Lesson #180 My Valentine's Card Secrets

Can Valentine's Day be CHEAP and CREATIVE? I think so! 

PART I: The Girlfriends

These postcards were SO easy to create!

Last month I found an adorable vintage postcard at a local antique store. 

Some of the little kid valentine's from the 50s were HILARIOUS! 

I even saw a few really old valentine's that had sweet old fashioned messages penned inside. I couldn't help but read a few AND wish we still wrote so properly and eloquently. 

Of course I had to use the one that used the words 'coy' and 'sublime'. 

How could I not?

$3 of my budget spending money later I was out the door. 

A quick scan into my computer and an upload to vistaprint and I was golden! 

I think it ended up being $12 total for 100 cards. 

Man, I think postcards are the best thing ever. 

VALENTINE'S POSTCARDS? 

That just takes it to the next level.  

PART II: More Girlfriends 

BECAUSE I can't POSSIBLY go a Valentine's Day without HAND MAKING A few cards... these did the trick :) Card stock, cheap stamps from Michael's, corner stamps, corner inking. DONE.

Since I went 20 years of my life boyfriend-less, I have always associated Valentine's Day as a girlfriend to girlfriend holiday :) A time to tell your friends how much they mean to you. I think I will always see it mostly that way. hehehe...

Part III: The ManFriend

As for David, well he got a special card that I spent a FORTUNE on. 

(okay, okay, FINE it was $1)

Tiny Prints has the cutest templates EVER for every holiday you can imagine. I'm on their email list and LOVE when they send specials like this. One dollar and this beauty is delivered to my door? Yes, please. 

Sometimes the less expensive and the more creative our gifts are, the more they mean :)

Lesson #179 Fancy Camo Valentine's un-Date's are the Best

Last night was SUPPOSE to be our substitute Valentine's Day since class invades my week nights.

Well... let's just say by the time we finished...

• Church in the morning
• Discussed our career philosophies
• Mapped out our entire future
• Debated and solved every political and moral standard in existence

...all we had time left for was homework. We pick the strangest times to have 4 hour conversations on big-picture-life things! ha! SO, we nixed the nice dinner out and decided to run and grab some yummy food to-go to get us through the homework.

David: On a scale of 1 to 10 how fancy are we going?
Anna: Zero.
David: Great. I'll WEAR MY CAMO SHIRT
Anna: grrrreeeaaaat.
...which somehow led to a fight between deodorant and mascara...

Sometimes I think I like the riveting discussions and the take-out and camp more than a fancy formal dress up dinner. Wait did I just say that? :)

Lesson #178 Every Weekend should have a Little Sun and a Little Rain

Dearest Weekend, 

Thank you for being full of sun and rest and BBQ and little friends and me-sized-friends and games and rain and bonfires and sweets and naps and and study parties with pancit.

Love, Anna 

Lesson #177 Moms Can Read Your Mind

Dear Mom,

This week had been a MAJOR week for school... group projects, papers, mid-term exam..

AND somehow, yes, somehow you read my brain?

Am I surprised? No.

Pleasantly pleased? Yes.

You sent me an adorable package.
Stuffed to the brim as usual.
Maximizing every square inch as usual.

A TON of tiny little presents. One to open each time I finish an assignment.

If it weren't for lunch dates with friends, a hilarious husband AND ESPECIALLY this awesome package, I may have classified this week as a dud, but I am totally not. No never, not after this awesome package.

Thank you for always thinking of me, even when you have your own crazy life to worry about.
Thank you for always loving me.
Thank you for being you.

Love you so so so much.

Always,
Anna

Lesson #176 One Man's Stress is Another Man's Luxury

Many of the poor in our world own only the clothes on their backs. They have no closets.  -Richard Stearns

Day #7 Fast From Options

It is Day 2 of a 30 Day Challenge to become more globally aware, have better perspective, have a clearer focus on the larger world around me. I get so easily stuck in my small work of circumstances, delightful things, hard things, my city, my country... this month I hope to gain a bigger perspective.

Ummm... yesterday I wore the same clothes twice.
On purpose. How did I feel about this?
Okay, it was strange for sure.

At first this challenge was hard.

THEN it was sort of freeing. If people were making judgments about me, I feel like that reflects far more on THEM than it does on me. I know what I'm doing, I don't need to explain.

... which makes me think of all the times I may have been judgmental towards other not knowing, and not even trying to know, their side and reason behind the 'out of social norm' behavior.

The following is the convo that happened in my head yesterday morning in front of my closet.

My body was like, "umm... Anna you wore that yesterday"
Which makes my mind say, "Your clothes aren't dirty, and you wear skirts several times before washing anyway"
My body says, "that's true"
My mind says, "so why does it matter?"
My body says, "well, people will think, "hey she wore that yesterday!"
My mind says, "which matters because..."
My body says,"they will think I'm forgetful or made a mistake, or that I really like this outfit"
My mind says, "wow, anna, wow. really mature. That would be the worst thing EVER. The world would end!"
My body says, "I guess you're right. I guess I have just gotten used to the cultural norm that you don't wear the same thing two days in a row. I guess it's because it shows that you have enough money and clothes OPTIONS to not have to do that. Now, even though everyone KNOWS I have more than one outfit, it still feels out of the social norm to do this."

Pangs of guilt wash over me as I realize how self-centered and self-conscious I am. How many people in the world would LOVE to have ONE NICE set of clothes to wear multiple times... and here I am feeling awkward about it. Awkward is nothing in comparison to poverty, loneliness, fear that many people face daily because they don't have the OPTION to feel otherwise.

I get so overwhelmed with options and deciding sometimes, and maybe just maybe I need to SPEND THAT precious time spent worrying, on more important things like thinking about those that don't have ANY options at all or the luxury to have things to stress over.

Okay, now let's be real here... the method I use to pick out my outfits is one that gives me the MAX amount of sleep in the morning... and looks something like picking the first things I see. I'm not super great at matching, so I figure why try? Best friend Jessie on the other hand, pro matcher.

HOWEVER there are TONS of "OPTIONS" in life I stress over. LOTS of em.

Stress over what food to order
Stress over what classes to take
Stress over my job
Stress over my house being messy

ALL of these things listed, yes ALL OF THESE things that I have considered STRESS today, would be considered LUXURY in the eyes of so many.


Truly humbling. Kind of makes me want to get rid of all my clothes.

Lesson #175 Never Underestimate a Good Song

I purchased this album just in time for my little heart.
Just what I needed.
Also grateful for two friends named Cassidy & Lynette today.
Just what I needed. 
Listen to this song with your eyes closed.
It's just what you need :)

Glorious by Bryan & Katie Torwalt

Hope fills my soul
The love that You've shown
Bring refreshing like the rain
Peace floods my heart
I've known nothing apart
Apart from Your goodness, God

You are glorious
You are holy, holy
The heavens shout
You are worthy, worthy

Your love frees my soul
And fear has no hold
For You have broken the chains
Now joy fills my life
Your Spirit, Your Light
I'm undone by the kindness of Christ