Weekends
These are my weekends.
Wake up with my fella. LATE. always. Ahhhh.
He usually makes a little coffee.
And breakfast.
I'm not lazy, he just likes/prefers to cook.
We get on our laptops and do "work" for a couple hours.
Shower.
And the EVER exciting process of make-up, clothes, etc.
I consider myself a pretty low-maintenance girl.
Especially on the weekends.
I can be ready in 30 mins or less!
Fella thinks it could be even less if I'd just give up the make-up.
He says he doesn't know why I do it anyway.
I look gorgeous as is.
He just doesn't understand the years of conditioning girls have.
And I will go without it.
Sometimes.
He's sweet.
Love that necklace like I do?
Get it here: TinkerBBoutique
{Buy 2, get 1 free right now!}
Then after we are finally ready to go somewhere,
We usually have plans with friends.
Cause my fella enjoys being social.
And sometimes so do I.
IF I can stop thinking of ALL that I need to get done.
So friends,
SORRY if I ever seem distracted or stressed.
I just have SO MUCH on my mind.
ALL THE TIME.
We really love going to enjoy a beer.
Seeing a cheap movie.
Or frozen yogurt!
Or just hanging together is always nice too.
And then.
sometimes.
I am able to get some crafting,
emailing,
and blogging done.
WHICH I LOVE.
It's great.
We snuggle together.
And my fella helps me by modeling my crafts.
or I might be the one who makes him help.
And we watch some Netflix,
Or Hulu.
And talk.
And laugh.
And there's the weekend. Pretty much anyway.
A Day in the Life.
Link it, my pretties.
Wake up with my fella. LATE. always. Ahhhh.
He usually makes a little coffee.
And breakfast.
I'm not lazy, he just likes/prefers to cook.
We get on our laptops and do "work" for a couple hours.
Shower.
And the EVER exciting process of make-up, clothes, etc.
I consider myself a pretty low-maintenance girl.
Especially on the weekends.
I can be ready in 30 mins or less!
Fella thinks it could be even less if I'd just give up the make-up.
He says he doesn't know why I do it anyway.
I look gorgeous as is.
He just doesn't understand the years of conditioning girls have.
And I will go without it.
Sometimes.
He's sweet.
Get it here: TinkerBBoutique
{Buy 2, get 1 free right now!}
Then after we are finally ready to go somewhere,
We usually have plans with friends.
Cause my fella enjoys being social.
And sometimes so do I.
IF I can stop thinking of ALL that I need to get done.
So friends,
SORRY if I ever seem distracted or stressed.
I just have SO MUCH on my mind.
ALL THE TIME.
We really love going to enjoy a beer.
Seeing a cheap movie.
Or frozen yogurt!
Or just hanging together is always nice too.
And then.
sometimes.
I am able to get some crafting,
emailing,
and blogging done.
WHICH I LOVE.
It's great.
We snuggle together.
And my fella helps me by modeling my crafts.
or I might be the one who makes him help.
And we watch some Netflix,
Or Hulu.
And talk.
And laugh.
And there's the weekend. Pretty much anyway.
A Day in the Life.
Link it, my pretties.
{A Day in the Life}
I am in LOVE with linky parties. Have you ever participated? Someone picks a theme, they blog about it, usually it happens weekly, and everyone can join in, blog about their own story of the theme, and "link it up". I'm not always the most consistent with these but I do try and link up with Casey's [On your Heart] every Friday. It's a very reflective and good for my mind to get out all that I didn't even know I was thinking deeply about.
But here's my idea: I will be starting {A Day in the Life}....a weekly linky party where you can tell us about a day in the life of anyone or anything. Tell me about yourself, your dog, your kiddos, your friend who's sick, your husband who's fabulous, just ANYTHING. Tell me about a day as a mother, a wife, a business owner, a crafter....you get the idea. I thought of this while putting on my make-up a few mornings ago. I thought, "this is something I do almost daily....and it's funny because so do MANY others" but the best thing about it is that we all do it differently. A day in your life as an Etsy shop owner is probably nothing like mine; or maybe it's exactly the same. Do you also craft out of a re-usable grocery bag on your boyfriend's couch in the WEE hours of the night?
So look for the button, grab it, and link up! I can't wait to hear all about you!
But here's my idea: I will be starting {A Day in the Life}....a weekly linky party where you can tell us about a day in the life of anyone or anything. Tell me about yourself, your dog, your kiddos, your friend who's sick, your husband who's fabulous, just ANYTHING. Tell me about a day as a mother, a wife, a business owner, a crafter....you get the idea. I thought of this while putting on my make-up a few mornings ago. I thought, "this is something I do almost daily....and it's funny because so do MANY others" but the best thing about it is that we all do it differently. A day in your life as an Etsy shop owner is probably nothing like mine; or maybe it's exactly the same. Do you also craft out of a re-usable grocery bag on your boyfriend's couch in the WEE hours of the night?
So look for the button, grab it, and link up! I can't wait to hear all about you!
On my [heart]
Wow I am exhausted. Does anyone else feel this way this week? I love my blog and crafting so much and yet somehow I never make enough time for the things I love the most. Frustrating for sure.
But what's really on my heart this week is this:
.....FINDING MY OWN APT! I just LOVE everything here and wish I could have spaces of my own to decorate like this.
I have really been irritated with my living situation lately. I live with roommates, in a house that isn't mine or that I can stake ANY kind of claim to because I literally just rent a room there. The color of my room is cotton candy purple and it's always ridiculously cold in there. People are loud. I get NO SLEEP at night. I'm hardly there because my fella doesn't have a vehicle and so I typically am the one driving and staying at his place. (Note the exasperation when I state that fact) I just feel like at 25 years old I want to be in MY OWN SPACE. I need a craft area (right now it's a bag) and the ability to decorate.
This is especially hard for me because all through college I lived on my own in my own apts. I LOVED having full-control over every piece of living space and just that privacy. It's just HOW I unwind. And I think NOT having this for the last TWO years has been a major point of stress and anxiety in my life.
Don't get me wrong either; I would LOVE to live with my fella. We spend SO MUCH of our time together already and I just think besides being easier (than living out of a duffel bag 4-5 days a week) it would also be comfortable and fun. But it's not a step he's ready for yet. Sigh.
SO I need my own place. And I'm searching. But Portland is a tricky city. It's beautiful but CRAZY expensive and living alone is pretty much the most costly thing you can do. Unless you are a good searcher like me. I will find a place. Make it my own. And be HAPPY.
Linking up with ....
But what's really on my heart this week is this:
 |
| via & via |
.....FINDING MY OWN APT! I just LOVE everything here and wish I could have spaces of my own to decorate like this.
I have really been irritated with my living situation lately. I live with roommates, in a house that isn't mine or that I can stake ANY kind of claim to because I literally just rent a room there. The color of my room is cotton candy purple and it's always ridiculously cold in there. People are loud. I get NO SLEEP at night. I'm hardly there because my fella doesn't have a vehicle and so I typically am the one driving and staying at his place. (Note the exasperation when I state that fact) I just feel like at 25 years old I want to be in MY OWN SPACE. I need a craft area (right now it's a bag) and the ability to decorate.
This is especially hard for me because all through college I lived on my own in my own apts. I LOVED having full-control over every piece of living space and just that privacy. It's just HOW I unwind. And I think NOT having this for the last TWO years has been a major point of stress and anxiety in my life.
Don't get me wrong either; I would LOVE to live with my fella. We spend SO MUCH of our time together already and I just think besides being easier (than living out of a duffel bag 4-5 days a week) it would also be comfortable and fun. But it's not a step he's ready for yet. Sigh.
SO I need my own place. And I'm searching. But Portland is a tricky city. It's beautiful but CRAZY expensive and living alone is pretty much the most costly thing you can do. Unless you are a good searcher like me. I will find a place. Make it my own. And be HAPPY.
Linking up with ....
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| Link your heart |
Where's Waldo? Or, BB?
Guess what guys? I am super excited to tell you that if you search the bloggy world you can now find evidence of BB {Beautiful Blendings} on three of the MOST wonderful blog pages! I'm super stinking excited to call myself a sponsor and so without further ado (or searching on your part) I will now show you where you can find me.....
ONE.
LITTLE MISS MOMMA
Her blog is just the most adorable and I love how much she shares her heart about being a mom and being a woman. I'm so lucky to be a sponsor on her page! Look for the button below.
TWO.
THE WIEGAND'S
Have I mentioned about enough times already how much I LOVE LOVE LOVE Casey? She is the most amazing friend I've never met and if you haven't seen her amazing artwork, family or smile you should get to it! You can find the button below on her blog and also an amazing feature of me and a GIVEAWAY of my headbands there too!
THREE.
ARTICHOKE DESIGNS
Besides the fantastic name (I think artichokes are the yummiest) I love this blog because of all the creativity! This gal takes a-mazing photos and her craft swap is pretty rad also. You can find the button below (ok, yes the same as the first) on her blog.
I do really want to thank these ladies for allowing me to be a part of their blog and to sponsor them. I think they are all fabulous and I love being able to support what they do. Want to be a sponsor too? Email your fav blogger and see how you can get in on the fun.
Beautiful Blendings will be taking sponsors (FOR UBER AWESOME DEALS) soon! So if you'd like to get in on the fun; start here! Email me : beautifulblendings{at}gmail{dot}com or click here.
ONE.
Her blog is just the most adorable and I love how much she shares her heart about being a mom and being a woman. I'm so lucky to be a sponsor on her page! Look for the button below.
TWO.
THE WIEGAND'S
Have I mentioned about enough times already how much I LOVE LOVE LOVE Casey? She is the most amazing friend I've never met and if you haven't seen her amazing artwork, family or smile you should get to it! You can find the button below on her blog and also an amazing feature of me and a GIVEAWAY of my headbands there too!
THREE.
ARTICHOKE DESIGNS
Besides the fantastic name (I think artichokes are the yummiest) I love this blog because of all the creativity! This gal takes a-mazing photos and her craft swap is pretty rad also. You can find the button below (ok, yes the same as the first) on her blog.
I do really want to thank these ladies for allowing me to be a part of their blog and to sponsor them. I think they are all fabulous and I love being able to support what they do. Want to be a sponsor too? Email your fav blogger and see how you can get in on the fun.
Beautiful Blendings will be taking sponsors (FOR UBER AWESOME DEALS) soon! So if you'd like to get in on the fun; start here! Email me : beautifulblendings{at}gmail{dot}com or click here.
Sunday Brunch
A few days ago I read an article about this restaurant called Aquariva here in Portland that I've heard about before but never had the opportunity to go try. The article was about their "Build Your Own Bloody Mary Bar" where they provide you with over 25 ingredients to literally add to and make your own Bloody Mary for just $4. Now I am pretty serious about Bloody Mary's and I have a friend Hannah who is also real serious about them as well so we made a plan and headed there early this afternoon for brunch and Bloodys (Ha, sounds British!).
First of all.....I am 25 years old and have NEVER had an experience with valet parking. Well, at Aquariva VALET is the ONLY choice you have. It's free which I guess is nice but totally throws you off your game when someone runs up to your car and tells you, "it's fine here then". Mkay...so I just hand you my key and hope to get my car back? Riiiiight.
We giggled the entire way up to the door about how awkward we acted during our first valet experience.
The restaurant was very swanky and nice (right on the river) and after laughing more about how the hostess needed to ask ME (just me) if I was indeed 21 years old; we were seated at a bar table by the river and actually pretty excited for our brunch. We both ordered our Mary's and felt UTTER excitement when we approached the "bar" (a table LOADED with goodies for our drinks) and stuffed our vodka with all sorts of yummy veggies and spices. They HAD everything people. Even down to prawns and limes on a skewer and BACON!
Here was my finished concoction:
And let me just tell you.....they were delicious. Aquariva also has build-your-own mimosa bar as well which Hannah partook in but I didn't make it through my Mary fast enough to try. I think it was that GIANT pickle I added that slowed me down but was SOOO worth it.
We also had some delicious brunch....don't worry, we aren't just "full-blown ladies in the afternoon drinking " .........ALTHOUGH.
This is what our amazing scramble looked like:
All in all I thought it was a fantastic place to go and such a success for a ladies brunch. Plus no matter what, it always feels good to hang out with a good girlfriend and just hash out all the things on your mind. I'm realizing more lately that I truly need those times because as much as I love my fella; he just doesn't understand everything that's on my HEART.
But speaking of that fella.....guess what we put in the crockpot this morning for dinner tonight?
So yummy and easy. Pretty excited to see it after SEVEN hours of slow-roasting in the crock pot!
First of all.....I am 25 years old and have NEVER had an experience with valet parking. Well, at Aquariva VALET is the ONLY choice you have. It's free which I guess is nice but totally throws you off your game when someone runs up to your car and tells you, "it's fine here then". Mkay...so I just hand you my key and hope to get my car back? Riiiiight.
We giggled the entire way up to the door about how awkward we acted during our first valet experience.
The restaurant was very swanky and nice (right on the river) and after laughing more about how the hostess needed to ask ME (just me) if I was indeed 21 years old; we were seated at a bar table by the river and actually pretty excited for our brunch. We both ordered our Mary's and felt UTTER excitement when we approached the "bar" (a table LOADED with goodies for our drinks) and stuffed our vodka with all sorts of yummy veggies and spices. They HAD everything people. Even down to prawns and limes on a skewer and BACON!
Here was my finished concoction:
And let me just tell you.....they were delicious. Aquariva also has build-your-own mimosa bar as well which Hannah partook in but I didn't make it through my Mary fast enough to try. I think it was that GIANT pickle I added that slowed me down but was SOOO worth it.
We also had some delicious brunch....don't worry, we aren't just "full-blown ladies in the afternoon drinking " .........ALTHOUGH.
This is what our amazing scramble looked like:
All in all I thought it was a fantastic place to go and such a success for a ladies brunch. Plus no matter what, it always feels good to hang out with a good girlfriend and just hash out all the things on your mind. I'm realizing more lately that I truly need those times because as much as I love my fella; he just doesn't understand everything that's on my HEART.
But speaking of that fella.....guess what we put in the crockpot this morning for dinner tonight?
So yummy and easy. Pretty excited to see it after SEVEN hours of slow-roasting in the crock pot!
Happy Sunday.
Featured
Good Morning! Ok so it is 10:30am as I am writing this but I just HAD to sleep in today. Much needed. But now that I'm up I want to share something awesome with you guys. I've been talking about my new Etsy shop and today I am being featured over at the WONDERFUL blog...
And in case you forgot....she's also part of my May Giveaway which is going on for just TEN more days. And there are 3 possible winners! So hurry on over and enter both! And have yourself a happy Saturday. Mkay thx!
The Wiegands
Plus in the meantime you can check out Casey's beautiful artwork and blog because if you don't already know her.....she's A-mazing!
And but of course I am giving away one of my headbands to one of you lucky readers. Your choice! And there are lots of good things in the shop right now!
And in case you forgot....she's also part of my May Giveaway which is going on for just TEN more days. And there are 3 possible winners! So hurry on over and enter both! And have yourself a happy Saturday. Mkay thx!
On my [heart]
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Have you ever had something in life that was right in front of you but it was just barely out of reach? This is where I am with writing. I have applied for jobs, submitted my children's book series to a publisher and been connected with some AMAZING contacts in the industry. I should be doing this any day now right? Right?
My current job now has a deadline. It's not like I'm being fired or let go (or even that my employers WANT me to go.....they really don't) but the situation is changing and they know that I really want to explore other career options so they are just letting me know that I need to decide and be able to give them an answer (to stay or to go) by mid-July so that they may figure out if they need to find a replacement. TOTALLY FAIR. But I wish I had an answer for us both. I wish I could say....well I'm going to regretfully be leaving.....TO DO SOMETHING I LOVE. But I don't know that. And I can't quit a sure career with the HOPE that I will make money somehow.
No one ever told you that growing up would be so difficult. Boo. If you've heard of anyone that would love to pay a lovely lady to write her heart out....would you please pass them my info? Mkay. Thanks.
Let us all go back to the days of this:
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I am linking up to the beautiful Casey Weigand this week and so can you. Visit her here.
Love.
So as much as I would love to blame the Blogger outage for my absence; it just wouldn't be fair or accurate. I admit, I have been busy with life outside of the Bloggy world. Boo.
But I am here again and today I would like to bring to you.....things I am loving lately.
FIRST....
I finally got some time to make new items for the shop. I seriously want you to know how happy it makes me to make beautiful little items with my own two hands. And because I am so happy and want to thank you for being so great to me....for the rest of the month of May I am offering you 10% of with the code: HAPPYHEART.
I am also loving the kindness of people lately. You know, when someone sees that you are having a difficult time and does something amazing to help you out or to put a smile back on your face. My "boss" (I use quotations because although she is TECHNICALLY my boss, she's a better friend and when you nanny....the word 'boss' is somewhat weird anyway)....well she surprised me at the end of a hard day last week with this.
I NEVER EVER get flowers so I was pretty thrilled. Thank you again for making me feel special.
THIRD lovely thing.....
My beautiful bloggy friend Gaby (read her adventures in crafting and yoga here) had a fabulous giveaway on her blog for her new etsy shop and I WON! It really is exciting to win giveaways and each time I have; I'm more surprised than the last. But this past week I came home to find this.
Trust me, the cute little headband inside was A-mazing but first I must photograph it on myself (on a good hair day) and send the pic to Gaby and then I will share it here. But you can check out more of her lovelies and get something for yourself from Australia if you visit this shop.
Oh and finally what I am loving today and pretty much all the time is this:
We are working really hard lately to be HAPPY. Not that we don't LOVE each other; just that we've been through A-LOT of rough icky times lately and it's hard not to make that yuck the focus of our every conversation and mood. I challenge you to do the same.
Also....DON'T FORGET to enter the May Giveaway while there's still time! And if you already have....do it again! There's many ways to enter and you could always share it with someone you love.
And if you like me.....could you LIKE my Facebook page too? Pretty please? I want to use it to tell you about exciting new things that you may not see here....plus it really needs some love. It's feeling sad. ;)
Thanks lovelies! And Happy Monday!
But I am here again and today I would like to bring to you.....things I am loving lately.
FIRST....
I finally got some time to make new items for the shop. I seriously want you to know how happy it makes me to make beautiful little items with my own two hands. And because I am so happy and want to thank you for being so great to me....for the rest of the month of May I am offering you 10% of with the code: HAPPYHEART.
I am also loving the kindness of people lately. You know, when someone sees that you are having a difficult time and does something amazing to help you out or to put a smile back on your face. My "boss" (I use quotations because although she is TECHNICALLY my boss, she's a better friend and when you nanny....the word 'boss' is somewhat weird anyway)....well she surprised me at the end of a hard day last week with this.
I NEVER EVER get flowers so I was pretty thrilled. Thank you again for making me feel special.
THIRD lovely thing.....
My beautiful bloggy friend Gaby (read her adventures in crafting and yoga here) had a fabulous giveaway on her blog for her new etsy shop and I WON! It really is exciting to win giveaways and each time I have; I'm more surprised than the last. But this past week I came home to find this.
Trust me, the cute little headband inside was A-mazing but first I must photograph it on myself (on a good hair day) and send the pic to Gaby and then I will share it here. But you can check out more of her lovelies and get something for yourself from Australia if you visit this shop.
Oh and finally what I am loving today and pretty much all the time is this:
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| Headband by LifebyHand |
We are working really hard lately to be HAPPY. Not that we don't LOVE each other; just that we've been through A-LOT of rough icky times lately and it's hard not to make that yuck the focus of our every conversation and mood. I challenge you to do the same.
Also....DON'T FORGET to enter the May Giveaway while there's still time! And if you already have....do it again! There's many ways to enter and you could always share it with someone you love.
And if you like me.....could you LIKE my Facebook page too? Pretty please? I want to use it to tell you about exciting new things that you may not see here....plus it really needs some love. It's feeling sad. ;)
Thanks lovelies! And Happy Monday!
Green Teeth
I recently read about this in SHAPE magazine and found it to be perfectly smart. The article was all about the company Preserve; who make all these amazing GREEN everyday products and then help you to recycle them when you are finished using them.
Here's an example{and one of my favorites that I now use regularly}: The company launched in 1997 with their toothbrush. They mail you a dentist-designed, eco-friendly (made from yogurt cups) toothbrush and when you are finished using it; return it to them (as the lightweight package they sent it in doubles as a return envelope) and they recycle it again. They are only $2.99 and they come in many colors and bristle strengths. Also BPA-free so safe for the kiddos!
They also have a program called Gimme 5 where you can donate your #5 recyclables to their program which they will use to make the lovely products they send out to you. They also have kitchenware and tableware too!
Seriously, check out their WEBSITE. I will be ordering toothbrushes for both me and the fella; for the year. Oh, did I mention that the year cost is just $13.00? For FOUR toothbrushes? That are recyclable? And they also sell them at Trader Joe's as well as most Whole Foods.
Yes that's true.
Happy Hump Day!
Here's an example{and one of my favorites that I now use regularly}: The company launched in 1997 with their toothbrush. They mail you a dentist-designed, eco-friendly (made from yogurt cups) toothbrush and when you are finished using it; return it to them (as the lightweight package they sent it in doubles as a return envelope) and they recycle it again. They are only $2.99 and they come in many colors and bristle strengths. Also BPA-free so safe for the kiddos!
They also have a program called Gimme 5 where you can donate your #5 recyclables to their program which they will use to make the lovely products they send out to you. They also have kitchenware and tableware too!
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| Cute sandwich tupperware for $5.99 (2-pack) |
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| Colander for $8.99 |
Seriously, check out their WEBSITE. I will be ordering toothbrushes for both me and the fella; for the year. Oh, did I mention that the year cost is just $13.00? For FOUR toothbrushes? That are recyclable? And they also sell them at Trader Joe's as well as most Whole Foods.
Yes that's true.
Happy Hump Day!
May Giveaway.[closed]
In honor of the month of May and the fact that May is gorgeous and has a special day to give extra love to mothers; I have decided to do a FANTABULOUS giveaway this month that I think you're going to LOVE.
Here's what's happening. This month there are going to be not one, not two, but THREE special items up for grabs if you participate! And the theme is of course: MOMMAS.
Everyone has a mom in some way, shape or emotional form. Your "mother" may not in fact be the lady who gave birth to you but rather your grandmother, your aunt, a teacher, a friend, or some special person you met along the way.
For me I have the most incredible mother a person could ever hope for. She's my HERO. She raised me as a single parent, went to college when I was just a little so that she could give us an AWESOME life, and she always let me know that I had to be a strong and confident woman who took care of herself no matter what. I cannot say enough about my mom because she really is my favorite. But along with her I have met some pretty fantastic women throughout my life's journey and I hope you don't mind but I'd like to take a second to thank them.........
Whew! But seriously thanks to everyone who ever taught me anything or lended me a shoulder to cry on.
And now onto some really amazing GIVEAWAY news!
There will be three featured ladies this month who all would love to tell you their story and share with you their craft! They are some very special people so without further ado I will let them share and at the end I'll fill you in on the details of how to enter [it's a little different this time].
{FIRST}
ISN'T SHE AMAZING! Casey is going to be giving one lucky reader a $40 shop credit!
{SECOND}
Here's what's happening. This month there are going to be not one, not two, but THREE special items up for grabs if you participate! And the theme is of course: MOMMAS.
Everyone has a mom in some way, shape or emotional form. Your "mother" may not in fact be the lady who gave birth to you but rather your grandmother, your aunt, a teacher, a friend, or some special person you met along the way.
For me I have the most incredible mother a person could ever hope for. She's my HERO. She raised me as a single parent, went to college when I was just a little so that she could give us an AWESOME life, and she always let me know that I had to be a strong and confident woman who took care of herself no matter what. I cannot say enough about my mom because she really is my favorite. But along with her I have met some pretty fantastic women throughout my life's journey and I hope you don't mind but I'd like to take a second to thank them.........
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Whew! But seriously thanks to everyone who ever taught me anything or lended me a shoulder to cry on.
And now onto some really amazing GIVEAWAY news!
There will be three featured ladies this month who all would love to tell you their story and share with you their craft! They are some very special people so without further ado I will let them share and at the end I'll fill you in on the details of how to enter [it's a little different this time].
{FIRST}
My story as an artist starts back when Chris, my husband, and I first got married. I loved to paint but never had pursued it professionally. I remember the day he told me that he bought a big tent and had signed me up for the Dallas City Arts Festival, it would be my first art show. I was thinking,
"panic...I am going to embarrass myself and everyone will be thinking why does she have a booth here?!"
I just really had no confidence in my own paintings.
I am a self taught artist, I didnt have an art degree to show for.....just how God allows me to see the world, images, colors and shapes.
Was that enough to build a career on?
Plus Chris is freelance, could we raise a family on TWO freelance, unpredictable salaries.
Surely not.
Surely not.
Chris always says, if God calls you to do something you do it and He will provide. Money wont decide if we follow our dreams or not.Fast forward to the show. It was a juried show with various types of art......paintings, jewelery, photography, woodwork.Well I won for the paintings and sold 11 pieces that weekend. I wish I could write out all the details of how things unfolded that weekend but I will tell you that God moved in my soul.
He allowed me a platform of confidence to pursue a career as an artist, follow my dreams.
Now I am a stay at home mama with paintings in various galleries and a website where you can view my work. It's not always easy struggling financially. It's scary having two freelancers in the home on individual insurance plans and zero savings.
But this I know.
I am living my dream. And you cant put a price on that.
Not to mention I get to "work" with my two little loves. Having kids is my dream come true. They are my life. Spending every second possible with them is where my heart is at. Usually I am wearing Ainsleigh and Aiden is painting along side me. A true dream come true.
I would love for you to check out my
ISN'T SHE AMAZING! Casey is going to be giving one lucky reader a $40 shop credit!
{SECOND}
Hi! My name is Jessi Connolly and I blog at Naptime Diaries. I'm an accidental mom, who sort of fell into motherhood. I did natural family planning wrong and never really figured it out, so now I have a sweet 4 year old prince, an infectious 3 year old daughter, and a pampered 2-year old "baby boy"! I love, love, love being a mom - with all of it's intense challenges and immense joys. Every day I'm surprised by how incredibly hard being a mother is, as well as how insanely beautiful it is. Also, I LOVE i-word adjectives. Intense, immense, incredibly, and insane:).
My husband is a (handsome) church planter and we're committed to raising our kids to be as imitators of Christ, as we pursue that endeavor passionately and messily ourselves. I found that as a mom, I was constantly needing to turn to God's word to make it through the day. I need His wisdom, His promises of peace, His instruction, and His presence in my home - more than I need a vacuum or an oven, or a tv even:). That need combined with my desire to have a beautiful and inexpensively decorated home, led me to start Naptime Diaries prints & gifts. I wanted to be able to bless other women (and men! and children!) with beautiful, inexpensive depictions of scripture that would not only encourage but be pleasing to the eye.
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| Some of the amazing prints available at the shop! |
My prayer is that my blog, my shop, the prints - would all be a blessing to the people who encounter them. That He'd get the glory, since I know there is nothing amazing or good about me, outside of Him. You can follow on us on the blog or on twitter, where I keep the internet up to date with exciting news about potty training, vegan food, and well - my naptime diaries!
SHE IS SO INCREDIBLE AND I JUST LOVE READING HER STORIES! If you win you will be getting to choose TWO PRINTS of your very own from the shop!
{THIRD}
Hi everyone! IT'S ME! Surprise! I have just opened my very own ETSY shop and I couldn't think of a better way to announce it then to start with a giveaway!!! So here's the story. I love to crochet (as I've shared here before) and I started learning new techniques that are cute and fun. It didn't take long to realize that a shop was in order and that way I could share these cute things with all of YOU! So in case you don't know the linky you can go SHOP or check out FACEBOOK to Like my page and find out new stuff; and of course feel free to follow me on TWITTER. And here's a little viewing of what I'm offering you lucky readers.
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| All handmade by yours truly |
I will be offering a $15 shop credit to the lucky winner! Hooray!
Are you excited about this yet?
Want to know how to win?
How to Enter the GIVEAWAY:
1. You must be a follower of my blog. And for the first entry {before all other entries will count} you need to first tell me about the mother-like person in your life and why she's awesome.
5. SHARE this! {additional entries for each way you share & tell me how}
That's a lot of choices! There will be 3 WINNERS this month. Giveaway ends May 31st at midnight. Winners will be announced the following day.
GOOD LUCK and thanks for checking it out!
April {just.lovely.things} giveaway WINNER!
May FIRST has arrived (rather unbeknown to me) and so I now want to deliver the good news of a WINNER!
Without further ado, and by the help of Random.org, the WINNER of her very own GORGEOUS headband is..................................
And just so you know there was no cheating.....
And hers was the #1 response.....(it was crazy that the number 1 was chosen cause that's actually never happened for me before!)
So Congratulations lady! email me with details of where I can send your lovely headband!
And everyone stay tuned. Another amazing giveaway happening for May. This one has a theme and is close to my heart. You'll see.
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