rushley & crew

A few months ago, I had literally JUST started following @knowhowmomtips on Instagram when she shared about an upcoming marriage retreat in Bryce Canyon. I read the details and decided I wanted to go. If I had been following her for any amount of time, it would have made more sense, because at least I would have had a better idea of what kinds of things she teaches. But I really didn't know anything about her and I wanted to go anyway. I just liked the idea of going away for the weekend with Russ and learning stuff to help our marriage grow and flourish. While it took some time to make the final decision, Russ and I both decided to go for it. And I'm so glad we did! The conference was two days PACKED with everything. The conference was mentally, emotionally, physically, and socially draining! But in such a good way. We learned about tools for connecting and communicating better, how to deal with solvable and perpetual conflicts, and how to move forward building a...

Over the weekend, Russ and I celebrated five years of marriage. It is just absolutely crazy to me! In five years we have lived in three different places (though all within a 10- or 20-minute radius), had a combined total of seven different jobs, traveled to fourteen+ different places, and made the most adorable baby on the planet. In five years we have also learned a lot more about ourselves and about each other, and we have grown closer as we've depended on each other during difficult times. We really love being married to each other, and tell each other that nearly every day. We like hanging out, we like finishing home projects (I like it more than him because he's usually the one doing most of the work!), we like obsessing about how cute Ada is, and we like talking about deep and important things. We don't have a lot of common interests, but we're committed to each other, so that doesn't really matter. Maybe someday we'll find some hobbies to do that we...

I saw this quote on Pinterest the other day: And it made me so mad. Mad someone said it, and even more mad that someone made it into a pinnable quote. Why? Because it's a TERRIBLE message that no one should be spreading. It's basically saying that you have zero say in the happiness of your marriage. It's all up to your spouse -- so they better be doing everything in their power to make you feel important!  When in fact, the exact opposite is true. Your happiness in marriage is 100% dependent upon YOU. How do you think about your spouse? Are you constantly thinking about their weaknesses or their strengths? Are you noticing all the things they don't  do for you, or all the things that they do ? Are you thinking about everything you wish they were, or are you admiring them for what they actually are? Your thoughts determine how you feel. Since love is a feeling, your thoughts determine whether you'll feel love or resentment. So what are your though...

The joy of having a brother who is good behind a camera (and who has a nice  camera)  is that I can sometimes convince him to take pictures of me and Russ for free or in exchange for babysitting :) The difficulty with using your brother as your photographer is that sometimes it takes quite a long time  to get your photos back . Although, as a non-paying customer, I really can't complain too much. He devoted time and effort to photographing and photoshopping, so we're definitely grateful.  I've been trying to get pictures of me and Russ in every season, so Brandon (my brother) graciously agreed to take pictures in the summertime  and again in autumn shortly after. Here are a few of our favorites :)

I mentioned this last year , but guys, I love  Valentine's Day. I think it's fun to celebrate love, even if everyone else is celebrating love that day, too. This year was super fun because I actually started planning it like 5 months ago, and Russ had no idea until about a week before that anything at all was going on, and even then, all I said was, "I'm planning a Valentine's something for Friday, February 13. Plan accordingly." (aka, don't plan anything else that night.) So on Thursday night I was running around like a crazy person trying to get everything ready for Friday, and with the help of my mom, I did it. When Russ got to work on Friday, this is what he saw on his desk: His response when he got there? "You sneaky lil lady :)" Haha I loved it :) So each hour he opened a present containing a clue about what we were going to be doing to celebrate Valentine's Day, but I didn't want the clues to be too easy, so mostly they we...

Recently (and by recently, I think I actually mean about a year ago) I looked around the apartment and saw only engagement and wedding pictures. It was time for some new pics of our tiny family! But somehow, we didn't actually get any taken until last week. Guess it took a while for our photographer to be available . . . My brother is really a videographer, but he's got some photography skills, too. Plus, he's free since I sometimes babysit Miss Hadley. So here they are, some summer pics of me and my handsome man :) LOOK AT HIS FACE! I die. I seriously think he looks sooo handsome in this pic :) favorite :) and even a few bloopers for ya . . . my cheeks were tired from smiling! and Russ wanted to do his crazy-person smile :) I love this man of mine :)