Picture Prompt Saturday

Here's this week's picture prompt, complete with the link!

Happy Birthday to my little N who turns two today!

Love, Mackenzie

Big Magic

So my Mom surprised me with a package in the mail which contained a 5 hour gem. It's an audiobook called Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert. She's the author of Eat Pray Love.

I listened to the first disc and I'm so hooked. I love her information and I actually take her opinion seriously because she's a writer too. The simple fact that she was once where I am now makes me want to soak up her knowledge like a brand new sponge. In just the first disc, she's taught me that ideas are living things that are simply searching for a host who will do them the most justice. She's taught me to distinguish between the ideas which I should grab hold of and not let go until they've reached completion and the ones which I can apologize to for not being the correct person for the job. I'm loving the way she writes and I feel like an old friend already.

Thanks, Mom, for giving me this gift. I can tell it's going to be super valuable.

Love, Mackenzie

P.S. This is the 100th post on my blog! I've been writing on this thing for 100 straight days which is crazy! In honor of this occasion, I'm going to give myself a round of applause.

Antmageddon

Yes, you read the title correctly. or maybe you didn't and misread it to say armageddon, but either way, it was antmageddon at my house on Tuesday.

We've had ant problems since we moved into our townhouse, and they weren't that bad last year so we set out some ant traps and were diligent with sweeping the floor so they wouldn't be attracted to the inside dining area.
We thought we were safe, but they had a plan to start a battle that lasted about four weeks before we decided to pull out the big guns.

Josh did some research and found a method that was safe for both man and beast (or toddler and toy poodle, but it's neither here nor there) which is to find the nest and to boil the ant hill. We actually unearthed the egg room underneath one of our concrete pavers just outside the back door and just boiled the hell out of it.
We thought we'd won the battle, but they were just getting started.

The next thing we knew, they were waging a full blown attack on our house. They were coming in from the bathroom, under the oven and under our couches by the hundreds, I guess there were over two thousand that I'd swept up through the day. Josh came home with insect killing soil and some hardcore indoor bug spray.

Then he went to work, pulling up pavers to try and find the other nest which was only a few blocks away from the first one. He boiled it like he did the first one and then put down the soil in the small grass patch. Then he pulled the furniture away from the walls and sprayed every inch of baseboard to keep them from coming inside.

Clearly, we weren't going to play games any longer.

Anyway, I kept a sharp eye out for any signs of ants in my house the following morning and I didn't see a single one all day. I guess the ant killing overkill did the trick.

Thanks for reading, and hopefully every one of those little monsters won't bother us again, because I'll show no mercy.

Love, Mackenzie

Writing Prompt Wednesday

Here's this week's writing prompt, complete with the link!

Happy Writing!

Love, Mackenzie

Goosebumps The Movie

So I watched the new Goosebumps movie on Netflix with Josh yesterday and I genuinely got spooked! I felt so silly, but I felt like I should keep checking over my shoulder. It's 12:16 in the morning and I'm watching Good Mythical Morning to calm down...... Ugh. There's a reason I don't watch scary movies.

And my writer's well has been dry for over a week and I feel like I've been going insane.

I actually have an idea that I'm trying to work out in my brain, but it's not working correctly. I'm getting super frustrated, I feel like this mannequin.

I just want my brain to cooperate but it's being stubborn. I don't think I can out stubborn my own brain. Crap.

Love, Mackenzie

P.S. Josh and I discovered, after Lincoln told us it, that Orca's are dolphins. Everything I know is a lie.

A Struggle

I struggle with something that might surprise some people, only because I came across as quite charismatic in high school.

I feel like I write far better than I speak. I don't like holding up conversations with strangers because I feel like I'm being judged, even though I know that's probably not even close to true. I love hiding behind my written words, because I can always go back and fix it when it isn't quite right. I hate speaking out loud because I can't do that. I think that's why I like writing so much because I can say just what I want, I don't have to show it to anyone and it makes me feel a sense of release. 

Maybe I should go mute. I could carry a white board with it and not show my writing until I'm certain it's right.

Yeah, that sounds like a plan. 

Love, Mackenzie

Spiritual Thought Sunday

I couldn't find the homesite of this graphic, but I wasn't the one who made it.

I read this picture the other day and it struck me to the core. I know that I care way too much what others think of me and I'm constantly stressing about how others view me. I know that's not a good mindset, and I'm working on breaking it, but I'm struggling to do so.
When I read this, it was a good reminder that I don't need to keep up with the Jones'. My house can remain not as updated as I might like and that's okay. There are other things we're needing to purchase right now. I don't need to have the most fashionable clothes, just the ones that make me feel most comfortable. I don't need to worry about what other's think of mine and Josh's choice to homeschool our kids. They're not doing the work, I am, so why should I care?

My goal this week will be to try and silence the feelings I have regarding putting too much stock into other's opinions and not taking enough in my own.
I'm going to try and remember that I have the most important person on my side, Heavenly Father.

I hope everyone has a blessed Sunday!

Love, Mackenzie