Good Things

Sigh, what a wonderful weekend! I'm continually so thankful that we get a few free days to relax, explore, and spend time recharging each week. I truly appreciate them more and more as I get older!

This weekend was especially awesome because I got to spend it with my boyfriend favorite human. We're currently long distance, so our time together is rare and cherished more than usual. We had such a wonderful few days together laughing, dancing, golfing (well, him teaching me how to golf lol), and enjoying each others company. Here's a little photographic look at our weekend:

Party at the point Friday night // band + views of the harbour = yes.

 Post-golf lesson nomming at Rita's on Folly

epic nachos con watermelon salsa :D

 Folly beach packed with peeps enjoying the sunshine

 the happiest humans :)

 crazy amazing view coming home from the beach - Charleston, you're perfect

 gorgeous evening in my neighorhood for Shaggin On The Cooper

SO much fun shagging the night away to awesome tunes with my favorite dance partner!

gorgeous blooms on a TJ's run *heart eye emoji*

a little Sunday shopping (so thankful for my patient fella for putting up with me <3) - ps I bought both pairs :D

how we feel about the weekend being over :| #boolongdistance

How was your weekend? :)

-Lanie W.

Being Quiet

I'll be honest, I sat down a few times this week and attempted to blog but nothing felt quite right or authentic, so I didn't post. I've been struggling a bit with where I'm seeking strength, mental clarity, heart-filling peace, and sufficiency. I'm 100% a type-a person. I like a plan, I like checking things off a list, I like the feeling of accomplishment. Lately, however, my typical actions/routines have left me feeling fruitless, empty, drained of energy- kind of like a dried up sponge.

I've had a million half-baked emotions and half-baked thoughts going through my head, but nothing that felt connected or made me feel that satisfying spark. I've been stretching myself between focusing on my work, trying to spend time with friends, keeping up a regular exercise routine, and attempting to have a little down time that doesn't involve a screen (ha). It probably seems on the surface like I'm getting everything done and keeping it together, but inside I feel like I've been furiously spinning my wheels and going nowhere.

Have you ever been there? Your life seems like it's going fine by human standards; there are no real problems or dramatic situations, work is good, but you still feel a bit lifeless and like something isn't quite right or real? I think when we reach this point it's God's way of saying "Hey you, this broken human world doesn't have anything that's going to fix that feeling you have. Stop looking for earthly places to find your joy, peace, inspiration, and accomplishment because nothing will every satisfy those intangible desires of your heart other than deep connection and communication with Me." Woah.

I woke up early this morning with the intention of going for a run. Instead, I found myself laying in bed, being still, quieting my mind and reading the devotional I had put aside this week because I didn't "have time". It was exactly what my heart needed. It flipped a switch. I had an "aha" moment. My soul finally felt nourished in a real way.

I opened my Bible to a random page and read this verse in Ecclesiastes 4:6 - "Better to have one handful with quietness than two handfuls with hard work and chasing the wind." Wow- exactly what I needed to hear. That was my problem- I've been "chasing the wind", striving for worldly achievement. Somehow my goals had shifted to focus on the kind of earthly success that's measured by the standard of humans.

How did I slip into this mindset so easily? By worldly standards this seems like this is the right way to live life, but desperately "chasing the wind" will always leave me exhausted and un-fulfilled. The world says we need to work hard and measure our lives by human "accomplishment"- a promotion, a raise, the 1st place trophy, the star next to your name- but what will these earthly things give us in the end? Nothing.

When we slow down and let quietness fill our hearts- when we take the time to do the work for our souls, that's where we'll find what we've been "chasing". That's where true contentment and peace and overwhelming JOY and eternal significance are found.

If you've been feeling confused because, although your life seems to be going perfectly fine, you don't feel that soul-stirring satisfaction, perhaps you need to reframe what you're working towards. Stop chasing the wind and human accomplishment and realize that everything we do/achieve here will eventually cease to matter. He is the source of that illusive, energy-giving spark that we work so hard to find.

So today (and every day) let's rest in the truth that we don't have to toil our lives away to find true contentment. By being still, quieting our minds, and surrendering our humanly ambition to The Lord we'll finally get that missing "thing" we've been searching for.

Wishing you a restful, re-charging weekend friend!

-Lanie W.

Look For Less: Leather Mules

A year ago I would have laughed at myself for even considering purchasing these shoes. I really didn't get the whole 90's shoe/ugly shoe/etc trend when it first came about. Lately, however, my style has really been evolving and changing. I suppose it's a natural side-effect of getting older combined with graduating college and moving to a new city. Whatever the reason, I've come around to this look in a big way. Gotta love how things can change, eh? :)

During one of my many post work shopping trips on King St. (so dangerous to work here) I came across the J. Crew Marlow Mules and fell in love with their un-fussy, chic vibe. The style is such a fun alternative for the typical heels/wedges I wear throughout the warmer months. However, this post-grad budget can't really swing almost $200 for a pair of shoes, so I left broken hearted empty handed.

Fast forward to a different post-work shopping trip last week. I walked into Urban Outfitters to browse and kill time before attending an outdoor movie event nearby. After looking around I discovered their Sloan Mules- a doppleganger for the pair I had been coveting from J. Crew! I tracked down the last pair in my size, tried them on, and immediately walked to the register. Comfy, stylish, and a full $100 less than the pair I originally wanted? Sold!

Always exciting when something like this happens! Have you found any great style steals lately? If so, please share! Happy weekending! xoxo

-Lanie W.

Put Your Heart Into It

Yesterday as we were wrapping up a meeting one of my bosses turned to me and said "Thank you for your hard work. I really think you have your heart in this". I smiled because it meant something I decided to do months ago was actually noticeable to other people.

For her to see recognize something I've been trying to do every single day was definitely one of the nicest compliments ever and the first answer that came to mind (after genuinely thanking her), was "is there any other way to be?".

After graduating college the reality that I would be working for the rest of my life hit me all at once. Envisioning this large expanse of time spent working (almost) every single day was a bit intimidating, especially coming from the structured world of school where you take life semester by semester, six months at a time.

During the midst of this overwhelming post-graduation life confusion I stumbled upon Colossians 3:23 and suddenly everything clicked. The verse states "whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as if working for The Lord, not for human masters". Wow- what a perfect answer to the overwhelming fear I had about transitioning from school to the professional world. It all became so simple- when we put God first in all that we do, including our work, we have to put our heart into it.

Living and working for Him (not earthly gain/recognition/money/etc) means we have to invest our soul and energy at the most basic level. What other option is there? Otherwise we spend 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, 52 weeks a year passively, unemotionally going through the motions of life and work. Where is the fun in that? Where is the energy-giving, life-affirming passion in that? I decided to shift my focus from the length of time I would spend working to the quality of life I would be living by focusing on Him.

Every day I really try (I say try because I'm so human and fall short all the time) to do my best work, not for myself or even other people, but for Him. When I do that, my heart is invested without even realizing it. I truly care about doing my best, not for a grade or a promotion or a raise or a pat on the back, but because I want to give myself to whatever I'm doing 100%. I want my heart to be an active participant in all that I do.

Now, to be completely transparent I do really enjoy my job. I realize that putting your heart into a career that you don't look forward to doing every day is a lot harder. I have close friends in that situation and I truly wish I could snap my fingers and put them in a job that they love and deserve. Regardless, I think we can all learn from Colossians 3:23. We can risk putting our heart into something by keeping our eyes on Him and working not for the world and what is seen, but what is un-seen. That's where our lives get their real mojo- the buzz and excitement deep inside to wake up every day, drink some coffee, and go out into the world to do our best.

That's really what this life boils down to- imperfect humans trying to do their best every day. We fail, and let's be honest we will keep failing again and again, but His grace keeps us going. Grace and forgiveness and love keeps us from staying down when we fall. Knowing that truth, I'm going to keep working for Him. I'm going to keep putting my heart into my work and life, because in the end He is and will be all that matters- so why not fully invest in that? :)

What do you put your heart into? Your work? Your side passion project? I'd love to hear!

-Lanie W.

Soaking Up Spring

Charleston has seriously hit its stride as far as springtime weather is concerned. It feels like every day is more gorgeous than the last- I'm talking clear blue skies, no humidity (!), warm sunshine and a light breeze. The past week has been gorgeous and I've been soaking up every minute possible outdoors. Some activities I've added to the agenda to take advantage of this pre-summer heat season include:

dining al fresco with the boy:

 going on long post-work/workout walks downtown...

and in my neighborhood

attending outdoor movies in Marion Square:

What are you favorite ways to enjoy this time of year?

-Lanie W.

The Southern C Summit: Recap

I'll admit something nerdy- I love learning. I'm talking real, honest to goodness, "I'm dying to know more about this subject, please teach me" learning- not the type of disengaging "learning" you experienced in school. You know what I mean, when you were forced to sit in a math/science/spanish class that only made you feel beat down and like you were the worlds least intelligent person. Real learning is exciting and inspiring and passion inducing- it never leaves you feeling bad about yourself. #endrant

Although I've been out of college for almost a year, I sometimes I find myself wishing I could spend time sitting in a classroom soaking up useful, interesting (read: relevant to my profession) information. It's easy to think that you diploma signals the end of your education, but I've learned that I will never stop needing to challenge and better myself. Working in social media I feel like there's a new skill to learn or tool to utilize every single day. I don't think I'll ever feel like I've gained all the information about this ever-changing digital medium and that really excites me.

This week I had the awesome opportunity to attend the Southern C Summit, a professional conference for creative business people here in Charleston. I spent two days attending various seminars and learning from creative, passionate, successful people from all different areas of the professional world. The conference was held in the historic American Theater (aka where Noah and Allie have their first date in The Notebook) and its next door neighbor, the William Aiken House. It was incredibly cool to go inside these buildings rather than just walk past them like I've done for years. Their interiors were just as beautiful as you would expect- the history nerd in me was in heaven!

Day 1: 

Day 2:

From magazine editors, to business owners, to bloggers the speakers shared their knowledge in a real + relatable way. They didn't sugar coat the hard parts of their work, or spare us the nitty gritty details of what it takes to create success, and I really appreciate that. While I enjoyed everyone, Mandy Rye of Waiting On Martha was definitely my favorite presenter overall. Her session of social media strategy was beyond helpful and inspiring. I kind of wish we were best friends now- homegirl was hilarious, blunt, passionate, and brilliant at what she does. Oh, and her outfit was so on point. #girlcrush

I think I appreciated Mandy's honest session so much because it took away the smoke and mirrors, "oh I just woke up with 100,000 followers" vibe that social media can often create. In the end we're all just imperfect humans trying to live and work and "do life" the best we can. It's so inspiring when we can come together, admitting our innate humanness, and share knowledge to help one another grow. It was truly a beautiful thing to experience and I feel totally re-charged. I'm looking forward to taking what I learned and tackling my work with a renewed excitement and thirst to work harder, better, and smarter. Happy weekend! xo

-Lanie W.