Out with the old...in with the new

hey friends...

It's Wednesday and I know I usually have something to post...today is no different.  I actually went rogue on the topic of politics...whoa, nelly!!!

However, you can't find it here.  I had finally had enough of this whole mess of posting photos.,.,as you can see...this photos is from about 5 years ago....where are my new pics? Oh I can't get to them through blogger.  Bye bye blogger!  You are no longer my friend.

I've found refuge in someone else's arms.....welcome to the very new and improved..... www.BluWyatt.com

Come on out and see what's new. And you won't have any reason to come back here unless you wanna review some fun past posts....and see cool pictures;)

Whatever you do speak the words....I'm coming out!!!


Love y'all.....sleep tight!
Blu

I feel like I've started the most perfect relationship 

And I'm just gettin things goin .... love 

A new tomorrow :: beginnings

Happy start to your school year however that looks for you.  Maybe this means more quiet days at home. Maybe this means longer work hours at work.  Maybe it means standing at the front of a classroom of 22 kids.  Maybe you're the mom-teacher.

since I'm having MAJOR technical difficulties uploading pictures
you'll have to settle for last year's first day of school.....
I'm NOT a happy camper about this.  I need to hit the Apple store.

About 7 months ago, I was introduced to the term "road schooling"

Flexibility ... the clean slate

A blank page

A clean slate

A new day

Where will we go from here?  What shall we do now?  

Day 5 of our yearlong adventure:

MGM Grand : Vegas

Waking up late (7:20am to be round about.)

"Living" in Vegas ... not exactly my place.

finally.....our first destination :: Las Vegas

Since this journey began I find myself sad ....a little sad that a few of my closest friends never experience my world ... because they're social recluses.  No offense, you friend out there with No FB, Instagram, Twitter, or even Pinterest account....for the love.....get with ONE of them for the sake of all my sanity.  Heck, make up a fake name....use a picture of bananas as your profile...just make it happen.

out of the tunnel

Have you ever had a really tough battle in front of you? Or maybe you're in the middle of one right now.  Your dog died, your mom has just been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer, you lost your job, your kid fell out of a tree and broken his leg, you wrecked the car, your husband had an affair, you get the idea.....bad stuff can and does happen .... to good folks, even.  

drove thru this mountain via this super cool underground tunnel

I understand hurt and pain.  I understand a broken heart....and I feel for those spilling tears tonight...soaking their pillow.  I've been there.  You NEVER know what someone is going through unless you've been in their shoes ... or a fly on their wall:)

goodbye Tiny Town

For the past 20 months, I've lived off the beaten path just outside of Tiny Town Tipton, Iowa on a farm fit for a king.  I've loved every minute of this peaceful existence.....ok nearly

cold, wet, drab February on the farm...I shall not miss you!

Eyes Open : Here We Go

Questions whirl around 

bouncing every which way

But a peace rushes over me

as I look toward this day

MOVING DAY!!!

Everything we own.
Sold, donated, shipped to Texas, or burned

letting it all hang out there

This road that I'm on I know it so well
(The road to Grandpa's) 

the twists the turns the bumps

The acres of corn and beans

They decorate this moment for me 

Gravel roads lead me every which way

The sun sets behind the silk of the corn

The not so subtle aroma of the hogs across the field ...
bring me home 

Ahhhh country perfume, nothing like it 

Wildflowers everywhere 

The north breeze blows 

I'm here 

In this moment 

More alive than I've ever been 

a place for everything

Leaving it all behind

9 days

We’re at a point where we have to figure out what fits in what container in order to be packed into the car….errr…..correction….MINIVAN!  Getting the right bag, sack, box, bin, or case for every single thing that goes on this huge journey is like successfully marrying your sister off to the right man…which by the way, I get to do soon.

Butterfly Wings

Hey Y’all … I missed you this week.  Really, I’ve thought about sharing with you several times but each time I put the brakes on.  I didn’t want to break my Wednesday post schedule….as it’s the ONLY thing I’m consistent with in my life right now….that and brushing my teeth …. well sometimes I slip through the cracks on that one.  

4 weeks to launch...what's up?!

A table...

A lamp...

A couch...

And

A map on the wall

Bare bones living at its best.  Shoot, even the queen size blow up mattress is serving as a couch in the TV room.  So here I go...from collector of all things to nomad in a day.  So to speak... I have a month.

My love for travel and adventure have taken over and I'm kinda along for the ride.  We leave for our yearlong gypsy excursion in mere moments to find our next home and I'm knee deep in, we'll, blessings, I guess you could say.

The Deets:

We found a physical address service where they will receive, open, scan, email, shred and/or forward any and all of our mail. Not only that we'll have a Laguna Beach address:) as if God is decorating my life each step of the way.  

Looks like the cats have found a new home.....major stress relief there.

The boys have endured a mock packing day with flying colors.  I'm still in the process of mine...mainly fighting denial that I can't take all the shoes I've so carefully collected. Plus the scarves, hats, office supplies, and mostly just clothes in general.  I think I'm allowing myself 3 suitcases but I can't figure out how to pack it up.  Fall clothes are already packed in an under the bed storage bin I pray fits into the rover. 

That brings me to my next update... as of now it looks like we'll be driving off in our Land Rover and shipping our Volvo back to Texas to sell there.  We do not have an RV yet but I'm leaving it in God's hands.  I have come to grips with the possibility that it's not meant to be just yet...I'm totally ok with whatever He wants for us cause I know it's His best.  

My faith is certainly being stretched in this process.

Leaving stuff, friends, grandpa, and yes, normalcy behind as we embark isn't as easy as it may sound.  Four weeks seems like forever but it'll fly right by our noses as we're  checking things off the mighty BIG To-Do.  

Our moving sale went so well and we're planning our final one for the end of the month  to really clean everything out.  Then we'll sleep on the floor (with borrowed linens most likely) and eat pizza off paper plates for a week until we leave August 4th for Vegas. 

Now that you're up to date on some details let me go a little deeper.  Many things have been bouncing around my heart and head lately.  First, the importance of being content in any condition or situation.  Sounds cliche? 

Well, I'm learning this one on a deeper level as we speak ...  

things seem perfect ... 

but under the surface there may be a war going on...

one never can tell.  

Secondly, even when I face my greatest challenges there is always hope around the corner. Hope for a brighter tomorrow and a deeper understanding of where I am in the moment and what is required of me.  Sometimes I can't figure out why or how ...

 in fact more times than not ... 

alas ... I'm not supposed to figure out the details or even how the story goes ... 

I merely need to be obedient ... 

and show up ... right?  

Food for thought ... not ready to dive deeper on these topics yet, but I appreciate your comments below telling me what you're learning in life right now.  Could be anything from guitar and French to patience and humility...share away...this is all about you anyway. 

I totally wanna bring you, neighbors along for the ride of our lives.  But I need to know something...what medium should I focus on getting the word out to you???

Videos? If so

Facebook live?

Instastories (fav)

YouTube?

What about...

Pinterest?

Twitter?

Facebook? (Ugh)

Linked in? 

Instagram?

Any help you can give would be great but take a sec and share with us below your life lessons that are decorating your life right now.

Go in peace my darling neighbor in life and live decorated in every way you see possible...or even impossible for that matter. :)

Love ya, 

Blu Wyatt

it's followed me ALL MY LIFE!!!

what do I do?  It's everywhere!
AND.....

• it’s fragile
• powerful
• practical 
• messy
• fancy
• obnoxious
• personal
• functional
• necessary
• informational
• entertaining  
• useful
• artful
• and sometimes confidential

paper:

It’s followed me around 

all my life

everywhere I turn

more paper

what’s my problem with paper

you ask?  as if it's an abnormal thing to have a strong distaste for something so.... ALL OVER THE PLACE.

Well, it makes spaces look messy, for one reason...sticky notes come to mind.  strung about here and there.  and the MAIL....IT KEEPS COMING!

Spoken Word

It's changed my life

It's only been a week since I started writing 

In church camp, I took my place

In a workshop I'd never heard of before 

It started flowing freely out of grace

The tears, the realizations, the passion deep inside 

Drawing things out of me I didn't know I tried to hide 

Summer camping

Hiding under the covers

It's lights out

20 girls in bunks all around me

The day flew by

Food, pool, chapel, bubbles, games, color wars, leader meeting, devotionals, speed walking with Pastor.... and topping it all off ....s'mores!!! 

Message to The Best Friend

I used to fly through to-do lists like no one’s business!  Check after check….finished.  Bi-Polar highs allowed me little sleep and an exuberant amount of energy.  Not so much anymore though.   I’m medicated…..and boring.

Warning: bullets in use

Preparing for our new life on the road … I’m a teeny bit overwhelmed by all the work that must be done...collecting like items together, taking pictures, and posting them to the garage sale sites—giving—selling—organizing.  However, on a much-needed side note; I must say, I’m wildly displeased with my responses on this Facebook group…..unimpressed!!!
So this gal might try the new Let Go app.  Have you heard of it?  Everything MUST GO!

We leave these corn fields July 28th.  (Colorado for a week, then Vegas for a week, then Oregon for a month…then….hmm…I guess California somewhere, then San Diego for a month, then Phoenix, then Texas and so on all the way down to Florida by February and the northeast by early fall of next year)

A new life is just beginning.

In honor of randomness, today I’d like to bring you to some seemingly structured, intellectual, thought-provoking, life-changing bullet points.  This post looks as if it makes perfectly good sense and reads easily enough.  Paragraphs, sentences (for the most part…sometimes I go a little heavy on the dot dot dot dot dot form of continuing a thought while pauses fill the air….. but that isn’t even a thing, eh? oh back to the sentence I’m in the middle of—thank God for parentheses), punctuation, and even bigger fonts in places.  These tools are meant to serve as a false front.  

Below you actually have a slew of ideas, statements, thoughts;  disconnected and mostly unrelated.  Although at times I allow my bullets to morph into each other….but there are NO guarantees.    A bullet will do what a bullet does....point out the thing that it's so ardently pointing out.  Making sense?

Please excuse this new style of writing….My experimentation takes me to new heights (and even depths from time to time... but hey failure is a part of success, am I right?  Not that this is a failure, by any means, but if it is I’m ok with that.  I’ll own it.  Am I really still typing inside the parentheses?) 

 Let’s move on:  

1. Sometimes a dream may seem impossible…far out of reach….too lofty from a person of your background….too many obstacles in the road.  “I could never” 

2. I’ve never been big on writing things down.  Dreams…goals…ideas….feelings.  Keeping a journal has been a hit or miss kinda thing so when I started this year off I decided to take control of this area of my life.  Maybe I decided, but maybe its more like I just realized I’ve taken control as I’m typing this blog.  Go, Me!  

2. b.   My honey got me a Passion Planner for my birthday and I got started immediately.  I wrote down some goals.  (I haven’t looked at them since….but Hey!)  I wrote down affirmations. Quotes. Scripture verses. Appointments. Thoughts.  Plans.  And I topped it off with colored pencils and markers.  Perhaps even a little glitter and dried flowers pressed between its pages.  

1. b.  All that to say this.  (yes I jumped back up to number 1 and just added a “b"…so what)

My dream is big!  

Bigger than BIG!!!!  

Bigger than I could EVER do on my own!  

2. c.  My hope for you is that you dream bigger than you can imagine.  What are you passionate about?  There’s a reason for it.  What fuels you?   Where would you like to be in 10 years?  Take time to really tune into the answers here.  

3. Now y’all know I’m ALL about living decorated, right.  I mean Good Lord…..it’s the name of my blog for cryin’ out loud.  Queen obvious.  So let me shift gears and share with you one of the million ways I decorate my life ..... by putting God’s will above my own.  To listen quietly and often.  To practice Silence and Solitude.   It isn’t always easy.  In fact it rarely is.  My brain is constantly going…my world (much like yours, I’m sure) is quite noisy.   

4.      To be alone…to silence the noise….

learn to listen.

5. In all honesty, I thought I’d be further along by now.  Seriously.  I mean sooooo many lessons were to be had.  How many of them did I repeat 'cause I didn’t learn it the first time around?  I’ll never be through learning and constantly growing but hopefully I can learn a bit faster as time goes on.  

5. b.   What lessons have you learned lately?  
6. What are you learning right now, as a result of your circumstances and attitude toward them?  My attitude needed some tweaking on Monday.  I’m coming out of it slowly.  Funny thing is, I tell y’all to have a positive attitude and at times that same words need to penetrate my soul and take up residence.  Be positive:)  Yep.

7. Help us start a new life of adventure by supporting our journey.  We would love if you would pray for us as this is the most giant of excursions.  We could also use an RV.  A drivable one.  Know anyone?   Loan or rent or donate???   Another way to support us is follow us on our YouTube Channel, Twitter, Instagram and yes even Facebook.  (But follow my business page because I’m migrating over there rather than my personal page….that just gets the leftovers.)   

Why subscribe?  

Why follow?  

7. b.  Well if the life of adventure isn’t enough for you just think of it as giving us a wink and a prayer as we depart.  And thank you:)

8. Next time…brace yourself... we might have to talk about how peeling the shell off farm fresh eggs and how that relates to life as we live it.  I tell ya, anything is possible and it's actually quite fascinating.
9. Please let me know your story….how you’ve come out of the darkness or maybe you’re going through it as we speak.  Tell your story.  Even bullet points are acceptable in this judgement free zone of love and respect.  
10. Much thanks for letting me pound this out in a unique, non-author-like kinda way....and for letting me share these real-life pictures (see below) that are far from perfect (almost painful to sift through, really).   I'm stepping far outside my comfort zone to share with you the raw truth....removing any pride left and humbly accepting my mess and its process. 
11. oh and one more thing:  please share this with everyone you know 'cause they gotta read the next bullet....it certainly applies to them as well.  Share away and you're welcome.
12. In all honesty: You’re an amazing individual who is the only person ever who can do what you do, think like you think, act like you act, help like you help, and laugh like you laugh.  You're a powerhouse.  So unique and beautiful in your own special "you" kinda way.   Don't just look for the easy way out....look for the underlying lesson attached to this trial or mountain (so to speak).  Stay strong and focused …full of faith (let me take my own medicine here).  

May God bless you with blessings so great you won’t even be able to contain them.  

May you be blessed to be a blessing to others.  

Loving you,

Blu Wyatt

My LAST 10 minutes!!!

Friday morning.

homemade apple pie. 

in the oven.

the smell is making its way up the stairs to my bedroom.  Tonight's big family BBQ looks like it could get rained out but I'm holding out hope and making pie in faith.

I set the kitchen timer for 10 minutes. This represents the LAST 10 minutes of freedom ....for ....about .....15 months.  I will then pickup my boys from the "bus stop" ... you gotta see the video to experience our bus stop farm style ....

This marks the end of my transition period.

Me.... on a giant dimmer switch

So I read this story today…just now….about a lady who has postpartum depression and wanted to speak out to shed light on Postpartum Depression Awareness Month…(the month of May).  She posted very candid pictures of her good days and her bad days…side by side.  Transparent and vulnerable...love her!

this shot represents how I felt all those years of living
in the dark...in the prison of inexplicable depression

In her story Kathy DiVincenzo says "We need to break the stigma and #EndTheSilence by sharing our stories and letting others know they're not alone.”   Read her compelling story here.   Her talented photographer friend, Danielle Fantis, who took all the pictures, also shared her heart wrenching story.  Read it here. It was her May 3rd post. 

So to Kathy and Danielle I’d like to say…..thank you … so very much with sugar and sprinkles on top for sharing such a moving story and not being ashamed to the point of silence!!!  You inspired me to tell my story.

Soooooo….that leaves us here….you and me…

Before I dive right in to whatever story parts we’re going to discuss in this post you should head over to the blog and read the first depression confessional I posted.  It was my first time EVER stepping out and admitting I had a problem. 

Depression….anxiety….mental illness in general has such a stinky stigma.  So few people ever have the nerve or wherewithal to tell their dark stories.  I have some dark stories my friend.  But it wasn’t like a light switch went off right after I had my first child…it was more like the overhead lighting was on a dimmer switch and it just kept getting darker and darker.  Harder and harder to face life.

another new beginning....seems they are coming at me left and right.

Beginnings.

I love beginnings.  Movies, books, days, vacations, friendships ... ice cream cones.  The only exception could be learning this dang guitar....it's not an easy task, if I might say so.

the beginning of the garage wall mural started with the green grass

This is a new beginning for us.  A totally new, fresh,

a little freak out...no big deal...help!

The rain pours down.  The sky is dark.  The house is quiet.  The kids are at school.  The to-do list is dwindling….that is if you don’t count EVERYTHING I have to do to prepare for this journey ahead.  

I’m curious.  What would you do…if you felt the nudge to leave it all behind and venture into a new realm of the unknown?  Would you take the leap? Would you

Perfectly orchestrated...yet, facing impossibilities

In all honesty, and shockingly so, my life feels pretty. perfectly. orchestrated. at the moment.  Don’t get me wrong there are obstacles.  

Impossible Looking Roadblocks, more like.

However, in all of our imperfect circumstances and stupid insecurities and among all the questioning and doubt, I find myself … grateful in this moment….excited about my future.

Finding ME...embracing the discovery.

In all the striving I find peace.  I find rest in the midst of the motion of life that surrounds me.  This is a shocker to me.  I had no idea I would be in this place.

I’m sure you’ve been there…so busy your head is spinning and you can’t figure out which task to pickup next or why you can’t get 37 things done at the same time.  You know I have this entire house to go through …inch by inch…drawer by drawer…closet by closet.

The Purging Process of the Journey

Have you ever experienced one of those team building exercises where you have to fall straight back and trust that someone will be there to catch you?  This is about how life feels right now.

I feel like ... I'm falling.  Trusting.  Expecting.  

This journey "The Long Way Home" is completely changing me already

Surprise visit HOME...shock and awe.

I'm getting way thrilled, to say the least, about this wild journey ahead we've fittingly coined  "The long way home" (seems to be the best way to describe it as we'll be finding our next home somewhere along the way.)  Read here. Or watch the YouTube video here. 

planting, watering and growing...in this life...all around...now begins the adventure

(I wrote this a few days ago while nearing the end of our little Texas Spring Break adventure…read on.)

Talk about a long way home....Last Thursday evening about 5pm...after a brief discussion of what we'd do on our upcoming Spring Break we decided to load up the Land Rover and set our sails for Texas (16 hours away) to visit family and friends.  Within literally 2 hours of packing we were on our way.

The Long Way Home

When’s the last time you failed at something?  What about the last time you were rejected in a big way?  Have you ever fallen flat on your face?  We’ve all been there and I’m certainly no exception.  I’ve been down more times than I care to count to be entirely honest! 

Recently I put myself out there…. to be scrutinized, judged and analyzed.  All in hopes that a door that I wanted to walk through would swing open wide.  It came back to me that I didn’t measure up. I had failed.  I was flat out rejected with no explanation of any kind.  

If you’ve heard me speak at all you know how strongly I feel about the power of gratitude so I immediately fought back the tears, dusted off my knees

A Giant Journey...our BIG news

Life is one grand adventure.  Occasionally this adventure seems to take on a life of its own.  When I started traveling in my early 20’s I developed a passion for seeing new places and meeting new people.  The desire for greater adventure and experiences seemed to be coursing through my veins at an exponential speed. I was hooked.

One word for 2017...what's yours?

We’re one month into 2017 already and I’m curious as to what you’re experiencing so far.  If you were to give 2017 ONE word what would it be?  Check out the post from the beginning of the month.  As a refresher: Mine is FREEDOM!  Freedom from insecurities that have had me bound up for most of my life.  Freedom from fear of other people’s opinions of me. Freedom from doubt and unbelief.  Freedom to be the woman God has created me to be. What’s your word?

Words contain so much power.

What are you feeding?

faith or doubt? future or past?

Whatever you starve has no opportunity to grow.  Without food something surely dies.  What are you spending your energy on?  That’s what will grow and flourish.

My past is littered with pain, constant change, failures and on the other hand, major adventures and travel.  As you may already know, I was diagnosed with

10 things to do if you're in transition

Thanks Transition is no easy thing.  Passing through one season of life to another takes effort, focus, patience, direction and most of all….time.  How long does transition take?  It all depends.

It could take days, weeks, months and even years to move through a transition into the next phase or season of life.  It can’t be rushed.  We’re all so very different and each situation presents new challenges.

Why are you in transition?  Are you in crisis mode or simply moving up in the world?  Maybe you’re not here by choice.  Any number of situations could’ve brought you to this point.  Divorce, marriage, having a baby, losing a child, kids going away to college,

The elephant in the room

I’m a firm believer in getting out of your cozy little comfort zone of limiting beliefs and insecurities.  This is more often than not, easier said than done.  My case is no different.  

I recently enrolled in a speaker challenge through a

What is your word? speak it out

Starting off on the right foot….its kinda important.

Just inside of 2017 I’m sensing excitement, more than nervousness, for what’s to come.  There’s hope.

What is your hope for 2017?