Springtime Favorites

Walks in my favorite park.

Long time, no blog! It’s nearly summer now, but I wanted to share a mini-recap of some of the things I’ve enjoyed this spring. I even made aesthetic vision boards for this season:

None of these photos were taken by me.

I don’t own any of these photos.

These images sum up the kind of woman I want to be as I walk through spring and into summer: active in my community and nature; living a slow-paced life; reading lots; rejoicing in and being grateful for the simple joys; nurturing my plants; listening to tons of music; playing instruments; connecting to Christ; having a healthy lifestyle overall.

Current Favorite Songs

• “Doubt (Demo)” by Twenty One Pilots • “Alesis” by Mk.gee • “One More Day” by Sons of Sunday • “What Was That” by Lorde • “I Lied to You” by Miles Caton (and the rest of the “Sinners” soundtrack) • “Sunset Blvd” by Selena Gomez & Benny Blanco

• “Traitor” by Olivia Rodrigo • “Famous Last Words” by My Chemical Romance

I’m also super stoked for new records coming soon from Yungblud (June 20), Lorde (June 27), and both Twenty One Pilots and Tom Odell (Sept. 5, my birthday 🥺💜).

My Reading List

The amount of books I’m in the middle of reading right now is ungodly. I have had to fetch and/or make an insane amount of bookmarks because I’ve been reading so much. The above titles are some of the ones I’m working through. I’m also looking forward to reading the newest Hunger Games prequel, the latest book in the Court of Roses series and more. My full 2025 reading list can be found here.

Other Obsessions

• “Sinners” (which I’ve seen twice now) • “Schitt’s Creek” (which I finished for the first time recently, so good!) • Park walks • Running • Reading poetry to heal the soul • Taking care of plants • Video games • Choosing to be the healthiest version of myself • “Stranger Things” • Family • Green juice

What about you? What favorite things have you enjoyed this spring?

You wanna sink, so I’m gonna let you,

Way Down Yonder on the Chattahoochee

This past weekend was one of the best I've had all year.

My mom, my sister, two of my cousins and I rented out an Airbnb for the weekend to get away from it all.

The house was all windows with a huge kitchen, high cielings, and an expansive patio out back leading to a dock right on the water. It wasn't unlike the Cullens' house in the "Twilight" series, the first film of which we indulged in on Saturday night while eating enormous slices of local-made pizza, delicious mozerella sticks, and garlic-laden French fries. 

Other trip highlights: Country music jams in the car; spontaneous ice cream (I got a blueberry cheesecake flavor with cheesecake bits!!); late night talks about some of our most embarassing moments; banding together to kill a large bug that had snuck into the house; and making friends with a small yellow cat that found its way onto the front porch.

One of my goals as 2024 winds down and 2025 (how?!) begins is to spend some time reviving this blog.

I miss it. I miss how creative and joyful I feel when I pay attention to it. I haven't had a lot of great things to write about lately, but this trip was a bright spot, and I wanted to share it. I hope to get back into the swing of blogging more often, even if it's just for me. I even unearthed my Canon Rebel a few days ago. More to come - soon, hopefully!

Do you have any fun plans for the rest of the year, especially as the holidays approach?

Let's go girls,

The Honeymoon Adventures, Pt. 1

This post is going to be about my honeymoon, but I have to preface it by saying: waking up on your wedding day is a weird feeling. The night before mine, walking through the ceremony with family and friends at the rehearsal dinner, I was more nervous than I have ever been. The next morning, though, I pulled on a pair of checkered pants and ate toast at a local diner with my parents, somewhat subdued, even though it was The Day. Then when the wedding was over, it was finally time to travel.

For our honeymoon, Peter and I ventured to Savannah, GA and Asheville, NC.

Our honeymoon was a supreme road trip, up from central Florida over to Savannah for a night, then continuing onto a remote cabin just outside of Asheville for the remaining nights. Because of all the driving, there was also a lot of music, and because there was a lot of music, I decided to write down my favorites from the songs that we played. I have included the tracks in a playlist at the bottom of this post!

The hotel we stayed in Savannah was called the Hyatt Regency, and it was right on the water.

Our room had a view of all the boats down along the river, and right below was (the aptly named) River Street. Because of all the traveling, we were too tired to explore Savannah extensively upon arrival, but we brought food in from Olympia Café, a fantastic Greek restaurant. 

The next morning, we sleepily emerged from our hotel room to go look around downtown Savannah.

I did not know, but Savannah is something of a walking town, so we walked the streets to get from place to place. We happened upon an adorable breakfast spot called Goose Feathers Café, and settled in at the window seat. I got a cup of orange juice and something called an Eggel Bagel(!) with avocado.

I wish we had had more time to explore Savannah before heading to our cabin in Asheville, and I definitely want to go back. There were a lot of cute shops we spotted on our walk that morning that weren't open before we had to leave for the next leg of our journey. I would definitely recommend Savannah, even though we experienced precious little of what it had to offer.

Please ignore the dumpsters lolol.

Our travels took us over a large bridge and through dense woods, and eventually we arrived (up the side of a mountain - big deal for a FL gal) at the cabin in North Carolina. The cabin had an adorable front porch, a loft bedroom, a hot tub outside, and a hammock. I already miss it, and the crisp mountain air that is infinitely preferable to the constant humidity we have here near the coast.

We spent a lot of time in the cabin cooking (Peter), reading (both of us), and eating store-bought macarons with abandon (me).

I could definitely see myself living in a cabin someday. It was just so green and peaceful - save for the times that the tree branches surrounding the house would creak so furiously against the roof that we thought someone was trying to break in. Save for that. 

 I have more adventures from our time in Asheville to share, but I will save them for the second part of this post, which I hope to finish drafting next week.

Until then, here is the playlist of the songs I jotted down from our honeymoon travels (basically a love letter to The Spring). I made an Acoustic Erin Spotify where you can listen to them, and will be updating it with more honeymoon tunes next week. I hope to add more playlists for y'all to listen to as time goes on. I also started a blog Instagram, which you can find here.

And now an interlude from my husband, who will be writing fun footnotes to my posts for the time being (click here to read the first installment).

~Peter's Paragraph No.2~

Hello all! Recently, I became interested in flash fiction. "What is that?" you ask. Well, it's short fiction stories, usually 3,000 words or less. I started writing some in the hopes to get published on a small-scale website, but then I thought to myself, "Why not make a website of my own?" This has been something Erin has been encouraging me to do in the recent months and I realized creating a flash fiction website would be a good hobby to have. So, yours truly has created The Creative Anecdote, a website of flash fiction that believes in paying for creators' works. The prizes may be cheap, but hey, it's being funded by me right now. If you like the idea, please follow us on Instagram (@thecreativeanecdote) and join our mailing list on our website. Just by doing that, you are supporting something that helps support others! Love you all. 

And there you go, that is the post! Have you guys ever been to Savannah or Asheville? Where have your summer travels taken you to?

Missing the woods,

E

VOICE | Finding Peace in All the Noise

"Hey, God has you." 

It's the short text sent from an Asheville airport that finds me in an exhale. My father, hundreds of miles away and experiencing anxiety of his own, sends the text anyway.

God has you.

When circumstances change or our emotions run rampant, it can be hard to find peace. When demanding deadlines and confusing questions fill our days, it can be difficult to slow down enough to remember Who is behind it all, weaving beauty into our lives and sprinkling little joys throughout our days. Butterflies and birds soaring and someone sharing cake in the break room. A bouquet of carnations and a Switchfoot song to sing at the top of your lungs.

I went for a walk in the woods this week to get away from the noise.
To be present in nature, even if just for a little while.

This week, the Lord has been whispering to me about peace: "Trust in Me. I've got you." I'm learning that I don't need to know what lies ahead and that when my own anxious thoughts try to solve everything and see the end of my story when I'm still at the start, there is One who speaks to me in a soft VOICE.
He tells me to take it one day at a time.

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.
Each day has enough trouble of its own."
- Matthew 6:34

I want to put this VOICE first. Sometimes it can be hard to hear Him, when I'm so focused on my own thoughts, the blare of social media, the magazines I read, the lyrics I listen to.

I need to carve out more quiet spaces devoid of technology,
media and other people to really hear Him.

I'm not there yet, but I'm on my way. And in case you were wondering, or maybe in the midst of it all you've found you've forgotten: Hey, God has you.

What about you?

What do you do to unplug from the craziness and spend quiet time with God?
Any tips for taking time away from technology (it's such a distraction)!
Hope you all are having a wonderful April.

Miss last week's VOICE post? Check it out here.
Or click here to read all of the posts in the VOICE series.
Talk to you soon!

NOURISH | What I Learned From Hiking the Appalachian Trail

One of the most spontaneous decisions I've ever made was to hike the Appalachian Trail. It happened like this: My father and sister had hiked the AT before me, driving up to Georgia to walk in the woods for days at a time. They were getting ready for the next leg of their trip, and there was just enough time for me to jump in, grab my sister's old pack and join them. No training, no hiking shoes, just a backpack, a bandana, some old trainers and the wilderness. (Ok, and granola. There was a lot of granola.) So...I jumped.  I was scared, nay, terrified. But also, refreshed.

My father hatched the idea for this post, which I share with you in honor of this month's theme, NOURISH.

Hiking the trail has taught me many, many lessons, like the necessity of procuring a trusty walking stick and how much I undervalue having hot water on the daily when I'm home. But it's also taught me a few things about life and nourishing my soul, which I share with you here.

What I Learned From Hiking the Appalachian Trail

We have more than enough.

Hiking the trail with only a backpack, I quickly realized: 1. Just how heavy it is to carry even a few belongings around, and 2. We have SO MUCH stuff. When I'm out hiking, I don't crave possessions as much as I miss the warmth of the indoors and (of course) my mom. But being on the AT also makes you realize just how much we constantly have things (from coffee mugs to vanilla bean candles to a stack of library books) on hand when we need them. You don't need that much in the woods, and it's kind of lovely.

That being said...I need the trees.

I am a woods person. Living close to the beach, I have always appreciated the sea but pined for pine trees. Getting out into the woods and walking through the forest each day was one of the most calming experiences ever. The stillness of the forest isn't something I get to experience in my daily life and it's both haunting and humbling. There is a quiet majesty to the woods that has my heart. 

Ditto the mountains, the sky, the stars. The things you see when you're up in the mountains is unreal. You can spend days hiking for views that you wouldn't otherwise have had access to because hiking through the AT is the only way to see them. It makes you feel accomplished and exhausted in the best possible way. Away from technology, seeing the sky and crazy expansive views just makes my heart sing.

I need to feel small.

It is so easy for me to focus on myself and forget that outside the comfort of my air-conditioned home, there is a huge, natural world waiting to be explored. The trees nourish my soul and I remember many times just talking to God as I walked. It's a way to feel closer to Him by being in the creation He established long before buildings and technology gave us the lives we have today. It's nice to feel my problems pale in comparison to this huge, wonderful world full of people and trees that our big God has made.

Our lives are hectic.

This became immediately clear to me once my only task was to wake up, prepare food, take down camp and walk. That was it - my entire day's agenda was to walk, to eat. To nourish my soul and my body. There is so much unnecessary chaos and clutter that comes with our lives and getting out into the forest helps remove you from that.

What about you?

I spent some time walking in the park yesterday and I feel like I got a small-scale sense of peace that I do when I'm immersed in the woods. What makes you feel at peace? Do you have any favorite nature spots or places that calm you down? Thanks for reading!

Miss last week's NOURISH post? Check it out here!
Or click here to browse through all the posts in the NOURISH series.

On Pursuing a Simpler Life

I want a simpler life.

Sitting in church or walking along the edge of the sea, I feel it, the pull to step away from the madness, the noise, the technology. Especially around Christmastime, our lives can become cluttered with lists of things we need to do or buy. Traffic gets crazy. People get impatient. I crave peace.

But it's not just the coming of Christmas.
It's the desire to have more by having less.

This morning's church service has me thinking about what fills my time, pulls at my attention. Am I spending time sitting and reading God's Word? Or am I looking for the next distraction? Pretty convicting stuff. It sharpened the growing sense that I've been having of the desire for simplicity. The desire to carve out a life for myself that values time with family and Christ more than distraction. That values quiet time.

What does the simple life look like?

In theory, this could look different for everyone. But for me, in these last days of December and soon in 2019, I hope they look like more time spent with my Bible and in prayer and less on checking notifications and thinking about aesthetics, self. My simple life would include a lot more time having conversations with people I love and care about, writing by hand, taking nature walks, and spending more time in the moment than worrying about documenting it. More instruments, less internet.

What about you?

Do you have any goals that you are working towards for 2019?
And what would your ideal simple life look like?
Hope you are having a non-chaotic Christmas, friends! ♥

What I Learned From Spending Time Offline

Hello, friends. I hope you all had a great weekend!

Lately I've been trying to spend my weekends as offline as possible. (Hence more of a tumbleweed-zone around the blog, my bad, my bad.) I owe this in large part to my lists. I've always loved to write lists - lists about my favorite things, lists about books I want to read, grocery lists, you name it. But I also love to write lists about my goals and how I can improve the quality of my day to day life. A recurring theme? GET OFFLINE.

I don't know about you, but the more time I spend online, the more I turn into a less than desirable version of myself. As in, I start falling into the trap of comparison and end up wasting time and draining myself. #Bleh

As amazing a tool as the Internet can be, for me, it can also be harmful. So I've been trying to unplug as much as possible starting each week after work on Friday. This isn't always easy, but I've been largely attempting to avoid social media and instead spend more time in the real, physical world.

Side-Effects of Living an Offline Life

More coffee shops. The beauty of being online is that you can have community without having to speak, but the same thing can be true of coffee shops. Writing and reading over an iced green tea while listening to good tunes and the sounds of people all around you = instant inspiration and peace.


More Jesus. My prayer life definitely gets stronger when I'm not focusing as much on notifications or comparing myself to people on the 'Gram.

More reading. My number one go-to when I can't be online? Reading books. Take some time to unplug and grab a good book. Depending on the book, it can feel like an instant adventure.

More walks, more tea, more music...More everything, really.

What about you?

What are your thoughts on spending time offline? (You know, this is all very ironic, since I love keeping up this blog and I can't do that without the Internet.) What are your favorite things to do in real life? Any tips for unplugging?

Have a great Monday and start to your week, friends. You've got this.

Unplugging: How Do You Live the Slow-Paced Life?

Hi, friends!

I hope you all had a restful three-day weekend! Me and my Mom hightailed it to the writing cabin this weekend for running, reading and relaxing. (And also listening to the new Taylor Swift album, which I can confidently say is a SOLID BOP.) Being away from my usual tech-filled surroundings for a little bit has got me thinking even more about social media and what it means to live a slow-paced life.

Here's What I've Learned:

I rely on technology a lot for entertainment. Being away from a stable internet connection made me realize just how much I am always checking my notifications. Like, constantly. Being without the internet forced me to do things that I usually tell myself I don't have the time for - like writing my novel (*ahem*), reading, taking walks, reading the Word and going for a run.

Doing nothing is underrated.

Often I feel like I have to be productive or doing something meaningful at all times, but there's something to be said for just recharging. It reminds me of this verse:



Contemplating clouds and counting your blessings sound like such cliche ways to unwind, but these are a couple of things that made this weekend so peaceful and whole.

Also, a salted caramel cookie skillet from Outback. WOWZA

It's okay not to share everything. Living slow-paced for a couple of days showed me just how plugged-in and update-hungry I am sometimes. I don't need to share everything, nor do I always need to know what everyone else is up to! It's fun to share, of course, but there is also something blissful in relishing a moment and forgetting about the online world...

...because the offline world can be a pretty amazing place, too. On Saturday I went for a run on a nature trail and I didn't see a single person, only one solitary deer hiding in the trees. (Same.) I found myself praising God for the sky and the trees and mornings. Nature is such a wonderful re-energizer. ♥

What about you?

Do you have a favorite way to decompress from the fast-paced life? Are you reading anything awesome currently? Have you listened to Taylor Swift's new album yet? ONCE AGAIN, IT'S A BOP

On Distractions: The Love and Lure of Social Media and the Interwebz

Hi, friends!

I probably shouldn't be blogging right now because of NaNoWriMo (updates to come), but yo, I HAVE SOME THOUGHTS. Ironically, they are on social media and the internet, the two things that probably have the most potential to derail my NaNo process this November.

Actual Footage of My Writing Process:

7:03 a.m. Hmm, I should write. I should just get my thoughts out in the open before any other distractions hit me today.

7:06 a.m. *sits down at computer* Look at me, I'm a writer. I'M WRITING

7:08 a.m. Ooh, just a quick internet search for Research Purposes Only. *checks Twitter*

7:11 a.m. Okay, okay, back to writing.

7:12 a.m. *checks blog* *scans Pinterest*

10:00 pm. *cries*

Yo, the internet can be a real temptation. But it's not just that social media and the interwebz are a distraction to my writing (and probably a lot of yours as well), but it's also the fact that they can become such easy ways for me to entertain myself when I don't have anything else to do.

I've been thinking about this a lot lately. I've been thinking about how much time I spend blogging, writing my next post, posting on Instagram, creating an aesthetic, using social media to its Full Potential, etc., etc. It's exhausting.

And that's not even to speak about the comparison issues that can come along with social media or updating your life on the internet.

I just want to be in the mountains, the woods.

For me, one great way to remedy internet overkill is TO GO OUTSIDE. I know it seems like a simple and obvious solution, but there is so much richness to be found in the physical world. The earth, the trees, the sun, the sky. The stars! All of it. I want to stand in awe of God and His creation more than I contemplate myself and social media.

I was going to pepper this post with tips and how-to's,
but yo, I don't have it all figured out.

I am still learning what unplugging and taking time away from the computer, the internet, social media and even my novel looks like. What a slow-living, park-walking, Bible-reading Erin looks like, and how she can better serve others around her.

What about you?

Do you ever get tired of technology? I'm there, my friends. I HAVE HIT MAXIMUM INTERNET CAPACITY. Any tips for unplugging? Thanks for reading!