A Picture’s Worth A Thousand Words

Hey! Thanks so much for joining me today! I hope you had a great week and that you’re having a great day!

Today is the first day of May. You may not be reading it on the first, but that’s the day it’s posted. And the month of May brings something new and different to the blog.

There isn’t a holiday or change of season for me to post a new bulletin board or decoration set up from work. And I’ve had this idea for a little while, so I thought it would be a good time to try it out.

For the month of May, I want to take a picture every day. And not a selfie. I want to take pictures of things I see out and about, or just things that make me smile. It could be a flower, a random sign, Diesel, food, or any other random thing. But I want to just have a collection of pictures for the month that remind me of things that I like and that bring a sense of happiness or joy.

As today is only the first day of May, so I haven’t taken any of my May pictures to post, I had to think of a way to create an actual blog post for you to read. What better way to kick off a picture blog series than with some pictures? So, I’ll put in some pictures I already have that make me smile, and we’ll get this series started, how about that?

Apple fritters. Honestly, these are probably the best things I’ve ever eaten. They are at the Apple Barn in Tennessee, and I’m in love.

When I was younger, my grandparents and aunt and uncle would go on summer trips together. One of the places they would go was Tennessee. And when they got back from vacation, I would go stay with my mamaw and papaw for a couple weeks. Mamaw always brought back the mix to make apple fritters. When I would wake up to the smell of her frying those amazing balls of dough, I knew it was going to be a good morning.

I had always wanted to go to the Apple Barn myself. So, for my thirty-first birthday last year, my family (twelve of us) rented a cabin in Tennessee. Before even getting to the cabin, my parents, brother, and I stopped at the Apple Barn so I could eat there for my birthday. I finally got to eat apple fritters straight out of the kitchen of the restaurant I kept hearing about. They were beyond my dreams and I could have eaten way more than I did.

I have made my own apple fritters at home now, from the box mix you can buy there. Frying was scary the first time, but I did it. And mine turned out pretty good. Not as good as Apple Barn’s, but I wouldn’t send them back.

This one is two-fold. I love foxes. AND I wood burned this fox on that piece of wood. It’s so cute and I love it. And even though a friend of mine says I should let people think I freehanded it, I absolutely did not freehand it. I made a stencil and then used carbon paper to put the design on the wood before I took my pyrography pen to it.

Wood burning is a fun hobby that I’m still really new at, but it’s been fun to learn. It’s been fun to make things for myself, and for my family. I have even burned a little something for my coworkers back for Valentine’s Day. I have far from perfected it, but I enjoy it.

And foxes are just . . . Well, look at it. It’s the cutest! I love foxes. I have various fox things on display in my room because I just fell in love with them and wanted to have them where I could see their cute little faces all the time.

Oh, my sweet boy. I feel like I really could write an entire blog post about how much I love my sweet Diesel. He has brought so much joy into my life the last (almost) eight years. He also causes some annoyance and frustration, but I wouldn’t trade my fur baby for anything.

This picture makes me smile because Diesel is just chilling on my bed next to me. Sometimes he likes to be near me, but he also likes his alone time (same), so I relish in the moments he just wants to be with me.

They say that a cat’s purr can help with anxiety. And I believe that. There are times, when I feel anxious, that Diesel will voluntarily cuddle with me and his purr does seem to help a lot.

I just love him, you guys. This cat is my little pride and joy.

Random, right? My feet in shoes. These are new shoes. They replaced ones that Echo (one of our dogs) chewed up. And for some reason, I just love these shoes. They’re comfy, and I just love the look of them.

Yes, it is daunting to have mostly white/light shoes. But I like them. And, oddly, I like the way my feet look in them. Does that sound weird? I don’t even really know how to explain it, but I like the shape of the shoes and how my feet look when I wear them.

This picture represents more than just a fire for me. This fire represents friendship. A friendship that is forming in a weird time for me. And it came at the best possible time.

Yesterday, my friend Rosalyn spontaneously decided to have a bonfire, and asked if me, and our friend Sarah, wanted to come over. I jumped at the chance of a spontaneous night of just hanging out and spending time with them. Sarah was a little later in arriving because of previously agreed to plans, but she made it. And the three of us had a blast talking and laughing around the fire. And even before Sarah got there, Rosalyn and I had a blast hanging out.

I had so much fun. And I am so blessed to have these girls in my life. And having people to spontaneously text to hang out is something I just really love having in my life.

I don’t know what kind of pictures you’ll see next week. But if all goes accordingly, there will be seven pictures for your viewing pleasure.