a new sled

Last year over Christmas break we got heaps of snow. And although we didn't have sleds, we made a quick trip to Target and cleaned out the last few they had left. They all broke within an hour, at which point we were going down the hills on just pieces of sleds, but it didn't matter. It's one of my favorite memories with my siblings.

So this year? My dad kindly planned ahead. He bought to fastest (manliest) sleds he could find. He knew how much fun we had last year and wanted us to be prepared.

But, for the first time in as long as I can remember, we didn't get snow on Christmas in Indiana this year. Nothing but a few flurries!

Isn't it funny how life works? We can plan until the cows come home but, in the end, we can't control a thing. There wasn't a sled in the world that could bring us enough snow. And, as it turns out, there wasn't a thing in the world I could do to predict how 2013 would unfold for me, either.

I had no idea I would live in three places. Spend two weeks in Africa. Join a new bible study. Get to spend two impromptu weeks at the beach with my family. Quit dating and start dating someone. Learn to accept help.

But on the days when things didn't seem so perfect - say when the rats came back, after a few bad dates or when watching one of my very best friends get married meant watching her leave not just our roommateship, but Atlanta, too? On those days, I was wishing for a sled. I was wishing I was in control - that I could just be in charge and make things happen how I'd intended them to.

But that's not life, and as I look back, I couldn't be more grateful for the way life unfolded in 2013. The good, the bad and the beautiful. Because, the more I learn, the more I realize I don't know much at all. This world is big and has so much to teach me. All I can do is do my best and go along for the ride. Sled or no sled.

Happy New Year!

{our christmas}

When my siblings and I were young, we spent every Friday night together. First, we ate dinner and then, for a most special dessert, we got to have frozen Hi-C's while watching TGIF and having a sleepover in the family room. 

Every time, without fail, we'd microwave the Hi-C and the aluminum on top would spark and possibly ignite a tad bit. 

It was bliss. One of my favorite memories with my siblings. 

I don't know if my family loves traditions more than most, since this is the only one I've ever been in, but I know we love them as much as is humanly possible. 

But as we've gotten older, we've had to become more flexible. We haven't opened Christmas gifts on Christmas Day in years, because we want to wait for my sisters. We moved and tried a new church and have some food allergies we are accommodating so meals have changed a bit. Things are a little different around here. 

And even though I'll always be a girl for tradition, there is something beautiful in making new ones. As it turns out, Christmas gifts on Jan. 26 make the 25th less about gifts and slow us all down. It makes it more about the holiday with our extended family and less about opening. And more about food :) 

This year, we took it further. On the morning of Dec. 26, we had hot chocolate on the stairs and watched the little kids open their gifts. 

And then that night we put them in bed early, went back upstairs, and waited for our parents to bring us a tray not of hot chocolate, but instead of beer and wine. Then we ran back down those stairs and opened our gifts. Grown up Christmas! 

It was lovely. 

I think sometimes we associate change with things falling apart. We cling to the past because we fear what will happen if we let it go. But, just as we can't get to spring if we don't first get through winter, we can't move forward if we don't let a few things go in our lives. 

This year taught me that, in a family as big as mine, we can't always know what's next. We can't hold onto the past for fear of the future. This year, we swapped hot chocolate for beer and wine, but who knows what next year will hold. Heck, maybe even Hi-C's? 

I can't wait to find out! 

Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!

Guest Post: Have Yourself A 20-Something Christmas

Happy Christmas Eve, friends! I'm so excited to share a guest post today from my friend, Erika. We went to Africa together this fall and I'm so grateful for the things I learned from her. She lives and blogs in Hoboken, NJ about love and life as a 20-something. Check out her post below on Christmas love and expectations. Have the best Christmas!

//

I have always loved Christmas and the anticipation that leads up to it. As a child, I spent many hours trying to find the gifts my mom would so painstakingly hide. I loved the suspense of seeing presents under the tree, dreaming up all the possibilities of what could be inside.

On Christmas morning, I would wake up early, awakened by anticipation in the darkest of night, and sneak downstairs after I knew my parents and Santa had finished arranging their pile of gifts and stuffing our stockings. I’d tiptoe about in the warm glow of the Christmas tree lights, gazing at the overflow of presents, basking in the calm and magic of Christmas before dawn.

As I grew older, the thing that made this season so special wasn’t as much about the presents, but about being able to spend significant quality time with extended family who lived hours away. It was the one time of year we all gathered together, to sit around the table and exchange stories of God’s faithfulness, and to have those unavoidable family debates.

Throughout high school and college, I began feeling a longing, that desire to have someone with whom to share my incredible family Christmas experiences. I looked at the strong marriages in my extended family, the camaraderie between all my aunts and uncles, and I felt the pang in my heart of bittersweet hope. One day I’ll have that, but when?

Brewer Family Christmas 2007, and my grandparents’ 50th anniversary 

The fact that popular culture harps on the ‘misery’ of being single during the holidays certainly didn’t help my case. You can’t get away from it. I felt like I was missing out. My soundtrack to this season became variations of the sentiment behind SheDaisy’s “That’s What I Want for Christmas”: 

‘When you said yesterday that it's nearly Christmas 

What did I want and I thought just love me, love me, love me 

That's what I want for Christmas

When I walk through a room let them see you need me 

Walk through a room let them see you love me, love me, love me 

That's what I want for Christmas...’ 

Over the years, I had boyfriends through the holidays, so I had a taste of having someone to belong to during this magical season. When I was dating in my early twenties, my vision of a perfect engagement involved hot chocolate, a big fuzzy blanket, a one-horse open sleigh. My dreams were grandiose. My expectations for what Christmas would look once I had found my other half were pretty high to say the least. Thankfully, my parents had a pretty strict policy that boyfriends don’t join us on family vacations. At the time it was annoying, but now I am grateful. The sacredness of most my favorite family memories aren’t marred by the ghosts of boyfriends past. 

Me and Nick, our first Christmas as a dating couple 

Finally, the Christmas of 2011, when I was 26, the dream of sharing my beloved family Christmas traditions with my true love came to pass. My new husband Nick came with me for our big extended family Christmas in North Carolina. It was surreal to watch a hope I had held so long come true. Having the reality of my husband among my family was wonderful. The ease with which he fit into our family surprised me a bit. He laughed and swapped stories with my cousins and uncles - it was like he had always been there. 

But can I tell you that on the other side, while having someone forever at Christmas is wonderful, it isn’t quite like I pictured it? I live across the river from New York City, the American headquarters of Christmas cheer. People come here in droves to experience Christmastime in the city. There are many things I love about living here, but there are others that challenge my younger self’s expectations of what married Christmases would be like. I don’t have a big, comfortable living room with a crackling fire and Christmas tree decked to the nines with ornaments telling stories of Christmases past. I live in a one bedroom apartment less than 800-square-feet, and no real room for a respectable Christmas tree. 

So we make do with what we’ve got - a wreath hung on our window, some twinkly lights, and a little tabletop greenery. 

Apartment-friendly Christmas decor: our window wreath 

Now that I’m married, I balance not just my family holiday traditions, but those of my husband’s family as well. My Christmases will never look the same again. There are wonderful aspects of that, but also challenging ones. I am blessed to have incredible in-laws, but now I feel the pang of missing out in a different way - of not being able to be in two places at once. Those extended family holidays in the south will be few and far between. Distance and job responsibilities shape our Christmas season now. 

When we move into the season of life where we have children of our own, our holiday realities will shift all over again. And I admit… I’m looking forward to creating magical Christmas memories for my future kids - even though they will likely be entirely different than I imagined. 

So for my single friends whose hearts ache during this season, those still in waiting, as much as it hurts, know this time will not last forever. You will someday have the opportunity to share your most cherished holiday traditions with someone you love. 

And regardless of where you are... single, dating, married, childless, or a growing family, if you want to experience the magic and wonder of the season to its fullest, start practicing now. Carry on your family traditions or begin building your own. The magic of Christmas happens when you count your blessings and embrace where you are wholeheartedly.

christmas at our house!

Despite yesterday being in the 60s, it was Christmas at our house last night. 

Ever since we put up our tree, it's been feeling full and festive in our little house. But last night, any doubt was banished: it's Christmastime in the Highlands! 

We took a present to our neighbors, exchanged gifts and spent a good hour and a half trying to put together the trampoline Melly gave me. 

We laughed a lot. Mostly about our lack of hand strength and therefore lack of ability to put together the trampoline. We talked about how long we'll stay in Atlanta - and how long we'll stay in this house. 

It was happy.

I've been trying really hard not to let too much busy get to me this holiday season. Not rushing too much. Not worrying if my gifts don't look pretty (worst wrapper ever!). Not doing things I feel like I should do and instead embracing the right now; the holiday. 

Last night was the perfect way to capture it - we didn't do much besides open and laugh and trampoline assemble, but it was life-giving and fulfilling in the best way possible. I fell asleep easily and with a full heart; so grateful for my roommate, our house and this season. 

One week! 

highlands holiday hunger hustle

When I was in Africa, one of the best pieces of advice Bob gave me was to never be afraid of failing. He told me that you will have bad ideas that won't go anywhere and you will have great ideas that take off and find success (Love Does, for example), and you can't be bogged down by the ones that don't work. What do you lose when it doesn't work, aside from pride? Normally, not that much. 

Just a few weeks after returning from the trip, Duke came up with the idea to host a holiday run for a local food bank. When he first said it, a million worries popped into my head (what if no one shows up? if people think it's dumb? if it rains?...), but they were quickly silenced by Bob's advice, and before I knew it, Duke, Sam and I were hosting a holiday hustle. 

Our amazing parents (aka our sponsors) came down for the race and cooked tons of food for our friends. People brought cans, grabbed their shirts and gathered in the unusually cold weather - friendly mingling before the competition began. 

Duke rallied the troops - explaining the course, tempting them with prizes for winning and declaring it out first-annual, making me ask him if that meant we were already signing up for a second? 

They ran the course - speedy little friends of ours - and came back for food and drinks. I was surprised by the fact that it got pretty competitive. Apparently Duke's sale on our "golden cup of holiday cheer" worked. 

We gave out prizes - first place, best dressed and best attitude. All of which we scored at Good Will, of course.

After a little while, we realized it was way too cold to be outside, so the party moved indoors. I told my friends I'd never considered having a morning party, but I really don't know why. A workout, breakfast and a brew? Pretty solid combination, if you ask me. 

Duke, Sam and I were so grateful for our friends (+ parents!!) who came out to support us. We're so excited to take the cans to the food bank and can't wait to do it again next year. Since Duke declared it annual, you know!

See ya on the trails!