Restfully busy

This weekend was a busy one! Friday night we visited with family in town (and got to love on our adorable niece and nephews). Saturday morning we got up early and made the trek up to Charlottesville with friends for some apple picking! We were nervous about the potential hurricane weather, but it ended up being fantastic. We drove 3 hours up there for just one day, but it was amazing and I'm so glad we did! We picked apples, sipped on cider slushies and wolfed down apple cider donuts, toured the downtown and drove through the pretty campus of UVA. We ended the day with a satisfying dinner at a local brewery before heading home.

It was a wonderful and full weekend, but busy.  I only had a few short hours to myself, that were divided between Sunday afternoon and late Sunday evening. While I could have spent that time indulging myself in my latest read, because "I deserved it," I decided to tend to mundane chores around the house. And it was surprisingly... fulfilling. After cleaning up the disaster of my bedroom, running a few loads of laundry, cleaning the kitchen, making coffee for the morning, and packing Monday's lunch, I didn't feel exhausted. I instead felt so satisfied and even rested and ready for the week. All I was wishing for was some time to relax, but that wasn't what I needed. I'm glad my subconscious knew better. I went to sleep last night feeling exhausted from a good weekend, but relaxed and prepared for the week ahead!

And that's very important, because we've got apple pie to bake.

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How was your weekend??

Scenes of Fall

You guys, fall has come in full swing. And I love it! Last year I felt like we almost didn't get a fall. It was so warm here in NC all the way through November, and it didn't even get that cold all winter. I hardly got to wear my favorite sweaters. But this year... this year has been wonderful already. We have crisp, cool days & evenings. The leaves are already starting to change. It's made me feel right about putting my wreath on the door and decorating my house with pumpkins. And that I have! I also made a batch of these earlier this week. At last, we have a real autumn season.

To continue with the spirit of fall, last night my friends and I got together to carve pumpkins and eat pumpkin cookies. I think I have maybe carved a pumpkin only one other time in my life. It was so much more fun than I imagined! I wonder why I haven't done this every year? We had such a fun night! I am so thankful for these ladies!

I thought we had such a fun array of designs. Everyone's was so different!

Now my mouth is already watering for Thanksgiving food. What have you done to celebrate fall?

Home reveal: Kitchen

So remember where we left off? A few weeks ago we were looking at the living room and dining room, and now I've finally photographed the kitchen. This room was probably the one that came together the fastest, since there wasn't much furniture involved. I did change things around a lot at first though, like the stuff in the cabinets and the appliances on the counters. It's always so hard to figure out how to organize a new and different kitchen! Let's take a look at what it's looking like now...

Of course since we're renting I have no say in what the kitchen looks like, and while it's a little dated with the wallpaper, the stainless appliances and white corian counters make up for it! And at least the wallpaper is neutral. The blue tile is also not something I would pick, but it somehow goes with my kitchen colors and I love that it's unique and a little old feeling.

One thing that was tough to get used to is the lack of a pantry. My apartment had a great pantry in addition to a good amount of cabinet space, so coming to a kitchen with the same or maybe less cabinet space and no pantry was tough (my New Yorker readers are probably laughing at me). Those baskets that I found at Michaels were perfect for storing our coffee/tea on the counter and snacks above the fridge. We also ended up buying a small cabinet at Home Depot for extra food storage, which helped a ton. It's sitting in our dining room right outside the kitchen door.

This is probably my favorite thing about this kitchen! I don't love how it's closed off from the living room area, but this breakfast nook is its saving grace. I really love having a mini table where we & our guests can eat meals, or just hang out while there's cooking going on. I also like having wall space to hang things. Our old kitchen didn't have any wall space!

So that's the kitchen. Maybe in another month I'll post pictures of another room. Just kidding! I'm hoping to post more in the next week or two. Get ready!

Also, for those of you who care, here's a source list:

Table & chairs: Craigslist find

White desk organizer: Pottery Barn

Red pitcher: HomeGoods

Glass canisters: Ross

Baskets: Michaels

Rugs: HomeGoods

Extra cabinet: Home Depot (Martha Stewart brand)

Happy Friday!

It's Friday! Whew! SO thankful that it's here. Work has so been busy this week, and we've been busy too. This weekend I'm looking forward to having the time to finish a couple projects in our house. I'll share soon! I'd also love to do some fall shopping. I feel like I only own spring/summer colors and it's time to change that! And baking apple pie... that's also on the list.

I've been running low on blogging inspiration lately so let's call on some from others...

+ If you'd like some fun music for this beautiful Friday, check out Anna's playlist! That girl is just so creative. Seriously, you should look at her photos. She's quite the photographer. And her happy attitude is infectious!

+ The woman at the well story told beautifully and real. Annie's writing is so fantastic! I just found her blog recently and I've loved every post.

+ A wonderful reminder that we were created to create.

+ I've been reading a book called Feminine Appeal with some friends, and though it's geared more toward wives, it's a really great read for any woman. So many challenges to live in service instead of the way we selfishly want to.

Happy weekend!

Thankful!

Okay, so I know it's been a while since I posted anything here. Lately I just can't get my act together and I've found that I've been desiring to do other things than sit in front of a computer and write. Not sure why, but I'm telling myself that it's okay. People and life are more important than the internet. Going outside and taking in the beautiful sunsets and crisp air is what I need right now. Connecting with friends & my husband is what I need right now. Spending time with Jesus is what I really need right now. And that's all okay.

At some point I'll get around to finishing our home tour. Don't think for a second that I've forgotten! You know you still want to peek in our kitchen, back patio, office, and guest bedroom. You just might have to be a little more patient though, as living life takes priority over blogging about life [sorry I'm not sorry].

Some things I've recently been thankful for:

+ Spending time with family. I got to see my mom and sister 2 weekends in a row! That's something special.

+ A college football game that gave me an opportunity to reconnect with college friends

+ Little reminders of God's promises, like this beauty that showed up last night

 ... and sunsets like these that keep happening just outside my kitchen window

Life sure is beautiful, isn't it?

Lucky

Sometimes, we just get lucky. I don't mean that to say that things happen by chance, but that we are so purposefully blessed that we just feel so lucky to have been given this wonderful life. Being grateful for what I have, instead of pining after what I wish I had, does wonders for the soul.

A couple weekends ago my husband and I were able to spend a weekend away in Beaufort, SC. We had some amazing quality time that I don't think we knew we needed so much. I'm so thankful to be married to this man for over two years and still be so in love. I think we need to do weekends like this more often.

A turning point

This post is strange to write, because I'm not even really sure what exactly I want to say. I've truly enjoyed blogging here. I feel like I've learned so much through other bloggers I've come to know, and I've also learned a lot about myself. I want to keep blogging - I really do. I'm just trying to figure out what that will look like.

This blog has evolved a lot over time. It has been an update-the-family blog, a DIY blog, a home decor blog, a recipe blog, a lifestyle blog, and there's probably more. Lately I'm finding that I'm desiring to write blog posts (reading them, too) that have a little more substance to them and for some reason, I just don't feel the freedom to do that on this blog. I see "Real Home Living" and I think of it as the DIY/home decor blog that I once wanted it to be, and I'm not exactly sure that I want it to be that anymore. Maybe partly, but not totally. I used to want to be a popular blog that has a ton of followers where I would showcase awesome tutorials on how to make our homes more homey. Now I'm really just wanting this to be a place of self-discovery more than anything else. I feel limited in what I'm "allowed" to write. Stupid, right? This is my blog and technically I can do whatever I want with it. But I can't get over the title. It just feels weird to me.

So right now I'm debating a few options. Do I start over with a new blog? Or do I morph this blog into what I want it to be, keeping all the history, posts, and comments from Real Home Living, and simply change the title? Or do I just take down this blog and take a little blogging hiatus for a while? I hate giving up on things and I love holding onto remnants of the past, so bear with me as I'm trying to figure this out. I will for sure keep you posted before I make any permanent decisions.

Why I Love Target

I've been meaning to post about this for a while. Basically I'm going to give you a sales pitch for Target, with no kickbacks for me. Just simply because I love to save money and I know you do too! And Target helps me save money, without me having to do anything. I keep coming across regular Target shoppers who don't have a Target RedCard! Seriously guys, it's so worth it and so easy! I have the debit version, meaning that it is NOT a credit card, meaning that I don't have to worry about paying another bill. It is simply linked up to my debit card and it's literally like I'm swiping my debit card but I also get 5% off! EVERY time I shop there! I know 5% doesn't sound like a lot at first, but I buy a lot of groceries and toiletries there, so when you think about the fact that for every $100 you spend you're saving $5, it definitely adds up. And think about if you buy something big, like furniture? That could make a big difference.

I also just found out the other day that you can use the debit card online now! (you used to only be able to pay that way with the credit card version.) I put my number in to pay for a gift I was ordering, and it was like magic. FREE SHIPPING! Without having to spend their usual $50 minimum! So yes, that's a 5% discount online PLUS free shipping. Plus you can tack on other coupon codes if you have them (AAA does 10% off).

via

Just in case you missed it, here is the rundown of all the amazing benefits of the RedCard:

- 5% off EVERY time you shop at Target, in-store or online
- Free shipping online, no minimum purchase
- Get the debit card so it's linked to your checking account and you don't ever have to pay a bill
- It's FREE and really easy to sign up right in the store
- Sometimes they send you coupon books in the mail :)


Another way I save is by printing their coupons from their online site and getting their mobile coupons texted to me. To print from online I go to Target.com and scroll to the bottom and click Coupons under Ways to Save. From there I select the ones I want and then print. I mostly do this for things like toiletries, because those will be $1 off a beauty product, which makes a bigger difference than 50 cents off 4 boxes of frozen vegetables. They also sometimes have coupons for clothes. YES CLOTHES! $2-3 off or 20% off a women's clothing item are discounts I typically see. Randomly it will be for shoes or accessories. It's pretty awesome. Also, if you download the new Target app on your smart phone, and put in your phone number, it will text you mobile coupons that you can pull up and scan straight from your phone! No printing!

So basically if you don't like Target you should. And if you do, I think I've just convinced you to love it even more. Sorry for the sales pitch but I just had to tell you because these savings are that good! Go check it out!