Good morning everyone! Summer is here and so is another attempt at doing this blog/writing thing. Depending on if people like it, it might stick around to the fall. A Handful of Candies is a handful of topics, shows, podcasts, habits, and more that could improve your summer or just the season of life that you are in right now.
#1.) Darby’s Dresses
I was hired at a law firm in Tysons Corner, VA.1 Tysons is just outside of DC and has one of the biggest malls in the DMV area (I think it’s three or four floors). Because of these two factors, there are some BIG corporate names that have offices and employees here, Capital One has at least four different buildings with their logo plastered on the side. Anyways, Tysons Corner can be a bit of a fashion show and I was very worried when I started about upgrading my wardrobe to accommodate working in law and in Tysons.
Mrs. Darby Stouffer of Darby’s Dresses ::Affordable and Adorable Clothing:: was here to save my hide!! A few Facebook groups I’m in sang her praises, I just never thought much of it. Darby’s thrifted clothing is amazing; everything is $20 or less, Small through Plus Sizes, and more! She does weekly thrift posts, “Thrifty Thursdays”, as well as events throughout the month like Consignment days and pop up shops for her boutique.
I’ve single-handedly been able to upgrade my entire closet to office-appropriate clothes for less than $500, which certainly would be more around the $1,000 mark if I’d bought these items new… Darby’s Dresses Boutique is where I’ve gotten ALL my staple pieces and accessories, bike shorts (for under dresses and skirts), jewelry, and hair things. It’s safe to say, I’m obsessed.
#2.) The Holy Post Podcast
As a lover of podcasts, I have known about The Holy Post for several years now. In my legalistic years, I steered clear because Phil Vischer was a “liberal loose cannon”. In the last few years, I couldn’t handle anything that focused on the news.
Then I noticed Kaitlyn Scheiss posted in a Q&A day on Instagram that she was a regular guest host on The Holy Post. I slowly mulled for a few weeks, then she posted about a topic that interested me; so I gave it another try.
WELP, I came for Kaitlyn and I’ve stayed for really all of it! From the theme song, to the Classic Phil Vischer voices when he’s reading a quote, to Christian’s call for reflection, and Skye always rationalizing and bringing in the historical points. THP is half news discussion and half interview. Each week the cast talks through some news highlights, wacky stories, or News of the Butt. Yes, News of the Butt is an actual news segment they do and you can feel Kaitlyn’s cringe without even looking at her! Though, what I really enjoy is the call to actually talk out Christian principles and applied theology. How does Reagan factor into Christian Nationalism? What is the significance of evangelicals boycotting Jemar Tisby or Kohls?
#3.) Listening to Your Body
Over the last six months of 2023, my family has encountered a very strange and unexpected time. From my husband participating in his hospitalization program to me changing jobs twice, we’ve had no choice but to throw planning to the wind. Every week is a new strain on our marriage, family, workplace, finances, home, church, etc.
I was unemployed for two months and Husband has been so intentional about saying every time it comes up, “You needed that time to wind down, to decompress. It has pulled us in other ways, but there was no way our family could have survived if you were not home to take care of us. You needed that time to work on our home, to spend time in your hobbies, to read, to grow, to prepare for what else God has in this season.” Those two months allowed me to slow my brain waves, accept a new diagnosis I’d been avoiding, and actually look at how I was and would moving forward live my life.
I stretch every morning. Listening to the rest my body did or did not receive that night. Feeling her new pain points today. Allowing her to move in ways that give her life.
I’ve learned a lot from my husband on the importance of taking care of your tools. If your body is God-given tool, why not spend some time listening and learning how to best use your tool? In the busyness of our jobs and lives, we can think of our hands as nothing more than a way to type or open door knobs, our legs as just another transportation mode, our skin as a garment that shows our age.
In this vein, I am excited to share that I have a series of breathe prayers to share over the coming months.
#4.) These pants from Amazon
I bought a burnt orange pair and loved it. Then I realized I didn’t have any khakis for my office, so I got a second pair! They are super comfortable, so breezy, not too tight on my waist (like some high-waisted stuff), and the belt adds a nice accentuation; plus, it helps me not be as self-conscious about tucking my shirt.
The pants come in a variety of sizes from Small all the way to 4X. Oh, and the Darby’s bike shorts are a perfect addition to wear underneath, as you cannot see here ;)
#5.) Public Transportation
As I mentioned, I got a new job. My office is about 20 miles away from my home, which wouldn’t typically cause a problem… if we had two cars. My husband and I have functioned as a one-car-family for almost two years now. It’s not ideal, but it’s how we’ve lived. Working at 911 worked out well for us because he would have the car during the day, I’d have the car at night. With both of us working normal hours, we were worried about how it’d would work.
Every morning, Husband brings me to our local commuter lot. I take a bus from our town to Tysons, then a local Tysons bus drops me off directly in front of our office. Round trip it costs me $4 a day, which is far less than what I’d be spending on a tank of gas (not to mention the literal hours I’d spend in traffic each day).
You may not have great public transportation where you live or maybe it’s not very well developed, but it doesn’t hurt to poke around google to find out!2
WELP that’s all folks!
If you liked A Handful of Candies, let me know in the comments below! Newsletters like this have always been a favorite of mine and I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Happy Friday!
My previous positions working alone in a small office for a moving company or answering 911 calls are very different than working in a law office as a receptionist and facilities coordinator. But, I’ll write more about that later, hahahahaha!!
I went from interacting with 20-30 people at 911, to 0 people at the moving company, to potentially 60 or more in a day! I’m always on my feet, I’m always moving, and I always have a running list of projects to complete.
I’ve found google has the most regularly updated bus schedules, still check your local bus schedule to confirm. You can even type your start and end point directly in and it will give you the bus number, time you’ll b on the bus, number of stops you’ll be waiting on the bus, and even how many minutes it will take to walk from the bus stop to your destination! Super helpful!!