best of 2014!

Oh hey there! It's been two months since my last post. You know how I do *sigh*. I think I can commit to at least a post twice a month next year. Y'all help me be accountable to that. Managing two blogs is not as easy as I thought.

2014 has been an interesting year. Highs, lows and in betweens. It felt like the year of preparation and realization. Preparing for the next chapter in my life and realizing some thoughts and behaviors that need to be changed.

A couple entries ago, I listed 7 things I was committing to this year and I wanted to update y'all on how I did. I am proud to say I committed to 4.5 of the 7. Lol. I say 4.5 because one won't be done until March. I launched Cultured Mosaic, updated my online portfolio, made (and continue to make) love a verb, still prepping to be Mrs. Ansah and still planning the wedding. The other 2.5 I'm working on. Reading is on my commitment list next year and I really want to not just read but soak up the knowledge in the book to make positive changes in my life. Working out is like a thorn in my side. Lol. But I know I want to be healthy (and look good naked if we're being honest).

I have to share my highlights too. Of course getting engaged is one of the best moments I'll ever experience in my life. Seeing my brother get sworn in as a member of the military. Seeing Lecrae live. Celebrating my birthday with my birthday twin. Seeing Beyond the Lights twice and becoming obsessed. Meeting one of my favorite writers again. Celebrating my one year anniversary with my love. Trusting myself to launch my freelance business. Realizing there is enough room in the world for everyone to have success. Roadtripping to New York and Ohio to see some of my good friends get married. Having a photoshoot with the love of my life. Launching my passion project, Cultured Mosaic. Redefining the meaning of superwoman. Learning to delegate and asking for help. I could go on and on but overall I'm incredibly blessed to have lived to see 2014. 

I am so ready to see what 2015 has in store! I am expecting it to be one of the best years ever. Hope you all have an incredible, productive, and marvelous 2015!

P.S. I can't believe tomorrow is exactly 2 months away from my wedding date. So much to do, so little time. Eeeekk!

 ♥ A.Erika ♥

Cultured Mosaic is Live!

I'm happy to announce that my new blog, Cultured Mosaic, is finally LIVE! *shmoney dances* Lol! I've been working on it for quite some time and I just gave myself a deadline to launch it. Now here we are

Please subscribe and let me know what you think. I can cross that off my commitments list for 2014. Hope this week is treating you well!

♥ A.Erika ♥

Re-committing for 2014

I know this post should have been done in like January and we only have 3 more months for this year BUT I still want to be focused. I have so much going on right now, that I want to be intentional.

I believe self reflection is good for anyone. Humbling as well. It allows you to evaluate yourself and see the pretty and not so pretty things about yourself. I've recently done some self reflection and I realized I do much talking and starting but not finishing. I tend to a lot of multitasking, having many projects/tasks/etc started but unfinished. To me that's unacceptable. After all, a superwoman completes her tasks. You know I'm all about being a superwoman. There's power in finishing. The feeling of accomplishing a goal is exhilarating. At 26, I've accomplished many things but there's always room for growth. A recent sudden death of family friend jolted me and caused me to think how short life is. Then at church hearing a message about procrastination was really conformation that it was time to get focused. So I've decided to share my goals commitments that I am working to complete for this year. Commitments sound more intentional. But it really doesn't matter as long as I finish. 

7 Commitments for the remainder of 2014:

1. Read & FINISH 3 books - I'm currently reading Kingdom Woman by Tony Evans & Chrystal Evans Hurst and The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman. I hope to read professional book next. 
2. Launch Cultured Mosaic - Remember the blog I was creating focused on art, design, and culture. Well Cultured Mosaic is that blog. I contemplated not doing the blog at all because I wanted it to be perfect. But we all know perfection is the enemy of progress. And I couldn't stop thinking about this project either. Every time I would something relating to my blog, I would be like oh that would be great content for Cultured Mosaic. After realizing there is so much I want to do with this project, I couldn't give up so I'm moving forward.  
3. Update Online Portfolio - As you all know I've been freelancing but I've realized my portfolio is a tad bit outdated. Currently I still have projects in my portfolio from college. O_o I mean I will be celebrating my 5 year anniversary from graduating undergrad so it's about that time to make some change. Plus, I want to show off the type of work that will attract my ideal client.  
4. Work Out 2-3/Week - I've been pretty good on this one. Last week was hectic for me so I didnt make it to the gym but I've got 2 days committed to the gym this week and I'm excited! And if I can't make it to the gym, I try to do some sort of workout at home. A combination of jumping jacks, squats, lunges, and abs exercises works wonders!
5. Make Love a Verb - Love requires actions. Whether it's loving words, spending time with friends, checking on my parents, I'm trying to do a better job of loving on people and nurturing relationships. I can get so caught up in my daily routine that I forget to check on people. Even it's a sweet encouraging text to your friend or funny video to your dad. It makes a difference!
6. Continue Prepping to be Mrs. Ansah - As y'all know I'm getting married. Eeeeeekkk! It feels sort of weird to hear myself say that. Lolol. We have less than 6 months until the day and so much to accomplish in a short period of time. Although the wedding is monumental event, I want that energy to continue through our marriage. I've heard couples have this lavish wedding and after the wedding is over, they say now what?  I feel like marriage is when the fun begins. At least that's how I see it. We both agreed that we are going to continue being the same playful and fun-loving people once we get married. No reason to be all serious just because we are husband and wife. 
7. Plan My Wedding - I consider this my bonus commitment because I feel like it's understood since I'm getting married. I'm doing most of the planning with help from my fiancé, family, and friends. I've got all of the major things complete so that's progress but I'm moving everything along. 

So that's what I'm committing to for the rest of the year. Any commitments/goals for the rest of the year?

♥ A.Erika ♥

Bride Chronicles: Quality Time

I've decided to start series about wedding planning and being a bride called Bride Chronicles. I know I initially said I wouldn't overindulge about wedding details and I plan to keep that promise. However I do want to share the high and lows of being bride and the road to marriage. The journey is exciting, overwhelming, eyeopening. So here we go...

I think we were about 4 or 5 months into dating (maybe later) and we were determining how many times we were going to see each other during the week. You know, a healthy number. Lol. I didn't want him to feel like I was sweatin him. Lol. Then he was like I could see you every day. I was like for real, me? I mean it caught me off guard. Lololol. I know there are some women wishing their baes would say that but y'all hear me out. I barely like being around myself everyday (I'm working on it) much less someone admitting to liking my company. Lol. I mean now we're a year into the game and it still surprises me that he likes me...85% of the time. Especially since I'm an acquired taste, as I like to say. I know I'm not for everyone and I'm cool with that so I'm just glad that I found someone who genuinely likes me for me and sincerely enjoys my company.

In May, we took a road trip and talked about what's important to us since we hadn't been vibing in the last month or so. We both agreed that we hadn't spent much time together just the two of us. Realize that when you become engaged, EVERYONE and their mama wants to see you and talk to you about marriage. O_O. Anyways, those quality time moments is where we build our intimacy and I'm not talking sexual intercourse. I'm referring to strengthening our bond through conversation as we are on the road to becoming one (and even after becoming one). I've realized how important it is for us to talk through everything so that we're always on the same page. The moment when he's page 9 and I'm page 5 or vice versa is when trouble begins. And with us being a new couple, it's vital that we remain on the same page because we are still learning each other. I know him but learning him is a gradual process. As we've been increasing our quality time, the love deepens, the bond grows stronger, and bottom line: we like each other and play like we are on the same team.

♥ A.Erika ♥

Long Overdue: The Engagement Story

Hello lovelies! I hope your summer is going well! I'm staying low key seeing that I have a HUGE event to plan for in less than 8 months. (ahhhhh!) I have some news and I can't wait to share soon. As promised in the last post, I am FINALLY sharing the engagement story! It's so special, everytime I think about it, it brings back every emotion I felt that weekend. I hope you enjoy!

I felt it coming because I kept asking about it. My friends know I was 1) anxious and 2) nosy. So him pulling this off was like an undercover mission. Lol. We like taking weekend trips so this seemed like an ordinary trip. I remember telling him that this needs to be the last trip for a while because we need to start saving. He goes we still need to take another 2 trips so in my mind that meant he wasn’t proposing this weekend. Lol. We get to Savannah and check into this beautiful hotel with an incredible view. We didn’t realize Savannah was an open container city so we stopped at Wet Willies for drinks and roamed around. We went back to the hotel to get ready for dinner. Dinner was a nice seafood restaurant overlooking River Street. Another nice view! Dinner was quite delicious.

The night was still young and babes said he had a surprise. We get back to the hotel and there is a horse drawn carriage waiting for us. I was like oh this is NICE!! We’re riding through the city of Savannah on a lovely night in a horse drawn carriage! I’m thinking this is the life! So we come to a stop and the tour guide goes well the horse has to use the bathroom so go by the well and make a wish. I’m thinking we’re stopping for the horse to pee; that’s silly the horse can pee or poop anywhere he wants to but I run to the well to make a wish. I ask John for change to make a wish and he obliges. I close my eyes to make a wish and after my wish, I open my eyes and he’s down on one knee. I scream like OMG! OMG! OMG! Babes is talking and I have no idea what he saying. I zone out and ask him if he got permission from my dad. He says YES, babe and then he continues talking and I’m like where’s the ring. Finally he pulls out the ring and it’s a pretty diamond ring. I’m like put it on. Lol. Seeing how impatient I am, he stops talking and puts it on my finger and we hug. At this point, I'm just crying! I'm like I cannot believe we're engaged. We get back to the carriage and the tour guide was like you did good John! Lol. We continue the tour and we headed back to the hotel. After our tour, we got some ice cream and walked along River Street.

The next morning, babes apparently told my parents we would meet with them that day but we had to get dinner with his mentor and his wife. I was not happy about this because it had been 12 hours but I hadn’t told my family. We get to Atlanta to meet his mentor at Maggiano’s but his mentor wasn’t there. My family and close family friends were there to surprise us. It was the perfect way to celebrate our engagement. I was cried all over again. The weekend was so perfect!

And there you have it, folks! Eeeek! I'm one for romance and he nailed it! Gotta love my babes!
♥ A.Erika ♥

Design Chronicles 002: I'm Officially Freelancing

Yes you read that right. I’m accepting clients. I mean I feel like it’s time right. This is my first step in my hopeful entrepreneurial journey and it’s only right that I share it with my blog readers. I know I discussed freelancing about 2 months ago but I really didn't do much to promote myself nor did I have a plan. I went back to the drawing and came up with a plan. Now it's time to execute. Lol. It's funny how focused you can be when you make up in your mind to commit to something. If you need or know of someone that needs design or social media services, be so kind and share my information.
p.s. after reviewing my old posts, I never told the engagement story. *covered eyes emoji* That's the next post. promise!

♥ A.Erika ♥

One Year Down.

The last weekend in May, the babes and I celebrated our first anniversary! I had been counting down the days all week and couldn't wait for Saturday to arrive. This is the first weekend in a LONG TIME where we didn't have anything planned and it was glorious! Although he had to work that morning, I decide to make him brunch and he was so surprised! Steak and eggs with roasted sweet potatoes. I got SKILLS! Lololol. We were supposed to look for some furniture after brunch and I was like can we just relax. And that's what we did. He went into his nothing box and played his new game while I worked on a project for a client. I found myself rooting for him and became his second pair of eyes while he was playing. When he advanced to the next stages, I would slap him a high five! I'm so corny! Lololol! We then went to one of Atlanta's finest restaurants, Chops Lobster Bar, for dinner. Dinner was AMAZING! Like from our favorite drink (Moscow Mule) to the calamari to delectable crabcake! Twas delicious! We'll be back. Afterward, we went to Cafe Intermezzo, where we had our first date, for dessert. We laughed, people watched, and talked about our relationship. It's truly a blessing to be spending the rest of my life with him. This road to marriage has not been easy. Many 'gifts' along the way but we always go back to remind ourselves that we are on the same team. Every day there is something new to learn about him, our relationship and myself. It's always inspiring and humbling when people say that we give them hope for love. We're both like we don't know how because we are struggling ourselves. Lol. But even when it's difficult, through the tears and the tough conversations, we push through because we have agreed that we are NEVER giving up on each other. And that...is the essence of love.


♥ A.Erika ♥

40 Day Blog Challenge Recap

I promised a recap of the challenge and here it is. I started this challenge because I wanted to commit to something for an extended period of time. I was tired of saying I would do something but carry through with it. Finally I decided to start with something small as a way to carrying through on my word. Hence the blog challenge. It started off easy because I had topics/posts I wanted to share but towards the middle I kinda got stumped or I didn't feel like blogging. But I push passed that. I wanted share a couple lessons from this blogging challenge:

• I missed a couple days during the challenge and it bothered me because I felt like reneging. Anybody who plays spades knows that feeling when you or your partner reneges. Lol. I digress. But I decided to not to beat myself up about it but make sure I was committing to the next day. Life happens and some of the best memories don't have to be captured and broadcasted. It encouraged me to live and enjoy life!
• Blogging everyday is difficult when you work full-time plus have a schedule after work that's crazy. I found myself typing my post like at 11:45 at night hurrying up to make my scheduled daily post. I understand why content calendars are important. I think I'll implement a schedule for my other blog, whenever I get a chance to revisit it.
• Have fun with the blogposts! I shared some personal and also silly stories about myself and I loved the balance. Expect that to continue. 
• People love reading the blog! I really didn't anybody would care but they really were interested and that was satisfying. Knowing that a post was reaching someone even if it was just one person was motivating enough to keep blogging. 

Blogging is fun! There's so many opportunities I have with enhancing this blog and excited about making some changes!

♥ A.Erika ♥

Quarter of a Century + 1

Today is my birthday. Shoutout to fellow Tauruses! Lol. Birthdays have been difficult for me to celebrate because something always gets in the way of my celebration. Almost every year I compete with Mother's Day, then when I was in college, my birthday conflicted with finals. All of these conflicts caused me to avoid celebrating. But I decided last year I would celebrate in some way or fashion. My birthday is also an reflective time for me. Much like New Year's is the beginning of a journey, my birthday serves as my New Years. I get to look back within the last year and see how much I've grown and what has transpired. This time last year, I had extended my birthday campaign to May 31 and I was hosting this big dinner for myself and some of my closest friends. I was so nervous, even though about canceling it because I thought nobody would show up. It happened and I had a wonderful time plus I was able to raise over $1000 for autism. I actually has a post written about my birthday last year but I never posted it. I gotta stop doing that. I have 3 or 4 posts in drafts that need to be posted. Sigh. 

So 26, huh? How do you feel, you may ask? Can I be honest? I feel lost. At times. Like am I doing things right? How do I transition in this new role as a wife? How do I communicate in a calm manner that I am frustrated rather than spaz out on my babes? Why is God making me struggle? In those moments of being lost, I'm reminded to focus less on being lost and more about progress. Even though I focus on the how, God just says trust me, I got you boo. I'm learning to let go of control knowing where to go because God ultimately knows where I should go. After all, His plan is better than mine will ever be. Along with trusting God, less thoughts and talking and more doing. I know God's got me but I have to do my part. Faith without works is dead. One of my favorite entrepreneurs said, You have to DO in order to BE. I am still soul searching for my goals for my 26th year but once I set them, I'll share! 25 was by far the best EVER! And I know 26 has much to offer! ;)

♥ A.Erika ♥

Penn Relays 2014

And just like that we're heading back home from Philly! Although I was reluctant to go, we had a great time attending Penn Relays. For those who don't know, Penn Relays is a large track meet where teams from all over the world come to compete. High school, college, and professionals. Even the professionals over 75. That was cutest race I've ever seen! I hope to be able to run a race at 75. Of course the Jamaicans were out in full force in the stands. It was a sea of green, yellow, and black standing proud. It felt great to be amongst my fellow people. Of course the rivalry between Jamaica and USA were apparent as each race took place. Every time USA and Jamaica took the track, the commentator would have to warn people to sit down so everyone could see. But he really didn't have to say that because we got anyway because of our excitement and anticipation. Babes was amazed at the amount of Jamaicans in the stadium. I was like we are proud people. Texas even showed out too. The women's 4x400 relay medley mashed up the race! There wasn't a weak link in that relay. It was beautiful! Seeing all those women athletes confirmed that I really want a trackstar booty and flat abs. I need to find myself in a gym soon. Tryna to get wedding dress fine. Lolololol. 

And I'm sad to say this is my last post of my 40 day blog challenge. :( I'll be posting the challenge recap soon. I'm glad that I actually stuck with the challenge. Learned quite a bit and can't wait to share. 

♥ A.Erika ♥

Lindo Clan to Philly

We're taking our talents to Philly. Nah not really. We're as in my family plus the babes are embarking on a 10 hour road trip to Philly. Should be interesting to say the least. Not sure how it's all gonna pan out but we're heading up to see some good running and eat some Philly cheesesteaks. Lol. Y'all pray us. Follow me on Twitter and Instagram (@msashlee_erika) for updates. 

♥ A.Erika ♥

Waiting with Expectation

The last two mornings I've been listening to Auntie Joyce talk about how faith works. She said you must pray with expectation that God will deliver on His promise. I was like yes you better speak ma'am. Fast forward to this evening, I went to see Rev. Jackie Thompson at my parents church. Now if you've ever heard her speak, you know it's a treat. So guess what she talked about? Expectation. I was like okay God this is confirmation to Auntie Joyce. The Rev. Dr. said expectations bring forth 3 things: 1) an atmosphere so God can move, 2) the ability to fuel activity, and 3) the power to change the perception of reality. By this point, I was just like I understand God, I understand. THEN she says you don't get what you pray for—you get what you expect. And I had to think how many I pray but don't really believe God will come through because I've been disappointed. Tonight was a reminder that no matter how long it takes never stop dreaming and believing God what God says. After all, it took Sarah 20 years after God's promise to bear a child. 

♥ A.Erika ♥

Sacrifices

After visiting wedding venues this past weekend, I realized how important sacrificing is to get to your goals. My family is not rolling in dough nor am I living my American dream...yet. So paying for this wedding is coming with much sacrifice and careful planning. I know I'm going to miss certain events and moments but I know that it will all pay off in the end. I was watching a Sarah Jakes webisode and she said: Everybody wants to eat but few are willing to hunt. That resonated with me. How many times do we just want to eat but don't want to work to eat. There are moments where I love working to eat and other times, I barely want to eat. I am trying to make the moments of working to eat more consistent. 

♥ A.Erika ♥

life happens

Hey y'all! My life is just busy. When I find the time to write, I fall asleep. It's a vicious cycle. And I'm mad because two blogposts posted for the same day. Ugh little stuff like that piss me off. Anyways this weekend I thought I would get to relax since we had Good Friday off. Yeaaaaaa nah. Wedding venue visits, brunches, outing with mentee, church and dinner with the fam. All of that left little time for anything. I did catch Scandal though. The season ended very openly. Like in the next season could go different directions. You never know with Shonda Rhimes. Believe it or not, my blogging challenge is coming to an end. I know, I know sad right?! I know you all have been enjoying the posts. Lolololol. The goal is to have a post done everyday until then. Buttttttttt if I dont, y'all know....life happens.

♥ A.Erika ♥

A Person with Integrity

I was listening to Auntie Joyce yesterday. Y'all know I love Auntie Joyce, right?! In the podcast, she was discussing being a person of integrity. Before I listened, I thought I was a person of integrity so this will be a great refresher. But I was wrong. She stepped on my toes and it hurt but I wanted to share what I learned. She defined a person with integrity is a person who does what they say even in the small things. For example, if you say you are going to call someone in a hour or next week, you make sure you do that. Another example is that you show up for work on time. Now I struggle with the latter. I mean I kinda have an excuse because I live in Jerusalem, not literally, but that doesn't excuse me. So I'm going to try to make more of an effort to be on time. I made it to work in good timing but I also forgot my watch and engagement ring. Sigh. You win some, you lose some.

She also talked about over-committing. Over-committing doesn't leave room for a grace period. Learning how to say no is powerful. Last year I made decision to slow down and it was one of the best decisions I've made. It allows me to enjoy the little moments plus it allows me freedom to do something on short notice. Which I could hardly do last year because EVERYDAY I had something to do. It was tiresome and overwhelming. Plus I was double booking myself and that's never good. My integrity was going down the drain. So that podcast was everything I needed to jump start my lifetime change being a woman of her word. Being a man of his word is one of my babes' strongest qualities and one of many things I admire about him. The walk HAS TO match the talk and I'm working on the walk.

♥ A.Erika ♥

So Last Night at the Shuler Awards....

So last night I had the task of live tweeting the Shulers Hensley Awards, which the Georgia High School version of the Tonys. It was a wonderful evening to see high school students display their talents of stage. I have to say Georgia has a state of talented children. I was excited to see who was going to win the awards especially since a predominantly black school was nominated for 14 of the 17 awards. Basically coming in as an underdog. They ended up winning 13 out of the 14 awards. Lolololol. After the 4th award they won consecutively I knew it was going to be an interesting night. To say the least. Of course it was all displayed on Twitter. People were saying the awards were political joke; they were at the [Insert Winning School name here] banquet awards [not the Shulers] and my personal favorite, I'm transferring to [Insert Winning School name here]. Lol. Nothing against the other schools but they were THAT good. We had a chance to see them performing a number from their winning production [because they won best overall musical]. And I wanted to see more like the little kid from the AT&T commercial. I was just proud that our kids could excel as the underdogs. 

♥ A.Erika ♥

First Decade

One of my good friends' mom and her colleague started a group called First Decade. The group is for young professionals in the first decade of their career learning how to navigate their professional and personal goals. It's a great little family we've formed and we look forward to seeing people one a month. I love the informal style of the meetings. It allows each attendee to feel comfortable to express their challenges and victories in their jobs. It's sort of like a support group for recent graduates. I enjoy the times we have together! After every meeting, I leave with a reminder that my career is my own and I must take charge of it and direct it where I want it to go. Tonight was our April meeting and we talked about grad school. The discussion was informative and I left considering grad school. We'll see if that consideration turns into reality. Lol. If you know anyone in Atlanta that could benefit from a group like this, hit me up! They won't regret attending!

Logo and Flyer Designed By Yours Truly ;)

♥ A.Erika ♥

Surprises

I love surprising people but I don't like being surprised. I mean I usually like what I get after the surprise but I like to know EVERYTHING. I try not to miss a peep. So when my fiancé talked to my friends about proposing, the first thing ALL of my friends said was you know she's nosy right. I'm not talking about the surprise proposal this post. Lol. My fiancé decided to surprise me with tickets to see the Hawks vs Heat game Saturday night. I hadn't been to NBA game in a while but it was nice to do something out of our norm. I actually thought we were going to the museum. I guessed and he led me to believe I was correct. So I'm talking all this junk to my family about how I guessed the surprise but when we pulled up to Phillips Arena, I was shocked. He got me! I really think he gets great pleasure in giving me surprises. I was rooting for the Heat and he was secretly rooting for the Hawks. He doesn't like Lebron, he's a Kobe fan. We argue endlessly on why Kobe's career is done. He's such a loyal fan, it's cute! HA! The seats were really good and we were sitting amongst other Heat fans so I was in good company until the Heat lost. They weren't playing with any zeal which is understandable since they have already secured a playoff spot. The Hawks on the other hand, had much more to prove. They had to win this game in order to go to the playoffs. I have to say the Hawks played extremely well. But I see it as the Heat did the Hawks a favor. I talk so much junk. Lol. Pizza at Nancy's was the perfect night cap. It was delicious! Good day indeed!

♥ A.Erika ♥

Networking with Creative Girls Atlanta

Hey y'all! It's been a couple of days right? Work has been turned up a notch. We're about 5 days away from Georgia High School Musical Theatre Awards and I am in charge of social for the event. I've been in planning and brainstorming session to make sure we are fully engaging this online community. Handling that and being the point person has left me pooped. In the midst, I was able to get away and attend a networking event organized by Creative Girls Atlanta. Their mission is "to present social, hands-on workshops catering to the lifestyles and businesses of creative Atlanta ladies." I found out about the group through one of the founders, Kia Perry. I came across her Instagram page and loved the content so I started following her. I saw her posting information about her group and said to myself, I am creative woman in Atlanta. I should go. I went and she recognized me instantly. It was great! I got to meet other women and speak with them on how they are launching their creative ventures. It was great to be in good company with other women who trying to figure it out. It being their life. I made some great connects and I even got to speak with Kia about helping with the future planning of Creative Girls Atlanta. I've been looking for a creative outlet I could give my time to and when I heard about this group, I felt like it was a good fit. So stay tuned for more info about the group!

♥ A.Erika ♥

If You Told Me A Year Ago...

If you told me a year ago that I would be engaged, I would have laughed. Then probably looked at you like you were crazy. I would've told you that I'm not ready for all that. This time last year, I was fully immersed in my campaign and preparing for my 25th birthday celebration. I didn't expect to fall in love. I didn't expect to meet a guy that would change my perspective on what truly means to love. I had this plan. Y'all know me. I'm always doing something and finding something to do. Google and I have a STRONG relationship! Lol. But they say, when you plan, God laughs. I know He was laughing hysterically with me. I am a witness that God's plan SUPERCEDES any plan you may have for yourself. I mean when I sit back and think of where I am, I'm overwhelmed with emotion to how blessed I am. I found this quote and it's so true.

“If you don't leave room for the unexpected to express itself in your life, you close yourself off from the possibility of miracles.”

I believe God wants to do miracles in our lives but we/ our plans get in the way. He appreciates your hard work but sometimes we need to allow God to do His thing. I'm working on doing my part and letting God do His. I've applied this "leaving room" principle to my schedule and it has allowed me some great experiences. It also gives me the flexibility to do something I want vs something I'm obligated to. And that flexibility is priceless.

♥ A.Erika ♥