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Highlight of the Week
This past Thursday was my birthday! And not just any birthday, but kind of a big one (I guess). I turned 30 years old this week! I’m still not 100% sure how I feel about that number, but I do know that I woke up Thursday morning & did not feel any different. (Remember the days when you’d have a birthday & people would ask you, “SO? Do you feel older?” The answer is: no, I still feel the same.)
I was supremely blessed with cards & birthday wishes & flowers & gifts & surprises and Derrick took me to dinner at the Grand Concourse in Station Square. It was a delicious meal – we sat & overlooked the Pittsburgh skyline and savored every minute – it was such a delightful evening!
Yes, This Happened
- But probably the best part of my birthday on Thursday – I got a new washing machine! (If that doesn’t officially label me as an “old person” I don’t know what does!) I’ve been mentioning here & there for the last few weeks about our washing machine not working – I’ve been carting laundry back & forth from my Mom’s house (it is literally an all-day event) while we waited from someone to come out & “fix” our washing machine (“I’m sure it’s just a simple sensor!” “Or just a loose wire, or something” “Yeah!”) Finally, on Tuesday, the guys from Samsung came out to look at our washing machine & they came up with a diagnoses of, “We aren’t 100% sure what’s wrong with it.” Insert squinty-serious-angry face here. They had ruled out all of the “easy” problems (the sensors, the balance, the filter being clogged, the motor) and basically they said that the only thing left to go bad was the main control board. So, by process of elimination, that was their diagnosis. Replacing the main control board was going to be quite pricey – basically the same price as buying a whole new washing machine – so, you can guess what we did. Derrick called our local appliance store here in Irwin that afternoon, and by Thursday, it was in our house (thanks to my Dad & brother picking it up for us!!) I never thought I would say this: but I was so thankful to do laundry yesterday!! We were going on 10-days without laundry, so I had a mountain, but it was amazing to put it in & walk away, and be able to do other things around my house that needed to be done!! I am SO thankful that we were able to use my parent’s washing machine over the last few weeks while we weren’t sure what was wrong with ours, but now I am even MORE thankful to have a brand new beautiful washing machine of my own.
- It’s been a crazy busy week. If you look at my calendar, it’s a mess of color-coded “appointments” – it’s been a bit insane. To top it all off, I’ve been editing my eye-balls out, trying desperately to get caught up (newsflash, I didn’t quite make it, but I am really proud of the work I accomplished & feel good about the place I’m at). I have to say, I’m definitely looking forward to next week when my calendar is (almost) empty!!
- My sister Ellen took our family photos this week!! Tuesday evening was the most gorgeous night & we had so much fun!! She’s already posted a few sneak peeks over on her Facebook page & I just LOVE them!! (The process I did not love was picking out cohesive, non-matchy, cute outfits for the 4 of us! I thought it was tricky as a family of 3, it’s next level SO HARD as a family of 4!! My resident fashion expert (and sister), Emma, helped me out though & I’m super happy with the end result!
- We got haircuts this week (the day after our family photos – oh well, next time we’ll think thru that a little better) & I am SO happy to have my bangs back!! This might sound really silly to you, so feel free to skip this paragraph! But, I’ve been growing my bangs out since early this year. I decided: why not? Let’s do something different! So, I started to grow them out, and at first, it was great & exciting. But then, it just became a huge annoyance. I just kept putting the annoyance aside though & waiting for the magical day when I could push them behind my ears & all would be right in the world again. WRONG. Even once I reached that point, I still hated them & hated how I looked. I wanted my bangs back. Looking for confirmation, I posted on my Instagram, asking there if I should chop them off or keep plugging along with them & the overwhelming response was that “You’ll grow to love them – don’t cut them!” So, I waited a few more weeks, and I was like, PSH Instagram – I still hate them! So, I had them chopped off on Wednesday, and I must say: I LOVE IT.
- It’s still For the Love of Deep Creek’s launch week (thus this week’s Abby’s Saturday photo!) Go read my post about it here & then go follow along on the socials – Jess is giving away t-shirts today – go win one!!
Feeling Blessed
I second shot a wedding yesterday – I haven’t second shot a wedding in forever! I was trying to think back to the last time I was a second shooter, and I honestly can’t remember! (I shot a winter wedding with Ellen back in 2017 – I think that was it!) I worked for my sweet friend Jessica from down at the Lake yesterday!! It was so much fun to work alongside her! And so, after yesterday, I’m totally pumped up for today – it’s Danielle & Tyler’s wedding day!! It’s going to be the most perfect, amazing day (you literally could not ask for better weather!!) and I am SO excited!! Check back here later this coming week for highlights of their day!
