Goodbye March?

March 27, 2014March 27, 2014 / Rubys N Purls / Leave a comment

It seems all I’m able to come up with lately is one, maybe two posts a month! Thank you for you comments on my last post. I’m looking into web-hosting, new designs, etc. I really appreciate all the advice.

So life lately has been…busy! When is it ever not though really. Last week was Spring Break for Caveboy and I, so I was able to take off Friday and have a date with my little guy! We had some maintence done on my Kia, visited Daddy at work, went to a few Thrift Stores and finally made it to our local library for the first time! Whew, what a day!

Here are a few finds from our thrifting adventures!

Golfbag for Caveman!

Always looking for anything nautical! These nautical prints were beautiful!

No, I didn’t purchase either of these, just some spring/summer clothes for Caveboy!

Actually I’ve been on a purge of our house lately. It seems that we are bursting at the seams in our little 1300 sq ft rancher. I’ve been waiting to have a yard sale for a few years. I even attempted it a few times last year only to have something come up each time. Well this is my yard-sale year, no matter what! I will be off school (between semesters) during the month of May so I’m hoping to pick a weekend and clear the place out! Either that or it’s all getting hauled off to a Thrift Store near you for someone else’s enjoyment!

In addition to housewares, I have a ton of Caveboy’s clothes waiting for me to sell in the yard-sale, although…

Grace over at CampPatton.com recently posted about a new company called Kidizen that I would love to try out but alas I haven’t made the jump to an iPhone yet. *sigh* (Although they are working on an Android app to be released soon!) But here’s what Grace said about the new company!

“Their inventory truly runs the gamut of legitimate vintage and brands I would never dream of buying firsthand and one of my favorite things about Kidizen is that the prices INCLUDE SHIPPING. Genius. So genius.

It’s super easy to snap photos on your phone, upload them on the app, and list them to sell as well. I have a really hard time getting rid of the kids clothing but the nesting bug is getting antsy and I’ll be all over this one of these pre due date weeks.”

I’ve already used Once Upon a Child a few times too. They are usually pretty great to buy back clothes from me and a great resource to find clothes for Caveboy.

I’ll be back again soon with a few more posts about our Springtime adventures and more thoughts on redesigning our home to better work for us.

What February?

March 6, 2014March 28, 2014 / Rubys N Purls / 2 Comments

Another month has begun and despite my best intentions February slipped by without a blog post. I might blame it on February being the shortest month of the year, or the big day of LOVE earlier this month or celebrating Caveman’s birthday or the crazy weather (snow one day, 70 degrees the next!) or even my first of two mid-terms but really I just haven’t made the time to sit down and compose anything. I think I’m enjoying our relaxed schedules this winter, soon to be spring.

Here’s a few of February’s Instagram photos for your viewing pleasure!

I have been thinking about blog posts though. Namely holding myself accountable to my goal/word of being more AVAILABLE this year, so I’ll address that item first. The very next day after my last post I failed miserably and felt even worse. Achieving this goal has been more of a roller coaster than anything else. Some days (more like moments throughout the day) I’m on top of my game and other days I’m completely and utterly failing again. Only when I completely submit to God and allow Him to work through me do I actually succeed. As we all know this is easier said than done.

Earlier this week Ann Voskamp wrote, “A lack of doxology leads to depravity.” and “Our fall is always first a failure to give thanks.” I could go on and on quoting from her post, but please take the time to go examine it for yourself. In the times I’ve just gone through the motions or I’m completely gone a full day without giving thanks to God, I have fallen the hardest. Ann writes, “But refuse to give God thanks? God lets our very lives become refuse. Our thinking becomes futile and God on High lets us live low.” That is what Buchanan discovers in Scripture, right there in Romans:

“The heart of wickedness and godlessness is that: a refusal to glorify God. It’s the refusal to thank Him.“

I usually come to my senses down in the pit, looking up and wondering how I ever got back here and I hear the whisper, “Have you acknowledged Me today? Have you thanked Me today?“, and down on my knees I fall because the honest answer is “No! No I have not and I’m so ashamed“. I typically don’t even know I’m not surrendering my all until I realize I’m trying to hold it all together and God is patiently waiting until I wear myself out. I am not the only one who suffers though, my wonderful family are the real sufferers. There is a song by Jamie Grace called, “Beautiful Day!” Every one of the words in this song, resonates with me. Caveboy and I listen to it every morning as we start our day! I encourage you to check out the lyrics here. As long as I wake up with thanksgiving on my lips and keep it there throughout the day I am a happier person, better wife, more loving Mother and overall live a joyous life.

I have been tossing around the idea for a few years of changing my blog name/address, going .com and everything. But honestly I am afraid to do it. I have no idea why because the new name is more in line with who/what I am and want to move towards. I think I would like to add sponsors too but I have no idea how to go about this, which is sad because I’ve been blogging for a number of years! I was talking it over with Caveman the other day and he says go for it if that’s what I want. I love my man! So if anyone out there has any advice or can point me to a highly recommended web designer and/or hosting services I would really appreciate the help. Of course this would mean more posting on my part but I’ve really been wanting to post more anyway. Opinions, let me know what you think in the comments!

Review of 2013 – Happy 2014!

January 1, 2014March 28, 2014 / Rubys N Purls / 1 Comment

2013 Recap…

2013 was just full of surprises for our little family. Opportunities we thought were coming our way crumbled right before our eyes, but God opened other doors and brought blessings that were better than we ever dreamed.

From January through May I posted lots of different looks and styles here on RubysNPurls. I had fun with them but once June hit and I returned to college part-time, I found that I simply didn’t have enough time for everthing and blogging too. I was also really unhappy with my weight & to be honest was tired of posting photos of myself in outfits that weren’t that great. I knew once I started walking to school my weight would improve and it did somewhat over the summer, however it wasn’t until Caveman and I started the Paleo Diet in early September (4th to be exact!) that I really saw an improvement in my weight, my mental health and my energy levels.

As I’ve lost the weight, now down 30 lbs, my style has evolved as well. I am turning to more classic/taliored looks and surprisingly to me, wearing more black. I’ve always liked black but as Caveman told me recently, “Honey, black is your color!” LOL!

I also highlighted a few home improvements that we tackled in our backyard, along with the bounty from our garden and a quick little DIY. It was a good year, but as we look out over the coming 2014 we’re seeing lots of big changes in our future.

2014 Goals

I saw a quote similar to the one above on Pinterest the other day only it said “Amazing, Loving, Strong, Happy, Selfless and Grateful”. I think these are the qualities I will be striving for, as a person, as well as a Mom this year!

I saw this one too and (I’m not sure of the source for either of these, so if you know it could you please pass it along?) I really liked it…

“2014 is your year to ..Begin, have NO regrets, Hone your personal style, Love, Simplify, Go on an Adventure, Change your outlook, Love WHAT you do, BE YOU!”

Most of these were already my goals for 2014, this just put them into words beautifully!

As far as social media, you’ll find me on Pinterest & Instagram because I enjoy both so much. But here on this little space, my time will be limited. My focus has shifted away from style/fashion posts to spending quality time with my family, being real and in the moment. I think that’s one reason I really like Instagram because it’s a snapshot of a moment, not some longwinded explanation of what’s been happening with me, blah, blah, blah. That’s not to say that I don’t love dropping in with a post every so often, so for now I’m keeping an open mind and keeping the blog open. I’ll re-evaluate as the year progresses!

I hope all of you have a truly blessed and wonderful 2014.

October!! Already!!

October 2, 2013October 2, 2013 / Rubys N Purls / Leave a comment

Between school for both Caveboy and I, his being preschool two days a week and mine being university life every.single.day. I don’t have much time for anything but the absolute necessities. So to say life has been crazy lately is the biggest understatement EVER! I just thought I’d pop in with a few quick & random things though…and play along with Five Favorites again today!

First off… I’m so, so glad fall is here! Not only does fall bring spectacular colors, crisp mornings and evenings but it also brings pumpkins and loads of fun festivals. I do so hope we can squeeze in a couple this year despite my crazy schedule.

Second, have you guys signed up for Everlane yet? I love silk blouses and I really want to try one from Everlane. Corilynn showed her’s off today and it is gorgeous! I think I’d like one in the cream or olive!

What’s been happening in our little corner of the world besides school? Well Caveboy turned 4 earlier this month & I made up some super cute Save The Date Invitations for the kids.

I downloaded the blank dinosaur printables from here (& I would love to be able to use these somewhere!) and then tweaked my information in Photoshop using some Dinosaur fonts (Dinosaur Jr, Prehistoric, Jurassic Park, You Are Loved – to name a few). I downloaded this Dinosaur Party Pack from Tip Junkie and tweaked them some in Photoshop to better match the colors I was using and to create water bottle labels.

Caveman texted me the other day and asked if we could start the Paleo diet? Of course I was on board, but neither of us was prepared for the amazing results that would follow. Within 24 hours (cause we kinda jumped in cold turkey and all) Caveman and I both felt fabulous. As in I was waking up earlier without joint pain due to inflammation, dido for Caveman. He’s been having so stomach pains and thought originally it was an ulcer, that has completely cleared up! We are both down by 10 lbs within a week and a half of going Paleo, so I’m not seeing any grains in our diets for a very long time… as in ever! We are both hooked and (because we needed an AND) Caveboy loves eating this way too. In fact, he’s actually eating his Paleo lunches I send with him to school, where as he hadn’t been eating the grain filled lunches before. Winning!

Thanks for continuing to stop by and check in on the little blog, but I have to warn you now that blogging might be a little sparse for a while longer. I’ve wanted to post a few times recently and even took some outfit photos last month, but they looked terrible and I simply haven’t had time since. I have been on Pinterest lately though so you can catch me there too.

Until next time… Happy Fall Y’all!

End of July Update….

July 31, 2013July 31, 2013 / Rubys N Purls / Leave a comment

Everyone having a great summer so far?! This one seems to be flying by for us.

Neighbors Crepe Myrtles

Dressing for summer weather while working in an office is always tricky. I mostly keep one of my lightweight scarves to double as a shawl or a lightweight cardigan that goes with everything. In summers past I’ve worked all day inside with only a short break outside during lunch, but this summer has been a little different! I’ve been taking summer classes at the University of Tennessee to further my education and since the university is only a few blocks from where I work, I can easily walk to and fro. Therein lies the dilemma, my outfits need to be office casual, lightweight and breezy enough for the hot midday sun, and easy to walk in. I’ve found that with a little planning and creativity I can easily pull this off with my current spring/summer wardrobe. I’m not exactly wearing my dressy office wear this summer but I’m not completely casual either – because in our office shorts are a no-go. Here are a few looks I’ve documented, not the basic pieces and the simplicity of each. The top look is what I’m wearing today, Silk Sweater and Navy Capri’s.

Capri’s and skirts have been in heavy rotation, but I’m also sticking with loose, billowy skirts instead of pencil skirts unless they have stretch to them (blue one above qualifies 😉 ). I’m also relying on more casual sandals instead of heels this summer too.

So I pass this view everyday on my walks…

and knowing I would be out and about in the rain at times, I purchased a cute, but very useful umbrella that I love. I thought it would be getting heavy use today because we were forecasted to get loads of rain but thankfully its held off so far.

If you didn’t already know, I’ve been mostly on Instagram this summer and am currently participating in the #30dayselfportraitchallenge with #abeautifulmess. Here are a few random photos from the challenge so far. Today was #day15 (or 15/30) so I’m are halfway there!