Tuesday, December 30, 2014

One Little Word, Choose.


Choose: verb // to pick out or select as being the best or most appropriate of two or more alternatives. 

It's practically 2015, can you smell it in the air? The chance to restart, refresh, learn from 2014, & really move forward with a clear direction. I most certainly can. I unknowingly started the One Little Word in 2013 with the word BRAVE, a word that fell into place after a year chock full of huge, life changing milestones. In 2014, I felt inclined to make my OLW TRUST, at a time in my life where I needed to learn not to question as much and just trust in my plan. 

This year I am choosing the word, CHOOSE.

After a year of trusting (often times not willingly) I am ready to plant my feet firm and make my own choices. 

In 2015:
I will CHOOSE to enjoy life to its fullest extent.
These are the days! The days I will look back on many years down the road and realize I didn't take enough advantage of the freedom of time I have to read great books, drink good coffee, sleep in late, & spend quality time with those I love. 

I will CHOOSE to be present in my every day. 
This means cleaner eating (possibly trying a bout of Whole30 to get me on track), exercise (getting more active in road biking and running // hopefully a Half Marathon this year), quality time with my husband (less tv, phones, electronics) and basically all of the things that make me feel giddy & refreshed.  

I will CHOOSE how I let things affect me.
Rather than let my emotions get the best of me, I vow to accept the responsibility that I have a choice in how I allow things to affect me in my daily life. There are things and people, I've learned, that I cannot change no matter how hard I try, but the one thing I can be in control of is how I choose to respond (or not respond) to them. This year, I am going to CHOOSE the people in my life who make me a better person, CHOOSE to allow those who don't bring something positive to my life to get packing & above all else, I will CHOOSE myself. 

I will CHOOSE myself. 
This means taking care of myself first & foremost (healthier eating, exercising frequently, and maybe even a massage every once in a while!). I am also choosing to stop being so dang hard on myself & instead focus my efforts on how much I have to offer the world with my God-given skills and abilities rather than second guessing myself. 

When you think about it, it is amazing how many choices we make on a daily basis. While most of these are essentially unimportant (what to eat, wear etc.), some decisions can have much greater effects on our lives & well being. I hope that 2015 will allow me to CHOOSE those options that make me a better person both inside and out. I hope you'll be a part of this journey. 

Peace,
Allison

Monday, December 29, 2014

It's a Fitz Christmas



We had a very Merry Christmas, the second one in our home & our sixth since Brandon & I have been together. After Brandon & I exchanged gifts in the morning, we hosted a Christmas dinner at our house. Our delicious spread included spiral ham, some bangin' homemade mac & cheese I made, Strawberry Jello Pretzel Salad (my favorite!), grilled pineapple with cinnamon, & green beans. After we stuffed our faces we headed out and played a round of Frisbee Golf. All in all it was a beautiful, fun day with family. 

Hope you all had a happy Christmas & cheers to 2015 (and my 25th Birthday eek!!) in just a few days! 

Just for fun here's some pictures from Christmas' past

2013

2012


Peace,
Allison 

Monday, December 8, 2014

life lately: december edition






still excited about my new haircut. 

making Christmas jars & deer pillows to round out our Holiday decor. 

thinking constantly about my sweet sister-in-law and her husband going through a terribly hard time after losing their sweet angel boy. Prayers requested. 

eating homemade lasagna, my first attempt that turned out delicious! 

drinking hot coffee and Caramel Brulee Lattes (my favorite!) at Starbucks.

reading Still Alice & just about to start Me Before You.

watching Gilmore Girls on Netflix & any and all Christmas movies on tv. 


looking through pictures from our Thanksgiving in Pittsburgh & looking forward to our first annual Ugly Sweater Christmas party. 

planning our outfits for the Ugly Sweater Christmas party (hoping they'll be epic!)

playing Cards Against Humanity & Loaded Questions (especially loaded when played with the Housholders!) with family at Thanksgiving. 

enjoying my new Schwinn road bike (Follow my rides on Instagram at #allisonrides) & our Christmas decorations & Tree that are up! 

feeling anxious for Christmas shopping because I haven't even started...

loving our Christmas tree all decorated & the Buffalo Plaid Hello sweatshirt that I got with their Black Friday deals. 

Check back in at the middle of the week for our Christmas Card this year! 

Peace, 
Allison 

with every christmas card I write...


Merry Christmas friends! This Holiday season has taken us by storm but thankfully I was on top of my Christmas card game this year and was able to order our cards at the end of November and got some great promo codes and discounts including one for free address labels that I personalized with our girl, Rhiley. 

I went with Shutterfly again this year (here's our cards from last year) because I really liked their cute designs this year and I know I can always scrounge up a good deal by combining multiple promo codes. For packaging, I added some red & white baker's twine to the middle even though it is already printed on the card, used our personalized Rhiley inspired address labels, and the leftover buffalo plaid washi tape from my Simple Washi Tape Clothespin Christmas Card Display. 

Overall, I love how they turned out! On the front, I used a picture from our Valentine's Day pictures last year and on the back, I gave a brief update on our 2014 year. 


Hope this Christmas Card finds you all well! I will be back later in the week with a little roundup of some of my Holiday DIYs from this year! 

Peace,
Allison 
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