Jen Russum

Spring Cleaning

April 4, 2012

Anyone who knows me well, knows that I LOVE {like am totally obsessed with} cleaning out closets. I love organized linens, streamlined medicine cabinets, functional pantries, a cleaned out fridge. But there is nothing I love more than an organized clothes closet. While I clean out my closet every month or two, I realize this is a little excessive for most people. However, I definitely think you {or anyone!} should try to clean out your closet at least twice a year... once at the end of summer, and once at the end of winter – the two major climate change times of each year. Since we are now rolling into spring {yay!}, it’s time to clean out the wardrobe and transition from cold to warm weather clothing. I am here to help you do just that! Purge. First, go through your winter clothes and remove anything you didn’t wear all season. Did that sweater sit there from October to March without even a glace in its direction? You probably don’t need it anymore. Maybe you are sick of the pattern, it’s a little itchy, or it just never fit you correctly. Get rid of it! No need for it to sit in your closet neglected for three more winters. Right at the end of the season is the perfect time to assess your clothing because you will remember clearly what you wore and what you didn’t. Sell it. I am a big fan of selling gently used clothing for cash. Basically, if you do a good job of cleaning out your closet often, you can sell your clothes while they are still in style and in good shape and make money from them. How great is that? Find a clothing exchange store such as Plato’s Closet or Buffalo Exchange where you can sell your clothes for cash {or trade them for store credit}. There are often other independent exchange stores close to college campuses {just FYI}. Consignment stores are also a good option, although you will have to wait to get your money until the items actually sell. I'll be back tomorrow with more tips on how to sell your clothes for cash! Prep for sunshine. Get your closet ready for the warm months ahead. If you have a hard-to-access closet or if you have a small closet and keep out of season clothes in storage, it’s time to transition. Pull tank tops and sundresses to the front of your closet and move sweaters to the back {except for those cardigans needed for restaurants and theaters with arctic AC temps, of course}. Make sure your sandals are laid out in an easy to reach place and put boots up and out of sight, since they take up so much space. Take inventory. Are you due for a new bikini this season? Do you need a dress for your cousin’s wedding May? Do you need a new pair of Chacos for your backpacking trip this summer? Make a list of what you will need to get through the spring and summer months as soon as possible and add to it when you think of specific items. If you make a list in advance, you will be able to shop around for styles you truly love and look for sales instead of buying that dress for the wedding last minute and paying more than you wanted to spend on dress you don’t even love. I also add to this list when I keep running into an item I want but don’t have. For example, have you put on three different outfits this week and wished you had gold sandals to go with them? If I notice there is an item that would be perfect with lots of my clothes, I put it on my “to buy” list. That way I buy things that actually function well in my wardrobe instead of buying a cute top on sale that goes with nothing that I already own. That’s it! Clean it out, make sure your warm weather clothes are easy to reach, and start of list of items you want to or need to buy this season. Now get out of your clean closet and go enjoy some sunshine! ... Read more

Vegas.

April 3, 2012

We did Vegas this weekend. It was hard core. I mean no drunkeness or clubbing with Justin Timberlake or anything like that... but it was still pretty intense. Vegas is a fairly familiar place to me because my grandparents have lived there my whole life. I wouldn't say I know it like the back of my hand or anything, but I can navigate the central part of the city pretty well and I remember watching many of the big casinos being built back in the 90s. But we always stayed at grandma and grandpa's house, which changes the feel of things (aka makes Vegas way more relaxing...) But this time we met Micah's cousin, Josh, and his wife, Brittney {one of the couples we are closest to and LOVE} in Vegas for the weekend since Brittney is a fellow teacher and it's her spring break. They flew in from Washington at 11pm on Friday night and we drove there after Micah got off work, so we didn't meet up at our hotel {The Hard Rock} until about midnight. I figured we would just go to bed when we finally arrived, since everyone had worked that day and Brittney is notorious for going to bed early. So when she said, "Okay, let's go out" at half past 12, I was shocked. So out we went. We were just going to head to the MGM, as Britt remembered that being her favorite hotel the last time she was in Vegas during middle school, but then we {meaning I... since I think I was the only one who didn't know this} discovered on the ride over that Josh had NEVER been to Las Vegas before! Change of plans. We drove down the entire Strip to show him the sights. We didn't get home until almost 3am and that's how we began our weekend of fun and exhaustion. I want to try to recap everything we did, but I think it's impossible, so I will let the Instagrams do the work for me. For those of you who follow me on Instagram {jenrussum}, sorry for blowing up your feed all weekend! Pretending we are young and hip and going out past midnight. Whoa. // The Strip at night Hanging out at the Rehab Pool at the Hard Rock. Apparently, this pool is famous and has its own reality TV show... but we all know I don't watch TV and don't know about such things... Cheeseburger in Paradise is always the BEST part of Vegas... and it got even better when Britt and I discovered their signature drink "The Swirl" Bellagio Fremont Street for the evening to see Eli Young Band and Eric Church. There were some crazy ladies in the audience... we feared for our lives, but the show was fun! Excalibur {where we stayed two of the nights... we decided it's the Walmart of the Strip...} // My winnings from penny slots. Believe it. Upon the recommendation of a foodie friend, we discovered the best Thai food at a place off The Strip called Lotus of Siam. Check it out... but make reservations. // And we ended our trip with some savory crêpes... Shark Reef Aquarium at Mandalay Bay. And, yes, that guy on the right is eating his lunch if you look closely... Stopped at the Hoover Dam on the way home // Arizona sunset... And now I MUST go to sleep. I think I walked about 60 miles this weekend in sandals and I am exhausted! Plus, we brought Josh and Britt back with us, so we have more adventures ahead this week! *Linking up with Life Rearranged and Bits of Splendor* ... Read more

Flowers Fade Friday: Messy

March 30, 2012

I just finished reading through Exodus. And, honestly, it did get a little boring at the end as it got into the specific directions for how to build the Tabernacle. The tent of meeting should be this many by that many cubits, the pomegranates should be woven of gold and purple threads, the rings should be silver with an overlay of gold, etc. etc. But one part caught my attention. Mainly because it was so disgusting. Exodus doesn’t really get into the requirements of animal sacrifices. That comes later in Leviticus… But it does explain one process that involves the killing of animals – the consecration of the priests, Aaron and his sons. And it is nasty. Seriously gross. Take one bull and two young rams {Exodus 29:1}. Kill the bull at the entrance of the tent of meeting. Put the blood on the horns of the altar with your finger. Pour the rest of the bull blood around the base of the altar. Burn the kidneys and the liver of the bull on the altar. Burn the flesh and the skin of the bull outside the camp. {Exodus 29:10} Repeat with ram #1. The blood of this ram should be poured on the sides of the altar. {Exodus 29:15} Repeat with ram #2. The blood of this ram is put on Aaron's right ear, right thumb and right big toe. {Exodus 29:19} Oh, and then blood from the altar is mixed with oil and sprinkled all over the clothes of Aaron and his sons. And I get grossed out touching raw chicken in my kitchen and then instantly washing my hands with anti-bacterial soap... The consecration was messy. But once they were consecrated, the priests were able to mediate between God and His people. They could make daily sacrifices for sin and the high priest could enter into the Holy of Holies once a year to offer a sacrifice of atonement on behalf of the people. The mess was worth it. Because of the sacrifices offered by the priests, God promised: "I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God." {29:45} But eventually this old system passed away... Because Jesus became our great high priest. Jesus lives this day to mediate between God and us. He sits at the father’s right hand and advocates on our behalf… My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. I John 2:1 But before Jesus ascended to heaven to advocate for us… he had to be offered as a sacrifice. He got messy for us. As I was reading through the gruesome details of the consecration of the priests in Exodus, I was reminded of Jesus’ consecration. He, too, was covered in blood. Not the blood of lambs and rams though, but his own. His own body was ripped apart and he bled on behalf of our sins. It’s gross. Messy. His gruesome death should grip us. It’s so easy to think of Jesus’ death like a story on a felt board in Sunday school or to picture it as something vague… a gold man on a gold cross. But it was real. It was real flesh, bloody gashes, a bruised body, real lungs gasping for air upon that cross. And it was an innocent body. Innocent flesh that didn't deserve any punishment at all. It was ugly. It was messy. And yet it was beautiful. As I meditate on the mess of Old Testament sacrifices, my mind gravitates toward the truest and purest of sacrifices… that of Jesus Christ. And I praise God that his Son was willing to get messy for me…. because I, indeed, am a mess in need of a Savior. *Linking up with Casey Leigh and Call Me Blessed.* ... Read more