Week 44 || Project 52

"I love Your voice,

singing over me every morning.

I love Your voice,

calling out my name every morning."

-Your Voice || The Royal Royal

There's something about waking up before the sun even rises to spend some time with the Lord. Nothing like it. I woke up at 4:30AM this morning. Thankful for a pot of coffee, deer sightings in the suburbs, a warm home, another day. It's so easy to get stuck in the daily grind and take life for granted. But when you think that we are not even worthy of one day, it puts everything back in perspective. Whether the world seems quite and still or loud and busy, the Lord is always there.

Into the Wilderness Again || Personal

Fall is definitely one of my favorite seasons. Crunchy leaves, apple cider, pumpkins, apple picking, jackets, scarves, and Trader Joe's having everything pumpkin flavored (I'm kind of addicted to their pumpkin ice cream!) There's no better place to experience fall than in the north woods; the leaves are prettier, the wind is fiercer and the distractions are few. 

On Friday morning my good friend Sarah and I bundled up and made the road trip up to my lake house. Some good mix CDs and coffee to accompany us, there was not a moment of silence. I can talk for hours with that girl about Jesus, future and our love of pumpkin. The best part about our arrival...we got there just as the golden hour was starting! Perfection. It was a great weekend of small town, serenity, heart-to-heart, late night chatting, midnight baking, Jesus goodness.

We made pumpkin pancakes every morning and explored the small town before it got dark around 4 in the afternoon. Homemade pizzas and plenty of baking every evening. We sipped on pumpkin tea and cider throughout our hours and hours of challenging and inspiring chatter. Weekends in the wilderness always do my heart well.

Week 40-42 || Project 52

Sometimes life gets a little busy. Sticking to a blogging schedule can get a little crazy and life is just better with a little less screen time. From concerts to city adventures to weekends in the woods...I am blessed.

And today...a little project 52 catch-up.

WEEK 40

Phil Wickham is one talented man. Such a sweet night of worship. Feel free to watch the video below from the concert:

 Nights spent in the city are my favorite...my soon-to-be home. Went to this nice, little italian restaurant with a few of my lovely friends.

WEEK 41

 Kari Jobe and All Sons & Daughters are two of my favorite artists. They are so talented and so blessed. I would be thrilled if Kari Jobe would be my mentor. 

WEEK 42

Let's just say this week was phenomenal. I packed my bags and headed into the woods for a little fall retreat with a sweet friend of mine. There is no better place to be than in the woods during the fall. The leaves were crunchy and the fish fry was great. Here is a highlight from the weekend...but stay tuned! A post on the adventure will be here soon :)

September in Instagrams || Personal

Yes it is already October 9...shame on me for being so late on this post! October has surely been a whirlwind of busy-ness so far. September was full of serenity, sunflowers, blessings, and tea.

1. Sunsets at the lake house...on the dock. What else is better? 2. City-bound. Pretty much cannot wait to live in the city. 3. Pumpkin spice cupcakes in the wee-hours of the night. 4. Delicious coffee. 5. Venti pumpkin-spice lattes for free. Fall is here! 6. Sweet friend's birthday. Fuzzy socks and heart-shaped chocolate chip cheesecake for you! 7. Hours upon hours of editing=cusp upon cups of coffee. 8. Random sickness...no fun. 9. The Great Creator never rests. Continually amazed by His beauty. 10. Homemade pies. 11. Ahhh my heart is so happy! 12. Infinity scarves and apple cider. Reunited. 13. So much beauty. Sometimes the Lord really outdoes Himself. 14. Phil Wickham, The Royal Royal & Travis Ryan. One night of sweet worship. 15. Sunflowers. Oh so happy.

I love October. I've already gotten in a couple road trips, fall walks and way too many pumpkin things. I hope October is treating you well so far :) 

Friday Favorites || October

Fall crept up on us and October is already here. I absolutely LOVE October and can't believe September has come to an end. October means pumpkin patches, apple picking, sweater and beautiful leaves. Here are five of my favorite October things:

1. Pretty stinkin' pumped to see Kari Jobe & All Sons & Daughters this coming Sunday...it may be a bit of a road trip but it will be worth every second. I have seen All Sons & Daughters many times before and I can hardly wait to see Kari Jobe for the first time. Their music has blessed me in SO many ways! 2. Eeek sweaters! I've been eyeing this sweater for far too long...I think it's time to buy it ;) 3. The leaves have started changing color and there is nothing more beautiful. Driving through crunchy leaves...nothing like it :) 4. PUMPKIN EVERYTHING! Last time I went to Trader Joe's I kinda freaked out :: pumpkin cream cheese, pumpkin bread, pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin yougurt, pumpkin cereal bars, pumpkin pancake mix. Ahh! 5. Oh my word, All Sons & Daughters new EP "The Longing" is brilliant. I highly recommend buying it and being so blessed by it. This duo is so ridiculously talented. My favorite from their latest EP is "Called Me Higher."

What are you looking forward to this month?!

Urgency | Fall Mornings

Fall mornings are my favorite. Starting the day with a perfect cup of coffee and Isaiah [on this particular day]; there's nothing like it. 

Yes, LORD, walking in the way of your laws,

we wait for you;

your name and renown

are the desire of our hearts.

-Isaiah 26:8

Day after day, hour after hour, minute after minute...we wait. We wait for the Lord to return. But we don't just wait and sit there. At least, that's not what we're supposed to do. Our number one priority should be to go and make disciples (Matthew 28:16-20). This isn't just an empty, idle, boring waiting. This is an "I am so excited for Jesus to come back so I have the urgency to tell everyone about Him so they can go tell more people and so on..." We have this urgency. His name and His renown are the desire of our hearts. Not our name and our renown. Not that everyone would know me and that everyone would remember me but that the one impact we have on the world is simply Jesus. 

Reading Isaiah 26:8 just puts everything back in perspective. All of this doesn't matter; fashion, making a name for ourselves, status, etc. What a relief that we have the gift to walk in His direction for our lives. Day after day, praying that the desire of our hearts would be His name and His renown rather than our own. Christ created us to be significant for HIM. What a relief and what a sweet life!

Week 37 || Project 52

When I started Project 52 it was about taking photos for the sake of taking photos. Somehow, overtime, it became a heavy burden rather than a creative outlet. I used to spend hours adventuring just to find the perfect moment to capture and somehow I stopped doing that. How silly...needless to say, I am going to start doing that. Let's just say I'm pretty stinkin' excited :)

This past week I spent some time in the city with some lovely people. Take-aways from the week:

1. I belong in the city.

2. Chicago is one big melting pot of people and it's amazing.

3. I am moving to the city ASAP (seriously)

It was a weekend full of good mexican food, nonstop chatting, Proverbs and Psalms, pour-over coffee from Bowtruss, and pumpkin spice cupcakes at midnight. The weather was absolutely beautiful and so were the people. Now don't you want to live in Chicago too?!

Happy Wednesday!

Alison