year in review: most popular posts of 2014

We've come to the last few days of 2014, and it's time to reflect.  Google Analytics, Blogger, and Pinterest are handy tools to use to see what posts were popular this year and where visitors to Beyond the Aisle were coming from.

Here's a peek at my stats from 2014:
Visitors - 16,991 (up over 1,000 from last year!)
Unique Visitors - 15,351 (up over 3,000 from last year!)
Pageviews - 23,260 (up over 2,000 from last year!)

Visitors from these countries visited Beyond the Aisle in 2014:
1. United States
2. Canada
3. United Kingdom
4. Australia
5. Germany
6. France
7. South Africa 
8. Philippines
9. Brazil
10. Mexico

These cities are home to Beyond the Aisle readers:
1. Charlottesville
2. New York
3. Chicago (up from #7 last year!)
4. London
5. Washington
6. Baltimore
7. Hialeah
8. Toronto
9. Los Angeles
10. Houston

Most popular posts:

10. Sunday Social: Beauty Edition - I really miss the Sunday Social link-ups - the questions often got me thinking.  While beauty doesn't seem like a really in-depth topic, I think we all know that women are actually very interested in each other's routines.

9. Patriotic Washi Tape Decor for Independence Day - let's be honest, this was the easiest DIY ever!  I still wanted to share my little burst of creativity with the blog world for one of my favorite holidays, and I'm glad people liked it!  My candleholders and vases made a few appearances on Pinterest as well - easy crafts for the win.

8. My May Favorites - Another now-defunct link-up, but I'm still posting my favorites each month - and I still love everything I've posted in these!  A bit of sad news for 2015, though, is that my favorite jewelry company, Lia Sophia, is going out of business.

7. Light It Up Blue for Autism Awareness - We did a big Light It Up Blue week at school and I enjoyed bringing that over to the blog.

6. eShakti Dress Review - One of my favorite posts of the year because Mr. Q helped me with all of the photos and we had fun.  It also brought one of my real-life friends to the blog through eShakti!

5. Winter Style: Classy in Cranberry - You're going to be seeing a lot of burgundy and maroon shades this year since Marsala was chosen as Pantone's Color of the Year for 2015.

4. Inspiration for a Dreamy Mint and Baby's Breath Spring Wedding - Dream wedding round-ups are still one of my favorite things to do here on the blog.

3. Series: My Favorite 2014 Golden Globes Looks, My Favorite 2014 Golden Globes Hair and Makeup, Oscars Style: My Favorite Hair, Makeup, and Accessories - Clearly, you all are award show junkies just like I am!

2. The Boy Behind the Blog: Mr. Q's Turn to Post! - His answers were short, sweet, and to the point.  AND YOU OBVIOUSLY LOVED IT.

1. Rock and Roll 50th Birthday Party Ideas - My best work friend worked so hard on her husband's birthday party and Mr. Q and I were happy to help out by lending our photography and DIY skills.  I'm still really proud of my chalkboard project and it has become popular on Pinterest as well!

sunday social: all about the 5's

1. 5 things you want us to know about you:

• I am an only child.  My parents were 40 when they had me and had raised my cousin from the time she was a teenager until she was emancipated from her parents.  I have several "spoiled only child" qualities but my parents were also fairly strict because they'd learned a lot from raising a teenager. 
• I'm just starting to really think about how growing up in Appalachia shaped my identity; in college, I tried to escape that culture, but now I'm trying to embrace it.
• I am an evangelical Christian and also a liberal, progressive, pro marriage equality, pro-choice, pro stronger gun control Democrat.  That makes me a real weirdo in Southwest Virginia and a lot of people don't understand how my faith and political viewpoints can co-exist. 
• I'm a workaholic.  Being a teacher is a dream come true for me and I take it very seriously.  No matter where I am or what I'm doing, I'm probably thinking about lesson plans or how to reach a difficult student.
• Mr. Q and I have been married for three years now and I think our relationship is stronger than it has ever been.  I truly consider him my best friend and would rather spend time with him than anyone else.

2. 5 favorite things about blogging:

• Getting to know people I would never know otherwise because there are so many miles between us or because our lives are so different.
• Having a hobby that allows me to practice my writing and develop my voice while reaching an authentic audience of my peers.
• I've learned about so many cool things that I love from reading blogs, from TV shows to watch and new bands to listen to, to housecleaning hacks and DIY ideas.
• Learning that I really do enjoy photography and photo editing as a hobby - I need more practice but so far I know that my "style" = lots of brightness.
• I can't remember when I first started adding fashion posts to the blog, but participating in fashion-themed link-ups and researching trends has really helped me develop a more streamlined personal style.  I'm not buying many items that just sit in the closet because I have a lot more styling ideas thanks to my fashion blogger friends.

3. 5 things you are doing before the year is over:

• Welcoming my BFF Breeze's new neice, Kinslei, into the world in a few weeks!
• Seeing To Kill a Mockingbird at our local theater.
• Going to the wine festival with Mr. Q and some of our lake friends.
• Participating in the Color Me Rad 5K to raise money for Special Olympics.
• Hopefully visiting either an apple orchard or pumpkin patch - I am determined to get outside and get my fall on.

4. 5 favorite fall fashion staples:

• Scarves

• Riding boots

• Skinny jeans

• Pencil skirts

• Sheer sweaters for layering

5. 5 favorite beauty products:

• L'Oreal True Match Naturale mineral foundation - it contains SPF 19, covers blemishes, and gives my skin an airbrushed look.  I get compliments on my "perfect skin" even though I actually have a ton of pockmarks and acne scars.
• Jergens Natural Glow Moisturizer - extended time in the sun just isn't part of my lifestyle and I'm very serious about using SPF and wearing hats when I am outside.  As a result, I'm naturally very pale and need help keeping a healthy glow.
• Physicians Formula HappyBooster bronzer and blush - the second part of my fake-glow regimen.  This blush and bronzer combo looks so natural and blends really well.
• Almay Smoky Eye Shadow Trio - the perfect combination of colors for brown eyed girls.
• Neutrogena Moisture Smooth Color Stick - it smells good and feels really soft, not dry and lipstick-y.

I look forward to reading all of your Sunday Social posts this week and to chatting with you in the comments!

sunday social: all about the special people in my life

1. Tell us about the family you grew up in: parents, siblings, grandparents.

I am an only child and was a later-in-life baby for my parents; they were 41 and 42 when I was born and had been married for 20 years already.  I think my extended family was pretty ecstatic all around when they found out my parents were finally going to have the child they had wanted for so long, and my grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins (who were all old enough to be my aunts and uncles) all treated me like a little princess.  It's really to my parent's credit that I wasn't totally spoiled.  My mom quit her job as a wills and trusts banker to become a stay-at-home mom, while my dad worked as a manager at a local store for most of my childhood.  My parents really nurtured my creativity by playing music all the time, reading to me, and doing art with me.  When I was in kindergarten, my dad became a long distance truck driver, which was a big adjustment for my family because it meant that for the forseeable future we would only see him on the weekends, but he never missed big events like school plays, dance recitals, and science fairs.  I always felt like my parents and I were a team, and I know I was very lucky to grow up in that kind of environment.

2. Tell us about your husband, fiancé, boyfriend, or significant other.

Mr. Q and I were introduced by one of my summer camp co-workers who had been his college roommate.  We both maintain that it was love at first sight; we hit it off immediately and went on a few dates before he asked me to be his girlfriend, and we've been together for eight years now!  One of the things I value the most about Mr. Q is that he came along at a very difficult time in my life; my dad's kidneys had failed and I was being treated for clinical depression.  It was really important to me that Mr. Q get to know my dad, and he wasn't freaked out by that like a lot of guys might have been.  When my dad passed away, Mr. Q and I had been dating for about five months, and he was my rock through that experience - and still is.  I instantly feel calmer and safer when he is around - my sister in law was picking on me at Busch Gardens because I grabbed Mr. Q's arm rather than the safety bar on one of the rides!

3. Tell us about your children. If you don’t have children, talk about your fur children.

By this time next month, I'll have 57 children - my new students!  Mr. Q and I do not have children of our own yet, and my fur baby Scout lives at my mom's house.  You can see that he is very helpful with tasks like grading papers.

4. Tell us about your best friends. How long have you known them? How did you meet?

I've known Breeze since sixth grade.  We've been through everything from her baby sister's birth, high school crushes, struggling through AP classes, her mother's divorce, applying to college, and all the realities of becoming adults.  We have had one fight - when a girl in high school started a rumor that I was talking about Breeze behind her back - and will never mistrust each other again.  I can always count on Breeze to be supportive, honest, and to know me better than I know myself at times.

Philly and I went to college together and were in the same Christian fellowship.  When we met, she was rolling down a staircase wrapped in bubble wrap.  Um, how could I not want to be that person's friend?  She has injected so much fun and spontaneity into my life over the years - we lived within walking distance for my last two years of college and were constantly together.  She is a social worker so I like to call her up with crazy student questions.

Sus and I worked together at the summer camp in college, and bonded over the fact that we share the same birthday and sense of humor!  We call each other Lucy and Ethel and have lots of inside jokes - she really has a gift for seeing the lighter side of any situation.  We also share a love of Harry Potter.  Even though we live on opposite coasts, we're in pretty much constant contact thanks to social media and FaceTime.

Finally, Miss V is my best work friend.  She was my mentor teacher when I was hired and our classrooms are side by side.  In addition to the ridiculous amount of time we spend together at work, we text all evening pretty much every day and hang out on the weekends!  Luckily our husbands get along well and tolerate our codependency.  It's wonderful to have a friend who shares my passion for teaching but also my sarcasm about middle school drama, and V is one of the most generous and thoughtful people I've ever known.

5. Tell us about any other special people in your life.

Let's talk about the amazing family I married into.  I just reached the point where I occasionally call Mr. Q's parents Dad and Mom.  It's kind of weird but at the same time I kind of love it.  They are the most wonderful, nurturing, Christian family, although sometimes I feel like Mr. Q may have grown up in a sitcom.  His sister is 24, leads worship in her church, and is basically just a little firecracker with whom I share a love of pop culture gossip and television.  I'm trying to convince her to become a substitute teacher; I think she'd be fantastic because she has so much energy and enthusiasm.

goal setting: what fires me up!

It's been a while since I took some time to write about goal setting - and while I've been feeling to busy to write about how I narrowed down my goals for the year, the year has been chugging right along.  On her blog, Lara Casey (my favorite goal-setting guru) discusses the importance of knowing what fires you up when thinking about goals.  So today, here are the things that keep me going!

• My marriage - what can I say that I haven't already said on this blog about how important my marriage is to me?  My husband is supportive, encouraging, funny, and my best friend.  If I'm ever doubting or downing myself, he builds me right back up and pushes me to keep going.

• Spending time with friends and family - fun, laid-back down time is essential to my mental health.  Whenever I start to get cranky, it's usually time to point my car toward my childhood home and go visit my mama.  Whenever I get bored, the cure is spending time with my BFFs and my sister-in-law.

• Live performances - I grew up in a very creative family - my dad was a drummer, my uncle was a painter, my mama is a DIY-er, and I was always surrounded by music and sculptures and the idea that people make art and create things as a given.  My parents enrolled me in dance classes at an early age, I enjoy making arts and crafts projects, and I will always consider myself a writer even if it stays a hobby rather than a profession.  But when it comes to the arts, nothing fires me up quite like a live performance - whether it's a major concert or a band playing at a dive bar, a college dance troupe performance in the community, a middle school play, or even just a new episode of So You Think You Can Dance on television, seeing artists do their thing makes me more inclined to do some creating myself.

• Seeing my friends follow their passions - I think it's funny how in high school and college I thought I knew exactly where everyone was going to end up, but people's real lives have turned out to be very different than what they imagined for themselves. The adorable stationery pictured above is from my friend's letterpress studio - a friend I completely thought would be an architect designing eco-friendly houses right now. The history-major friend who swore she never wanted to end up teaching?  Teaches Montessori kindergarten!  A friend from ed school who started her college career in the engineering department is now an information technology specialist for her school district, and another elementary education major I knew is a pilates instructor in New York City.  I think seeing these friends make their own paths reminds me that you don't have to do what people expect you to.  You don't even have to do what you've expected yourself to.

• Being a teacher students trust - It's often stressful being the teacher students open up to, the one they tell the deep dark stuff.  The art above is student artwork and it told me everything the tough, mouthy little girl who drew it couldn't say.  Yes, kids sometimes come into my room weeping when I'm on my planning period, and instead of handing the kid off to the guidance counselor I know that I'll be spending the next hour in the guidance office with them.  Yes, kids ask me questions that have absolutely nothing to do with English- they know I will keep my promise to never lie to them.

• Being a teacher administrators and colleagues trust - I hold several leadership positions in my school and it's important to me that my supervisors and co-workers know they can count on me to be positive, helpful, and fair.  I will never be two-faced or put on a show.  I will always find answers if they are available.

• Listening to good music - In every genre imaginable, I think there is something inspiring.  I feel a lot better when I turn on Pandora or the local radio and just let it play for hours while I'm writing or doing housework.  Singing in the car is one of my favorite antidotes for stress, and I'll find a reason to go on a long drive if I need some time to channel my inner Adele!

• Reading powerfully written books - For the same reason I love watching live performers.  Nothing helps me stay motivated to write like reading great writing.  I think we are truly blessed to live at a time in which so many of our favorite writers are just a tweet or e-mail away.

• My yoga class - I love my little Parks and Rec old-lady yoga class.  My teacher is so wonderful and supportive, and the class is SUCH a different world than the classes I took at the fitness center when I was in college.  I have really learned to push myself while listening to my body.  My goal for this session is to be able to put my heels on the ground during downward dog pose - I have very short legs and flexibility is not my strong suit!

• Approachable recipes - I think cooking can be pretty therapeutic and taps into my creative energy.  When I find a recipe online or in a magazine with great photography, pronounceable ingredients, and a manageable list of steps, I get so fired up!  Cooking "real" meals makes me feel healthier and also kind of like SuperWife.

• Growing things - I seem to have inherited my mom's love of gardening, and it never fails to strike me as a miracle that my basil plant comes back every year.  Keeping my window boxes and planters full of greenery and flowers gives me an extra dose of pride in my home and getting my hands dirty makes my inner farm girl feel great.

• Summer days at the lake - I don't take advantage of living so close to a beautiful lake nearly enough.  My soul feels so healthy in those long summer days on the water.

clicks of note: gifts of gold we bring...

get your week off to a colorful start...

LISTEN.

• Hayley Westenra's beautiful voice shines on "Peace Shall Come" from her album Winter Magic from all the way back in 2009.  I'm linking up to Musical Mondays at My So-Called Chaos.

SWOON.

Alexis Diack Photography via Magnolia Rouge

• Magnolia Rouge features a lovely, vintage-inspired South African wedding.
• The Bride's Cafe shares a vibrant orange inspiration board
• Lots of DIY details in this sweet wedding featured at Snippet and Ink.
• Style Me Pretty features the prettiest Texas ranch wedding.

SMILE.

• Cute printable Christmas labels from Elegance and Enchantment.
• Here are a few of my favorite holiday home tours from around the web.
• Greg Hardy is my new favorite NFL player because he's from Hogwarts.
• So much inspiration in this 10-item wardrobe from Kendra's Closet Confections.

REFLECT.

• From Happy Is a Choice: True Life: This Is Marriage - 

"I thought that once I got that ring on my finger, all of my life's problems would be solved, that life would be complete, and couldn't fathom one single thing that could be wrong. I look back now and its painstakingly clear: I was idolizing the idea of being engaged."

FLASHBACK.

• Last year I shared holiday advice for letting go of perfect and enjoying the holiday season, 7 winter date ideas,
• Two years ago I shared a few of the crafts and DIY projects I made for the holidays:  a paint chip mosaic, silk floral poinsettia wreath, no-sew ruffle tree skirt, and how I decorated our tree.

clicks of note: like the ceiling can't hold us...

get your week off to a colorful start...

LISTEN.

• I'm loving Macklemore and Ryan Lewis' "Can't Hold Us" right now - the perfect party anthem!

SWOON.

Limn and Lovely

• This California orange grove engagement shoot at Limn and Lovely makes me want to pack my bags!
• I love this Greek goddess inspired bridal look at Project Wedding.
• You can't even understand how much I love this Anne of Green Gables inspired shoot at Ruffled.
• Southern Weddings features some twists on one of my favorite southern comfort foods, hushpuppies!
• From Style Me Pretty: a couple who married in their hometown staged an anniversary shoot in their new city, Chicago - what a great idea!

SMILE.

• The chicest "what's in my handbag," from Australian Vogue editors (via This Is Glamorous)
• Twinsters - two women who are possibly separated at birth identical twins! (via Cup of Jo)
• Katherine's post "Boring and Proud" at A Practical Wedding made me want to stand up and cheer:

"the fact that I found someone that I love, married him, and now get to eat breakfast with him every morning is not just exciting, it is incredible. Sipping coffee with your soulmate may not land you on magazine covers, but it is something to be valued."

MAKE.

• If you have company coming over, I recommend these skillet shrimp fajitas from Rachel Ray - there's more at my Pinterest board, Dinners with Seafood.

FLASHBACK.

• Last year we threw together a Titanic dinner party, and decided to become not-so-extreme couponers.

love and marriage series: challenges...

This week's theme for the Love and Marriage Series hosted by Lindsey at A Dollop of Life and a bunch of other cool bloggers is CHALLENGES.  I thought I knew exactly what this post would be about, but it took a completely different turn than I expected.  This post is very personal, and was extremely difficult to write.  I considered not publishing it because it reveals so many of my flaws, and I don't know if I'm comfortable being this real online!  What I do feel confident about is that reading the other bloggers' posts in this Love and Marriage Series continues to be a blessing to me, and I hope that someone out there can read my stories and find something meaningful, too.

Depression

For me, the biggest challenge in my relationship with Mr. Q has been my depression.  I haven't talked about my mental health very much on this blog because it didn't seem appropriate, but here we go.  I experienced an episode of major depression during my third year of college, right around the time that my dad's kidneys failed and he had to start dialysis treatments - the stress of being away from my family and childhood friends, living farther from Grounds, and taking the max number of credits the dean would allow in order to get my dual degree was getting to me.

our story (love and marriage series)

I stumbled across the Love and Marriage Series at Lindsey's blog A Dollop of My Life.  Lindsey is teaming up with five other bloggers for a month-long series of posts and linkups about relationships.  Hmm... seems relevant to this blog.  Let's do this thing!  Who's ready for a love story?

I've mentioned many, many times on this blog what a big part of my life my involvement with 4-H is.  I bleed green and white.  Well, in a roundabout way, I might not have ever met Mr. Q if not for 4-H!  I worked at the 4-H camp I'd attended as a kid when I was in college.  My second summer working there was a crazy summer - one of my coworkers dubbed it "the summer of love" because so many couples were forming.  For me, it was like a weird switch had flipped and all of a sudden boys liked me.  I wish I knew what it was, but I had three guys flirting with me at the beginning of the summer.  Totally unprecedented.  

Anyway, it was also the summer of one of my best friends' weddings.  After all the wedding craziness, my BFF B and I needed a night out on the town, and our hair and makeup were already done, so off we went.  While we were downtown, we ran into one of my coworkers from camp.  Who introduced us to her best friends, one of whom was Mr. Q!  We hit it off pretty much instantly, grabbed a booth and spent most of the night talking about everything from music to faith to football.  Except for football teams, we were on the same page!  From that moment on, I pretty much forgot about those other guys - Mr. Q and I went on dates around the lake area on my nights off from camp, and at the end of that July he asked me to be his girlfriend.

Mr. Q got sucked back into college life!  Even though he attended our rival, Virginia Tech, he sure did fit in at UVa.  I was a resident adviser that year and also very involved in a Christian fellowship on grounds; Mr. Q became beloved by my fellow RAs, brothers and sisters in the fellowship, and even by my church family.  Mr. Q spent many a weekend at Mr. Jefferson's University with me.  He was constantly pushing me to do things that were outside of my comfort zone, like sing karaoke in front of all of his friends.  Since we had very similar musical tastes, one of our favorite things to do was go to concerts together.

Our relationship progressed at a faster pace than most because I was also dealing with the most serious thing that had ever happened to me: my father was terminally ill.  I'd gone into counseling when my dad's kidneys failed, because I knew what was coming eventually.  When it came, it wasn't what I expected - my father's death was caused by a brain tumor that my parents didn't tell me much about because my dad wanted me to stay in school.  Going back to school in January to finish my senior year was difficult, and I don't know how I would have survived that year without Mr. Q.  We'd only been together for about six months at that point but it was clear that he was in it for better or worse.  He was there for moral support and was my rock through my year of graduate school as well.

clicks of note: mark zuckerberg would be proud...

get your week off to a colorful start...

LIKE.

• There's a new Beyond the Aisle Facebook page - I don't really know what I'm doing over there, but come visit anyway!
• Have you entered Wedding Favors Unlimited's tech accessories giveaway yet?

SWOON.

Katelyn James Photography

• Purple Wedding of the Week: this sweet glam-meets-rustic wedding from Katelyn James.
• Loving the simple beauty of this rustic Utah wedding at Elizabeth Anne Designs.
• Magnolia Rouge features sparkly preppy awesomeness in a Montauk honeymoon shoot.
• Style Me Pretty features an elegant literature-inspired wedding in Vancouver.
• Also at SMP, the photography from this elegant Florida wedding is just perfect.

SMILE.

• This guide to hand lettering might be helpful for your Valentine's Day projects!

REFLECT.

• At The Honesty Path, Lou asks, "why are we so afraid of marriage?"

"Over the years, I learnt an important lesson. We are not our parents, and our intimate relationships are not the same as theirs.  Just because their marriage didn’t work out does not mean the same is in store for us. But I had to learn the positive sides to marriage, through exposure to functional couples and through seeing that fights don’t have to equal divorce. I then had to let go of my fear."

FLASHBACK.

• Last year I shared a pretty pink Sunday Simplicity post.

liebster blog award!

I've been nominated for the Liebster Blog Award by Laura from The Turquoise Home.  It's a really unique award given by bloggers to up and coming bloggers who have less than 200 followers. The purpose of the Liebster Blog Award is to show new bloggers that they are appreciated, and to help spread the word about new blogs.   The award was created to promote appreciation and recognition among the blog world.   Liebster translates to "dearest" (or favorite/best) in German. It is also known as the Love Blog Award.  Thanks so much for the nomination, Laura, and for showing my tiny blog some love!

**The Rules:**
1. You must post 11 random things about yourself.
2. Answer the questions that the nominator set for you.
3. Create 11 questions for the people you nominate.
4. Choose 11 blogs you love (with less than 200 followers) and link them in your post.
5. No tag back (but please leave me a comment on this post with the URL to your Liebster post so I can learn more about you)!

**11 random things about me:**

1. I was not allowed to wear red nail polish (because "nice girls don't wear red nail polish") or watch The Simpsons (because Bart was disrespectful to his parents) as a kid.  My parents had some of the most random rules ever.
2. I collect vintage blue Ball Mason jars from local antique stores and thrift shops and use them to store just about everything.
3. I spent one year in elementary school in a multi-age 1st-3rd grade classroom, and I really wish that style of teaching had caught on more.  I learned and grew more that year than ever before.
4. I took dance from the time I was in first grade through my first year of college.  I quit after a bad audition and really regret that I gave up so easily and compared myself to other dancers so much.  I am still really inspired by dance and it's my favorite way to work out.
5. As a kid I refused to wear the color green because it was the color of the Wicked Witch in The Wizard of Oz.
6. Tunnels, including subway/metro tunnels, really freak me out.
7. My favorite color has been purple since my mom bought me a purple sunflower hat like Blossom had on the television show.
8. I was once on a softball team that either lost or forfeited every single game we played.
9. In college I spent two weeks in Ireland for a January term English class with my two favorite professors.  I don't know if that's long enough to count as study abroad, but it was perfect for a homebody like me.  I would love to go back someday and take Mr. Q because he is Irish-American and has never been there.
10. I have been obsessed with France since high school and my #1 dream travel destination is Paris.
11. I was almost an Anthropology minor, until I started falling asleep every day in my archaeology class and realized it was probably not really for me.  I still love learning about other cultures and traditions from around the world, and about traditional agriculture and cooking.

Keep reading for Laura's questions for me, my questions, and my nominees!

beyond the aisle: my favorite posts of 2012.

Yesterday I shared the ten most popular posts at Beyond the Aisle from 2012.  They were the posts that had received the most visitors and pageviews, and the posts that have appeared the most on Pinterest!  In reviewing which posts you loved, I realized that we love the same celebrities, creating crafts to wear and to decorate our homes with, and that we love inspiration - beautiful ideas for talented people about how to add color and style to everyday life.  Many of my readers are currently plannings, but the name Beyond the Aisle reminds me that married life can be just as full of sparkle and romance as the wedding day.  In this blog, I want to share ideas to celebrate the ordinary and the extraordinary in our lives.  Here are my personal favorite Beyond the Aisle posts from 2012.

#10:  Inspiration for a Black and White Anemone Wedding

Usually it's all about the color around here, so collecting inspiration for a black and white wedding styled around one of my favorite fall flowers was a lot of fun and a nice change of pace.  More than a year after my own wedding, vintage details are still where my heart lies when it comes to event design.

#9:  A Manifesto

My "deep thoughts" on event planning, marriage, relationships and blogging about those things.  No matter what Mr. Q and I are working on, I believe that simplicity is best, family is something you make, and honesty with ourselves is key to happiness.

#8:  In Search of Direction...

March is when I started to re-shape what Beyond the Aisle is all about, and I guess that's a process that will continue throughout 2013.  What began as a wedding planning blog when I was a bridesmaid in college has become a big part of my life, and I want it to reflect more of my lifestyle and interests.

a manifesto.

As we celebrate our first full year as real live married grown-ups, I'm realizing that our lifestyle pretty much matches up with our wedding planning style.  There are a few things we believe that are equally applicable to meal planning, getting dressed, decorating a room, or planning an event.

The fewer ingredients, the better.  This was a major principle of the metabolic boot camp program I enrolled in to become healthier prior to the wedding and I apply it to just about everything now, whether I'm purchasing food, soap, makeup, or putting an outfit together.  For our wedding, dinner and dancing provided plenty of activity - we didn't feel like we needed a mashed potato bar and a cupcake station and a photo booth.  Conversation is the best entertainment.

Simple is beautiful.  My eyeballs nearly fell out of my head when the florist I'd shared my wedding inspiration with e-mailed me an estimate of what the arrangements I liked in magazines would cost.  I remember thinking, "I like it when my mama throws flowers into a Mason jar or an old vase and puts them on the table."  Our wedding centerpieces were wholesale flowers hand-arranged by my bridesmaids and I in Mason jars and white vases from Goodwill, and we don't get much fancier than that in our home decor, either.

this is not a diy post.

My mental plan for yesterday was to leave work early, go to the arts and crafts store, and have myself a little crafternoon.  Four-day school weeks are actually pretty miserable for teachers - the kids are too tired on Tuesday from their long weekends to be productive and always seem to have forgotten all of the routines and procedures they knew the week before, Wednesday and Thursday are spent trying to cover three days' worth of material while fielding questions like "why do we have to do homework?" and "Why can't we watch Jaws in class since we're reading about sharks?" and Friday the kids are rowdy and there's always some interruption on top of the shorter week, like a fire drill or a fundraiser assembly.  Anyway, when I am stressed out I want to make things.  Making things is my medicine.

Instead, one of my friends texted me after work that she was at a friend's house and they needed some help.  Specifically, she needed some dudes to help lift heavy objects.  I only had one dude on call and I am married to him.  It's the why help lifting heavy things was needed that made things unusual:  her friend was leaving her husband, moving out of the house *she* owns, and wanted to be out before her husband returned from an out of town trip.

I love marriage.  I post about weddings on this here blog about three times a week, you know?  I considered being a wedding planner.  But I also understand that sometimes people change, or aren't who you thought they were, and if a woman is so done that she's moving all of her stuff out instead of throwing his crap on the yard and changing the locks, I am going to be there to help her.  This woman who I don't even know, a friend of a friend.

And I volunteered my husband to help move her freaking huge entertainment center.  And he did, like a champ, coming home from his workday workout early and still in his gym clothes- and hey, moving a big ol' hunk of wood down steps, across a yard, and into a U-Haul is going to burn quite a few calories.  My husband, you see, is awesome.  No "Who is this girl?  We don't even know her."  Once we had verified that we weren't going to get shot or convicted of aiding and abetting theft or anything -- the husband was way, way out of town and, moreover, KNEW homegirl was packing up and rolling out.  The ASAP nature of the move was necessitated mainly by the need to return the U-Haul on time, and probably a little bit by her need to not see his face as she packed up her life.  She's a friend of my friend, and that's good enough for me.  She needed help.  

This is probably what my doctor was referring to when he said that my family and I have servant hearts.  You need help?  Here I am.  Here we are.

I felt so terrible for this woman.  Her hurt was tangible.  She had such a flat affect, watching her things go into boxes and telling the men to watch out for the ceiling fan and be careful not to break the sconces and moving the couch back into place.  She took so little with her to start again.  She handled her situation with what I can only call grace- no vengeful moves like putting his favorite things into one of her boxes accidentally-on-purpose or taking the toilet paper off the roll.  She took what had been hers in the first place, things her mother had bought them, and left a home where she thought she was going to spend the rest of her life with a man she loved and believed she could trust.

And there was my husband.  Being reliable.  Being awesome.  Being amazing.  Being really, really sweaty.

I am blessed.