I have spent many years searching for the perfect drawing pen. Back in college, I had an obsession with illustration and would spend countless hours drawing and trying to create perfect images to scan and digitize, but the pens I would use would always bleed, feather & fray. I could never find a tip small enough that I could get the perfect amount of detail. Now, here I am, almost 10 years later, still in love with illustrating and I finally found the perfect set of pens!
What is it Like to be Normal?
Sometimes I wonder what it is like to be a NORMAL person. By normal, I mean someone who doesn't try to do it all and knows that realistically there are people who specialize in certain fields for a reason and they are more equipped to complete a task better than they are. I know that I'm not educated in the medical field, so I don't try to pretend that I'm a doctor, nurse, dentist, chiropractor, etc, so I will seek the help of medical professionals when it comes to my health & well being. But I do have a Bachelors of Art & Graphic Design, so in terms of all things Artsy & CREATIVE, I say, "Oh I could do that." And then forget or procrastinate when it comes to doing that thing. Are you wondering what I'm talking about? Let me explain.
I'm a professional photographer & graphic designer, so for example, when I have a baby, I find the need to take my own newborn photos and never edit them, forget to schedule a session for family pictures so I can have photos of us all together, say I will design & order birth announcements but really just take forever, and then kick myself months later for not just hiring or outsourcing someone to do all of this for me.
I have to still sort through the photos from Verona's birth, Verona's newborn session, her one month & two month sessions, and order & send out birth announcements. In the meantime, I see on social media NORMAL people who have had babies after me have already done all these things. It's hard to have a brain that constantly is telling me that it would be completely normal to add one more thing to my plate. As if Mom, wife, photographer, designer, handletterer, illustrator & now blogger are not enough.
Being an entrepreneur can be exciting, but some days, the thought of having a normal 9-5 or being a barista at Starbucks sounds like a dream. By no means am I trying to say that those jobs are easy, just probably less tiring than my 24/7 job of being a creative entrepreneur. I promise you, my brain never turns off. Maybe it all stems from my inability to relinquish control over things I know I can do myself. In which case, I don't have enough time to talk about those issues, and they might be best suited for a professional with a comfy couch, rather than me trying to figure out how to cure my control freak mentality.
Maybe one day I'll order birth announcements, edit my personal photos and possibly design & order albums for myself! But for right now, I'm just going to keep trying to keep my head above water with all this motherhood stuff, and hope I take enough pictures to last me a lifetime!
Teach-It Tuesday [Fall Decor]
Fall Decor is popping up everywhere right now, and it has me in the mood to make some projects with my two hands! I bought these wood blocks from Michaels and the come in all different sizes! I had no idea what I wanted to do with them, I just knew that I liked them. So decided to paint it and make some hand lettered fall art! Now, if you've been following along on my instagram, you have noticed that I've been doing video tutorials on how to get started in handlettering! Pencil is the best place to start, followed by using some great fine tip pens!
This project will put all those skills to work.
Supplies: (all available at Michaels)
Wood Block
Sharpie Metallic (Silver & Gold)
Black (or white) Acrylic Paint
Paint Brush
Pencil
1. Paint wood block
2. With the pencil, lightly layout the design for your block.
3. Ink in the design with Sharpies
4. Erase pencil lines
5. Style in your home
Here Goes Nothing...
A few years back, I had this crazy urge to start a lifestyle blog. I thought, we are kind of interesting, right? But at that time, we were photographing 20+ weddings a year, I was trying to do it all with wedding invitations, teaching myself calligraphy, photography and trying to break into the world of illustrating kids books. I was overloaded and could barely find the time to breathe, let alone start ANOTHER venture with a lifestyle blog!
After a few car ride conversations with Ryan this summer, I (we) have decided that we should give it a go! I've never been afraid to share my life and my story with anyone who is willing to listen. Take my LiveJournal for example, this might be foreign to some of you, but back when I was in high school, it was hip for kids to share their deep dark tortured thoughts on their LiveJournal, listen to Taking Back Sunday, and lean ironically up against brick walls just because. I was THAT kid, the moody tortured artist. I wore berets, turtlenecks, followed indie bands and listened to music that most kids weren't listening to. When I look back on the pages of that LiveJournal, I can't help but laugh, and thank God (and my english teacher) that I finally learned the difference between Your & you're and how to use proper punctuation.
And now, 13 years later, I'm back at it, with this same desire to share my thoughts on the internet and hope that someone, anyone might find it interesting, helpful or therapeutic. Heck, I doubt my own mother will actually read this, but if one post makes one person feel a little less alone in this perfectly curated world of Pinterest moms and flawless families, then I'd chalk it up as a success.
“We believe in laughing loudly, loving fiercely, Sunday couch cuddles, bold & bright colors, silly face selfies and everything in between.”
Life is funny, I would say, anytime I have a preconceived notion on a way something should go (Birthdays, holidays, special occasions, motherhood), it usually goes the complete opposite. I wanted to make this mom thing look easy, effortless. I wanted to "do it all"... grocery shopping, keep the house clean, laundry done, kids alive and also run a successful business. Turns out all that is good in theory, and probably possible for someone else, someone more organized but not for me. Which is why last year we made the decision to close our wedding photography business and only take on a few photo sessions each year, being sure not to overload our schedules. And also why I decided to start selling Young Living products, because it's a wonderful business I can do from my home with my babies in tow. I knew I wanted a few small side projects to keep me slightly busy, because as if being a mom to two little kids isn't busy enough!
Our family is far from perfect, and we have come to realize that our views are slightly less common, but we try hard to be a modern day Pollyanna and choose to find the good in all of life's twists and turns. We would much rather enjoy home-scooped ice cream cones with our kids, as we take a late night stroll around our quiet neighborhood than do anything else. Which is why we wanted to start this blog. We wanted to share our quiet, simple life with anyone that would read to give them permission to also live a simplified life & enjoy the small world around them! So, will you follow along? We'd love to have you!
