10,000 Reasons: A Free Chalkboard Printable


Hi friends! One of our favorite songs around the Ten June household is Matt Redman's "10,000 Reasons." It's such an inspirational song- even little HDawg loves it as one of his bedtime lullabies. One of my favorite parts of the song is this positive verse, which reminds me that no matter what kind of day I have, I need to remember that I am blessed at the end of each day. God is good, that's for sure. I was playing around with some new fonts and decided to whip up this quick printable with my favorite lyrics. And I'd love to share with all of you! Feel free to take the printable for yourself, but please play nice and use it for personal use only. Or share it on your own blog (I'd appreciate a credit!)... who knows who it will inspire.

Happy Thursday!

Psst! You can learn more about Matt Redman and his inspiring music here!

Hot Momma Fashion: Part II

Just when you thought you'd seen enough really bad iPhone pics of me trying to throw together a cool outfit... I'm baaaaack! : ) In keeping with my new years resolution to spend 2013 dressing less like a sweatpants-obsessed mom and more like, well, a hawt mom, I've committed to sharing some of my fashion attempts here on the ol' blog. So here goes nothing!

Remember, I'm an amateur. Don't judge me if I got it all wrong. Or if my outfit is so 2012. I'm learning!

Casual fashion tip: don't be afraid to be bright


Yes, I know... the leopard flats again. Perhaps my foray into fashion should really read: what else can I pair in my closet with my leopard flats? Mhm, I love 'em. Maybe one day I'll show you some other shoes. Maybe.

Here, I took a walk on the wild side (did I just say that?) with a neon striped sweater, straight from the clearance section at Target. A good $11.48 well spent, don't you think? All of my jeans were in the wash (let's be honest here) so I paired the sweater with my gray Gap skinny cords and the all-famous leopard flats. I think pairing bright, neon colors makes any outfit trendy.

Workplace fashion tip: buy or tailor good cuts


Oh wow, I have a face! It may not have makeup on it and my hair may be in a lame librarian-ish bun, but at least you finally got a full outfit shot, complete with my head. Ha.

When dressing for work (well, all the time, but especially in more formal settings), it's important to make sure the cut of your clothing fits you well. Here, all I'm wearing are a pair of basic light gray suit pant and a hunter green sweater from LOFT. But these aren't just any old pants and sweater. If you look closely, you'll see the sweater has a bit more femininity to it as cuts into my waist and dips low across my shoulders. And the pants are nicely shaped (thanks to tailoring) to give sort of a boot-cut bottom while remaining more fitted around the top. 

Yeah, I'm not sure I explained myself all that well, but you get the drift. Lumpy, bumpy, baggy, saggy, loose, etc. isn't the way to go when you're dressing for work. Fitted clothing makes you look, and feel, like a million bucks!

Oh and for those of you who took the "don't dress like a mom slob" challenge with me, please know that I'm still working on getting dressed fabulously most of the time. I promise I don't look like a rock star every day (that's me assuming I look like a rock star ever!). In fact, here's a shot of my "uniform" of leggings, running shoes, a fleece and one of David's old t-shirts.


Slowly but surely, right?! Now spill the beans... how are all of you dressing snazzily this week?!


Check out more of my hot momma fashion posts!

Five Tips For Organizing Your Paperwork


It's that time of year again, folks. Time to clean your office, dust off the pile of papers at the corner of your desk and get your stuff together to crank out those tax returns. What fun, right? Yup, about as fun as a bikini wax. Over the years, I've compiled a few go-to tips to help our family sort through the craziness that is household paperwork and I thought I'd share some of those with you today. While it's not the most riveting topic of the year, it's certainly some good advice, so enjoy!

 1. Pile your paperwork up in a snazzy looking basket or bin.

As I get mail that I need to save or as other important paperwork trickles in, I throw out the clutter (ie. the ad that comes with my power bill, the extra envelope that comes with my TV/Internet bill since I pay online, that kind of thing) and simply keep the substance. Then it goes in the filing pile, in a basket on my office desk. And it's gotta be a cute basket, right? Something snazzy looking to disguise the clutter of the filing pile.

2. Attack your filing pile only once or twice a year.

I know, it might make more sense to some of you to keep up with your filing every month or even every couple of weeks, if you're super ambitious. I guess I'm just plain lazy because once a year works for me. Filing is not one of my favorite tasks, so it makes the most sense to me to sit down and knock it out in one big couple hour stint. Think paperwork, wine and Real Housewives. Knowing I only have to file once in a blue moon (usually at this time of year) makes things a lot easier for me! 

3. Don't keep everything.

Let me say it again: don't keep everything. Otherwise known as no, Michelle, you don't need your power bill from your college apartment back in 2003. I have a tendency to want to hold onto all paperwork... you know, just in case. In case the power company comes back to me ten years later and wants to dispute my bill? Mhmm. 

A couple of years ago, David and I decided we were holding on to far too much paperwork, so we educated ourselves about what we really need to keep and what we could trash. I found this great set of tips from the IRS that taught us a lot. We also reference the information below from Suze Orman. 

Keep till warranty expires or can no longer return or exchange
  • Sales receipts (unless needed for tax purposes and then keep for 3 years)
What to keep for one month
  • ATM printouts (when you balance your checkbook each month throw out the ATM receipts)
What to keep for one year
  • Paycheck stubs (you can get rid of once you have compared to your W2 and annual social security statement)
  • Utility bills (you can throw out after one year, unless you're using these as a deduction like a home office --then you need to keep them for 3 years after you've filed that tax return)
  • Cancelled checks (unless needed for tax purposes and then you need to keep for 3 years)
  • Credit card receipts (unless needed for tax purposes and then you need to keep for 3 years)
  • Bank statements (unless needed for tax purposes and then you need to keep for 3 years)
  • Quarterly investment statements (hold on to until you get your annual statement)
What to keep for three years
  • Income tax returns (please keep in mind that you can be audited by the IRS for no reason up to three years after you filed a tax return. If you omit 25% of your gross income that goes up to 6 years and if you don't file a tax return at all, there is no statute of limitations.)
  • Medical bills and cancelled insurance policies
  • Records of selling a house (documentation for Capital Gains Tax)
  • Records of selling a stock (documentation for Capital Gains Tax)
  • Receipts, cancelled checks and other documents that support income or a deduction on your tax return (keep 3 years from the date the return was filed or 2 years from the date the tax was paid -- which ever is later)
  • Annual investment statement (hold onto 3 years after you sell your investment.)
What to keep for seven years
  • Records of satisfied loans
What to hold while active
  • Contracts
  • Insurance documents
  • Stock certificates
  • Property records
  • Stock records
  • Records of pensions and retirement plans
  • Property tax records disputed bills (keep the bill until the dispute is resolved)
  • Home improvement records (hold for at least 3 years after the due date for the tax return that includes the income or loss on the asset when it's sold)
Keep forever
  • Marriage licenses
  • Birth certificates
  • Wills
  • Adoption papers
  • Death certificates
  • Records of paid mortgages
 The attorney in me tends to want to keep more of the contract-type legal documents, real property records and income tax documents forever, but overall I think this is pretty good information.

4. Keep your filed paperwork in a neatly labeled, organized fashion.

If only my filing cabinet were this cute! To tell you the truth, David and I have been on the lookout for a new filing cabinet for about a year now but are being super picky about this piece of furniture, for some reason. We just haven't found the right thing- I don't want to spend an arm and a leg on a filing cabinet, but I want it to be cute... is that so much to ask?! For now, we still have his college plastic filing cabinet with one of the plastic faces popped off. Holla at ya boy. BUT I will give us some credit, as the inside of it is very neatly labeled and organized with categories for all of our paperwork filing. It makes a world of difference! Maybe one day I will find the perfect filing cabinet... maybe that's a fun DIY project in the future, eh?

5. Store your valuable paperwork in a safe or safety deposit box.

It's important to keep your big daddy (ie. important) paperwork in a fireproof safe or a safety deposit box. Here's the breakdown Good Housekeeping suggests in terms of where to store what:

Emergency Kit
Filing Cabinet
Birth/death certificates Tax returns
Social Security cards Credit card statements
Passports Medical records
Emergency contact information (insurance agents, doctors, family) Retirement savings statements
Marriage certificates/divorce decrees Investment records
Wills Bills
Copies of your driver's license, green card, and other identification cards Paycheck stubs
Copies of lifesaving prescriptions (like insulin, asthma inhalers, etc.) Bank statements
List of bank account and credit card account numbers Warranty/rebate documentation
Inventory of household goods Legal documents
 
Those are just five quick and dirty tips I use for keeping paperwork organized around our house. Got any other fun advice for keeping your family records together?!

Cozy Winter White Interiors




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Well, hello, strangers! Sorry I've been MIA all week... if you follow me on Instagram (@tenjuneblog), you know that I suffered a minor burn injury earlier this week (dang those baby bottle steam cleaning bags!) so typing hasn't been the easiest chore for me the last few days. Couple that with a two-day Internet outage at our house, three house showings and an ice storm today and it's been a busy week! There are also some fun things going on behind the scenes, but I'll share more on that later : )

The weather here in Georgia is below freezing today, which of course means that everything is shut down. The falling sleet means that all north Georgia citizens get a "snow day" to hunker down in our homes and stay warm. Gotta love being a southerner. Speaking of, this cozy weather has got me in the mood for some cozy interiors, like these amazing winter white rooms. There's something about crisp white when it's paired with rustic textures and patterns. Don't you agree?!

Have a great weekend, folks!

PS. If you are at Alt Summit this week, I am so jealous! I have been following on Instagram and it looks like Amazefest, USA. I can't wait to read all of your recaps.

A New Lamp for A New Week

 
Happy Monday, friends! My firm recently expanded their offices and so I got to relocate to a new office. Which of course means some new decorating, duh. When I ran across this Ralph Lauren beauty at HomeGoods a few weeks ago, I knew it would be perfection in my new digs. I looove it! The blue + white porcelain, the gigantic white shade, the wooden base and finial... it's da bomb.
 
What's helping you start the week off with a smile?

Hot Momma Fashion

I have to say, I never thought this girl would be writing a fashion blog post. Seriously... when my go-to uniform always starts with a white t-shirt, I'm probably not the girl you want to take fashion advice from! But there were so many of you who connected with me through this post, I had to follow up.

For my New Years resolution this year, I vowed to stop dressing lazily and start dressing with steez. Otherwise known as style, for those of you who don't speak Michelle-talk. When I shared my resolution here on Ten June, a lot of you shared with me that you were also promising yourself to dress nicer in the new year. Fun stuff! Y'all also asked that I share some outfit ideas here on the ol' blog. I guess I'm a people pleaser, because ye ask... ye shall receive!

Today, I'm sharing a couple of fun tips I've learned over the last few weeks as I try to step my fashion game up both in work fashion and my casual fashion.

Casual fashion tip: colorful pants

It's time to break out the colorful pants, peeps! Even with my favorite white tee, colorful skinny jeans make any outfit hip. Although now I'm not hip because I said "hip." Dang. I need to learn some new words.




Green jeans, yellow jeans... they're all so fun and versatile! Oh, and for those of you who asked about nursing fashion, I love wearing button up tops (like the chambray top I paired with the yellow skinnies above) in public. They are so easy!

Workplace fashion tip: funky accessories

If you're like me, you work in a conservative field where there isn't much of a place for funky clothing. So my tip? Bring in the funky in small doses, with fun accessories.

Here I paired a conservative blazer and stud earrings with a double layer of necklaces- a gold collar necklace and a little H, which is the necklace David gave me to celebrate my first mother's day when I was preggo with H. I'm not gonna lie, I kind of felt like a gangsta with all those chains on.


Here, I spiced up my basic black shift dress and flats with this pair of chevron tights from LOFT. Boom.


For the record, tights and dresses are awkward when it comes to nursing. Or pumping at work. I learned that one the hard way. #truestory

Again, I'm certainly no fashionista and I'm not claiming to be! But so many of you asked that I share what I'm wearing as I navigate this new-mom-fashion-world, so here ya go. These are my outfits this week!

Got any fun fashion tips for me this week!?

Happy Friday, friends!

Is Twitter the New MySpace?


Remember MySpace? It was probably my first attempt at social media... I would spend hours dolling up my page with a hawt selfie pic like the above (you like that? I took that just for ya'll, to recreate the fabulousness that was the MySpace selfie) and setting up my favorite music to play. I think my page was set on "I'm Slim Shady" for quite some time. You know me, the original gangsta. Holla.

But then came Facebook. I remember when it was only open to college kids (thank goodness I was a senior before it hit our school... my early college years did not need to be documented on the WWW) and eventually expanded to the rest of the world. As quickly as Facebook appeared, MySpace disappeared. With the cooler, easier, photo-friendly Facebook around, no one needed the ol' MySpace girl.

Lately, I've been feeling the same way about Twitter. I still log onto my Twitter account here and there, but lately I've been going straight to Instagram (cc: tenjuneblog) instead. For some reason, I just feel more of a connection with the world when I'm on IG versus Twitter. For example, when I ask questions on Twitter, I don't get much response from you peeps. But if I ask the same question on IG (with a fab picture, of course), I get all kinds of responses! It also seems like so many of you are updating your IG feeds a lot more regularly than your Twitter accounts. It feels like the go-to social media right now.

So, tell me, is Twitter becoming a thing of the past? Is it just me, or is Twitter becoming the new MySpace?

Four Months: A Baby HDawg Update


Nope, that's not an ad for the world's cutest baby ever. That's just my son. Who just so happens to be the world's cutest baby ever. Well, in my world, at least : ) Especially with that slobbery smile! I know I'm annoying and say that every time I post a picture of the bebe, but I can't help myself.

Little H is already four months old. Actually, it took me awhile to get this post up, so he's already four and a half months old. Time flies.


The past month with this sweet boy has been amazing. Every single day he grows more and more into a sweet, charming little fella. He's been laughing at us for awhile, but recently we've started to see his silly side which just makes me swoon. My little guy is a jokester!


In the looks department, he's looking more and more like David every day, which I love. His eyes have stayed very blue and his sweet little hair is turning blonder by the minute.


His favorite toy is one that Santa brought him- a jumperoo. We've laughed so hard we've had tears in our eyes over this kid in the jumperoo. He. Loves. It. And is not afraid to show it by doing a little Irish jig side to side while sqealing like he's a pig in mud. Hey, I can't blame him. That jumperoo is fly. HDawg also still loves his books- currently, his favorites are all things Dr. Suess, as he loves the colorful illustrations and the sing-song lyrics. But the thing he loves the most? "The Ants Go Marching" song. All you have to do is sing that song and he is in heaven. I'm sure it doesn't hurt that I make the best voices to "the little one stopped to tie his shoe" and "boom boom boom boom." I've got a voice as smooth as silk, I'm telling ya. Not. 


In the last month, we celebrated our first Christmas together as a family, which was wonderful. Just pretend like I have makeup/brushed my hair (or my teeth, for that matter!) in the Christmas morning picture above. We also dealt with H's first illness- he had the flu and then, as a result of his congestion, a double ear infection the next week. So. Not. Fun. Poor little guy just couldn't feel good! But we got him on meds and got him feeling back to 100% as quickly as we could. We also worked on sleep training our sweet baby who is now happily sleeping through the night! I'm so proud of our little man.


Currently, H weighs almost sixteen pounds. Yup, he's a biggin'. But I love that! He's still exclusively on momma's milk, although David is ready to introduce rice cereal (our pediatrician said H is ready when we are). The crazy mom in me isn't quite ready to go that route yet... he's already growing up so fast!

Oh and I also started back to work two weeks ago. I'm so very, very blessed to be able to start back with a part-time schedule and until H starts his daycare in March, he's staying with family (my mom and sister-in-law, who are wonderful with him!). It's really been a great transition so far.


I cannot believe how much he's grown in four and a half months. My baby will be in college before I know it!! David and I are trying to remember to sit back and savor every minute... life is so precious and we are so, so blessed to have our sweet baby H!





Three Steps to a Cozy Winter Mantel

Nobody likes a bad hangover, right? Well boo on me, because I think I've left some of you feeling a little blah after our holiday mantel link party! I told you not to take that last shot of tequila, but you wouldn't listen! You didn't listen to me about dancing on the table to "Call Me Maybe" either....

I promise that the party doesn't have to be over, though. Now that the holiday decorations are down, have you thought about decorating your mantel (or fantle, your faux mantel) for winter? Not sure how to winterize your space without simply slapping a few snowmen up? I've had a few of you ask about what I do with my mantel after the Christmas season is over. While I haven't gotten my buns in gear to redecorate my mantel for winter yet (yup, it's currently sitting empty with no decorations at all!), I do have a few go-to thoughts on decorating this time of year. So have no fear, as today I'm coming atcha with three easy steps to a fabulous winter mantel!

1. Add texture, texture, texture.

When I think about winter, I think about layers of textures. Soft, chunky sweaters paired with leather boots. Fluffy white snow on top of scrappy, rough pine trees. Do you see what I'm envisioning? Bring that dichotomy into your home by layering textured items to your mantel.




2. Dress your mantel in winter whites.

Let your mantel break the "don't wear white after Labor Day" rule and dress her up in all shades of winter white. Even with a few pops of color, such as icy blue, white on white easily creates a pretty winter scene.

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3. Bring in natural elements.

Typically, we reserve decorating with nature for other months, such as the flowers of spring or the robust leaves of the fall. But get your game face on to get bundled up and get your hunter/gatherer on because shopping the elements of nature in the winter creates some beautiful winter decorating moments.

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Now I need to take my own two cents on winter decor and get my own mantel decorated! Do you have any fun tips for decorating your mantel this time of year? Do share.

Confessions From a New Mom's Closet


This might sound a little superficial, but one of my main resolutions for 2013 is to get my butt in gear when it comes to all things fashion. With our house still on the market, it's hard to set home goals, so, instead, I decided to set a few personal goals to ring in the two-oh-thirteen.

Goal number one? Stop dressing like a new mom. For realz.

I am telling myself that it is no longer appropriate to wear clothing in public that could double as pajamas. If I want to wear it to bed, it doesn't need to be seen outside of the house. And my maternity clothes? Um, four months post-partum... it's time to stop wearing those. And that includes the size-too-big granny panties I bought to accommodate my pregnant rear. I am not allowed to wear those anymore. Yeah, I just talked about my underwear in front of thousands of people. That happened.

I should point out that I have lost all of my pregnancy weight, so I don't have any excuse not to move forward post-partum. I blame the quick weight loss on gestational diabetes and HDawg's dairy sensitivity... and maybe breastfeeding in general... but I was back in my regular jeans within a couple weeks of delivery. I know, you can hate me. But the point is that I have zero reason to still be wearing the slouchy stretch shirts that I donned with a big ol' belly, that's for sure.

So, in 2013, I will be attempting to dress well. I am still nursing H, so it's going to be a chore to find fashionable clothes that can adapt to nursing. Not to mention clothing that can wear spit up and wear it well (and no, I'm not talking to you, awesome silk shirt that I saw at the mall!). Like all things I do, my new fashion mission will be done on a budget... a la Target, Old Navy, Forever 21, etc. I gots to look fly on a dime, yo. In addition to being cheap, I want to be funky. And apparently lame, for using words like funky. But seriously, I want to try new things with my clothes, like the way I mixed the random patterns + colors in the photo above. If they look stupid, just forgive me... it was my first attempt at looking cool. Oh, and I'm going to try and reinvent a lot of the clothing I already have. Which means I probably need to pare down my wardrobe and spend some time donating the old crap to Goodwill. Wow, this is turning into quite the resolution, right?

Thank goodness I have a few fashionable friends here in the ol' blog world, like Michaela, Cassie, Natalie, Anna and Natasha. I will absolutely be looking to them and their blogs for ideas! If you've got any other down-to-earth (read: attainable styles!) fashion bloggers to follow, leave their blogs in the comments. I'm totally digging any inspiration I can get my hands on these days.

So that's it. One of my bigger personal resolutions for 2013. To look hawt.

Au Revoir 2012 {A Recap of My Year}

Oh, hey 2013. Where'd you come from?

Seriously. When did another year fly by? As I sit here and munch on my deer jerky (true story... David went hunting with work, shot Bambi and then brought the meat back to us in jerky form. The worst part is that I like it, making me the world's biggest redneck... fo real), all I can think about is that it's incredible how fast time flies.

Before I move on and celebrate all of the fun to come in 2013, let's take a quick peek back at 2012 around the Ten June casa. And I don't mean just DIY projects, because I already recapped those here. I mean the real, fun life stuff. So put down your deer jerky and get settled in for this show because last year was a wild ride for us!

J A N U A R Y 

 
David and I visited New York City here and here. I was secretly pregnant and beyond sick the entire trip, but of course I didn't tell all of you that... yet!

It took me awhile, but I finally joined Pinterest.

F E B R U A R Y


I spilled the beans that we put our house on the market for sale because David got a new job.

I made a project gallery here on the el' bloggo.

M A R C H


David and I announced that we were pregnant!

  I showered in front of my neighbors.

I shared more about my 14 week baby bump and first trimester here. 




A P R I L


I put my big girl pants on and bought a sewing machine

 I shared my very first (and very awkward) vlog here and, since I'm apparently a chatterbox, here.

I shared my half-way through the pregnancy thoughts

M A Y


I celebrated my four year anniversary with my baby daddy. 

We started buying items for the baby and his nursery!

I shared my thoughts and a tutorial on PicMonkey.

I divulged some of my favorite house showing tips. 

J U N E


Ol' preggo here hit up the beach for a little R&R vacation.

I hung out with a bunch of strangers I met on the Internet (ie. went to the Haven conference).

I shared that we got our house under contract! And then we didn't.

I entered my third trimester of the pregnancy! 

I whipped up some virgin sangria.

Ten June got a little face lift with a blog makeover. 

J U L Y


I shared some fun blogging tips here and here.

I hosted the summer Pinterest Challenge with Sherry Petersik and Katie Bower. 

We painted the nursery... officially my favorite room in the house.

 Ten June celebrated it's sweet little two year blog anniversary. 


Little H Dawg was born!

SEPTEMBER 



I shared baby H's birth story.

While I loved on my newborn, I replayed some of my favorite DIY posts.

In a hotly contested post, I shared our story about giving away our aggressive dog to protect the baby. Don't worry, comments are closed on that post.

O C T O B E R

 
I spent my birthday weekend in the north Georgia mountains.

I decorated my home with gigantic baby pictures

I tried (and failed) to make a month's worth of frozen meals.


I shared how I documented my pregnancy with weekly photos

I attended the Country Living Fair with my friend, Katelyn.


H Dawg dressed up like the cutest pea pod ev-er.   

N O V E M B E R


H and I voted in the presidential election.

I made some really amazeballs chocolate chip + pecan + pumpkin gluten free muffins.

I got some new pillows in the living room.  

D E C E M B E R      


David and I hosted a Christmas cookie party with our friends.
 
H Dawg turned three months old. 

I shared my favorite baby gear for birth to three months.

We celebrated our first Christmas with little H

Whew! I told you, it's been an amazingly wild ride around here. I feel so, so blessed to have had such wonderful times in 2012. Of course, David and I couldn't ask for anything more than our beautiful, healthy little boy. He was definitely the best moments of our 2012, that's for sure.

And I can't wait to see what adorableness little H brings us in 2013! Hopefully this year will be filled with as many wonderful memories and exciting times. I've got a couple of resolutions up my sleeve... I'll be sure to share those next week!

Have a great weekend, friends!   
 
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