Spring Snail Mail Swap!

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i've said it before and i'll say it again…one of my favorite things in the world is snail mail.  it just brightens my day to find a letter in the mail, or to send one and think about someone else finding a letter in the mail!  and it only costs fifty cents.  that's a pretty cheap way to make someone happy.

back in the fall, i hosted a snail mail swap and it was a hit!  it was fun to get a letter from a stranger and then get to write back and forth for a little while.  so to welcome in spring, i thought it was time for another swap.  i hope you'll join in!

here's how to participate:
1.  fill out the form below by april 1st
2.  i'll take everyone's addresses and match them up with someone else
3.  you'll get an email with the address of your swap buddy
4.  send your buddy a letter (or little package...whatever you want!)

Dear Boyfriend,

Today marked the end of a wonderful weekend together.

You were home from Boston for a long weekend and I tried to spend every possible moment with you. From getting up at 3:15am on Friday to drive to Philly to pick you up to staying at your house until almost 2am, I kinda sorta like spending time with you.

One of my favorite parts of the weekend was when we laid on the floor in your family room, 30 Rock playing in the background, just talking.  We talked a lot about the future this weekend; about a future shared apartment, future dinners cooked together, even a future puppy named after your childhood imaginary dog.  (I can't wait for that future, by the way).  My favorite thing about those little pillow talks?  The fact that we were planning a marriage, not a wedding.

I'm glad you're at Berklee and I'm glad you're learning a lot and that you love Boston (because I love it too!).  But I sure will be happy next time you're home again.

This weekend was perfect.  I hope it was just a glimpse of more to come.

Love,
Betsy

DEAR BOYFRIEND,

Today marked the end of a wonderful weekend together.

You were home from Boston for a long weekend and I tried to spend every possible moment with you. From getting up at 3:15am on Friday to drive to Philly to pick you up to staying at your house until almost 2am, I kinda sorta like spending time with you.

One of my favorite parts of the weekend was when we laid on the floor in your family room, 30 Rock playing in the background, just talking.  We talked a lot about the future this weekend; about a future shared apartment, future dinners cooked together, even a future puppy named after your childhood imaginary dog.  (I can't wait for that future, by the way).  My favorite thing about those little pillow talks?  The fact that we were planning a marriage, not a wedding.

I'm glad you're at Berklee and I'm glad you're learning a lot and that you love Boston (because I love it too!).  But I sure will be happy next time you're home again.

This weekend was perfect.  I hope it was just a glimpse of more to come.

Love,
Betsy

Snail Mail

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One of my favorite things in the world is snail mail.  I love shopping for stationary (it's seriously one of my favorite aisles in Target), writing letters (one of the perks of being in a long-distance relationship and having college friends all over the country), and of course, getting letters!  (I mean, who doesn't??)

I also truly believe that receiving a hand-written letter really does say a lot.  I know that it makes me feel really special when I get a letter written just for me, and I love pinning notes from friends to my board above my desk and rereading them later.  Plus, letter writing takes time and intentionality, and I firmly believe it's a good practice to get into.

So, in the spirit this being the most wonderful season of the year and the fact that letter-writing is just plain old fun, I'd like to invite you to participate in the first ever HTB Snail Mail Swap!

Here's how to participate:
1.  Fill out the form below by October 6th
2.  I'll take everyone's addresses and match them up with someone else
3.  You'll get an email with the address of your swap buddy
4.  Send your buddy a letter (or little package...whatever you want!)

This is supposed to be fun...no pressure!  I'd love to have as many participants as possible, so just join and don't over think it!

SNAIL MAIL

image via

One of my favorite things in the world is snail mail.  I love shopping for stationary (it's seriously one of my favorite aisles in Target), writing letters (one of the perks of being in a long-distance relationship and having college friends all over the country), and of course, getting letters!  (I mean, who doesn't??)

I also truly believe that receiving a hand-written letter really does say a lot.  I know that it makes me feel really special when I get a letter written just for me, and I love pinning notes from friends to my board above my desk and rereading them later.  Plus, letter writing takes time and intentionality, and I firmly believe it's a good practice to get into.

So, in the spirit this being the most wonderful season of the year and the fact that letter-writing is just plain old fun, I'd like to invite you to participate in the first ever HTB Snail Mail Swap!

Here's how to participate:
1.  Fill out the form below by October 6th
2.  I'll take everyone's addresses and match them up with someone else
3.  You'll get an email with the address of your swap buddy
4.  Send your buddy a letter (or little package...whatever you want!)

This is supposed to be fun...no pressure!  I'd love to have as many participants as possible, so just join and don't over think it!

Dear Boyfriend,

Yesterday, we spent a perfect day together at the beach.  You seemed a little muffed when I suggested leaving at 8am, so I pushed it to 8:30, which ended up being closer to 9:15.  As my mother's daughter, my first instinct was to think "we're behind schedule!", but the longer we're together, the more I'm realizing how much better it is to forget the "schedule" and just live in the moment on these little trips that we take just the two of us.

Yesterday, we lounged, we walked, we ate, and we talked.  My favorite parts of the day were probably the three miles we walked on the beach and the six hours we spent in the car.  That seems like a long distance and a lot of time, but those types of things always seem to fly right by when I'm with you.  I loved asking each other silly questions like "What saying would you like to put into 1,000 fortune cookies?" and singing songs together from our road trip playlist.

I loved everything about yesterday.  I hope I remember it forever.

Love, Betsy

DEAR BOYFRIEND,

Yesterday, we spent a perfect day together at the beach.  You seemed a little muffed when I suggested leaving at 8am, so I pushed it to 8:30, which ended up being closer to 9:15.  As my mother's daughter, my first instinct was to think "we're behind schedule!", but the longer we're together, the more I'm realizing how much better it is to forget the "schedule" and just live in the moment on these little trips that we take just the two of us.

Yesterday, we lounged, we walked, we ate, and we talked.  My favorite parts of the day were probably the three miles we walked on the beach and the six hours we spent in the car.  That seems like a long distance and a lot of time, but those types of things always seem to fly right by when I'm with you.  I loved asking each other silly questions like "What saying would you like to put into 1,000 fortune cookies?" and singing songs together from our road trip playlist.

I loved everything about yesterday.  I hope I remember it forever.

Love, Betsy

dear me,

Will you do yourself a favor and hold on to the lessons that you're learning here and now? 

See, they're not all that fun to learn the first time around, so it would be a really good idea to save yourself the aggravation of having to learn them again later on.

The lessons that are teaching you to:

let it go

choose happiness

lean on the ones you love

do everything with grace

The lessons that are tough to put into practice:

to not be angry

to control your emotions rather than letting them control you

to speak the truth in love

to give God complete control

Here's the thing...you've been learning these lessons for a while now.  And maybe you'll never be at a point where you can say "I now know that.  There's no more to learn on that subject."  

And that's okay.

The point here is to keep these lessons in the front of your mind.  Give them prime real estate.  

Because I have a feeling you'll need them again someday, and they'll be a lot easier to utilize if you're already practicing them on a daily basis.

love,

me.

dear future self,

Can I get real with you for a second?


These days, I've been a jumbled mess of emotion & confusion.  And I don't like it.


So here's the thing:  you need to work on that being content thing.  Maybe it's not even so much about being content as it is about being at peace and just living.  Stop overthinking everything; stop worrying.


Learn to fully appreciate where you are in life when you're in the thick of it.


And for goodness sake, stop talking.  Find the two or three people in your life who really do know you and your heart and share the details with them.  Because Lord knows, unsolicited advice really only helps to confuse you more.


On the bright side, we both know you'll come out of this splendidly.  Life gets messy sometimes, but in the end, you'll be just fine.


love,
me.

Letters...

Dear plow/salt truck,
Please stop flashing your light and beeping outside my window.  There is a DUSTING on the ground.  Go back to your garage and chill out.

Dear Andi and the Fab Four class,
Thanks for kicking my butt every Monday and Wednesday at 8am.  I do appreciate it, no matter how much my muscles may not like you.

Dear professors of the Psych department,
Who ever told you it was a good idea to schedule ALL of your exams in the same 2 days?  They were wrong.

Dear (500) Days of Summer soundtrack and She & Him,
Thank you for making this week 10 millions times better.

Dear camera,
I'm sorry you've spent so much time sitting under my bed this semester. I promise to start putting you to better use.

Dear flowered headband,
I'm so glad you're in my life.

Love,
Betsy