So basically - J and I have pretty amazing jobs. One of the best parts is that we get to build relationships with some of the most inspiring people on the planet. And these young people aren't just talented - they have a love for God that challenges my heart and keeps me growing. Last week, we got to take some of our people out for a pre-semester retreat. Over the course of the retreat, we prayed together, discussed our dreams and fears, and ate an untold number of s'mores. As I sat around the campfire with these students that are allowing us to borrow their zeal and enthusiasm for approximately four years - I couldn't help but be thankful. Camping is not exactly my forte, but two nights and 250 bug bites later - I felt spiritually focused and excited to watch God work through these student leaders in our city.
On the way home, we realized that we were near the apple orchard where we got married - Smolak Farms in North Andover, MA. We hadn't visisted since our wedding day and so we decided to take a detour with everybody to snap some pictures, visit the petting zoo, and of course - eat their famous apple cider donuts. It was so special to revisit the site where we said, "I do" -- still just as beautiful as I remember!
The perfect ending to a wonderful mini-retreat:)
Still so in love with this guy.
It's still August - here's to savoring every last minute of summer sunshine!
We've now lived in our new apartment for two and a half months and as of this weekend - we are finally moved in! My good friend Paige wanted to celebrate her 25th birthday party with an outdoor dinner party and we were happy to offer our backyard for the occasion. It was such a magical night with some wonderful people:)
The birthday party was the perfect motivation for us to finish a LOT of our house projects - including completely unpacking J's office. I can't describe how amazing it is to see ZERO boxes in that room:) Moving so often in the last couple of years has taught me that having a house is one thing - but having a home is quite another. It's been so fun to watch our little house with a red door become a true haven for us and a great place to share with our friends. That said, here are some of my favorite parts of our home so far.
Living Room: The gallery wall is something I've been wanting to try for awhile and here is my best attempt. We included a yarn-and-nail G (for Ghoman - obvi) that Jesse was sweet enough to do for me. I also included a little watercolor, our wedding invitation and some family photos.
Dining Room: The map is a 1980s version of the world that a family gave us when they were moving - it's aqua and wonderful:) The credenza is one of my favorite pieces in our home. J found it in a dumpster at MIT one night and decided to fix it up. He's seriously ridiculous at finding things like this - he's definitely got a better eye than me!
Bedroom: A month or so after we got married, we ended up in a large antique barn with my mother-in-law. We spotted this mirror and talked the guy down to $40. I'm still in shock that he let us
take it for so cheap! In our last place it hung on the wall adjacent to the bed, but now I love having it above the bed right when you enter. It's quite the statement. Oh and next to the bed is one my favorite quotes by Charlotte Bronte, "Whatever souls are made of, his and mine are the same." :)
What are your favorite pieces in your home? Tell me about it and share some house-to-home inspiration!
It's hard to believe that it's been ONE WHOLE YEAR since I became Mrs. Alexandra Ghoman! I mean, really, how did that happen?!
Photo by Vanessa Embling
People say that your wedding day is the happiest/most perfect/most amazing day of your whole life. And well - it is pretty incredible:) But it's not quiteeee perfect. Case in point: I woke up that morning to a charlie horse in my right calf muscle freakishly early and screaming. How's that for birds chirping and waking you up with the morning's light? I look back on my wedding day and I love the way it was, the way it felt - from the beautiful barn that was ridiculously hot (ok, that I would change), to the parade of flower children that walked down the aisle, to the cookie and lemonade mini-reception, to the yard games next to the apple orchard, the personalized Jones' sodas made by mother-in-law, and the twinkle-light reception - it was an amazing day. When I planned my wedding, I didn't quite know what I wanted it to look like - that part came later - but I knew what I wanted it to feel like. I wanted it to feel like family. I wanted it to feel like a reunion. And it totally did. Every detail came from that desire - the location, the food, the decorations, the music, and so much more.
But mostly, when I think about my wedding - it was a means to an end. That special day led me to become the wife of my favorite person on the planet. Before we met, I was terrified that I would never find someone like him. I was worried that all the righteous, attractive, and interesting people were married already (or definitely not interested in me) and that I would have to settle for a lesser candidate (optimistic, I know). But then - I met Jesse. And he was more than I could ever hope for. He still is.
I know that many of the girls who read my blog are married (solidarity, sistah) -- but I'm also aware that many are not. Maybe you're still waiting for your prince. And allow me, on this one year of marriage to give you a little piece of advice: wait for the right person - not just a willing person. Marriage is too amazing, too crazy, and honestly too difficult to enter into it with anyone other than a spiritual man who really loves you as Jesus does.
As I look back on our first year of marriage, I'm pretty amazed by how far we've come. It's been a rollercoaster of emotions, adventures, and lessons that I wouldn't trade for anything. I feel so thankful for J and that he picked me to spend his life with. I also feel so grateful for all of you - my family and friends who have patiently given me advice, cheered me on, and made this first year even more fun (whether in person or through this blog)! I'm forever grateful.
A glimpse at our day for those of you who may have missed it:) Thanks to our dear friend, Jonny Havens, videographer extraordinaire for capturing it.
Here's to many more years and many more anniversaries!
Gone are the days of family vacations with lazy mornings, afternoons spent reading, and late-night movies. Instead, Laing family vacations now operate on a different time-table: toddler-time. Our schedule revolves around eight adorable munchkins and their nap times, play times, meal times, rest times, bath times, pool times, and of course...tackle-Uncle Jesse-times. As the only child (adult? original Laing?) in my family without a kid - you would think this could be a little overwhelming. And well, you would be right. It is overwhelming to be around sooo many children when you are used to...zero. But, it is also the best kind of overwhelming. I love how my eight nieces and nephews have reshaped my family. They have turned 10 would-be boring adults into big kids who will do anything (and I mean anything) to make one of them laugh. They keep us on our toes with their questions and keep us laughing with their malapropisms. They remind us to find joy in the little things and to be totally and completely silly when at all possible. But I also love that they help us to savor the moments when it's just us. We didn't turn on a movie one time when they were sleeping (a family vacation first). Instead, we caught up on the many stories we missed while apart, laughed at the same stories we'd all heard a thousand times, and just enjoyed being together. And by the time they woke up and things were out of control once more - I really didn't mind.
I still love my memories of peace and quiet on vacation - but I wouldn't trade the noise and chaos of those crazy kids for anything. Quiet will just have to wait:)
You might be wondering if I was the rebellious one who did the dress code backwards...I was. Rebel without a cause.
Well, I did it: I boldly braved the wild world of patterned pants. And I have to say, it went much better than anticipated. As a girl who is not....shall I say, pint-sized...on the bottom half of her frame, I was a little skeptical of the whole trend. But what I found is that if they fit right (and these fit surprisingly well!), then who cares?! Bring on the patterns, people! Patterns for everyone!
I decided to pair them with a basic top and let the pant-belt combo be the main event. All in all, I'm really excited to keep these in my summer rotation.
Another reason to love them:
a) they were on sale for $13!
b) they came with that orange belt (that I have since become obsessed with)
c) they forced me to wear heels - which I never do.
d) J picked them out. He was quite proud of himself.
Pants and belt: Target
Top: Old Navy (old)
Wedges: Consignment
Well the upcycling continues in the Ghoman household this week! I should definitely update you on all of our summer trips and excursions...so consider this a prelude to a longer post. But I also promised tell you more about our apartment decorations - so here ya go!
When we got married last summer, we suspended several old windows behind the "altar" in the barn. It was really beautiful and one of my favorite details from the day. Ever since, I've been wanting to incorporate the windows into our home decor. So - we decided to convert one of them into a chalkboard piece for the kitchen. Chalkboards are pretty much the trendiest thing out there right now and I feel like quite the bandwagon decorator for doing something with it in our house. But, who cares! They're cute...and it's far too exhausting to try to be cool and cutting edge all the time:)
Here's how we did it:
1. First, we painted the frame in a bright color (we used the same blue from our previous dresser endeavor). It took about one coat plus edge work.
2. Next, we used chalkboard paint to fill the panes. This took about three coats to really cover it which surprised me. Definitely make sure you mix the paint REALLY well until it's thick. It was much too streaky on the first pane. Also, you the instructions for preparing the chalkboard for use afterwards is very specific - it makes a big difference in how the board turns out.
3. Finally, we hung it up using wiring, screws and a special hook hanger.
Overall, I really like the way it turned out! It adds a much needed color pop for the kitchen and will be useful for grocery lists and some fun chalk art in the future. The one down side? It made us realize that our oven isn't centered on the wall...awesome. I love it when projects prompt additional projects.
Price break down:
Window - found on the side of the road
Paint - reused (a $3 sample would have been more than enough)
I hadn't owned a real dresser since my freshman year of college. And wait, now that I think about it - my college (Go Dawgs) owned that in the first place. So basically, I've been dresser-less since high school.
But a month ago, my dresser-less fate changed. We found a nice old wooden dresser on the side of the road and we did what any other free-loading, poor campus minister couple would do - we adopted it. And let me tell you, it was an extremely hard piece of furniture to adopt. J had to hop into the trunk and hold it in place. Chivalry is not dead:)
But then came the difficult task of updating the ancient, moth-ball smelling dresser.
Before:
Our bedroom already has plenty of wood to go around, so we decided to paint the dresser and bring some more color to our relatively neutral room. I've always wanted to do some furniture updating but I've never been brave enough. But lucky for me, I basically married a contractor (not really, but seriously).
So if you're new to up-cycling, here's what you'll need:
1. Sandpaper
2. Different sized brushes
3. Quart of paint (and a sample size of accent paint if you are doing detailing)
4. New knobs
After:
This was taken right after we finished painting the dresser. We used Glidden Tropical Lagoon and Muslin (for the accent) and only needed one coat. And one more thing about the knobs - I originally wanted Anthro ones that would have cost $8 a pop - but instead, J convinced me that these $1 knobs from Home Depot were a better deal. I think he was right:)
The final product in our new bedroom. Hooray for up-cycling and new apartments!
For those of you wondering if you can do something like this - you can! Since this painting adventure, I've taken to painting soooo many things. It's becoming a problem. Really.
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