Nightstand Confessions

Now then - don't get any funny ideas; that headline only says nightstand, so if you're expecting scandal...well you've come to the wrong blog. At least, you've come to the wrong blog today. Ha-ha!

I like learning about people...I like to know what might be routine; maybe if there is anything that's routine for me that might be routine for anyone else. Which leads me to this post, all about my nightstand and the routines that spring from it. You can learn a lot about a person from the things on their nightstand - so here we go!

My "nightstand" is hidden behind my bed..."

Trinkets, lighting and something to make the sheets smell special!

- I keep a Little Pigeon pottery bear at my bedside; purchased when I was on a Spring Break trip with a friend during my Junior year of college. The Smokey mountains have always been special to me and my family and this bear reminds me of all the wonderful times I've spent in the Smokies with not just family but also with friends. The little bear is called "Stargazer" because he is created to look like he's always staring skyward, looking to the stars with his head in the clouds - and I must admit, I tend to keep my head in the clouds as well.

- I have my lamp balanced on several small journals that I've written in from time to time. Musings from moments passed, safely written down and tucked away under the base of my lamp. 

- I also keep some Egyptian Cotton linen spray handy at the bedside, a gift from a dear friend. I love to spritz the sheets before bed so they smell fresh and inviting.

A constant reminder to me.

- I have a framed print at the head of the bed that says "You are incredible, adorable, lovable, wonderful, powerful, beautiful just the way you are". This was a gift; a gift from someone that I wished I'd known better in high school, someone who read a post one day and responded to it by sending me the framed print. It touched me so much then that I cried and it still touches me to this day. A random act of kindness that is a constant reminder to value myself just as I am. 

- My phone charger because my cell phone is kind of my life. Most importantly, I use my cell phone as my alarm. I don't really enjoy waking up early in the morning but I really, really don't enjoy being jarred out of peaceful sleep by some crazy buzzing or wailing from a typical alarm. I use my vast iTunes library (which takes up 3/4 of my cell phone storage) to select a song to wake me up each day...whatever my mood, that determines the song. And that's just how I like it!

- My owl dish, a gift from my parents that I toss stray ponytail holders, bobby pins and my lip gloss onto.

Books...books, so many books. And water!

- I read like a fiend y'all. I burn through books (if they're good) like they are oxygen. So of course, I keep a stack handy and just at arm's reach so that as soon as I finish one, I can reach behind me and grab another one to start. That's how I roll...I roll through the pages!

- Water...there must always be water! I can go night after night sleeping so soundly that the house could blow away and I'd never know but then there are other nights when I wake up and my mouth is so dry I feel like I've swallowed a gallon of sand. I've always got my trusty water bottle handy so that when I have one of those nights, I can grab a drink and curl right back up to sleep! Oh yeah, my water bottle is also really cool because when it's empty it's clear and once you add cold water....it turns bright blue! 

- Oh yeah, you can see the mounds of necklaces that I have hanging behind everything. I have a problem - and the first step is to admit you've got a problem, right? ;)

An old picture...and sticks and sticks of lip gloss...

- A framed picture of my little sister and I; my sweet little sister who is probably one of the people I love most in the world, this picture was taken when we saw each other for the first time after she did her initial Basic Training for her very first year at the Academy. I don't think we'd ever been apart for that long (my sunglasses are conveniently hiding my tears) and now it's just routine...one of those routines in life that you don't necessarily have to love, but you do have to live with. One of the joys of being an adult, right?

- So much lip gloss. What can I say, I like to have options!

The load of little things that make up morning & evening routines.

So there you have it - all the things that make my nightstand routine(s) what they are...from the start of the day to the end. What do you keep on your nightstand? I'm willing to bet most people don't keep nearly as much stuff as I do...