i lake it. i lake it a lot.

In March, I officially called it spring. My heart was bursting with warmth as the two most perfect seasons began. And every year, as it turns to August, I begin to feel one part bliss, because I love back to school season, and if I try hard enough, I swear I can still get a whiff of the sweet smell of Eagle Elementary. But another part of my heart is anxious because I have wildly conflicted feelings about fall.

But, as I begin my third autumn in Atlanta, I'm beginning to relax. Fall isn't so scary, because winter isn't so long. In fact, Georgia winters are pretty unthreatening. I feel like I am no longer approaching fall with my shoulders up by my ears. I might even be excited...!

However, this weekend, we made sure to embrace summer to its fullest. With a birthday party Friday night, finding our new house Saturday morning (!!) and a trip to Lake Rabun Saturday and Sunday, the weekend was jam packed. My arms are sore (sore, sore) from tubing, but if you know me at all, you know that lakes are a pretty large obsession of mine, and the lactic acid build up really just means victory on the tube.

As I fell asleep last night, I definitely felt like my bed was rocking like a boat, and I was also sad to see the weekend end. But, we still have a lot of lake-appropriate weekends ahead of us - and that's the beautiful thing about fall in Georgia, my friends.

Hope you're weekend was grrreat. xo :)

Oh, and since I didn't take any pictures (eqjwbis!), a throwback for your Monday viewing pleasure.
Don't you lake it, too!?

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not that busy?

There is something happening with busyness. Have you noticed? It's like it's losing its coolness. For the first time in years (read: ever) I'm seeing it as Bruce Wayne and not as Batman. And I don't think I'm alone.

Busyness has become a badge of honor. It means you're worth something. You're busy at work because people trust you with more responsibility. You're busy socially because you have a lot of friends. You're busy volunteering because you're such a good person.

And it's true. We are busy for those reasons. But when did it become a reason to brag?

I have been thinking about it a lot lately because I'm trying to prioritize things and figure out where to cut back. And then I stumbled upon this convicting article. And THEN my pastor talked about it at church this week. And that was when I realized I am not alone.

Sometimes we are busy because life is busy. And when you want to accomplish a lot and be productive, things get chaotic. It's inevitable. Sometimes. 

But other times, we take on busyness solely as a source of self-worth. And that is what I am trying to discern these days. Am I doing it to do it? Or because I want to/need to/care to?

I'm ashamed to admit I've said the word "busy" 52 times since I started my blog. 52!? That's embarrassing. Especially since I clearly found the time to blog about said busyness...

Michael Phelps could have swum eight events, but he only is swimming seven. Because he knows he is better when he prioritizes that which is most important.

And as we head into the exceptionally busy season that is fall, I'm trying to view decisions through the lens of: what are my priorities? And does this add to them? By approaching life this way, I am hoping I won't lean on being busy as a way to feel important, but instead simply as the way life unfolds sometimes. 

 If Michael can do it, fingers crossed that I can too. 

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O(hmygosh)lympics

What do you call something that is significantly larger and more life-consuming than an obsession? Because this is my relationship with the Olympics.

I.love.them.

No. Love is not enough. It's so much more than that.

I want to watch them all the time. And while I am watching them, I want to Google every athlete and learn more about their personal life and read their Tweets. And I want to set the swimming, gymnastics and track & field rosters as my home page so I can automatically open them and creep on the people.

I love that Americans everywhere unite - Democrats and Republicans, southerners, northerners, grown ups and kiddos - everyone! It's like the patriotic happiness of the Fourth of July for three full weeks.

And not just that. I love that people all over the world come together to rally around their countries. All around the globe, we're doing the same thing: cheering for our Olympians.

What could be happier than that!?

This year I'm true loving on Missy Franklin and Gabby Douglas (such a little peanut!).

In honor of this ever-so-wonderful event, we held an Opening Ceremony get together at our house. Costumes were required and we definitely sang "Proud to be an American" when the US walked out. #canyoublameus?

Hope you have a great three weeks!