sweet sweet summer.

{my image, originally found here}

{cv} and I have been filling this sweet, sweet summer to the brim with memories. From our babymoon in California to perfect weekends with friends and family, this last summer sans baby {v} is certainly one for the record books. It may be the pregnancy hormones, but I find myself extra nostalgic. While it feels like the last few months have passed in the blink of an eye, there is a part of me that feels like this summer has progressed at a snail's pace. In some ways, it mimics a summer a decade in my past...

The summer between my freshman and sophomore years of college was, by far, the longest of my life. I was living in Kansas City and training for my first marathon in the worst of the Midwest heat. It was the summer my beloved grandfather passed, after a battle with cancer which was both too quick and too long at the same time. It was also the summer I really started to figure it out -- with boys, with friends, with school, and with life. I emphasize "started" because I am still a very long way from actually figuring out life. 

Though this summer has been much different than the hot one spent in Kansas, I realized recently it has held much of the same change. In 2004, I was returning to Georgetown after a transformational summer in the Heartland. This summer, I am embracing the craziness of life and what it will soon hold for us. On my daily walks, I get lost in thought about the next few months. With the baby and the house, {cv} and I have so many wonderful and "big" things on our plate. There is no shred of complaint in this happy anxiety; it is only the fear of the unknown. 

If you're a long-time reader, I'm sure you've noticed I have been posting much less frequently this summer. {cv} and I are doing our best to enjoy the peace and quiet of our life as it exists today. I find myself missing more regular posts {and, for once, have a queue of ideas a mile long in my head}. At the start of 2014, I pledged I would share only my best with each of you. I can look back on my posts from this year and say I didn't just toss something up for the sake of sharing a post. I'd like to think I saved you the pain of reading a tired post and I saved myself the misguided effort. {I will take it as a win for both of us.} Though the posts may be less frequent, I hope they are posts worthy of a few minutes of your time. 

The biggest blessing of this sweet, sweet summer is simple: I am finally working toward a more focused and fulfilled life. Many thanks for staying by me -- and I hope you'll stick around for the ride. I'm not going anywhere. xoxo {av}

P.S. Do you have any specific topics you'd like me to cover in future posts? Leave a quick comment below or shoot me an email. 

I want to make my content relevant to you -- and the best way for me to do that is by asking, of course.