Pink and blue -- that's what most people do for a gender reveal party. But we aren't most people. We've had the idea for a baseball gender reveal party for almost a year now. Travis loves baseball. He still has all his baseball memorabilia from when he was a kid. He took me to my first MLB game, and we had so much fun. So we loved the idea of finding out the gender using a baseball and bat. I'm so excited to share all the details of our party. But first I want to say a big thank you to our family that came. I started to thank them all at the party, but I got choked up so I kept it Continue Reading
Ways to Prepare for a Military Move
This post about preparing for a military move has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions and tips are 100% mine. #RoadTripOil #CollectiveBias We celebrated our first anniversary while living in Georgia. Our second anniversary, I lived in Indiana while Travis lived in South Korea. On our third anniversary, we lived together again, but this time in Missouri. And this week we are moving to Tennessee, where we will most likely end up spending our fourth anniversary. Military moves (also known as PCS) come with the territory, but I have to admit I had no idea Continue Reading
Acts of Kindness for the Military Community
We PCS every two to three years. We handle deployments and TDYs like a boss. We say goodbye to old friends, and welcome new friends. We shop at the commissary and PX. We enter a gate to get to our jobs and sometimes our homes. We are strong. We are resilient. We are the military community. And military life, although rewarding, can be hard. It can be knock-you-on-your-feet hard. On those days -- or let's face it, sometimes months -- a small act of kindness can mean so much. One simple act of kindness can be the hand that helps you stand back up. There have been plenty of times in my three Continue Reading
Father’s Day Gift Ideas
A greeting card with a gift card tucked inside -- that's what a I get my dad for Father's Day every single year. Although I know he uses the gift cards and appreciates the gift, I don't feel like I'm being very thoughtful or creative. Buying gifts for my dad is just hard. I know my dad enjoys mowing the lawn and working with tools. He loves washing his truck and watching the same movie a million times. But as far as things he would like as a gift? I'm just not sure. Not sure what he already has. Not sure what he'll actually use. Perhaps you are in the same boat. Is your dad tough to buy Continue Reading
The Best Blogging Resources
If you are thinking of starting a blog, just started a blog, or are fairly new to the blogging world, you've got to check out my posts that I wrote just for you! But even if you aren't new and you've been blogging for years, finding valuable blogging resources to help you improve your website is so important. Check out these posts if you're new to blogging: How to Start a Blog: Part 1 -- The first six steps to starting a blog before you even purchase a domain. These steps will help you get on the right track and stay on it! How to Start a Blog: Part 2 -- The six steps it takes to Continue Reading
Snail Mail Challenge: 21 Days of Encouragement
This post is written in partnership with DaySpring for their 21-Day Encouragement Campaign. All opinions are my own. When I was a kid, my mom took file folders and taped them to our bedroom doors, taping the sides of the folders closed. These little folders taped to our doors became our mailboxes. When we would come in from playing outside, my mom would say in a sing-song voice, "You never can tell when you might get some mail!" My brother and I would take off running to our bedrooms to see what special surprise was in our mailboxes. I remember coming home from school and seeing a big piece Continue Reading
Things to Do in St. Louis
A lot of people make fun of Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. It has the nickname Fort Lost in the Woods, because it's out in the middle of nowhere. People will often say there's nothing to do here, but I disagree. Travis and I have been so busy doing lots of fun activities every weekend. The biggest city in this state is a mere two hours away. We have spent some time in St. Louis, and probably aren't finished with this city. It's perfect for a weekend getaway! For anyone else planning a trip to St. Louis, I've compiled a list of things to do there! Our Favorite Things to Do in St. Continue Reading
Things to Do in Branson
For Easter weekend, Travis and I decided to take a short trip to see Branson, Missouri. It's only a couple hours away, and we've heard lots of great things about this city. Today, I'm sharing what we did in Branson, as well as other things to do there. Our Favorite Things in Branson Extreme Racing There are several places to ride go-karts, but of course Travis wanted the fastest ones we could find. This led us to Extreme Racing, where you have to qualify before actually racing the fast cars. And these cars were fast! I was really impressed with the organization, staff, and safety Continue Reading
Ways to Cope After Miscarriage
How can we cope after such a tragic loss? Losing a child is an indescribable loss that brings a heavy grief with it. So how can we cope? My unborn baby would be 19 weeks right now. In just a few short weeks, I would be finding out the gender. (We think of our baby as a boy because of a dream I had while pregnant.) Travis and I already had a theme and plan for a gender reveal party. There's not a day that has gone by where I haven't thought about our baby. I still miss him. In these past two months, although I have still felt pain and grief, I can feel myself learning to cope. I can feel Continue Reading
Ways to Bless a Woman Who Lost a Baby
Do you have a friend who has suffered a miscarriage or infant loss? Studies have shown that the grief one experiences after losing a wanted baby at any number of weeks is equivalent to the grief of losing a close friend or family member. So what can you do to help? How can you bless your friend during her loss? Ways to Help a Friend Who Lost a Baby Send a card. Finding a sympathy card and writing a short note inside doesn't take much work, but it does mean a ton. For me, I love receiving mail and every single card we received after my miscarriage I cherished. I kept all of them. Continue Reading
A Holiday Gift Guide for Bloggers
I've been a blogger for ... jeez, how many years now? I think I started my first blog in 2010 and moved to Seeing Sunshine in 2012. So I'm going on six years of blogging. Over that time, I've figured out what helps me with my blog and some things that I would love to have for my blogging "career." Do you have a friend who's a blogger? Or perhaps someone trying to get into the blogging world? This is my list of gift ideas for bloggers. Blogging Holiday Gift Guide Coschedule I just recently started my free trial of Coschedule -- you can get a 14-day free trial to see if you like it Continue Reading
Gift Ideas for New Homeowners
Travis and I bought a house at the beginning of this year. I've been living there and slowly fixing the place up since March. In those nine months of being a homeowner, I have discovered so many things I wish we had. Travis and I have talked about all the things we'd like to have as homeowners -- practical items that will come in handy as we fix up this home and even build our own home someday. As new homeowners ourselves, we thought it would only make sense to share these items with you as gift ideas for your friends and family who are new homeowners. Almost all of these items are on Travis' Continue Reading