Our First Place

I remember, last April, walking through our empty little cottage on the boulevard and imagining being married to Drew. Cooking roast's, making cookies, entertaining...o, the plans I had!

This week, Drew and I said goodbye to that little place in Newport and hello to his wonderful parents in Yorba Linda. Not a bad deal at all; a perfectly quiet, clean, spacious abode was waiting for us as we pulled up with all we have crammed in 2 SUV's. Not to mention, 2 predictably huge smiles on Mimi and Papa's faces! Kinda feels like a little vacation, honest.

As I drove away, Reese in the backseat sleeping, Drew in his Land Cruiser behind me....I thought back to the many times my folks would refer to their "first place." They would look at one another and laugh...remember when we ate top ramen for a week straight so we could afford to pay the electricity bill....or that bird we had that never shut up...I looked at them and smiled, happy for them of course, but not knowing the depth of their conversation.

Our first place.

Where we slept our very first night as a married couple together (I won't get into that..), figured out who is cleaner (him), sat on the counter drinking Pinot Noir, played scrabble, scored a patio table that fit our porch just right, walked across the street to dip our toes in the sand just as the sun was setting, discovered life changing take-out Thai food right down the street, where we brought Reese home from the hospital, I could go on and on.


One day, Drew and I will bore little Reese about our stories from that "first place" of ours. I never knew how many laughs were to be had at 130 e. Balboa.

So, adios "first place" and hello to the future, I can't wait :)

Life Purpose Statement

Life purpose statement. Everyone should have one.

It just makes sense, you can tweak it as the years go by, but there is so much power in writing down what you stand for. 

My brother, Luke, helped me write it by suggesting this...

Write down 3 things you want to have (possessions). Write down 3 things you want to do. Write down 3 things you want to be. 

Somewhat ambiguous, but it will help you focus in on what or who you are living for. 

Here's mine. 

Who I want to be

Bold. Joyful. Passionate. Creative. Confident.

What I want to do

Assist in others living to their fullest potential.

Be challenged and challenge others. 

Help others find their identity in Christ.

Serve. 

Live simply. 

What I want to have 

The means to provide my family with endless opportunities (education, travel, athletics)

A house with a backyard and a bath tub :) 

Life Purpose Statement

To live simply, embrace creativity, and accept challenge. To help others walk in confidence that they are children of God. To love as Christ loves me.

I hope you try this and it helps bring a little direction to your life, it did mine! 

Congrats to Mrs. Masone! 

This is how she sleeps sometimes.. 

JH

Come run with me!

Happy Saturday. I am particularly happy today because little Reese decided to sleep for 7 hours straight last night. No joke. I let her sleep on the Tempur-Pedic mattress with me while Dad is was gone...hopefully she's not addicted! gulp.

I decided I need a little motivation to get myself back in shape. I signed up for the Malibu half marathon and I am so excited about it. The race is in 189 days..plenty of time to work off the brownie sundaes I have been saying "yes" to the past 9 months ; )

I'm inviting YOU to run it with me!
Serious. Let's do this.
We don't have to literally run side by side, but sign your booty up, let me know and let's keep each other accountable and get in shiz-ape.

If you have been wanting to challenge yourself physically, there is no better time than now.
Hit up my facebook or email me at JenieceHarris@gmail.com if you want to join the team!

You can sign up for the run here.

JH

"Cray Cray"

It's hard to find a particular subject to blog about because I feel like I have one million things to share with you, invisible cyber world, you.

First things first. I must be going through some sort of mid-twenties growth spurt because I feel like God is stretching me in a way that I have never been stretched before. This season has not been easy. Exciting, challenging, ass-kicking, strength-giving, but not easy. More on this when I figure out what's happening ; ) 

I fully believe in honesty, so here it is. Raising a little tot is crazy difficult! Especially when he or she is particularly fussy. There, I said it. Sometimes I feel like all mom's talk about are the good times and what a joy it is. Don't get me wrong, when I see my little girl in the morning, catch her smiling at her singing monkey, hold her in my arms as she falls asleep...I have experienced no greater joy... However, it's "cray cray" as my 18 year old sister would say. 

The hardest part about it- right now, it requires me to be completely selfless. I suck at this, but shoot...I'm learning! 

There, I got that out. 

Now for top five moments this past week that I WISH I could have photographed for you. 

Yours truly, sweating to my 80's "Band Method" workout DVD that I swooped from the library. Free DVD rentals people, get on it! 

Drew and I sitting in the Massage chairs at Brookstone for a full 30 minutes on a Friday night at South Coast Plaza, while wide-eyed Reese looked at her weak parents from her cozy Bugaboo stroller.  

Reese laying on her "mat" holding her singing monkey in one hand and her colorful crunchy dragonfly in the other with a big smile on her face. She literally would rather hang out with them than us. 

Drew searching for a burp cloth under our bed at 3am. 

Me, at 7:02am, in my pajamas...asking the construction dudes next door if they could PLEASE keep the racket to a minimum while my baby is SLEEPING!! (I just wish I would have had curlers in my hair and a green face mask on..next time)

The look on the ladies face at the toll booth when the Mercedes snuck under the gate with the car in front of him. 

Now, enjoy some moments I did catch. 

Milk drunk. 

Staring at the fan. So exciting. 

Etsy Headbands! Loooooove.

Sleeping on our daily walk on the beach. 

xo, JH