- This amazing family!
When I was 18 I moved to Jamaica, a tiny little island in the West Indies, and spent a hard but completely wonderful year working at a children's home on the west side of the island.
While there I nannied this little boy, who was then 2 years old. He taught be so much about what it means to love and care for someone, to fight for them. Daily I prayed that God would bring a forever family into his life. Shortly after I moved back to the States, his parents were able to adopt him and bring him home! They flew in to New York a few months later so he could be the ring bearer at my wedding. I hadn't seen him since.
Then last October they welcomed another child to the family, Kenroy's sister, Oneisha. Oh the joy and celebration! The highlight of this past weekend was being reunited with them, and watching them as a family, one of my favorite families!
God works in such wonderful and mysterious ways... His plans for these precious kiddos was so much better than I ever dreamed possible. Because of that, my heart is full.
2. The view from our deck
This view is always breathtaking, but especially so in the early autumn months when fog lingers over the lake and the leaves are fringed in shades of orange and yellow. Our deck is basically like a second dining room in our home. Every evening throughout the summer when the weather is nice we eat dinner out there, and even in to late September and early October we will most likely be out there, bundle up a bit warmer, but still enjoying it immensely. This is my favorite spot in our house.
3. The Rachel necklace
(Center tray) I recently become an ambassador for Noonday Collection. When my sample items arrived, I was immediately drawn to the simplicity of the silver and gold pieces and didn't pay much attention to the other, more colorful items or those made from paper beads. But then I heard the story behind that Rachel necklace, so I picked it up and tried it on. Since then I've worn it 3-4 times and really like it. It goes great with a black or chambray top, but I think it would pair well with stripes or autumn tones too.
Rachel is a lady who works with Noonday's artisan partners in Uganda. Before she found employment there, she was going to have to give her daughter, Olivia, up for adoption. She was very poor and was not able to provide for the two of them. Someone in the community heard about the situation and introduced Rachel to Jalia and Daniel, the owners of the Ugandan business. They hired her to make paper beads, which is very intricate work, done by rolling thin strips of paper tightly around a toothpick. The beads are used in many necklaces and bracelets sold by Noonday. From the income Rachel was able to earn, she can now support herself and her daughter Olivia.
The Rachel necklace is made from paper beads, seed beads, and ethically harvested bone. I love Noonday Collection because of the style of the products, but it is because of stories like this that I am so eager and passionate about sharing it will all of you.
Purchasing and wearing these pieces are truly impacting lives all over the world!
4. ThredUP
ThredUp is running a really fun promotion right now, where you can get $20 off your first order is you use this link. But the deal gets even better, because once you purchase something from ThredUp and share the link generated for you, you will also get rewarded with $20 in store credit whenever someone signs up under your referral link. I 'purchased' all of this without spending a penny, because of friends using the $20 promo off their first order. Unfortunately over half of these items are going back, because either they didn't fit or I simply didn't like them. But ThredUp offers free shipping on returned items if you are refunded by store credit, so I'm still not spending anything and I will have store credit for the next time I need something updated in my wardrobe. Try it, you can't lose.
What are you currently loving?
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