Small Business Saturday Guide

Y'all, I am not a fan of Black Friday. If shopping the day after Thanksgiving is your jam, that's fine, but between the crazy lines in stores and the fleeting carts online, I just can't get into it. I much prefer the lesser known Small Business Saturday, where you have the opportunity to support small and local businesses as opposed to the typical big-box retail. I posted about it back when I first heard about it in 2015. This year I'm shopping small online with some of my favorite Etsy shops and other businesses that I love and I thought I'd share some of my favorite items here - many of them are running special sales today only! Blessed Is She Many of you know that I am a devotion writer...

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Currently - October

“I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.” ― L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables. How on earth is it October already? I feel like these first few weeks of school have flown by and I'm only now catching up. Thank goodness for the changing leaves and crisp air and their welcomed beauty amidst the chaos. I'm linking up again with Anne from Anne In Residence and Dana of Something Good for this month's currently's. styling: photos of the new Blessed is She Advent Journal. If you are looking for a beautiful way to enter into the season of Advent, I cannot recommend this journal enough. It's a beautifully rich, yet simple way to pray,...

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A New Day

Skirt: Target (exact - I also love this one) Top: Target (exact) Sweater: Hollister (from high school!) (similar)  Shoes: Marshalls (similar) Watch: Loft (similar) Necklace: Target (another option) Bracelets: Alex and Ani (1, 2) Friends, I am in love with Target's new line of clothing, A New Day.  Ok, let's be honest, I love most things from Target (the dollar section gets me every time), but I'm especially fond of this particular line. Their fall colors are dreamy and items like this skirt are great transition pieces as we start saying "farewell" to summer and "hey there" to fall.  I also find the clothes to be super work appropriate which...

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Currently - September

Happy Tuesday, friends. I hope you all had an only semi-monday-ish Monday and are ready to knock this week out of the park. My week is going to be pretty crazy with everything that I need to get done for work before heading to Ohio on Friday. Not a ton of time.  I feel like the school year just took off and I'm holding on for the ride. Luckily there are a lot of really great things I'm working on for this year, so I'm staying focused and on top of things so far (knock on wood).  Today I'm linking up again with Anne over at Anne in Residence and Lowanda from Sunshine and Elephants to share some "currently's" this month. celebrating: My sister's 25th birthday. We...

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Zelie

Meet Zelie. Named after the mother of St. Therese of Lisieux, Zelie Martin. Pronounced like Ellie with a Z. Also known as: Little Z, ZZ, ZZ-Top, Zeezer, Zeezer Salad, Zel-Bell, and just plain Z. (I tend to make up nicknames...) She's a ball of energy who drives me crazy while simultaneously melting my heart. I adopted her last winter so my apartment wouldn't seem so quiet. Be careful what you wish for, friends. The quiet is gone, replaced my a combination of meowing and spastic running lengths of the apartment. She's the least coordinated cat I have ever met - so it's a match made in heaven. She needs constant attention and loves to hop on your lap, purr and kneed at your lap. She...

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My 10 Favorites Finds at Trader Joe's

Hey friends! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone's weeks are off to a great start. We are well past the halfway point of the week, so let's finish it off with some enthusiasm! The long weekend is so close y'all. I am super excited for this Labor Day Weekend because my sister and nephew will be visiting and I am thrilled! I can't wait for all of the baby snuggles. Really though, all. the. snuggles. Visitors on the way translates to "Sarah needs to restock the fridge and pantry." My eggs, rice and beans diet with a splash of veggies and an occasional seltzer water are not going to cut it... I do know how to cook, promise. I just haven't been home a ton over the summer and have been trying to eat...

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Currently: August

Happy Saturday, friends. It's been a paradoxically fast yet slow week here in CT mixed with just about every emotion imaginable - so that's been fun. Today I am joining in on the Currently link-up with Anne from In Residence and Shea from Shea Lennon. I've seen a few bloggers I follow participate in this one and think it's such a fun way to look back at the month and reflect on a few things. Here goes: Currently, I am... Snacking On: Pudding and Yogurt. I had two wisdom teeth removed yesterday and am still on the soft-food-train. (Plus I love pudding and yogurt, so win win.) Specifically, tapioca pudding is my jam and I just started eating this yogurt from Whole Foods and love it. Anticipating:...

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Loving Lavender

As you know from my last post, I'm mildly obsessed with lavender. And I know it will absolutely shock you all to hear that not only do I like the plant, but I am also quite fond of the color. (This is where you all gasp in disbelief.) Row 1:   Tote  |  Scarf  |  Top Row 2:   Skirt  |  Dress  |  Pants Row 3:   Shoes  |  Sunglasses Row 4:   Earrings  |  Socks  |  Bracelet  |  Lotion All jokes aside, there are some really lovely pieces available in various shades of lavender and I thought it would be fun to share some here. I'm strongly considering the Anthropologie earrings...

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Lavender Pond Farm

One of the perks of having a flexible summer work schedule is taking spur-of-the-moment trips on a weekday afternoon. I saw a few friends on social media mention they had visited lavender farms near their home towns and was immediately inspired to search for one in my neck of the woods. Luckily, I found the address to Lavender Pond Farm, only about 40 minutes away from me and their flowers were still blooming (thanks, Google). And so I decided the next day would be my mini-adventure of exploring lavender fields and pretending like I was summering in Provence. They say Connecticut is the Sault of the United States - OK, nobody says that, but I bet the lavender here is just as pretty...

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St. Anne

I love the beautiful examples of faith we are given via the Communion of Saints. These holy men and women help me to remember that I am loved beyond measure by a Creator who isn't interested in perfection so much as genuine effort. A God who can create saints out of some of the more unlikely cases (I'm looking at you Ignatius.) Saint Anne, whose feast day is today, is a saint near and dear to my heart. Maybe it's because of a close relationship with my own grandmother, but Jesus' grandma has always been a source of inspiration and consolation in my life. She helped young Mary grow to be a strong, holy woman who proclaimed "Yes!" to God trusting unconditionally. While most Catholic girls...

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Let's Catch Up

And just like that, my first year of work at a high school is over. This year has been challenging and beautiful and hard and rewarding and so many other adjectives that don't seem to fit together but, by the grace of God, do. And now, summer. A chance to be still. To unwind. To continue settling into life on the East Coast. Technically I'm a 12 month position, but because of all of the travel I did this year to learn about our service program, I have been firmly told to take a break and if I do have to get something done, do it from home. Twist my arm. Honestly, it is a bit more challenging than you would think. I love my school and I love my job, so not going into the office is hard....

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Questioning Empathy

I present to you musings of an overtired Sarah  from around 1 am last night as she tried to sleep but couldn't seem to turn off her brain, thus recording those thoughts in writing here on the blog. I apologize in advance for grammatical errors and/or circularity. The final product might not be as pretty as some posts, but it is honest and authentic - which I tend to prefer anyway. And so, without further adieu, Questioning Empathy. ----- Lately I've been consumed with thoughts about empathy and how it occurs in others. It all started about a week or so ago while I was on a service trip with students to the city nearest to our school. During these trips (this was my third of this specific...

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An Intentional 2017

Happy New Year, friends. 2017 has arrived, and with it a fresh, crisp new year with which we can work to experience in beautiful ways. This year, instead of setting a typical resolution, I have decided to choose a word to strive to embody during these next 12 months (and hopefully beyond that). As I prayed and reflected on what I wanted that word to be, my heart kept returning me to the idea of being intentional. That's not to say that I currently spend my days being unintentional and lackadaisical, but there are definitely moments in probably every aspect of my life where I have simply gone through the motions, or carelessly did the  bare-minimum to complete I was doing just to so...

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