Pinkess | From: The Little Pink House

It’s hard to be anything but real when we have people over for dinner.

They might arrive just moments after I’ve finished vacuuming the momentarily neat floor. But that doesn’t mean it won’t be strewn with toys before they leave. They see that our children don’t always eat their dinner nicely or politely—or at all. The rolls might have turned out perfectly but I forgot to salt the soup.

But they are real friends and we talk late without noticing the time or even thinking about putting up a façade.

It’s harder to be real online.

No matter how I write, it’s never all of my day or everything about us. It might be more real to start out every post with a picture of the toys on the floor or the dirty dishes in the sink. It just might not be the most encouraging.

But I remember my purpose in blogging: to open up my fingers to Him as I hone my writing skills, praying to bring a bit of encouragement to someone even as I am convicted by the words I type.

And I know you’ll know I’m real when I break links and misspell words and forget to salt the blog post.

Five-Minute Friday: Real

1,000 Words

Jan 292012

I fail Him so often.

The hasty word. The thoughts that only He Who made me hears. The pride and the impatience and the list goes on.

And yet, in His tender grace, He is so quick to forgive me when I come to Him yet again.

I don’t love him as I should.

The tone of voice I use. The times I think only of myself. The faults that he who knows me better than anyone sees so very clearly.

And yet, in his tender love, he pulls me close and then does the dishes.

They don’t listen and they disobey.

Too often, my frustration with them stems from seeing my sinful self reflected there.

But then, I have the opportunity to give the tender love and forgiveness I’ve been shown.

Five-Minute Friday: tender

“It might be a bit over the top for a married woman in her thirties,” said my husband with raised eyebrow.

“We might be old, but we’re not in our thirties yet,” I reminded him with a laugh.

But I got his point.

Continuing in my efforts to identify what “look” I’m going for in my wardrobe (and consequently what looks he likes in my wardrobe), I’d asked him about a particular accessory. And apparently, I don’t need to start looking for it.

He apologizes for being difficult. But he’s not. He’s really quite simple in his tastes and preferences: classic, traditional, elegant.

I just keep wanting to “look cute like so-and-so.” But my hubby’s opinions gently remind me that understated fashion is better than looking silly.

a guest post by Erin L.

A “minimalist wardrobe”. The concept is fairly simple—pick several “key colors” for your wardrobe, figure out what you like to wear and what fits with your lifestyle—and pare your wardrobe down to include those elements!

Several months ago, I decided to drastically change my wardrobe. I had lots of clothes that I liked, but nothing seemed to go together and it took me too much thinking to put together simple outfits. I had lots of clothes that just “worked”, were “tolerable” or “sufficed”. I wanted a smaller wardrobe, but with every piece being an absolute favorite.

Lest I come across as being superficial, I do not think that clothes/outward appearance are extra important or of eternal value. But that being said, I want my husband (and children) to know that he is extra-special to me—and one way I can let him know this, is by putting effort into looking nice for him. It is a way I think that I can honor and show him respect.

So to start off, I picked a couple of neutral colors and two “fun” colors (colors that look good on me and I could enjoy wearing over and over). For me, the neutrals are black, gray and denim. The fun colors are aqua/turquoise/teal, and lavender. I also included white/cream.

I went through all my clothes and pulled out everything that did not fit me or fit into this color scheme. (I did keep a couple pieces that I just loved that were not in the new set of colors—I did not want to be too drastic. Smile )

I also figured out what types and styles of clothing I felt most comfortable in and that my husband likes to see me wear. I love layering sweaters and tank tops, ruffles, feminine scarves, and jeans. I am also a mama of 2, I live in the cold north, and I spend a lot of time at home. My style is a mix of classic and romantic. So based on that, I looked for trouser or boot cut jeans, pretty scarves, nice plain t-shirts, fake pearls, skirts that transition from snow to 80 degrees, and nice sweaters. A lot of that was already in my closet.

Having a set palette has saved me time in the thrift stores and other shopping! I focus on the sections that have “my” colors—and ignore the rest. I can pull any top and any bottom out of my closet, and it should theoreticallycoordinate and look nice on me. It has also helped me limit how many pieces of clothing I have—I am not tempted to have a sweater in each of my favorite colors; instead I just limit it to “my best colors”. Continue reading »

real

1,000 Words

tender

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Minimalist Dressing (guest post)

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