County Line Orchard- Part 2

It is so amazing to think about how God has determined where we live and has purposefully placed those people around us that He wants to use to shape us. In the Christian life, there is no such thing as an accident. The people that we are surrounded by are there for a reason. Our community and friendships exist because of His purposeful design. I am so thankful for the women He has placed around me. I am thankful for the ways that they challenge me to grow and for the fact that we bear with each other in love. 

"Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love." - Ephesians 4:2

^^ Love, love love these faces, their beautiful hearts and the fact that they will always stop at Dairy Queen when I suddenly want a chocolate dipped cone. 

County Line Orchard- Part 1

This past weekend we spent the day at County Line Orchard in Hobart, Indiana. If you are looking for a great place to pick apples, pumpkins and just enjoy some fall activities this is definitely the place to go. The orchard is huge and has a corn maze, sunflower fields, apple orchards and a really fun general store full of all sorts of fall flavored items. I wanted to buy everything they had. The orchard is only about an hour outside of Chicago. It was the perfect break from the city. Fall goes by so quickly that we really have to quickly jump to do all the fun fall activities before winter arrives for what feels like the rest of the year. 

More from the apple orchards up tomorrow! 

Faux Leather Leggings- Night

H&M has really comfortable leather leggings, which you can find here. You really need a long flowing blouse to balance out the edginess of the leggings, mine is from Artizia and you can find some of their fall colors here. Zara has some really wonderful blazer options and I loved this black one. 

Faux Leather Leggings - Day

There is nothing better than fall in Chicago. I literally wait all year long to be able to wear my giant scarfs and beanies. (So many beanies, so little time.) Faux leather leggings are so fun, and, when you are as blonde as I am, sometimes you need to go the extra mile to add in a little edge to your wardrobe. In the middle of some girl talk, my soul sister Erin, (see previous post) encouraged me to take the plunge because we decided we are leather pants people. Going shopping with friends is the best because when you are faltering about an item, they always push you over the edge. Playing it safe is boring anyway. 

Love huge blanket type scarves. Sweater from Zara last season but basically the same one here. Also love this option. Highly suggest the leggings from HM, which you can find here. 

Come back tomorrow to check out how to take these leggings from day to night. 

10 Years of Birthdays

The week before homecoming my high school boyfriend broke up with me. I had a dress but no homecoming group to go with and no date. The world felt like it was ending. In the middle of newspaper class, I poured out my soul to Erin, a girl I didn't really know but inherently liked, about my devastation. Erin immediately invited me to join her homecoming group. 

She brought a lonely, heartbroken girl into her circle. 

That was 10 years ago. 10 whole years. 

From that point forward, Erin has been one of my best friends. More than a friend. A woman I have walked through life with and look up to. We were on the high school newspaper together, danced in Poms together, went to college together, were sorority sisters together and now live in Chicago together. (A lot of togetherness). 

We know every person each of us has ever dated. She cried with me when I found out I got a full ride to law school and I slipped notes under her sorority room door when she locked herself in her room and refused to come out after a bad heartbreak. She was there when I drank for the first time. We helped each other survive (barely) college, senior wills and always made sure the other got home safely. We have always made an effort to celebrate every birthday together. She has loved me enough to tell me when I was being a selfish brat, and I have always respected her enough to believe it. 

I have not met a person who does not like Erin. She is funny, loyal, kind and loves other people so well. After you spend time with her, you just feel better, happier, more whole and hopeful. She is quick, smart as can be and is sarcastic, in the best way possible. She's the girl you want dancing with you at the Hange Uppe and the girl you run to when everything is falling apart- a perfect combination of lightness and depth. She was homecoming queen, captain of our Pom's dance team and voted president of our sorority. These accolades only skim the surface of her heart and character. 

Rewind to our freshman year of college. I went down south to the University of Georgia and Erin started at the University of Illinois. After a few months trying to mesh into southern culture and not succeeding, I called Erin crying. She walked me through the transfer process and celebrated with me when I transferred to the University of Illinois. 

I had missed the Midwest, but I had also missed my friend. 

You only get a few really close friends in life and I knew my stories would always be missing something if Erin was not a part of them. 

We have changed and grown up together. Each of us in different ways. It is so rare to have a friend that relishes and respects your growth even when it is different from their own. Erin has a million good friends, but she has always made me feel like one of the special ones. 

Happy birthday, dear friend. 

Happy birthday to you and the beautiful woman you are. Thank you for being you. Thank you for 10 years of such a special friendship. 

Be Brave, Encouraging and Look for Lonely People

In the midst of my quarter life crisis (only slightly dramatic), I realized I need to zero on what I want my life to be about. 

And to do this, I need a motto. A short one. Because I have a short attention span. I need something to focus on every morning when I walk out the door. Something that can sink into my heart. 

It was like knowing the answer before I even asked the question. 

Be brave, encouraging and look for lonely people. 

Even if I screw up everything at work and overindulge in too much reality TV, I want my head to hit the pillow each night knowing that I spent that day being brave, encouraging and looking for lonely people. 

One of my dear friends went to an all girls' college purposefully because she had trouble making girlfriends. She saw her weakness and tackled it. Today, she is a total girls' girl. The best girlfriend you could ever hope for. A girl other girls just inherently trust. 

My motto does not necessarily align with my natural strengths, but like my dear friend, I want them to become the essence of my being so that one day I can look back and laugh about how there was a time it was not like this. 

Be brave, encouraging and look for lonely people. 

A couple years ago my motto would have been- be perfect, popular and achieve everything. Exhausting, right? Soul sucking? Absolutely. That motto does not make for a very good story. And we become the stories we dare to tell. 

Be brave, encouraging and look for lonely people. 

Exhale and repeat. 

An Ode to Chicago Greyness

Confession- I love Chicago's greyness. It is a city with personality, grit and depth. A place where the weather never seems to mock your emotions but changes quickly enough to match them. 

If the city were a person, it would rock a fedora but yet still gracefully slip into chiffon. 

I love how Chicago never over compensates by providing constant blue skies. Instead, Chicago embraces its moodiness and does not over perform. It seems to know that the people who really love it will stick it out through those grey sky seasons. 

There are moments when Chicago seems to scoff at those "more beautiful" cities because it is self aware, and like a truly confident person, loves its shortcomings as much as its beauty. Chicago wants only those who will deal with the difficulties to stay. It is not the picture perfect person at the party that is easy to love but the one standing off to the side that is actually worth it to love. 

So, Chicago, thank you for being raw, unpredictable and soul achingly beautiful. Thank you for being the best backdrop for a beautiful story.

Coat from H&M unavailable online but similar here.  Shirt from H&M here. My favorite shoes in the entire world here. Also love these new fall shoe options.