Sunday Gratitude (for naps)

// 1. My Sound Career has arrived. As has the fear. // 2. This pigeon escort me to the park. // 3. Bowl of morning joy. // 4. Enjoyed Korean treats at a Parisian bakery. Yes, you read that right. // 5. Family wedding in Chicago. // 6. Reverent, whisical church windows.

Happy Sunday People.
I honestly didn't realize it was Sunday until about an hour ago. This week has been BUSY and this weekend we took a whirlwind 20-hour trip to Chicago for a family wedding (congrats, Sean & Nicki!) Hence the disorientation on the day/time. Oh hence. This was a grand day for a nap.

Gratitude.
It was a joy to see some extended family this weekend. I've been living in NYC for a month now (can you believe it?!) and I've largely spent my time alone. Not in a creepy way, but I'm just new in town. I've been attempting to get a lot of things off the ground, work-wise, which often feels like a lonely kind of hustle. I'm thrilled with it, but it's also a strange experience, being in this city brimming with bodies and spending a lot of the day not speaking to anyone. Seeing family this weekend kind of filled in the gaps a bit. Stevie's cousins are so funny and silly and just COMFORTABLE and I love spending time with them. You know when you can just be yourself with some people? Well, it's hard to be anything else with these folks. Hence the adult-sized Christmas onesies, any of you remember?

Now I'm off to babble monologues to myself. Wish me luck in my attempts to memorize. I've got some casting directors to wow (?) this week!

Sunday Gratitude.

// When hydrangeas wilt you know it's summer's end. Oh Labor Day. //

Sunday.
Today I woke up to a hilarious text message from my sister. I guess she knows I've been a bit homesick (our recent snapchats have consisted of me, sending puppy faces, mourning faces, and fake-crying faces. Often these go without response.) However, she texted with a sisterly, all-knowing, "If you're homesick, here ya go!" The text included a video of my family at home on this fine day. My mom making breakfast, my Dad misunderstanding everything she was saying, and my cousin (who is pretty much a sister), glaring at Rachel, inquiring, "Why are you video-ing this? Are you taking a video??" Pretty much priceless. That kind of chaos is specifically Spencer-branded. There is no other family (that I know) that scrumptiously blends sarcasm, compassion, movie quotes and fervent prayer into such a wonderfully warm haven of laughter. It was just a comforting way to wake up. Realizing that even though I'm far away from "home" these days, the same kind of pattern is still happening there... and that just makes me happy. My goofy insane family is the same as ever. Somehow it cured a bit of my home-sickness. How? I have no idea. Sometimes the heart just needs a tiny taste of home.

Thankful for my sweet family today. What are you and your family up to this Labor Day weekend? I hope you are able to spend time together (labor-free), grilling out and laughing to your heart's content. Enjoy this end-of-summer celebration weekend!

Sunday Gratitude.

// View of the San Remo from the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir in Central Park. //

Grateful.
I started running again.

It's been a bit busy around my new home. Building. Cleaning. Unpacking. Overwhelming. I realized I needed to get out and get a bit un-focused. So I started running in my new hood. And wow. I am blessed. There is something fantastic to look at each and every moment.

I know the month of August is more than half over, but I only just realized that we're in the month of August yesterday. That's how crazed my mind has been. Downloading this darling calendar from Rebekka Seale has helped me appreciate the bits of the month that are left. It's like receiving a virtual bouquet of seasonal bliss.

I've been re-grouping and prepping for the week ahead. It's time to take action, get my work plan initiated, and engage this city with all that I have. My expectations for me are stacked to the Heavens. I have to remember to take a deep breath and give myself time to adapt to the new surroundings. The new surroundings make me marvel.

Thankful today for a husband who is as crazy nomadic as I am. Thankful for my new little home. Thankful for the sun coming through my window. And thankful for excellent Thai takeout that delivers 24 hours a day!

I love New York!

Sunday Gratitude

Well hello friends. I hope your weekend has been swell. And sunny. There are a lot of reasons I have to be thankful on this fine Sunday.

Brunch // I had a spectacular brunch today with the crew from Progressive Palate. While we didn't progress in the traditional sense of the word (we remained in one steady location this time), we certainly forged ahead in plans for the future. Our combined travel itineraries for the summer span across the globe and I had a ridiculous amount of fun learning kitchen secrets from the in-house Roman-trained chef. Needless to say, the frittata was to die for. Be on the lookout this week for my recipe for Mango Coconut Baked Oatmeal. It was a real crowd pleaser.

Plans // Stevie and I have been developing our Euro trip plan, and it's really starting to take shape. More to come on the planning progress later in the week, but I am very pleased (let's be honest, I am over the moon enthusiastic) about this month-long adventure we are about to embark upon!

Weather // This is the biggie. I've whined A LOT about the cold dark Cambridge winter we've had (evidence here, here and here, most notably) but I am happy to announce that spring has really and truly sprung. Everything is in peak bloom right now and the streets of Cambridge look all gussied up and ready for a wedding. The trees have stretched their bare arms into the sky and have pulled the sunshine down into their roots. Suddenly tiny, wondrous buds have blossomed and I can't believe it was ever as icy as my pictures indicate. I am happy to share some photographic treats of this beauty. You deserve it, since you endured my bad weather attitude.

Oh the Glory.
I have so much to be thankful for today. So many wonderfully pregnant friends and family. Exotic travels in the near future. An anticipated move to a new city at summer's hazy end. And these beautiful flowers blooming all around, reminding me of life's sweetest, most progressive season.

Enjoy a moment for gratitude today.

Sunday Gratitude

Happy Easter! I hope your holiday weekend was marvelous. I'm a little sad that I wasn't able to be with my amazingly fun family for this holiday, but I am reminding myself of all the reasons why I am grateful to be here in Boston (aside from the fact that JESUS IS ALIVE!) I have a wonderful life up here in New England, but occasionally, I just miss being home and curling up with my mom and eating her signature popcorn. And laughing at my dad's shenanigans. With my pretty sisters. But as I sit here with a lovely glass of wine (and a pile of laundry to fold), I am remembering my week and celebrating how great it was. There is always something to celebrate, even if you are a little homesick.

My Week in Pictures:

// NYC presents in the mail from my favorite engaged friends, Meredith and Warren! // Tea Party and Bridge (yes, I know how "The Help"-esque that sounds) // Goldendoodle puppy I chased down the street. His name is Stanley. Pretty sure his owner thought I was hitting on him. // Google car! I posed. // Acting website is in progress... // Easter bike ride through Beacon Hill //

It's been a great week and I have even more to look forward to this upcoming week. Stay tuned for acting news, my adventures at Disney World and touring Massachusetts castles with my super pregnant BFF :-) Life is sweet.

Sunday Gratitude

There is no other way to put it. This has been a wild week. I've been scurrying around Boston town attending auditions and workshops in the thick white snow that paid us a very long visit mid-week. It snowed torrentially for two days straight until the sky opened up to the sunshine yesterday. Which led to incredibly fast melting ice. I slipped and almost cracked my head on an iced, cobblestone sidewalk. It's a wild world out there.

My Week in Pictures.

// Beer Sampler at John Harvards // Strange relic at the Somerville Movie Theater // Submitted My Sister for a Model Casting Call, perhaps without her knowledge... // They have honey-graham flavored yogurt at Berryline! //

Reflection.
I find that when my life has become so jam-packed with to-do's that I forget to meditate on what is truly important. Everything gets lost in the rushed fog. And then I forget what even happened all week long! Does this happen to anyone else? It's like, I know I was busy, but what in the world was I doing? Sitting down and intentionally reflecting on the week really helps me maintain perspective.

This week, I am thankful for my dreams. I have spent a long time shelfing certain dreams, thinking that maybe, one day, I'll reach up and perhaps pull that one down and have a look at it. But the truth is, I feel that dream looking down at me from the shelf, its eyes begging me to give it a chance. Even when I think that I am in control of it, it's been nagging at my heart and my heart has a big expressive mouth, so I never hear the end of it. Alas. I am only beginning, but I have been doing my best to pull my dreams off of that shelf, shake off their age-old dust and give them a shot. I have no idea if I'm doing it the right way, but I am at least trying, and Dreams are the motivator. Dreams drive those to-do lists and busy schedules. If they aren't the fuel behind my everyday life, I find that I am easily tired out and apathetic. So, this week, though I haven't really anything to show for them (yet!), I am thankful for my God-given dreams and their potential.

Do you have one specific dream that you have purposely said "No" to over and over again? Does it (in a non-creepy way) haunt you a bit when you think of what could become of it? I dare you to take a long look at it this week. Really consider all its beautiful potential. There is no one in the world exactly like YOU, so cherishing those dreams and taking baby steps toward them is something that no one else can do. It's up to you. In the words of one of my favorites, "Dream on, dream until your dreams come true."

Sunday Gratitude

The nicest thing happened today.

I woke up this fine Sunday morning to a phone call from my husband. He left early to help with church set up, so he was out of the house before I even stirred. Our church is a quick walk from our building (I like to tease that we are very convenient Christians), so even though it's not too far, the early hour mixed with the cold makes it quite the morning sacrifice. Ok I lied. It would be a sacrifice to me, but he actually likes helping out. Imagine that. He is clearly the better one between the two of us. So, like I was saying, he called me this morning and I figured it was because he left something or needed something or something. Shame on me. He was calling to ask if he could bring me Starbucks. You did not misread. Starbucks for my morning. Coffee for me. Heaven's elixir for turning bitter mornings into better mornings. How NICE is that?! He said he had a short break from setting up, so he would walk over with coffee. He came gallantly up the steps of our apartment building, toting the beloved caffeine wonder (and blueberry muffin!) with honor. Ok maybe I was still half-asleep. But he seemed like such a stallion.

I LOVE presents and thoughtful acts of kindness. I just love them. And this morning, my kindhearted husband surprised me in the most special way. It may just be coffee, but it was coffee for me. I am so thankful for his thoughtfulness. I have to brag on him. Sometimes love is hard, sometimes love is awful, but sometimes it is sacred and special and laced with the darkest roast Starbucks has to offer. I think I have a praise report for the morning service. Haaa just kidding. I don't talk in church. I just doodle.

In all seriousness, I have much to be grateful for on this blustery cold day. What's your Sunday Gratitude? Cherish it.