Currently

It’s been a while since I’ve done a post like this… So here’s an update of what I’m currently:

Reading – the book “Feminine Appeal: 7 Virtues of a Godly Wife & Mother” by Carolyn Mahaney. A dear friend recommended it and loaned it to me…and I was instantly drawn to the author’s wisdom, practicality, and touching stories! I found myself wishing I had this book myself so I could underline like crazy all of the quotes that were standing out to me. So I ordered my own copy! I’m excited to reread the book soon and mark all of my favorite sections. Carolyn has wonderful advice on marriage and how we as wives can ultimately bring God glory by doing this married life thing well and with the right attitude. 🙂 It’s an easy, useful read.

Hanging out with – friends, old and new! I’ve really enjoyed spending time with friends and family these past couple weeks. My friend Jordan and I had a fun ice cream date last week, and I got to meet up with a dear old friend, Emily, on Saturday for coffee and a walk in wonderful weather! We’ve known each other since 7th grade?! I think, so it is always super fun to catch up! She blogs at [EM]powered now – go check her out! I also got to have a coffee date with Laura from According to Laura Jean – my very first “blogger date” where I got to finally meet a blog friend in person!! It was so special and fun – so, just saying, blogger friends – if you’re ever in Minnesota, let me know and let’s meet up! 🙂 Laura is such a sweet, genuine person – I already knew that from her blog, but it was so fun to get to know her better in person!

My mom and I have also gotten to have some wonderful time together lately. Over the years she has become one of my best friends in the world, so it is a blessing when we get to hang out. She and I got up and got exercising out on the trails one morning – she was waaay ahead of me, often, as expected – but I still had a blast. I attempted rollerblading again which was fun but terrifying – those darn acorns on the trails! 🙂 We went about 7 miles and it was a blast!

Missing – Bjorn. Also, missing the months of June and July – where did they go?? 🙂 My husband is gone for 2 weeks of army training – an annual training time he has each summer. Being an Army Reserves spouse is an interesting experience. Without getting too much up on a soapbox here, in my opinion, the Reserves doesn’t affect your life any less than active duty Army does; it’s just different. Bjorn, as an officer, has had intense schooling and trainings (a couple were 1 month long each, another was 4 months, and so on) and commitments and ceremonies…but it’s all in addition to of his full-time civilian job of teaching middle school and also farming with his family. His work ethic astounds me and I am so proud of him.

This 2 weeks isn’t the longest stint, by far. We’re accustomed to one weekend apart a month while he’s at drill, with some longer weekend trainings mixed in. Last fall we were apart for 6 weeks so I’m glad that’s over! 🙂 I’ve gotten quite good over time at keeping myself busy, productive, occupied, and content while Bjorn is gone for Army. I’ve had to – in fact, by this point in our marriage (not yet a year and a half), we have spent over 90 days and nights apart. So yes, it is a sacrifice. But my husband’s commitment to doing this is for a noble, greater cause and I fully support him in it!

A lot of soldiers in the Reserves make more hourly at their civilian jobs than they do at Army, but they believe in what the Army stands for so they continue to give up their time to commit to Army trainings. When Bjorn told me that, it really blew me away. I’m not saying all of this in order to get comments or thanks on Bjorn’s behalf, but I just wanted to speak up about what specifically Reserves life is like for those of you who may not realize the commitment that the Army Reserves brings with it. I know there are a good number of army-wife blogs out there and while this is not one of them, I still want to share with you what life – all aspects of our life – is like.

Eating – Chicken Avocado Salad in Pita Pockets! This is one of our favorite simple, go-to meals so I just had to share it with you!

Wearing – Brass dresses!! Brass Clothing is phenomenal. I am in love with their dresses and at this point own 3 of them. I originally saw a Brass dress worn by Bridget from Tales of Me & The Husband, and when I checked out the company, I was hooked! I highly recommend them. My favorites are the tank maxi dresses…I hope maxi dresses never go out of style! They are just too easy and fun to slip on and head out the door! They’re super comfy too – and anything that basically feels like pajamas but is socially acceptable is a win in my book! 😉

Painting – over our made-over coffee table with some poly. It took me a while to get to this point, but I finally decided I wanted a little extra shine and especially durability! I also stained 3 giant letters “E A T,” and now I’m looking for a fun way to incorporate them in our kitchen! Any ideas, friends?

Organizing – Our upstairs office/library! Finally! It took a few days to conquer it all, but now I feel we finally have systems in place for things like crafts, books (we literally have hundreds), my desk, our filing cabinet, and so on. Actually, before we were married, I lived in our rental house alone for 7 months and my bed was in that room. I did some shuffling around once we got married. I turned my old bedroom into the big office/library, the smaller bedroom into a peaceful cozy guest room, and used the last bedroom (with the loveliest natural light) as our bedroom. We love it. It’s super fun to move things around in a house because it gives you an entirely new perspective. Have you ever swapped rooms in your home??

Soaking in – the peace that late summer brings with it. The standing-outside-barefoot-taking-down-laundry-at-sunset-ness. 🙂 The quiet house in the late morning. The time spent with family. Time spent walking outside when it is so HOT. Ice cream dates. Starbucks (whenever I’m visiting my parents!). I love the whole #savoryourseason concept. Let’s just all do this from here on out, okay? 🙂

Starting – Horseback riding lessons! What?! I know! It is way too exciting! 🙂 I’ve had 2 of my private lessons so far and it has been utterly amazing! Like any little girl, I used to dream about horses, read about them, draw them…and now, finally, I get to learn about them in person and ride them! I love feeding the horses at my in-laws’ place, but I am excited to gain additional knowledge and feel much more confident and comfortable riding them. They are such majestic, powerful, stunning animals. My sis-in-law Amy is in veterinary school and horses have always been her area of specialty – I think her enthusiasm and respect for them is rubbing off on me! 😉 Bjorn and I decided it was a fun but useful skill for me to learn, what with our future plans and all 🙂 (and hey, we’re ALWAYS proponents of lifelong learning!).

Harvesting – TONS of veggies from the garden!! We accidentally let some of these grow really large…but I brought some of the big yellow zucchini up to my parents’ and my mom incorporated it into some yummy bread as well as a delicious squash bake!

Listening to – My Gregory Alan Isakov station on Spotify (seriously, the best!). Also, the Bluegrass Junction station on Sirius Radio in our truck! It seems to fit. 😉

** By the way, as a fun August deal, you can get 20% off any print at my Etsy shop with the code DOGDAYS 🙂

What have you all been up to lately? Any fun new activities you’ve started, or coffee dates with old friends? How are you soaking up the rest of summer? 🙂