One of my favorite places in the world to visit is the British Museum because of its vast array of Egyptian, Greek, and Roman history.

I got to spend one half day in London proper before heading north to St. Albans for the U23 World Ultimate Championships. I had two objectives: The British Museum and ice cream with a flake bar in it. People, I accomplished both.

My favorite piece that I studied that day was the Sea Nymphs in the Grecian sector of the museum. I loved the way the fabric etched of stone moves and dances as they carried those into the after life. It was a beautiful reminder that God's after life is worth dancing for!

Y'all, there is nothing more precious than the quiet moments spent with dear friends. One of my favorite moments of the entire trip was a morning filled with warm cups of coffee, soft light, and roaring laughs from the women that I was spending time with.

Each of us took our time to catch up on our lives that we had been neglecting for a few days - I spent time in God's word through my She Reads Truth study. Ginny, Danny, and Brooke chatted with loved ones, and Erin and Haley used their natural gifts of creativity to design a website for Erin.


I couldn't help but be that girl. You know, the one who snags her camera to snap photos of the memories that I didn't want to let fade. These women are so beautiful and each has such unique talents. I hope my photos do their smiles just a little bit of justice!

My West Virginia outdoor door adventure allowed me to experience so many new things from Summersville Lake, Fern Creek Trail, and rock climbing! The girls and I woke up bright and early to prepare for what was to be quite an epic adventure ahead of us.

Ginny's husband, Adam, drove from Kentucky to meet us that morning and agreed to be our belay master. I was blessed to be with some of the greatest rock climbers I've ever seen, so I felt safe going into my first time scaling the side of a mountain.

West Virginia is known for its many vaults, cracks, and scales. Our troupe headed to Bubba City - a place that had routes easy enough for beginners and those that were made for the experts, like Adam and Haley's sister, Erin.

We started our morning trekking through a field of power lines until we saw a small sign that said "Bubba City approach." We made a sharp left and into the woods we went. We finally arrived among the rocks and began setting up the equipment.

Ginny, Adam, Erin, Haley, and Brooke were amazing coaches to Danny and I - the first timers. While we didn't conquer the cruxes, we still scaled over 40 feet high! Just as we were about to watch Erin and Adam scale the last route, a monster rain storm and valley sweep hit the New River gorge. When the rain started pelting the side of the mountain, we looked up to see Erin dangling from the rope. Thank goodness she is the expert and knew how to keep herself up there safely.

Since she was "cleaning the route" (taking down the course), she couldn't come down quickly. We watched as she slowly unclipped each carabiner on her way back to safe ground. Luckily, she made it down ok and immediately let us know that swaying side to side on a mountain is EPIC! Ha!

All that climbing made us hungry, so we headed to Fayetteville's famed Pies and Pints for some great brews and awesome pies!

I apologize for being MIA - my last two weeks have put me in three states and a visitation trip to the hospital. CRAZY! On June 13, 2015, one of my best friends tied the knot to her now-hubby. However, as tradition goes, one must part-ay with her best girl friends before the big day.

Six of us girls each came from different states: West Virginia, Texas, North Carolina, Florida, Kentucky, and Oregon. Once arrived in the cutest airbnb in Oak Hill, WV, we hit the hay and prepared ourselves for the boat day ahead of us.

In our rented pontoon boat, we cruised around the man-made Summersville Lake. Summersville Lake was created as a reservoir for the Gad dam. Every ten years, they drain the lake in its entirety and you can take 4-wheeler tours in this huge dry crevice!

Our group of girls can certainly be classified as the outdoorsy bunch. Summersville Lake is surrounded by blown out rocks that are great for free climbing. Having never rock climbed, I took a seat behind the lens and watched as Erin, Haley, and her sister climbed higher and higher to the top of this huge cliff.

The lake served as our playground and offered gorgeous rocks, trees, green plants, and crystal clear lake water. I couldn't keep myself from praising God and marveling at his wonderful creation.

As the sun set, we cruised our boat back to the docks. Burrito bar was waiting for us at the top of the hill. YUM!

It's been awhile since I've let you into my heart. Where do I begin?

Well, as some of you may know I am an avid ultimate frisbee player and have been playing the sport for six years. M is also a player, but not just any player. He is a gold medalist at the 2013 U-23 World Championships, a silver medalist at College Nationals, and a finalist for the college-level MVP award.

Beyond championships, wins and losses, ultimate frisbee is a community of friends across the country that are near and dear to our hearts. When M&I moved to San Antonio, finding the local ultimate community was our first priority and we succeeded. I jumped into a coaching role at a small college and even M helps me teach the girls how to play.

I love playing ultimate frisbee, but I have decided to hang up my cleats.

One of my 2016 goals was making the Texas Women's Team, Showdown. Showdown was awarded 4th best team in the WFDF World Championships last year and 6th best team in the United States at Club Nationals. Needless to say, these women are fierce and I have been training for six years to have the opportunity to be fierce with them.

Unfortunately, after three rigorous weekends of invite only try-outs, I did not make the team.

My friends, I am heartbroken. I am defeated. As a Christian, I admit that I was angry with God. I felt as though he had given me false hope. I felt that he dangled my dreams in front of me only to turn away just as I reached out to grab them.

But, God loves me. His plans are greater than my dreams.

Jeremiah 29:11 ESV      

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 

Friends, while I struggle to believe these words now, I encourage you to remember this verse when you feel defeated or heartbroken. He is there for each one of us and we are to trust in Him. I am afraid of moving on from a dream that I have been focusing on for many years. I've always had this to look forward to and now, I am not sure where to set my sights. God asks us to focus on His love and His plan for us. Will you do that with me?

As I wrote back in January, "Don't pick up the confetti, Eryn. The party isn't over. You've seen nothing yet!"

I am excited to announce there is a new restaurant in town: Southerleigh Fine Food & Brewery. Chef Jeff Balfour brings the city a seasonal mix of farm to table cuisine with a fusion of cultures from the  Midwest and Southeast. In addition to the yummy family style entree's, the newcomer is already the 10th largest brewpub in the nation offering a variety of in-house, brewed craft beers.

Southerleigh can be found in the Historic Pearl District in the vintage Brewer's Association and Pearl Brewery building. The structure is soon to be opened as the new Hotel Emma; Hotel Emma is named after Emma Koehler. Emma's claim to fame is keeping the Pearl Brewery going and all of her employees working during the prohibition. Talk about a female role model and revolutionary business woman of her time!

If you are a fan of good, southern cookin' then Southerleigh is the place to go. M&I shared the Ribeye that was absolutely to die for. It was served with a house red gravy. The serving was plenty big enough for M&I to share. We also partnered our steak with a side of Old Fashioned Buttered Cornbread.

Southerleigh is already known for the craft beers they make in-house. As you can see, all I had to do with look up and see the brewmasters at work! It was really neat to know that what was in my glass came from directly where I was sitting! I tried the Big Shell Coconut Porter; while flavorful and a great Porter, it didn't have as much coconut punch as I would have liked. What can I say? I like my beers sweet.

May is finally here! While April showers certainly were in abundance here in San Antonio, May is already bringing .. more showers. Yuck! The ugly rain hasn't stopped me from celebrating the spring aromas and colors in my home. I've planted more flowers inside my loft, busted out the spring candles, and have been eating all the berries!

Laura Jean, of According to Laura Jean, hosted a May Day Swap this year to celebrate the new season. When I saw that one of my favorite bloggers was hosting a swap, I jumped right in. Little did I know that Laura Jean would be my partner! I was over the moon!

Laura made her way to a local fair-trade store called A Thousand Villages and put a lot of thought into each gift she prepared for me. From a cute heart shaped wine cork to rose smelling soaps to divine chocolates, each treat had me swooning over Laura Jean. Thank you so much!

Will you join us for next year's May Day Swap?

Let me be forward with you: I am not a DIYer or crafter by nature. Pinterest blew my mind and revolutionized my world, people. When we moved into our new apartment in San Antonio, I decided I was going to make at least one piece of furniture in my place. Thus, the crate coffee table was born. 

I apologize in advance, as I took all of these pictures before I got my DSLR camera, so the quality is a bit sub-par. 

The project was actually pretty easy and has encouraged me to do a bit more DIYs. So, without further adieu, I present to you my coffee table. 

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 4 crates, unpainted. We found ours at Michaels. (Tip: Make sure to download the Michael's app for coupons!)
• Wood Stain
• Wood Gloss or Sealer
• Brushes - get a few!
• Screws
• A cut piece of wood to fit the bottom of the table
• Casters

We had no idea what we were doing, so we headed to Home Depot and picked up the stain and gloss needed to complete the project. We landed on Rust-oleum - mainly because it was cost effective.

Your first step is to stain the crates, which we found at Michaels for about $15.00 a piece. I have never stained anything before and I will outright tell you, I did not do it right at all. The crates are essentially painted brown, but I like the way they turned out, so it's ok!

After the crates are dry, it's time to screw on your foundation that will hold the table together. We measured the shape and had a piece cut to fit at Lowes. I recommend you stain the wood, but I was impatient. Good news, you can't really tell!

Last but not least, you need a drill bit that will drill a hole large enough to slide in the casters. I bought basic white casters at the home goods store, but it would be so cool to find neat vintage ones!

This project was so easy and only took about 3 days total! The total project costed us around $60.

 Are you willing to give it a try? 

Spring means one thing to me: fresh berries and flowers! Recently, I sent M on a task to bring home as many berries as he could from his trip to the local H-E-B. He did not disappoint and brought home raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries.

However, that is a lot of berries! In attempt to not waste a single berry (and being out of vanilla coffee syrup), I decided to use the remaining blueberries to create Blueberry Simple Syrup for use in our coffee and at-home craft cocktails.

It was unbelievably easy to create this syrup and let me tell you firsthand, it was delicious.

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 1 (One) Cup of Water
• 1/2 (One-Half) Cup of Sugar
• 1 (One) Cup of Blueberries

HOW YOU DO IT:

1. Boil the sugar and water together and stir until the sugar dissolves. This should take about 3 minutes.
2. Once the sugar is dissolved, add the blueberries. 
3. Reduce the boil to a simmer and continue to cook until the blueberries begin to break down and shrivel. This takes about 5 minutes. 
4. Allow to completely cool before adding to a jar and placing in the fridge. I let mine cool about 30 minutes. 

ENJOY! I will be posting a craft cocktail soon. I am still perfecting it for you all. :)