My Lenten Promise

In honor of Ash Wednesday and the start of the Lenten season, I thought I'd let everyone know what I decided to do for Lent. Trust me, this took a lot of thinking and careful consideration to decide because I wanted to make it a big commitment; I didn't want to give up something I rarely use but I didn't want to make it so difficult it would be too excruciating. So - here are my two Lenten promises:

1. No more diet coke. Shocker right?? I am slightly addicted, and think this is a good chance to show myself, Kyle, and everyone that it's more of a fake addiction than a real problem. So 40 days without diet coke. It does mean however I can have sweet tea, coffee, juices, and maybe the occasional REAL coke (I'm not giving up soda..just specifically diet coke) so it should be doable.

2. I decided to do something as well, and fitting with the theme of the blog (or original theme...) I want to sweat everyday. One of my best friends told me that she had heard someone do this, because it's more doable than saying I will run every day or go to the HRC every day, instead it's a commitment to sweat - whether that's a full out 30 minute-hour work out or a ten minute jumping jack sprint. Hopefully this will get me in a good habit of being physically active, not just exercising especially since the weather is becoming warmer!

And so...today I sit here...exhausted and un-caffeinated thinking how rough Jesus must have had it since I'm about to cry without my diet coke. Seems foolish, but hey...it's all about giving something up and preparing your heart for Easter through prayer and worship. If that's something trivial like diet coke, or larger like becoming a vegetarian, or devoting an hour every day to reading the Bible - it's ultimately the same. To each their own.

My church left this Bible verse as a devotional for today. Joel 2:15-16 (from the NIV):

Blow the trumpet in Zion, 

   declare a holy fast, 

   call a sacred assembly. 

¹⁶ Gather the people, 

   consecrate the assembly; 

bring together the elders, 

   gather the children, 

   those nursing at the breast. 

Let the bridegroom leave his room 

   and the bride her chamber.

Today is the sttart of a holy fast and a gathering of people to remember Jesus' struggles and prepare for Easter. What are you planning to do this Lenten season???

My New Love....

Well, this may be an exaggeration - but I just found the amazingness that is Photoshop. Now, that being said, I am by no means good at Photoshop. I think it is a) counterintuitive a.k.a...super confusing and b) super complex. But I'm dying to make some of my wedding stuff "DIY" if nothing more than because I want to host dinners/parties/etc and if I can cheaply make invitations/cards, whatever then YAY!

So - I want to show you my first creation...something I'm hoping many of you will see at the wedding displayed prominently somewhere at the reception haha. Now, I must give credit where credit is due so I want to tell you where my "inspiration" came from - Orange Beautiful from Chicago...they have GREAT stuff, very chic and modern - totally my thing! So after downloading several fonts from the web and spending hours trying my best to match/make it my own (see those sour belts :) ) I'm so excited for the outcome!

This would not have been possible without Kyle's patience...he taught himself Photoshop (don't ask me how) and showed me everything from making a text box (again, it's counterintuitive I tell you) to making the letters closer/farther a part, etc...I can't wait to make more things like this...probably using this as the outline but yay look forward to me becoming more crafty...at like zero cost!!!