Happy Monday! Andrew and I are sleep-deprived, bleary-eyed and over-joyed this morning! Last week we added the sweetest Labrador Retriever to our family...Admiral Byrd!

We had talked about pets long before we got married. In fact, I think I made sure to bring it up early in our dating relationship. :) I grew up with a Golden Retriever and a St. Bernard. I just adore dogs. And pups especially (who doesn't?!).  Andrew promised me we would get a dog one day...and we did! Admiral Byrd is my early Christmas gift. And I couldn't be more over the moon/melting/happy. He is the cat's meow. (So is that husband of mine.) 

We brought Admiral Byrd home to Virginia last Tuesday, and he's had no shortage of visitors since then. In fact, Sis and I even took him to a dog park last week! 

We are loving (almost) every minute with this bundle of energy. Here's a few snapshots of the Admiral at eight weeks old... 

Sister Guest Post // Fall and Winter Fashion

My Sis is one of the most stylish gals I know. She just has a knack for pulling any look together. She's brave when it comes to fashion choices (a lot braver than I am!). I asked Sis if she might pull a few outfits together from one of her favorite fashion retailers, Free People!

Here's a few of her favorite pieces for a little fall flair. These could also transition so easily into a winter wardrobe! Need just the right top for a Super Bowl party? Or a great pair of jeans for ice-skating? Or a sublimely cozy sweater for those snowy winter evenings? Look no further! :)

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I chose these three outfits since I find each one quite versatile for fall. 

1) You have the tomboy, with her boyfriend jeans, touchdown tee and statement necklace, throwing on her chucks. 

2) And then you have fall classy with a plaid over sized shirt, skinny military pants and her go to well worn ankle boots. 

3) And finally you have your casual gal Friday, with her leggings, drippy tunic and huge cardigan paired with her comfy ankle moccasins.

Obviously the most important part is to dress to impress herself. Find your size, wear what suits you and frankly don't give a damn about the rest!

{outfits courtesy of Free People: We The Free Touch Down Tunic // FP Patched Twill Herringbone Pant // We The Free Wonder Woman Top}

Seeing right.

A few years ago I read Ann Voskamp's book One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are. I really enjoyed it. And, while I don't agree with every train of thought in it, it's a book I find myself thinking about and mulling over from time to time. I love Ann's challenge to readers to practice thankfulness on a daily basis, not just the faddish pre-Thanksgiving kind of thankfulness. 

I firmly believe that it's possible to practice thanksgiving in every single season of life. If I can't be thankful, then it's a matter of me not seeing correctly. Because, truthfully, there is an un-ending list of gifts God has given and I can recognize...in the hard times, I can be grateful. In the painful times, I can be grateful. In the ecstatic times, I can be grateful. It's a matter of seeing right.

I'm thinking about thankfulness a lot this month, and hoping I can practice it long after Thanksgiving has come and gone.

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“How my eyes see, perspective, is my key to enter into His gates. I can only do so with thanksgiving. If my inner eye has God seeping up through all things, then can't I give thanks for anything? And if I can give thanks for the good things, the hard things, the absolute everything, I can enter the gates to glory. Living in His presence is fullness of joy- and seeing shows the way in.” 

― Ann Voskamp

Pruning.

A few weeks ago I joined my husband and his parents for a little work in the apple orchard. I made cinnamon rolls for the crew before we started work. I think eating cinnamon rolls out of the back of a pick-up makes them even more delicious, don't you?

My husband and my father-in-law got to work digging holes for the apple trees. Digging is hard work. 

In fact, it's also long work. Every hole had to be at least a foot wide and a foot deep. A bit of rain the day before had softened the ground, but the work was still time consuming.

We planted a variety of apple trees...Cortland, Fuji, Granny Smith...we even snuck in two pear trees!

After patting down the soil around the trees, we got to work pruning them. Pruning is a funny thing. It feels wrong to prune...cutting the branches off?! What?! 

Andrew has read a lot about pruning and about apple trees. In fact, one of the first things I loved about him was the conversational way he talked about planting and harvesting. 

He's told me a a great deal about pruning. It is absolutely essential to prune a tree. If you don't prune the branches you can have an unhealthy tree, or even lose the tree altogether. Pruning allows the tree to produce fruit in the future. Our trees will wait several seasons to produce any kind of fruit, but the pruning we did a few weeks ago will ensure a great harvest in the future.

I've been thinking a lot about pruning since our work in the apple orchard. How it's necessary. But, often painful. Andrew cares a great deal about these apple trees. As a farmer he knows that pruning is essential for the health of the tree. He prunes the trees because he wants the tree to thrive.

Andrew prunes the apple trees.

God prunes my heart. 

Andrew wants these apple trees to be healthy.

How much more does God want my life to be healthy? How much more does He long for my daily living to produce fruit? How much greater is His desire for me to be rooted and established, growing into His plans for me?

About a boy (and a house).

Shortly after we'd settled into our home this summer my father-in-law joked with me that, "When you're a homeowner you don't need a hobby!" There's a lot of truth to that statement! Owning a home is a huge responsibility. And combining a newlywed life with home renovation projects has been quite the adventure. :)

Don't get me wrong, I am so grateful for our home. It is a gift to have our own place...to be able to paint and decorate it as we please. I am unspeakably thankful for it! But all the home ownership responsibilities can a bit, well, daunting some days. It's easy for me to feel overwhelmed by all the projects we want to finish.

I think that feeling might just be a case of my priorities getting a little out of whack. Does that ever happen to you?

Because when I stop and reflect on the many things I have to be thankful for, the greatest gift is not this house. It's not the finished painting projects. Or the empty boxes making their way to the door.

It's the man I get to do life with in this house! He is what I'm most thankful for in this season.

It's easy to fixate on what needs to be done. Especially in a living space (be it apartment, home, penthouse...whatever!). Sometimes I find that in fixating on what I need to do, I miss out on what's most important...like people! Like my husband.

In the spirit of thanksgiving, I've been asking Andrew the last few days what he's most thankful for. Do you know what his answer is every single time? "You, Emily." I keep telling him he can't give me that answer every day...but that's just his honest heart. 

I learn so much from that man. His forgiveness and grace and tenderness have simply filled my heart to overflowing in these last five months of marriage. I think he is remarkable. 

The paint projects will be finished one day. The unpacking will finally be done. And days and months will have gone by. I don't want to miss these present newlywed days because I'm so eager to have a home that's pulled together in the future.

I want to cultivate thankfulness now. And express it! Especially for that husband of mine. (I know I have a tendency to go on and on about him. I really think he is the creme de la creme.)

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“And how could we endure to live and let time pass if we were always crying for one day or one year to come back--if we did not know that every day in a life fills the whole life with expectation and memory and that these are that day?”

-C.S. Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet

Dining Room Before & After.

We gave our dining room a big makeover last week!  I've had it in my mind to paint stripes in the room for some time. (It took me forever to land on a color!) I was inspired by my former roommate's clever makeover of my one time apartment in New York City! 

I was prepared for LOTS of taping. 

And leveling. 

And grunt work.

Here's a before shot:

And an in-between shot (otherwise known as The Moment It Was Too Late To Turn Back):

And an after shot!

I LOVE the colors we settled on. This room tends to get a good amount of sunlight, and when the sun streams in everything just glows. It makes me feel warm and cozy.

I'm always amazed how paint can transform a room. And how easy these projects can be! Trust me, if I can do this, anyone can do it!

{Sherwin-Williams paint: Westhighland White // Concord Buff}

Wedding florals

Andrew and I celebrate our five month anniversary today! I can hardly believe it's been that long...and yet not that long! Marriage is such a gift.

I'm reminiscing about our June wedding today and thinking of the many gorgeous blooms our florist, Jonalee Earles, pulled together. I just loved our wedding (I'm sure every bride feels that way!). But, the flowers! Oh, the flowers! Those might have been one of my favorite parts of the whole day. Our florist did such a wonderful job hand-crafting the bouquets and centerpieces to suit our style just perfectly.

It's a dreary day here in Virginia so I'm taking a look back at those lovely summer florals!

{photography by Katie Stoops}