Walking Through Unavoidable Stress

Hello everyone!

Since our major announcement, that had nothing to do with having children, life has flipped 180 degrees, upside down, crazy! We've left Napa, and are now living with my folks in Stockton. We're living in the apartment on their property, so while we totally have our own space, we haven't really un-boxed anything and won't until we actually move in the middle of August. That means our place looks like an episode of "Hoarders", In fact I have no clue where my Bible currently is. I took it out of a box . I know some of you are already feeling uncomfortable, but you know what, it's life!

Chalk it up to having never really done anything like this before, but I was shocked how I subconsciously want to get to a new normal that I know won't exist for another 6-8 months. It's an inner struggle that has left me very very stressed, and it completely snuck up on me.  I looked at my tired self in the mirror and it hit me, and maybe this is you, but when I'm stressed this is what happens to me:

This is a picture from when we still lived in Napa, but the mess communicates my life right now.

1. I don't sleep at all.
   My brain just won't stop. I'll find sleep randomly if I slow down for a little while, but when it's actually time to sleep I just keep thinking and thinking and thinking. (A white noise app if helpful for this)
2. I eat.
   So much emotional eating happening right now.(That's had turned it's ugly head in the mirror as well, gotta get find that inner peace/ Bible quick and get my butt to the gym!)
3. I shop.
   Obsessively. Retail therapy has always been my go-to. But after a little while everything looks the same, and shopping becomes more depressing than theraputic. Retail therapy is not real therapy. 

So.... I've been praying and reading about what to do and how to survive so my three not so healthy defense mechanisms don't kill me. This is what has worked for me.  Maybe your defense mechanisms are different than mine, but I hope maybe this is can help you if you find yourselves in this crazy state of extreme transition.

1. Read your Bible.
   I have been reading Nathan's. Turns out, it says the SAME EXACT thing. I bought myself a little journal. Starting my day with the Lord, with a cup of coffee, reading and writing a little. This changes everything
2. Tidying up.
   I don't have a ton of control over my surroundings right now. There is not a single thing I can do about the mess of boxes. But I CAN keep the kitchen clear. I CAN clear off the little breakfast nook. I CAN keep the desk in bedroom clear. Focusing on the things that I can do...that's the sweet spot.
3. Make To-Do lists.
   I don't know about you, but when I see a sink full of dishes I just shut down. I get overhwhelmed at the sight, and pretend like its not there. The reality is, if I just tell myself "one dish at a time" it'll take me no time at all, and before I know it, the pile is gone. To-do lists are what tell me that my "dirty-dish pile" life can be done. Just one dish at a time. 
4. Find/Create/Define a creative space.
   Nate and I need creative space. Looking at stacks of boxes has got to be the least inspiring thing in the entire world. My friend Alyssa, from college just wrote this FANTASTIC article for Trouve Magazine about getting back your creativity, and for me, finding or creating a define creative space just spoke to me in a very profound way. For now, it looks like I'll be going to a coffee shop, but I plan on defining a space in our new place in Bakersfield.
5. Find your jam.
   This is my worship playlist. When I need to just be quiet by myself, or actually do the dishes, or box up a million things, or separate my clothes into Goodwill piles, this playlist keeps my focus on the big picture. I'm not doing this more no reason. God is moving Nate and I in a brand new and super exciting an wonderful direction. God is showing himself faithful to us! This playlist reminds me of that.

• Pieces -Amanda Cook
• Out of Hiding -Steffany Gretzinger
• God I Look To You - Jenn Johnson 
• King of my Heart- John and Sara Macmillan
• Place of freedom- Highlands Worship
• Jesus is alive- Fellowship Creative
• Here-Kari Jobe
• Come To The Altar- Elevation Worship
• Make a way- Desperation Band
• Refuge- Parrish 

Well friends, thats about it for me today. Hoping to have some outfit posts and more women in worship soon! Have a fantastic week!

The Longest Short Season- A guide to having a meltdown

Hello there, and happy Tuesday to you! Today feels very much like a Monday to me. I had yesterday off, and Tuesday's are chapel days at work which means my precious students and I have to be at school at 6:30 AM, so long weekends come to a very rude end for us. But that's not really what I wanted to discuss today.

If you've been following along with the Parrish world, you may already know that we have been navigating through a bummer season with the cancelling of the most recent Kutless tour.  The Lord has been so good to provide for us through all of it, and he has been so very faithful in preserving mine and Nate's relationship, but I have to be honest; we have had our fair share of meltdowns. 

I had a major one yesterday. I have had more than one in this season, and so has Nate. We get set off from different things, that usually have nothing to do with what we're actually feeling in our heart. Yesterday I lost my debit card, and I just lost it. I folded laundry in tears and poured out my heart while Nate just kind of sat and listened. Nate had a meltdown last week, and I actually don't remember what set him off. But it was my turn at that time to listen. Neither one of us ever really knows what to say, we just sit and listen.

This season started for us around thanksgiving. Taking turns having meltdowns and taking turns listening and encouraging. What I'm continuing to learn is that these seasons are the cost of following your dreams. Never have learned better the importance of prayer and being in the word, so that I can have the strength and wisdom to keep on being Nate's number one cheerleader, and to remember that following your dreams and your calling is worth it. Serving Jesus and living out your dreams is a scary thing. We're experiencing the not so fun side right now, and I am just now after 4 months of this, starting to learn this marriage lesson that the Lord obviously had planned. What has probably hit me the most about all of this was that I didn't learn it from being an awesome cheerleader... I got it from needing/having one.

Adventures in Baby Sitting

Hi Everyone! Are you so ready for the weekend? I am. This week should have been a breeze with Monday off, but I'm actually quite stressed. I have officially joined the thousands of soon to be college graduates in the hunt for a job. I feel like the Lord told me to go back to school because my destiny wasn't retail work, and every retail job that I have taken since I've started school has fallen through. I was hired at Freestyle, and then un-hired due to my music department schedule. So despite my greatest efforts in retail employment, the message is clear after three failed attempts here in the Sacramento area: no Urban Outfitters, no Kohls, no Freestyle. All great stores, but not for me. The really actual resume sending, interview praying, has begun. So if you're in the Sacramento area, and you have a job for this soon to be college grad, you know what to do!

anyways! I think I've told you quite a few times before that my current "part-time" job is watching the funnest three children in the whole wide world. I thought instead of showing you my outfit of the day, I'd share one of the best parts of my time here at William Jessup University.
 
Have you ever seen a prettier princess? This is us practicing how to say "You're Majesty."

 Gotta study up on how to be a princess of course!

 Oh hey, brother! That shirt says "Hello, My name is Trouble." enough said.

 The whole gang. This was taken after the making of our Big Time Rush music video. These are three of the most precious kids I've ever known.

That's about it for me today, and...Well everyone there's a tiny glimpse into the life of student/wife/blogger/musician (not in that order, wife is first always). I actually am not constantly thinking of fashion, and spending all my hours reading other blogs. I hope you enjoyed a glance into my life from a different angle! And for those of you who are wondering, I am all better from my cold. The secret is Ultra Zicam, %100 Organic Cranberry Only Juice, and Sleep. See you soon!