the stars look so pretty from so far away.

What do you expect of yourself? Do you ever get caught up in thinking that one day you'll have it all together? That one day you'll buy a gorgeous silk chiffon dress (because you have the money) in a color that flatters your sun-kissed skin and frolic through a meadow for an afternoon (because your to-do list was completed ages ago and you have nothing else to do!)? Maybe that's an exaggeration.

Do you ever think that one weekend, you really will finish doing every DIY that you've pinned? Or at least half? Or at least one?

Sometimes I picture myself as having it all together. That we'll follow Dave Ramsey perfectly and this college debt will be paid off in no time, all the while eating kale chips for a snack and caramelized onion galettes for dinner. Oh, and we'll also have an adorable red-headed little girl who has curls like her mama and a little boy with legs like a Kenyan (he'll win the NCAA Division I XC championships, too). At that point, Landon and I will have also written a book on marriage because we're perfect to each other and can't help but get the word out. Also, my hair will no longer be frizzy. And Landon will have learned that as far as cream cheese go, Philadelphia is worth the extra .75 cents. 

And you know what the truth is? We'll follow Dave Ramsey, my cooking will improve, we'll have some kids (Lord willing) and we'll continue to learn about each other and each other's cream cheese preferences (my hair, however, probably won't change). 

The thing is, that first lifestyle sounds great to me when I find a stain on both pairs of my khaki pants in the same week, when I overdose on cheez-its and when Landon comes home with whipped/stabilized/corn-starched/off-brand cream cheese. But last night I spent some time sitting in a room with the lights off, candles burning and The Weepies playing (cliche, I know, but it does wonders for the soul). Is that really what I want? Nope. And even if I did, I'll never have perfection, so it's best to give up now. 

Because you know what's better? Being present. Trusting that my imperfect life will be more pleasing to God and more rewarding to me than an attempt to live a perfect one without Him. The great thing is that God is perfect so that we don't have to be. So forget frolicking, I'd rather have a toasted bagel with stabilized cream cheese.

xoxo.

[photo by nasa]
[title taken from this song]

inspired: living with less.

 So, when we made this move to Texas, we knew that we'd have to cut back on things, but we certainly couldn't have anticipated how much we'd have to cut back. I've been debating whether or not to write about our journey of living with less, because the last thing I would want is for anyone to feel sorry for us or think that we're in desperate need. We're not. We made the choice to move here and to live on one income for a few years, and yes, it's tight, but I honestly wouldn't have it any other way. And if I encourage just one person to live with a little less, than this post is worth it. 

The photo above shows our living room. There's also a big, cozy chair on the other side of the room that you can't see (free from our neighbors, score!). Total cost of this room? Less than $250, and I'm sure it looks like it. Sometimes I look at Pottery Barn catalogs and think that a $3,200 couch would be nice, but I think that a few years from now, I'll remember sharing lunch with Landon everyday on our little blue loveseat.

That's our bedroom. No headboard, no nightstands (we have these instead next to each side of the bed), no dresser (hence the clothes piles on the floor). And at the same time, thanks to our wedding registry and kind friends, we have the coziest bedding that makes for a really good night's sleep. And that's what matters, right?

Now, onto the kitchen. We don't have a dishwasher, microwave, toaster, coffee maker, juicer, griddle, tea kettle, yada yada. The reasons being that (1) I don't want our tiny kitchen to be overrun with small appliances and (2) We just don't need them (although my family knows that I would DIE if I ever got my hands on a FoodSaver or Juiceman Juicer...can you say infomercial addict?). We have a stove, oven, broiler, blender and waffle maker...and they do the job fabulously. 

Most weeks, I spend $45-$60 on food. I promise, it can be done. We eat lots of veggies (potatoes, cabbage and carrots, oh my!), lots of rice and pasta, lots of breakfast for dinner and usually only one meal per week with meat. It may not be glamorous, but we're full and healthy and we get to share our dinner with Jerry Seinfeld every night, and more importantly, with each other.

We have a nice little office set-up (it actually looks a little different now than in this photo, but you get the idea), and I love coming home every day and seeing Landon's research project spread across the desk, or hearing him make recruiting calls from this room. He's doing fulfilling work, and that's what counts. 

Other cost-saving measures? We rarely go to the movies and we've cut back our Netflix plan (like every other American). We listen to NPR or watch Hulu instead. I won't be renewing my magazine subscriptions next year, but I'll continue to get my inspiration from the blog world. I also recently rediscovered the beauty of thrift stores. A pencil skirt and two belts for $5? Yes, please. And, alas, the budget has even got ahold of my sweet tooth. Instead of devouring a gallon of ice cream each week, we buy one bag of chocolate chips and snack on a few each night after dinner. Girl's gotta have her chocolate, right?

In all of this, I'm learning that less really is more. Less stuff means more time to focus on the important stuff, like each other, our work and God's plan for us. I'm learning to truly be grateful. I think that in years past I've been grateful for the ability to get new things, now I'm grateful for the wonderful things I already have. Let's not forget that we're all in a better place financially than most of the world. I try to thank God daily for my job (which I am loving, by the way), our friends and family, our sweet little house, and the opportunity that God provided for us to be here, with Landon going to school almost for free. 

Oh, and Landon's latest cost-cutting idea? Light by lantern only at night...I'm not sure how long this will last, although it is rather calming and has all the benefits of a power-outage without the downsides.

So, that's our life right now. I'm inspired daily to find new ways to live with less. 

As they say, you can't take it with you.

xoxo.

P.S. If you have any killer tips for cutting back, I'd love to hear them...

slow but steady.

we had our financial peace class tonight, and i had one of those "aha" moments...you know, the ones that oprah talks about. at the end of the lesson, dave said was talking about a time when he sat down to lunch with a billionaire and asked him his advice for successfully growing your money. the man told him two things.

1. you have to give.

2. the best reminder (for him) of how to grow wealth is to read the tortoise and the hare.

i think, like most of you, that i know that story pretty well. aha. but i never thought of it that way. slow but steady wins the race. the race has just started for me, and i pray that i can be slow, steady, generous, trusting, smart, patient and content with the resources God has blessed me with from now until the end of that race.

even though we're all quite familiar with it, i think the story is worth posting here.

A hare one day made himself merry over the slow pace of the tortoise, vainly boasting of his own great speed in running.

The tortoise smiled at the hare and replied, "Let us try a race.  We shall run from here to the pond and the fox out yonder shall be the judge." 

The hare agreed and away they started together.  True to his boasting the hare was out of sight in a moment.

The tortoise jogged along with a slow, steady pace, straight towards end of the course.  Full of sport, the hare first outran the tortoise, then intentionally fell behind chuckling at the tortoise all the while. 

Having come nearly to the goal, the hare began to nibble at the young plants.  After a while, the day being warm, he lay down for a nap, saying:  "The tortoise is behind me now.  If he should go by, I can easily enough catch up."

When the hare awoke, the tortoise was not in sight.  Running as fast as he could, the hare found the fox congratulating the tortoise at the finish line.

Don't forget -- slow but steady wins the race.

story via | photo via

pay up. [download]

Pay_Up_2010

landon and i started financial peace university last week and are determined to stay on track with our finances from the beginning! most of our bills are set to auto-payment and paperless, but i still want to keep track of when they're all due. so i made this chart to fill in the day of the month that each bill is due. feel free to download a copy and use it for yourself if you'd like!

xoxo.