The Waiting Place

I have always been waiting on some level throughout my life. Waiting to grow up, waiting for the perfect guy to marry, waiting for that life I dreamt up over many years, waiting to be down with school. I was waiting for the next biggest, best thing to achieve or have in my life. 
I was always just one step away from getting the next thing that would make me happy, complete, and full. In sense, its almost like for a portion of life I was waiting for my life to start.
Shauna Niequist says it so perfectly in her book, Cold Tangerines: "I don't want to wait anymore. I choose to believe that there is nothing more sacred or profound than this day. The big moments are the daily, tiny moments of courage and forgiveness and hope that we grab on and extend to one another. The big moments are in every hour, every conversation, every meal, every meeting."
I don't want my life to be defined by just waiting for the big moments, but I want it defined by the beauty and grace of every little moment of every single day. A lot of those things I waited and hoped for in life I now have: a real job, finishing school, financially independent, and a husband. As I waited for life to actually begin, I actually missed out on a lot. 
John Lennon is credited with saying, "Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans." For a long time, I was busy waiting for the next big moment in life to fill me up. It was years later before I saw how empty a way that is to live.
Now life is in a different waiting place, not the kind where you're waiting for next greatest event or thing. I am waiting on God. Waiting for His wisdom, clarity, and guidance in life. Waiting for Him to stir me and lead me. When you don't know what to do or where to turn, just wait on God. And in a certain way, that's what I am doing, just waiting on God.
A good chunk of life I spent waiting for life to start, and now life is in a different kind of waiting. A more peaceful, less busy type of waiting. Waiting on God right now is reminding me yet again the only person I can control is myself. 
Waiting on God is reminding me how He is in control and I am not. Waiting on God is reminding me my only dependance should be on Him. And between the two different types of waiting, I would much rather be in this current waiting place right now. 

Mrs. Fields Homemade Marble Cookies

SO excited to be a part of a fun series (A Blogger Family Cookbook) with my dear friend Emily. She just had her second little boy George (who is stinking adorbs!) and created a guest post series on favorite family recipes while she recovers and rests up.

Wander over to her neck of the interwebs today, to check out the newest addition to her Blogger Family Cookbook: Mrs. Fields Marble Cookies. Fair warning, they are pretty drool worthy! Now go show this lovely lady some love and be sure to check out her fun, new series!!! Happy browsing:)

Color Me Beautiful: How the Right Colors Change Your Style

Have you ever been shopping and tried something on that totally washes you out? Or maybe it just brings out the pasty whiteness of your skin (okay I'm talking to myself here) in an obnoxious way? Yeah those types of situations are the most frustrating for me when it comes to shopping.

I have been hearing a lot from different blogger on the books, Color Me Beautiful. The book helps you learn what colors look best for your skin tone to bring out your natural beauty by learning if you're warm or cool tone. Then you look to color palette based on the four seasons to determine and learn about what specific shades work best for you. If you're even remotely into things like makeup and fashion, I HIGHLY recommend you check out this book!! I was amazed how much I learned for myself as I am trying out a capsule wardrobe for the first time.
First, you need to figure out if you are a warm or cool tone. Understanding this concept is the whole key to this book's perspective. I learned I have a warm tone. Remember you're looking at your hair, eyes, and skin to help learn your tone. How did I arrive at that monumental conclusion? Hair color is one of the best ways to determine. I have natural golden highlights in my hair, which is an indication of warm. My eyes while blue lean toward green and also have gold flecks towards the most inner part of my eye.
You've identified yourself as warm or cool. Warm people are then broken down further either Springs or Autumns, and cool people are Summers or Winters. The further distinctions are to see if you're "light" or "deep." If your hair is blonde, light brown, or light red, you are "light." If your hair is brunette, dark red, or black, you are "deep." It's so easy from here:

• If you are cool and deep then you are a Winter.
• If you are cool and light then you are a Summer.
• If you are warm and deep then you are an Autumn.
• If you are warm and light then you are a Spring.

For me, I am warm and deep which makes me an Autumn. Brunette women with a golden or metallic red cast to their hair have Autumn coloring. Really the hardest part is discovering if you're warm or cool, and then its just nailing down the shade.

The most fun part is seeing the color analysis which tells you what particular shades work best for your skin tone. Here's what works best for me:

And that's it! Fun right? There are also section in the book on how the right colors can play into your skincare and makeup routines. 
Be sure to check out the book from your local library! It's a fun, easy read and really helpful!
Do you use any certain tricks to help you find the right colors for your style or makeup? What certain colors do you think work best for your hair/skin color?