Candy Addict

It's Friday! Woohoo! I hope this photo brings you happy feelings. There ain't nothing like getting TWO PINKS!!!!

Baby

Several weeks ago I wrote about wanting a niece or nephew. Well my sibling and friends still haven't come through on that for me. BUT last Saturday I got to meet my friend's nephew for the first time. Paige's nephew Geaham was the happiest baby ever, at least for the two-and-a-half hours we were chillin together. We played with a drink koozie.

*Pretending like I have my own nephew.* *Weirding out the parents, whom I'd only met once before.*

Pointed Pen

So for photo Friday its only appropriate that I share a photo of what's been most prevalent in my life this week. So that's definitely the calligraphy pens and inks that Brian got me on Wednesday! I've been spending like three hours a day massing with them. Immediately obsessed. 

First attempts above. 

Later attempt below. 

If you aren't already following my progress on Instagram, take a looksie at @whateverletters. Thanks! 

Rainy Driver

One of the worst things is driving in heavy rain at night. When you can't see the lines on the road, and can only see the lights of the cars around you, I totally freak out.

This week we were driving in a downpour. It wasn't even dark yet but I was super thankful that my husband isn't bothered by rainy driving. 

Here's a couple photos for Foto Friday! 

Kids on a Mission

For Foto Friday I obviously thought I should share some pictures from Mission Week. This whole week has been an exhastingly packed-full week of mission projects for our 4th and 5th graders at church. We were so busy I stopped taking pictures by Tuesday😂

Monday morning we packed lunch bags for the homeless. But first we decorated the bags with Bibke verses and cute pictures. 

Monday afternoon we visited a community of adults with special needs. We played Bingo, volleyball, and karaoke. The kids were scared out of their minds at first but then loved it! I think it was the most meaningful and impactful activity of the whole week! 

Tuesday morning we went to a local park where they have an outdoor classroom for schools to use. We raked leaves, pulled weeds, and spread new mulch. 

Tuesday afternoon we went to an animal shelter. We gave dogs baths and walks. We cleaned their cages and played with brand new puppies. 

Then I stopped taking pictures. 

Wednesday we packed sack lunches and brought them to a mobile home neighborhood and gave the lunches to kids. Our kids were aggressive and competitive about giving out the lunches. Typical. 

Wednesday afternoon we set up all the tables and chairs and tablecloths for our own church's Wednesday Night Supper. 

Thursday morning we sanitized some old furniture around church. 

Thursday afternoon we visited a local retirement home and played card games. We taught some old ladies how to play Apples to Apples (Disney version) and they loved it, hah! 

Friday, today, we didn't do any mission projects; we just spent the day at a water park. The kids had a blast and I got sunburnt. Whatever. 

Well That's Embarrassing

The only picture I took this week, other than a bunch of doodling that's already posted on my second Instagram....

Donut holes. Blueberry Dunkin Donut Munchkins. What does that say about my priorities?!

Quinoa Pizza

Here are some pics for Foto Friday! We attempted making pizza crust out of quinoa.

Our crust in the beginning, using this recipe. We doubled the recipe except for the eggs, since too much eggs give me a sensitive stomach. 

Brian carefully distributing our chicken, peppers, and onions.

The finished product! Overall pretty yummy, but it definitely couldn't fool anyone for being a "real" crust. The crust actually held together so you could eat a slice by picking it up. A tasty option for anyone who has to eat a gluten free diet. 

Aloha, Aloe

Happy Friday! Woohoo!!!!!

This week at work my coworker walked in with an aloe plant and said, "I don't know who this is from, but it's for you." As soon as he walked away I regretted missing out on the amazing pun aloe-ha to say goodbye. 

Apparently there's a church member who does this for all the "new" staff every once in a while. I've been there almost a year and a half but I guess she hadn't don't the plant gesture in a while so I was included in the round. I texted this to Brian and thought it was funny. 

Now the little plant is sitting pretty (and upright) in our living room. I've never kept a plant alive more than a month or so, so we'll see. 

Pretty Little Letters

This week was packed full of Vacation Bible School at church! I was planning to share a cute photo of it for Photo Friday, but I just checked my camera roll and as it turns out, I took zero photos!

So today is my day off and I took the morning to play with my new aquabrush. Here's the result.

Crafty Week Done

As I may have mentioned before, one of the things I have to head up for VBS is crafts. So this whole week was running supplies between our two buildings, getting last-minute paper towels and googled eyes and tinsel pom poms, and begging volunteers so come cut, sort, count, and organize supplies. 

All was going really well until yesterday afternoon, another ministry at our had "borrowed" our classroom and rearranged all my tables and chairs and placed all my supplies on the ground out of order. I almost blew a fuse. 

Anyway... Here's a cute little picture of one of our crafts. On Monday the lesson is "Jesus is the light of the world" so we're making tiny lanterns out of tea lights. Pretty adorable if I do say so myself. Here are the examples I made with a teen volunteer. 

Chair Makeover

I got a "new" chair today!

I love it but I'm pretty sure Brian will hate it when he gets home. Oh well... he pre-approved the fabric so he cant be too mad about it! It's very bold, that's for sure. It's been sitting in my apartment for about 30 minutes and I already like the whole new feel the place has.

I'm digging the whole organic prints and blues and greens kinda thing. Once I get some art on the walls I'll show you guys the whole living room, complete with our big green couch and bundles of dried eucalyptus.

Dog Selfie

Yet another Foto Froday today... And I'm scrolling through my camera roll to see what I have to share. Between last Friday and today, I took several hundred pictures, which is definitely a record for me. But all he photos are from our vacation in Seattle, which I want to save up for a Storytime Sunday post. 

So here's a photo I totally loved from the trip but isn't just a "Seattle Thing" that needs to be saved for later. MICKEY DOODLE! Mickey is a skilled photographer who took a cute selfie. 

My brother-in-law and I couldn't stop laughing at this "selfie." To see more photos of the cutest Labradoodle in the world, follow Mickey's Instagram, @mickeydoodle2015 .

Seven Years Ago

This past week I ran into my high school band director!

I hadn't seen him in seven whole years! 

We were waiting in a long line a Home Depot, so we actually got about ten minutes to talk. It was so funny to see him again. We chatted about our families, and I introduced him to Brian. He introduced himself by just his first name, which was weird to me. 

He was such an awesome teacher. He held us to really high standards, he yelled and screamed at us a lot, BUT we never once questioned how much he cared about us. He encouraged us in our faith, got to know our families, and encouraged us in our goals. He is really one of the best teachers I've ever had. 

Movin' Along

My evenings this week have all looked exactly the same... unloading a car full of boxes into our new apartment! 

Here's a photo that could be any old day this week. Except I actually remember that it was Wednesday, because Brian is on the phone with Comcast to set up our internet. 

He is the most awesome roommate. 

Baby Birds

Look at these five little cuties that live in my parents' back yard! Brian and I were like, "I wonder if any birds actually live in that bird house." And my mom was like, "The box opens up on the front. Go look." And when we opened the box, I dunno what we were actually expecting but it startled us to actually see birds so close up.

Crazy to think that Momma Bird flew back and forth thousands of times to put every little piece of grass and moss in there. Anyway, my dad says they're bluebirds. My mom has seen the birds attempting to fly so they'll be gone soon. They grow up so fast! 

Too Hipster to Handle

This is my friend Paige (college roommate) and she is so awesome. 

She's graduating in a couple weeks with her Masters of Fine Arts in poetry which is so hip I can't even handle it. Today Brian and I ventured into Decatur to hear her reading. She's so cool I can't even believe it. 

If you wanna hear some of her stuff, here's a clip of her reading her work on NPR! 

http://news.wabe.org/post/atlanta-poets-find-strength-collaboration-duets

Kindergarten Forever

Remember a few years ago when I wanted to be a high school math teacher?
Lol. Lol. Lol. Lol. Lol. Lol. Lol.

Anyway, now that we've all gotten some laughs out, let me talk about my love for Kindergarteners. 5 and 6 years old is the absolute best age. They're sweet, adorable, and cute. They still really want to make their friends and their teachers happy of them. They're developing a slightly more mature sense of humor than pre-schoolers, and finally not every joke is about poo-poo. They still fit in your lap, and they still love hugs. They lose their front teeth and hav'ent completely grown out of little speech impediments. They're old enough to not have major meltdowns over the tiniest things, but they still cry when their feelings are hurt and it's kinda cute actually. One day, if I ever don't work at a church anymore and I'm just a regular normal church member, I'm going to volunteer to teach Kindergarten Sunday School.

This past Wednesday, the youth group had their musical/play performance, and it was really great, but it was mostly serious with only a few funny parts, so the kids I was sitting with were antsy. I don't have favorites but.... I was sitting with my favorite Kindergarten kid and we were playing a game where I use my finger to draw letters on his back and he guesses what letter it was. It kept him quiet and entertained for a full hour and it kept him climbing over the balcony railing and falling 20 feet in the sanctuary. He was being good and quietly whispering... but he was cracking me up so badly that I couldn't stop laughing loudly at him. Whoops! Here's a peek into our conversations:

Kindergartener with a buzz cut, totally serious, "Do you think you could try to braid my hair?"

— Kirby Darden (@kirby_darden) April 20, 2016

Kindergartener points to 30-y-old woman, "She looks like my grandma! Can I go tell her?" NO please no.

— Kirby Darden (@kirby_darden) April 20, 2016

Kindergartener flips them rough a thick hymnal, "There's GOTTA be a bad word in here somewhere."

— Kirby Darden (@kirby_darden) April 20, 2016

So for Foto Friday, here's this awesome kid:

Anna and Mousey

This is my friend Anna. We've been pals since May 2009 which feels like an entirely different lifetime. 

Happy Friday. We ate brunch and caught up like we've never been apart. 

Side note- Alon's Bakery is too delicious. When Brian and I move next month we're going to be about 8 minutes from Alon's and that will be bad news for my girlish figure. 

An Actual Hobby

Until the past few months, my entire life has been swamped with either homework or wedding planning. Now that I have a job with pretty regular-ish hours, no homework, no wedding planning, no kids yet, not even a dog... I actually have free time and it's weird.

That's probably the only reason I can keep up with this blog. That's hobby #1. And now I'm actually really investing time in learning hand-lettering. That's hobby #2. What? I have two hobbies? That's insane. Who am I? Foto Friday is a little progress update for you:

A Series of Unfortunate Accidental Selfies

This past weekend Sara visited from Nashville. We have a weird tradition of vlogging everything we do together, just using the phone's selfie camera. 

This results is a LOT of accidental selfies, when I thought the camera would start taking video but I accidentally snapped a photo.