Grateful Reminiscing and Looking Ahead

Hello, Berries!

It is the Saturday before finals week,

and I have no obligations today!

Well, none that are so urgent.

I have a paper to write

and an online course to finish,

but I do not have to leave my dorm home

to do either of those things.

Yay!

I'm thinking I'll heat up a can of soup

and watch the rain roll in.

I'm in my chair right now,

it hasn't gone home yet, thank goodness,

listening to a Walter Gross record.

I've got an old Disney movie in, too,

with the volume off.

I read chapter 3 of Colossians this morning

and wrote it down as I read it.

I find that helps the word stick better.

So, I found some pictures on my old laptop

of my home room that I was going to use on my blog

before that laptop crashed.

It woke back up from it's coma,

for some unknown reason that I won't question.

I'm so glad, because I love these pictures...

I was going to narrow them down,
but I love them all!
<3

What a beautiful new start that was,
getting to move.
New town.
New room.
New jobs.
New friends...

New furry friends, too!
As well as a furry edition to our family...

... Squirt!
=^.^=

I look forward to being home again,

out in the woods...

... out by the lake...

... or in my room with the fluffy family

and a cup of tea.

As for now,
I am in my dorm room,
all stark and plain from being robbed of the decorations
and most of the furniture.

This post has been a few days in the making,
since I had some trouble with Google drive.

I'm glad all that is solved!

It is Tuesday, now,
and I just completed my jury.
If you have ever been a music major,
you can testify as to how nerve- racking those things are!

I'm done with them now,
thank you, Jesus,
thus marking the near end of the semester.
I am done performing.
Maybe just for the year,
maybe forever.

I am so grateful to have spent
the last three years of my life here at the Valley.
I'm so grateful to have spent them here at South Hall...

I am so grateful to be leaving,
so grateful to be DONE,
to have accomplished a degree,
even one so insignificant as an associates.
I am so grateful to be moving on,
to be able to spend the summer at home,
working with my dad,
and at the shop,
working with my mom...

That is as far into the future that I can handle thinking about
right now...

Nonetheless,
I'm grateful for the adventure to come afterwards.

Thank you for reading.
I'll write again "afterwhile"
as my grandparents say.

(:

Until next time,
Lots of Love,

It's That Time Again

It's that time again...

Next week is the last week of classes here.

As for me, it's the last week of classes here for good.

A couple weeks ago

I started packing up.

The flowers were the first to say goodbye...

Followed by the fabric...

All of the decorations are gone, now:

Everything off the walls,

The breakables,

the extra tables,

the newly thrifted goods I've yet to show you...

My best friend walked in after I'd packed up and exclaimed,

"It's not magical anymore!"

Yep.

I've packed up the magic

to take it on home with me...

I have two weeks to say my goodbye

to South Hall,

my goodbye to the Fine Arts building,

my goodbye to the swing I'd often retreat to,

my goodbye to these sidewalks and streets

I've walked over for three years now...

Two weeks doesn't seem like enough time.

I don't want to say goodbye,

but this season is coming to an end,

and a new season is beginning to bloom...

I miss this place already...

What a bittersweet feeling-

this final farewell.

Until next time,

Lots of Love,

I'm a Blessed Little Blueberry

Happy April, Berries! <3

I'm thinking about starting monthly favorites posts...

Would you be into that?

Sounds like a lot of fun to me! ^.^

March was pretty spectacular.

I got to go home a few times,

which was amazing...

Before we go too into the present,

here are a handful of pictures from Christmas break,

way back, I thought I'd randomly share...

Okay, that's the end of the old photos!

Those are too cute not to have a spot on my blog!

Most especially the ones of the kitty cats.

=^.^=

I miss them when I'm gone...

I get the feeling they miss me to... ^.^

Itsa followed me around and slept on my lap when I sat down.

Kitties are the best; they make me feel loved <3

When I went home,

I finally got to enjoy unpacking and sorting through

all the boxes of goodies

from the shop...

... I decided what I was going to put straight into the shop

and what I was going to keep in my own room(s)

for a little while...

or maybe for a long while... >.<

In these pictures, you can see some of the cool things

from the shop that I kept:

The wooden bowls, tiny maroon flowers, pictures,

fabric and a music booklet in the top photo,

The picture of the girl in the photo above,

as well as the fake diamonds and whatever

this little poodle pin- cushiony thingy they're sitting on is...

... Some teeny little Avon bottles

and more flowers and diamonds...

... This painting of a ship...

...This lamp...

... Lots of neat little bits and bobs!

A lot of it will most likely go back into the shop

once I sell some other things and more space becomes available...

But, for now, these things will dress up my own room(s).

They have to take turns, though.

My closet is overflowing with decorations!

I'm going to have to pack up just about everything in my home room

when I move out of the dorm,

so I can start with a clean slate and figure out

the color palette I'm going to use...

My room at home is quite springy at the moment:

Lots of bright flowers and pastels,

whereas my room here at school is super warm:

Light- blocking curtains, deep reds and greens,

dark blues and oranges.

Drying roses.

Tarnished silver.

Old records.

I don't know which style I'm going to go with

when I get back home.

I'm probably gonna keep it springy,

then break out the deep colors when Autumn rolls around...

Boy, do I look forward to that!

But, let's just focus on the spring for now...

I graduate next month,

can you believe it?

Not even three years ago,

I just started thrifting

and getting really into decorating.

Now, at 21, I've got a cute lil' blog

and a place to sell antiques!

Oh, by the way,

the shop is coming along beautifully.

;)

There's a shabby chic room...

... A red retro room...

... A little coffee bar...

I'm so proud of my mum.

She sure is making the shop a special place.

It's definitely not your average antique shop,

and double definitely not your average thrift store.

My Fabulous Junk is simply one-of-a-kind...

I'm so excited to open!

That's a little ways off, though.

There is still a lot of work to be done.

Anyhoo,

let's finish this blog post up with a thrift trip!

:D

My mum got to come over last week

to go to the symphony with me.

We couldn't resist making a side trip to the Pumpkin Carriage place...

Ok, we stopped at a couple other places, too! >.<

The three Veggie Tales tapes above are from the Pumpkin Carriage,

as well as this find! A record of a Christmas special

with Frank and Bing!

I listened to side A yesterday

and finished it with a friend today.

It's very sweet. <3

I also picked up this record case from the Pumpkin Carriage place.

There are a couple more items I purchased for the shop

that I didn't bring back to my dorm with me:

a rug and two matching lampshades.

Because of the rug, the total was around $14.

Not bad for a rug, though, eh?

The next stop Mum and I made was Goodwill,

and, dude! I found a VHS tape I have been hunting for

for about a year now!

TADAAA! :D

Atlantis!

I remember loving this movie as a kid,

and I'm so stoked to have it again...

I picked up another addition to my Masterpiece collection, also.

That is all I found at Goodwill, worthy of the marked price.

The movies cost a dollar a pop,

which is not bad for a couple of classics!

Our final destination was an antique store...

Yeah, not a usual stop for us,

but we stopped anyway.

I got some nifty display ideas,

these pretty flowers for a dollar a piece,

and a little vintage compact mirror for... too much.

The mirror was actually $5.25, which isn't too bad

for an antique shop.

It is much more my style than the one that's

currently in my bag, so...

Okay, it was a moment of weakness!

XP

So many cute little things!

The blue, beaded tie below was 50 cents from a yard sale.

What a very cute little addition to a very cute little room! <3

Oh, how I enjoy it all...

What a sweet place to call home.

How blessed am I

to be able to have a home at all,

let alone a home filled with such beautiful things

and beautiful smells

and soft sheets

and a comfy bed...

All praise to you, my God,

all praise to you.

Thank you for giving me things to enjoy.

Let my hands and my heart be open for you to take away

if you ever need to...

Thank y'all for reading!

Let this be a reminder to thank the one who gives

and who takes away.

<Job 1:21>

Praise his name today.

(:

Until next time,

Lots of Love,