Dear Sweet Teenage Girl

This is for you, sweet girl

I remember what it was like to be a teenage girl... and oh how I would love to go back and embrace that girl and love her more and tell her how beautiful and loved and treasured she was. That the body she was so ashamed of was actually a beautiful vessel for running races, giving the biggest hugs and carrying the very best gifts that she could ever imagine!  

I remember feeling like I wasn't enough.

I remember the pain of my parents divorce and the first time I really felt depressed and wondered if anyone would miss me if I were gone.

I know what it is to feel the loneliness and shame of an eating disorder.

I remember feeling like if I didn't fit a certain mold, I would be an outcast and disliked.

and how alone I felt when all of my friends were headed off to college and I was going to be a teenage momma!

oh, there were so many times that I fell short and disappointed people and compromised on things that I knew I shouldn't.

but you know what...I know this sounds crazy now, but can I tell you how incredibly thankful I am for all of those struggles!  I have seen God use every one of them for good!

There are some truths that I have learned through the pain and the celebrations that someone needs to hear right now...

1. You are SO not alone on this journey, even though it feels that way sometimes!

2. Those problems that you are facing right now... I know they seem like the end of the world, but they are not going to destroy you! You have so much more strength within you than you can even imagine!

3. Those bully's {or maybe even "friends"} that tear you down... They're unhappy with themselves and it likely has absolutely nothing to do with you.  Do not give them power over your life!

4. YOU be the one to build you up!   Don't rely on a man {or anyone else} to do that for you! Write out and repeat words or scripture that inspire you to be your very best!

5.  Seek out friends that will call you higher!  Surround yourself with people who not only want to listen to your struggles, but will celebrate your successes.  And more importantly, YOU be that person to others.  It will have an amazing impact on your life! 

5. As long as you have breath in your body, there is an amazing purpose for your life.  It may not be obvious now, but please trust me on this one!

You are so very loved and treasured!

One Little Word 2016

Hello lovelies!  I hope that you had the most amazing Christmas and that your heart {and body} have found a little peace and rest.  I know I am enjoying a little bit of down time with my loved ones!  

I so look forward to this time of year!  While I love the season and Christmas and family and all of the celebrating, I also love the calm after the storm... reflecting on the blessings and also recognizing what I DON'T want to do the next year.  I know this time of year gets hectic for most people. This year seemed extra stressful to me. I hate to even say that out loud because I am just so darn sick of the glorification of BUSY!! 

In case you are new to my blog and business {welcome!!}, each year, for the past 7 years, I choose ONE LITTLE WORD to focus on in the year to come.  FOCUS is not something that comes naturally to me, so I know that I need to be intentional.  My words in the past have seemed very easy to land on and they have been BIG and EXCITING and FULL OF PASSION.  Choosing my word for 2016 has NOT been easy.  I would land on a word and be convinced that I had found it, then a few days later, feel strongly about another powerful word. Some of these words included... JOY, BOLD and CONFIDENCE.  Those are fun, right!? They just weren't meant to be MY word.

There is this verse... it just kept persisting... I wasn't sure why, but it just kept coming back to mind

I was reminded of situations over the past few months that needed attention, situations where there was busy-ness, but no peace.  Situations where I allowed negativity to over-take my thoughts.  Why is it that we can have an overwhelming amount of support, encouragement and praise from most, but when there is one "not-so-kind" word spoken about us or our work, THAT is what we dwell on.  I was not okay that I wasted any amount of time and effort entertaining thoughts that were not life-giving.  I knew that if any of my girlfriends expressed these feelings to me, I would immediately remind them how loved and valued they were and that those hurtful words from one person should hold no merit!  Why would I not have the same standards for myself. I am the daughter of the most high God and His plans for me are TRUTH!  That is when it hit me.  I was not hearing His words because there was too much noise!  Both literal noise and the noise of busy-ness!  

There was a sense of peace as I landed on my one little word for 2016...

While I will also strive to be purposeful and passionate and brave and bold, my primary focus this year will be to just "be" and "have" quiet.  That means eliminating the "noise" that keeps my heart from hearing God's voice.  That means taking the time to do some yoga and meditation. It will mean turning off the TV and Radio sometimes.  It will mean slowing down to really put life in perspective when necessary.

Friend, I pray that this year YOU will be blessed and that new adventures will find you.

I pray that you would be intentional about your life and not take one moment for granted.

You are so loved!

I have created this 14k Gold-filled piece for myself for this years word...

{I will be listing this, along with other new designs throughout the week!}

BRAVE

"She believed she could, so she did!"

Dear beautiful, wonderful girl, 

That's right, I mean YOU! Do you have any idea... 

How amazing you are?

How smart you are? 

How talented you are?

How BRAVE you are?

There are so many things about you that the world needs more of!  What are you waiting for!

Steph and I have been working on this idea for a good while now... it's funny how the most beautiful things in life come from some of the most painful things.  The concept of "Brave" was born of some really trying circumstances... trials that looked different in each of our lives.  Even in the midst of adversity, both of our hearts desired to make beauty from what seemed broken...To rise above our circumstances that seemed hopeless...To trust that His plan was so much better and so much more fulfilling than anything we could hope for in taking the easy route...To move past the fears that kept us from being our very best version.  This was going to take bravery.

 THAT WAS IT! 

 There are women everywhere, just like us, with a story to tell.  With burdens that seem so big to carry.  With dreams that they are too afraid to explore.  Is that you?  What is it that has you paralyzed?  Can we just sit and chat for a minute?  Are you ready {go ahead, grab that coffee!}  Please hear me out on this...

You are bigger than that job loss.  There is something better than you had imagined just waiting for you, but you have to go get it!

That divorce that turned your world upside down and completely stole your confidence does not define you.  Your beauty and value are not found in a man.  YOU are so very loved and treasured.  If it means saying those words in the mirror until you believe it, then do that!

That child that is sick was given to you with very careful and intentional consideration.  It's not going to be easy, but every precious moment that you are present and choose to live life to the fullest will be so worth it. You GET to be his/ her mother and your fierce love is an inspiration to all that know you!

That dream you've had since you were little, you know, the one that keeps popping up.  The one that brings a sparkle to your eye and passion in your soul every time you think about it!  What is holding you back from pursuing that?  Your age? Money? People might think you're crazy? They may not like it?  Who cares!  At the end of the day, you have to be true to YOU! It might take a lot of hard work?  Heck yeah it's going to take a lot of hard work!  Nothing rewarding ever comes easy!  

What is it in YOUR life that is going to take some Bravery to move forward?

You have what it takes inside of you to be BRAVE, you just have to choose to access it!

We are so very excited to announce our 3rd and newest candle in our collaboration series. 

BRAVE was created with a beautiful blend of fresh scents chosen to inspire and uplift.

{including top notes: white grapefruit, petitgrain, tangerine and clementine.  Mid notes: mandarin, mimosa petals, geranium, lemon and basil.  Base notes: Bamboo, juniper berries and musk}

The candle comes with a removable, hand-stamped, stainless steel charm that says "she believed she could so she did" along with an arrow charm that can be worn on a necklace or attached to a keychain once the candle has burnt out!

Each candle is 9oz with a 70+ burn time 

$20.00

If you are interested in purchasing one of our candles, please visit 

One Love Candle and Bath {online}

In Store at:

530 Windsor Road

Loves Park, Il  

One Little Word 2015: PURPOSE


pur·pose

 

noun

1. the reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists.

 

verb

1. have as one's intention or objective

 

 

This will be my 6th year choosing a "word of the year"... my "one little word", if you will!

I have loved the process of deciding on the most poignant word to sum up my focus and objective for the year to come.

 

2014 was an eye-opening year.  In a good way!  My word for 2014 was "confidence" and the year before it was "choose"  I really tried to be intentional about my choices. 

Primarily, the choice to allow God to direct my path. 

This was a BIG one! 

Giving up control is not in my nature.  Does that come easy to anyone?

Because of that one choice;  my family was strengthened; my business was blessed & new, beautiful & encouraging friends came into my life.

 

I don't know if it is the fact that I'm getting older or wiser {or a combo of both} but I have grown to value and embrace the fact that I was created for a purpose. 

Life is so much sweeter when your accept that!

God does not make mistakes and I have learned that His plans are ALWAYS better than my own!

 

My word for this year... PURPOSE... came to me a little over a month ago.  I waivered back and forth between a few other strong contenders, even landing on the word "Imua" which is Hawaiian for "move forward".  I even shared this one with a few family members, but with every other word that I chose, I kept coming back to "purpose".   It just embodied all that I wanted to focus on moving in to the New Year.  

Last night I came across this as I was going through my Pins on Pinterest and it was the confirmation that I needed!! 

 

 

This is it!

I want to use what I have and what I can do to help others!

I want to be purposeful in my relationships.

I want to live each day knowing there is a purpose for it.

I want to encourage others to embrace their purpose.

 

Have you given thought to the idea of "one little word" 

If you haven't yet decided on a word and need a little push, here are a few words to inspire you...

 

Simplify

 

Intentional

 

Love

 

Embrace

 

Change

 

Move

 

Grace

 

Confidence

 

Focus

 

Trust

 

Courage

 

Breathe

 

Gratitude

 

Dream

 

Inspire

 

 

Whatever you decide, go in to 2015 with great anticipation that big things are about to happen. 

You are so loved and so valued and were created with a purpose!

 

*If you have chosen your word for 2015, I would so love to hear what it is and why you chose it!

 

 



JUST BREATHE

What if the world were full of women who were intentional about their gifts?  

What if we exercised compassion, instead of comparison?  Encouragement, instead of envy.  Gratitude instead of grumbling.  What if we made an effort each day to build each other up rather than tearing each other down.

As women, the struggle is real.  We wonder if we are doing enough, if we have enough, if we ARE enough?

Please hear me when I say this...

YOU ARE ENOUGH

Where you are right now is EXACTLY where you are supposed to be.  This is a necessary stop on the path to God's best for you!  You don't have to try to DO or BE anything different than exactly who you are!

These past few weeks have been something that I'll never quite be able to put into words.  I will try, but all I can say is that GOD was at the center of this beautiful project.

About a month ago, I had a sense that wouldn't go away, to reach out to Steph of One Love Candle and Bath.  I really didn't know why, we knew OF each other, had some of each others products, but didn't know each other well.  So, I just went for it!  I said "Steph, this is what I'm thinking, what do you think?"  She could have said  "what are you even talking about, this is so LAME!" {I love her, because we would both totally use that word, hee hee!} But instead, what transpired was almost a whimsical beauty that neither of us even felt in control of!  She said "Oh my goodness, YOU have been on my mind so much, too and I had no idea why!  and that verse is one of my favorite verses and songs!!!  YES! YES! YES!"  

So we got to work.

We realized that our hearts desire was the same.  We so wanted other women to see their worth and value.  We wanted our collaboration to not just be a candle with something pretty on it, but a start of a movement.  An invitation for women to love themselves right where they are.  To stop comparing their everyday to someone else's highlights.  To feel like just being present was enough.  

Through this collaboration, the JUST BREATHE candle was born.

We wanted each detail to have a very natural and organic feel.

It features a rich blend of amber, sandalwood and musk with brisk ginger and citrus top notes, all intentionally chosen aromas to soothe your soul, in an 8 oz. Mason Jar.  It also features a detachable, vintage inspired, hand-stamped charm that reads "It is well with my soul" along with a simple Swarovski crystal {because every girl needs a little sparkle!} tied with natural Jute twine. When the candle is gone, the charm can be placed on a necklace or key chain as a keepsake.

The project would not have been complete without my beautiful friend, Kelly!  

She and I had planned to meet up for a photo shoot for another project.  She was just going to be my model for the day.  Very last minute, I asked her if Steph could meet up with us so that she {Kel} could just get a quick picture of the two of us to attach to our collaboration.  What ensued was one of the most blessed days, I think for all of us.  It turned in to a full blown photo shoot!

  Kel's photography is stunning!! 

 I LOVE YOU, my friend.  I am SO thankful for you and can't imagine this story turning out any better if you weren't a part of it!

Steph and I pray that you will be blessed by our little project! That you will slow down and remember all of the things that are a blessing in your life. That you will finally give yourself permission to love yourself just the way you are.
You are so loved and so valued!

The candles can be purchased here and here.

If you are local to the Rockford area, you can also find the candles at:

Infinitely Sweet in Rockford, IL

Front Porch Mercantile in Rockton, IL