Friday Five.

ONE | CELEBRATING

There’s so much to celebrate! Mr. Heid and I visited Ontario to witness and celebrate our friends’ marriage. The weather there was like a South Carolina autumn, the ceremony was on the lake, and there was so much love present — it. was. beautiful!

Mr. Heid’s birthday is coming up very soon! AND… We found out that we’re going to be aunt and uncle to a baby boy! Eeeeeee!!!!

TWO | WATCHING

Over these past two months, we’ve watched quite a number of things and I’m loving all of these strong female leads!

• The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina — Season 2 — SO GOOD! If you’ve seen it, this post is truth… I thought it was just me for a while there.

• Stranger Things — Season 3 — El, Max, Joyce, Robin, and Nancy are all badass and killin’ the game in their own ways.

• Charmed (the reboot) — Season 1 — Despite my friends and I casting shade when it was announced, I actually found it to be enjoyable! To be clear, it is not the original and it was very unfair for The CW to bill it as a more feminist version of the original because that shit was feminist AF.

• The Good Place — Season 3 — AHHH! This show is one of my favorites! I’m sad they’re ending it next season, but I’m glad they’re not dragging out a good thing until it becomes bad.

• Riverdale — Season 3 — The latest season was even more ridiculous, but I can’t stop watching this show. #guiltypleasure

• Now to finish the final season of Downton Abbey!

I also watched Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. It was neat to see Elizabeth Taylor in a movie (since I never had before), to see Burl Ives in a movie (since I’ve only heard his voice in Christmas movies and music), and just to see Paul Newman *swoon*.

THREE | LISTENING

I like to listen to podcasts while I’m in the shower and getting ready for the day. I jumped into Binge Mode: Harry Potter and LOVED it! I was so sad when it was over because I love Harry Potter. I tried to listen to a few other HP podcasts but didn’t find a good one. My sister recommended Gilmore Guys, where one guy has seen all of Gilmore Girls and the other is watching for the first time ever, and it does not disappoint. These guys crack me up! A few friends of mine also started a podcast called Unlearned — check out their first episode on Spotify now!

FOUR | READING

• The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware — I really enjoyed this story. It took a few chapters for me to get into it, but once the mysterious death happened I was fully vested and intrigued. Reviews of her other books say they’re all very similar, so I don’t know that I’ll want to read them if they all have the same twist. Does anyone have a differing opinion of her work?

• Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie — I’m not very far into this one, but I always just assumed the dog’s name was Nana because a child called her that and it stuck — like how we give dogs silly nicknames all the time. I also assumed Nana giving the kids medicine, putting them to bed, and cleaning the house was Disney’s usual way of making things more fantastical for the screen, but no. It was written that this dog was hired as the nanny for the Darling children. Then there’s a line about how mothers visit their children at night and sift through their dreams?! WTF. I want to read more, but it’s like reading the journal of a mad person.

• The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth Speare — This is my favorite book of all time. I’m definitely no longer the target audience for this one (they’re younger… waaaay younger). The metaphors and foreshadowing are very simple and plain, but despite that and the fact that I know how it ends, I still kept thinking, “Oh no, Kit — he’s the one and you’re running out of time!” So I find it enjoyable every time, and the love stories make my heart melt… but I’m a romantic!

FIVE | FEELING

HOT! Canada’s weather was perfect and it’s nearly October here… where is our fall weather?! Keeping my fingers crossed that the beautiful weather joins us for our wedding day!

We’re so eager and excited that we’re going to be married in less than twenty days — WE’RE SO READY! I haven’t shared a lot of details about the wedding here because I don’t want to spoil it for anyone attending, BUT I will afterward.

What have you guys been up to?

xoxo,

K

Rollercoaster of Life

People often say that life is a rollercoaster full of ups and downs. This summer, Mr. Heid and I took a ride.

We took our engagement photos, visited San Diego to see my brother graduate, and learned that our friends were pregnant — up! We were saddened to hear that doctors mandated a premature delivery of another other friends’ baby (Baby E) and that Mr. Heid’s grandmother had a stroke — down. We met up with friends who were touring neighborhoods because they’re moving closer to us, our friend got engaged, and Mr. Heid’s grandmother was back home — up! We celebrated the early, yet successful birth of Baby E and Mr. Heid was named her godfather — up! We honored the life of Mr. Heid’s grandmother, as she moved on from this world — down. We celebrated my own grandmother’s birthday — up!

In a matter of days, we went from needing cheerleaders to being cheerleaders, from lending our ears to needing shoulders to cry on, and from celebrating to mourning and then right back to celebrating.

Between the ups and downs, there were odd moments of clarity. Like the moment when I realized that Baby E and Mr. Heid’s grandmother had something in common — spunk. They both fought for their time here on Earth — one, a winner of many battles throughout a long and well-lived life; the other, a winner of the battle to begin her life. Both equally inspiring reminders to appreciate what isn’t promised and to take nothing for granted.

It’s funny how you can grow to love someone in such a short amount of time. When we visited Baby E, we watched her via video chat from just outside of the NICU. You could see the fight in her then — ready to get stronger, grow, and break free.

The day I met Mr. Heid’s grandmother, we had lunch with his whole family. That afternoon, he walked her back to her house. A few moments later, I followed to catch up and overheard her say, “I like her, you should keep her around.” Mr. Heid had turned to look over his shoulder as she spoke. He caught my eye, smiled, and said, “You can tell her yourself.”

When she was on the mend from her stroke, we were visiting in the hospital. She was sassing Mr. Heid, cracking jokes, and talking about how she was planning to ace her therapy and get back home (which she did). That day, she looked at me, smiling and said, “Keira Heider.” She paused and said, “I’m so sorry that I can’t make it to the wedding.”

Mr. Heid and I know she’ll be there. And just like she did, I smile at the thought of becoming Mrs. Heid. There’s no one I’d rather be on this rollercoaster of life with.

Some seasons of life are smoother, and others are even bumpier than this. No matter what you’re going through, just know that ups do follow the downs.

xoxo,

K

This is Thirty

The other day, my sister told me that she’d been chatting with our Gramma and trying to figure out how old one of our cousins was. So naturally, they did the counting game — you know the one… “How old is Remy? Well let’s see, I’m 34 and Lucy is 10 years older than me… and Winston is four years younger than her… and Nora was born a year later… she and Remy are ten years apart, so he has to be pushing 50 now…”

We’ve all been there. Well, my Gramma is an easy-to-remember forty years older than me, so they started with her age and realized I’d be 31 this year. And then she said I was old. Seriously?! The to-be-71-year-old woman called me old? She cracks me up — Gramma’s got jokes.

Anyway, all that to say that it’s my birth month and 31 does sound old. But as I reflect on the year, I discovered that a lot of good came out of year thirty and you’re never too old to learn new things:

• I GOT ENGAGED

• I lost twenty pounds

• I played a song on the ukulele

• My family and I took a day trip to Charleston

• I took a much needed girls trip with my besties

• I painted for the first time since college

• I went ice skating for the first time since fourth grade

• I started a big renovation project at work that I’ve been working toward for three years

• I went to five concerts — the lineup included: Frank Turner & the Sleeping Souls, The Menzingers, The Homeless Gospel Choir, Bad Cop, Bad Cop, Sam Coffey & the Iron Lungs, Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band, Masked Intruder, The Interrupters, and John Mellencamp. Mostly punk, guys. Sorry, not sorry.

It was also a year of many firsts:

• I saw a scorpion IRL for the first time ever - we named him Tubby since we found him in a bathtub

• My sister, friend, and I won second place at trivia (hey. small things count. don’t judge.)

• Mr. Heid and I got into a sport — it was hockey, and no, I still wouldn’t say we’re sports fans…

• I finally got a passport — hello, travel!

• I ate my FIRST ice cream cone EVER (thank you, Jeni’s for making that experience delicious AF)

And of course, countless good times with my family and friends. Thirty was a good year for me. Here’s praying and being intentional toward many more good years.

xoxo,

K

P.S. Does anyone else use their friends’ and family’s pets’ names as their examples in an anecdote, or is that just me? At least I use the human names and not, “Mr. Tinkles!”

Earth Day

It’s so easy to get caught up in our day-to-day activities and what’s coming up next that we often forget to stop and take a moment to just appreciate everything around us. This Earth is beautiful and the nature it produces is absolutely stunning.

When I see something beautiful in nature, I do my best to take a moment to stop, soak it in, and snap a picture. Below are a few of those snapshots from my camera roll. For each one, I can remember where I was and what I was heading off to do — heading into work, grabbing pizza with new friends, running into PetSmart to buy Keiko some food, riding home after a storm, relaxing on a boat, etc.

Looking back on these snapshots in this way, reminds me to continue to take the time to dwell in nature, to not rush so much, and to always keep in mind that we share this Earth with fellow humans, wild creatures, beautiful plants, and organisms so tiny that we can’t even see them.

If you haven’t taken a moment to appreciate your planet today or do something nice for Mother Earth today, I hope you’ve been inspired to do so! But if my words and pictures aren’t enough, maybe some of these links will be:

• @discoverearth (this one is stunning) and @usinterior on Insta

• How to Care for Potted Plants from Real Simple

• Today’s Google Doodle

• These quizzes and techniques quizzes for making small changes and a big impact

• Everything you need to know about recycling by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

• “Earth” a music video by Lil Dicky

I know it’s the end of the day in this time zone, but let’s be real… Earth Day is every day. Let’s remember to respect this planet, take care of it, and admire it.

xoxo

K

Resolutions Schmesolutions

Sooo… how’s 2019 going? Busy? Same! If I had made a resolution to post more often on this blog, I would have failed already.

I once read an article from someone who, instead of setting resolutions each year, looked back and listed everything she’d accomplished over the past year. I was inspired! You mean, all those resolutions that we’re told to make every year that we feel bad about failing every year aren’t a requirement of humanity? I stopped making resolutions for the new year from that moment on.

I honestly can’t say at what point in my life I was introduced to the concept of New Year’s resolutions. But the overall gist that I got was to set a goal for bettering yourself or your situation to accomplish within the year. That really doesn’t sound too bad when you put it that way, but here’s the thing(s). In doing this, we…

 1.) …look at ourselves and think, "How can I be better?" and then we make umpteen resolutions to get there within one. single. year. Um, am I so terrible that I need to change something about myself every year? I think not. I mean, I like me.

Example Resolution: Be More Organized — In my office the other day, I needed a display for donor brochures, so I used my desk organizer. To be honest, it was barely cutting it as an organizer, but was the perfect solution for the display. Obviously, then I needed a serious solution for my desk. So I searched for options on Amazon, placed and received my order, put them together, and organized my desk. Boom. More organized. Does that count? It should. Why are we creating so much pressure to complete our resolution in some big, impressive way?

2.) … forget that not everything is within our control in this universe. Things can happen that can completely change our paths in life, which may in turn change our goals and aspirations.

Example Resolution: Start a New Program at Work — This was my goal a few years back, but then I got let go because the executive director didn’t plan the finances properly and they cut positions that other similar organizations did without. My goal became unattainable, so was I a failure for someone else’s mismanagement of money? Hmm… again, I think not.

So instead of accomplishing that goal, I got a new job and helped save thousands of dogs and cats from being euthanized in shelters and I adopted my lovely pup! Pretty good accomplishments, I’d say.

3.) … are so busy focusing on what we “need” to change in the coming year that we neglect to reflect on all that we've accomplished in the closing one. Do I think each new year represents a new start? Totally. Do I think each new year can be better than the year before? Sure! Do I want to be a kinder, more considerate human who has her life running smoothly, is stress-free, and is super healthy? One-hundred percent! But making all of these resolutions on new year’s day without any action plan and milestones just doesn’t work for me.

Okay, so maybe you don’t view the annual tradition of resolutions the same way I outlined in 1-3, but I certainly did and I needed a new approach. So instead I approach life like this:

I want to be a happy and healthy person. Happy on Wednesday might mean zeroing out my inbox. Happy on Friday might mean grabbing a beer with friends. Happy on Sunday might mean finally collecting all of those addresses we need for wedding invitations. Healthy on Tuesday might mean choosing to go to Pilates even though I’m not feeling it that day. Healthy on Monday might mean choosing grilled chicken over fried. Healthy on Saturday might mean eating that cupcake anyway because balance is healthy.

I plan some things and handle others as they come up. I don’t look for a goal. This is life, something will come up on its own; and when that challenge presents itself, I set milestones to reach a solution.

And most importantly, I look back at my year and reflect on all of my accomplishments, which I define as moments that led to my happiness or healthiness.

Sure, when you reflect back, there will be negative moments, but think of how you dealt with them. Did you meet them head on? Celebrate your strength. Did someone help you through them? Be thankful for and say thank you to that person. Did you learn a valuable lesson? Remember it and implement it.

Looking back and discovering what brought me closer to who I want to be helps me recognize those moments in everyday life as I’m living them and those patterns over the years. I’m practicing living in those moments and catching onto the pattern (it’s a work in progress) and seeing how doing so shapes the path for my overall life goals. So instead of making new resolutions each year, I’m trying to live a life where those resolutions aren’t necessary because I’m already keeping my overall life goal in the back of my mind and implementing it in the smallest decisions and actions. We’re humans; we’re imperfect. We’ll always be a work in progress, so why should that journey be so harsh? Enjoy the process.

xoxo,

K

Reflection | Autumn Snapshots

Guys. I had every intention of posting throughout November. I even took some styled pumpkin photos to share with you. But alas, I couldn’t find the time!

Fall is the busiest season for me — both at work and at home. It’s filled with moments that require you to live in them, which we could all stand to practice a little more anyway.

It’s the season where the youth theatre at work hosted six performances their latest production. At first I thought, I am going to get so tired of this show. Then I was completely blown away with the casts’ talent the first night and caught as many pics and videos as a I could for social media. Then three shows in, I really started to live in the moment and watch, remain impressed, feel proud, learn the songs, and catch the jokes and tiny details that I missed before. When I look back and reflect on that, I wonder how many details we miss when we’re rushing through life or trying to capture everything on our phones.

After two full weekends of events, I was able to embrace autumn in our house. For us, that means the smell of roasting pumpkins, Mr. Heid’s curses as he works to make the perfect pie crusts, gravy thickening on the stove, and Alice’s Restaurant on repeat. By the end of it, we’ve hit every grocery store in the area, Mr. Heid’s thrown at least one whole crust away, Keiko and I have had our fill of scrap pie crusts, we’ve made beautiful pies and delicious gravy to share with our families for Thanksgiving, and we’re hunkering down to watch A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving.

Despite our busy schedule, we managed to find the time to take two little road trips to Windy Hill Orchard & Cider Mill. I was introduced to the orchard back when I was in living in Rock Hill and immediately loved it! Chickens clucking around, you-pick apple trees, fresh baked cider donuts, pigs eating fallen apples - ugh! the list goes on.

On our first trip, we caught up with friends we hadn’t seen in awhile and went back to one of their places for a home-cooked dinner. On our second trip, we played games with our usual crew and purchased two carboys of cider for home brewing! They are currently fermenting in our extra bathroom tub (easy cleanup in case something goes wrong). It’ll be awhile before they’re ready, but I can’t wait to taste our hard cider!

We went to our hometown for Thanksgiving to celebrate with our families. This year, my brother surprised the family with a visit home. He’s been studying in CA, they haven’t seen him since July and weren’t expecting to a visit until Christmas! He trusted my sister and I with keeping the secret and sneaking him into the house late Thanksgiving Eve. It was a beautiful moment to watch our parents’ faces when they saw him on Thanksgiving morning. After our Thanksgiving meal with Mr. Heid’s family, we went to a local Christmas tree farm and picked out the perfect tree to bring home.

These are the moments we living for — the love, the surprises, the togetherness, the traditions, the family, the friendship. What did you enjoy most this fall?

I know fall’s technically not over until Dec. 21, buuuut it’s pretty much Christmas now, which screams winter to me (not to mention that it’s literally freezing here). So happy winter everyone!

xoxo

K