Reminiscing over the past five years

 2009

So, I guess when you get married- you're technically suppose to stop "celebrating" your dating anniversary, but I do just want to acknowledge it. Because it's a big deal. Tristan and I just celebrated our fifth anniversary of the day he asked me to be his girlfriend yesterday. We didn't really DO anything to celebrate, but it's a sweet day to just talk to each other and reminisce about the last five years. My favorite part of dating anniversaries is asking Tristan to tell me the story of him asking me. Every year. I'll keep doing it forever and ever, because I want him to have it down PAT to tell to Fern when she's older. I like the parts he puts in about how we'd been hanging out for a long time before and were basically dating already, but he was still so nervous to ask me. I also like the part he puts in about asking me "officially" over text, and me turning him down, and telling him he needed to ask me in person. atta girl. pat my own back. ;) Reminiscing is so much fun. I was just listening to John Tesh the other day (who I get MOST of my life advice from) and he was just talking about how great reminiscing about the good times with your significant other helps you get over the hard times so much faster, and helps grow and strengthen your relationship. It's so true. Five years of great memories is such a wonderful thing to go back and remember together. Laughing at silly things that happened. It's like going back and re-living that great time together. I'm so excited for next year, and 10 years.. AND WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES!  anniversaries are so great.

2013

The Creative Collective: Create a new playlist

I love the concept of the new link up I've joined, The Creative Collective. Every month there's a new challenge to get you to stretch your creativity, and that's something I very much need sometimes. (most times) On the date given, you link your post up with everyone elses, that way you can go and see what everyone else did for the challenge as well.

I know "make a new playlist" doesn't sound like it should stretch one's creativity very much- but this is something I've been craving, and wanting to do for ... years? Yeah. I'd go ahead and say years. I honestly listening to the same music I listened to in High School and the years just after. All good music, I mean... Everybody loves Sufjan,  Eisley, Copeland & Amos Lee classics... but I have no idea what new music is even out there. I have been in a rut for years, putting off this surge of creativity consistently. This very post has enabled me to sit down for the day, find a new band I like, and put it on that radio station. Saving every song I really liked, I made a new playlist. How bout that. It's perfect for when I'm working on orders. <3

Weekly Wishes || 2.

I totally rocked my list from last week FYI. I totally owe it to the weekly link up. I so kept wanting to take a nap, but I knew that I had to come back and not only report to you guys, but also link up to the ladies involved in this particular linkup, and I just couldn't slack. Here's what my list from last week looked like:

|| Finish my current chapter & rock the test
|| Have a coffee date with the girls of "the circle" -done
|| make 2 custom orders from the new "birth announcement" line in the shoppe done
|| take product photos -done
|| make time for a night out with an old friend -done
|| finish the book I've been reading for months. -done

Whiskey Cake

I actually went to Whiskey cake twice this week. Once to catch up with a good friend, and then the very next night to celebrate my best friend's birthday. I wasn't even mad about it, and yes.. I did have the whiskey cake both nights. 

I also knocked that book out that I've been sluggishly reading for the past few months. It was "The Silence of Bonaventure" by Rita Leganski. It was a really endearing book. I really enjoyed it. It probably wouldn't make my top faves, but I'm glad I read it. It was a sweet story with southern charm of the bayou. 

Oh, and those two orders I had to get done, I did three. Which I'm pretty proud of, because those paintings are pretty time consuming. I like the details. 

I didn't finish my chapter. But I did make headway. It's a really long chapter, so I'm going easy on myself with the failure of that, but I'm totally knocking it out number one priority this week. 

Speaking of which, this week my list looks like this:

-Finish my current chapter and rock the test (for real) -done BOOM!

-Send out finished orders & Giveaway CD -done

-Finish mobile order

-make 4/10 dreamcatchers

-send out thank you's to those who gave to our Hatch My House fund. - done!

Pick my hair color.

A weekend post! whaaaaat? :)

This month I am so excited to introduce to you a good friend, and talented hair dresser Jordyn. Jordyn is a fantastic hairdresser. For you locals, she's recently set up shop at Scissortale Salon on Hudson, downtown. Jordyn and I have been talking these last couple of weeks about what we could do to show off her mad hair skills, and we came up with the perfect solution. MY HAIR. But we want it to be a bit interactive. SO. Jordyn is going to give me a cut and color at the end of the month, and you get to decide what color I go. I figure, this is the last time before I start my career as a realtor that I can really let go and just do whatever, so we're not holding back. I totally trust Jordyn to make me look fabulous, which is why I am totally in on this project!

Below are the hair color options, and under that you can actually take part in THE pole that decides the future of my hair. And.. it's totally anonymous, so if you pick a color that looks absolutely horrible next to the skin on my face, I won't know it was you, and therefore will not hunt you down and dye your hair a similarly incompatible hair color for your the skin on YOUR face. :) so, you're safe there. 

I realize these color names are not the legit names, but I'm not the hairdresser here- so they're just a reference point. 

survey hosting

If you mention that you saw Jordyn's ad on my sidebar, she'll give you 15% off your first service with her!
You can book your appointment by texting or calling Jordyn.

In the shop:

So this is exciting. About a month ago I realized that I never made Fern a birth announcement. I know it's too late, now, to send any out to family- but I wanted to make one for her baby book, and also one just to frame. Just a lovely little piece of art that she can keep in her room. I hadn't painted in years. I actually lost any desire to create art after somebody commissioned me to do an album cover for them, and ended up not using it. Not using it was actually fine, but later I saw the band post the album cover on facebook, and it had turned out he had just gotten his sister to completely trace and redraw what I had. All credit to her. So I put my brush down, and just quit. Leave it to Fern to spark up my inspiration again. (as she always does) I went to Hobby Lobby and found a watercolor set on clearance, came home and created a watercolored birth announcement... and then I did another, and another, and then I decided I could sell these, and then I needed some ideas for the fellas...  Now I have 7 styles in the shoppe that you can purchase and customize to your own babe. Or really anyone.. It doesn't have to be a baby. Anyway, I'm just kind of proud to be painting a bit again.

I'd like to get better product photos, but these will have to do for now.
Anyway, head on over and see all the designs, if you'd like. You can go straight to the "birth announcements" tab to get straight to the newbies.