I think I can, I think I can.....

Have you ever put off something due to fear and insecurity? Or avoided something because its outside your comfort zone? Sure you have. We all have. Whether its avoiding the dentist, praying you don't get the flu because you're afraid you might have to vomit, developing a new relationship or taking a class. There's been a time when you've avoided a situation because something about it causes you some form of anxiety. If you've never experienced such stomache twisting knots before - you might be dead, or you're just one bad a** gal.

For me lately its been the nearing spring quarter of a class I've signed up to take. You see, being an administrative assistant is great and all, but its really not what I aspire for my career. I know I need to do something about it, and that that something is getting my Masters.... MASTERS! The word alone is scary! I've never been a master of anything. I've always considered myself a "jack of all trades". I'm good at a lot of things, but not great at any one thing. Any way, I think what it comes down to is I fear failing or looking stupid. I've already vowed to never open my mouth in class, even though 25% of my grade is participation. Among my class mates are some of the brightest and most creative people that I work with. I feel like I've got something extra to prove being an "admin". I feel like people assume I don't already have a degree and that the only reason I'm an admin is because I couldn't get a job doing anything else (which is partially true, damn teaching degree does me no good!). Now don't get all mom on me. I know what you're thinking and you're yelling encouraging things at the computer screen, but these are my insecurities speaking. I know that I am a bright, positive and creative person, but its been awhile since I've had to use the left side of my brain - that is the analytical side right? This class will be a challenge for me. Even reading the syllabus was over whelming! Its been almost 5 years since I've really had to use my brain in a critical thinking sort of way.

I like this excerpt from an article on selfgrowth.com
"Fear causes great people to accept mediocrity. It also causes death and destruction to lives and dreams of most people. Where there is overwhelming procrastination, there is fear. Where there is great anger, there is fear. Where there is extreme hatred, there is fear. Where there is complacency, there is fear. Where there was failure, ultimately, fear was there."
- Myles W. Miller

I guess the point of this little blog was to get a little off my chest. To confess a little something to the world. But I hope that you'll embrace something you're afraid of. Step out of your comfort zone and grow a little today :)

Project Restoration

Anyone else getting fired up for garage sales!? This warmer weather has the smell and feel of bargain hunting season. Growing up, garage saling with my mother, aunts and sisters was something I never really looked forward to doing. Why would you want some one else's old stinky crap? Spending most of a beautiful summer Saturday rummaging through mostly junk for one or two good treasures was never my idea of fun. But as they say the apple never falls far from the tree and my sister and I now thouroughly enjoy an early hot summer morning on the road. Always keeping an eye out for just the right signage signaling us to what we hope is a land mine of treasures, right in my neighbor's garage. Last year Alaina (my sister) and I made a trip out of one fabulously long sale known as America's longest yard sale or Corridor 127 sale. It's literally in our own back yard! This sale runs an amazing 654 miles starting from West Unity, Ohio to Gadsden, Alabama, along Route 127. I first heard about this event on Rachel Ray's talk show. I know a lot of the cute stuff on her set was found and refurbished from garage and thrift store items. You'll find anything from country bumpkins on the side of the road, traditional houses with a garage full of crap (I mean that in the nicest way) to tents with antiques.


Alaina and I headed due west to Eaton, Ohio, hopped on Route 127 and went south. We of course had to round out the trip with a stop by Ikea on our way home. Let me assure you, we did not make it past Cincinnati. It could have taken DAYS! Equipped with my husbands truck, cash and an eager spirit, we did find find a few good things. Like an N'Sync CD circa 2004 and yes 'God Must have spent a little more time on you' got set on repeat. It made a great sound track for the trip. There's just something so nostalgic about all of it for me. Someday I'll drag my own children, nieces and nephews on trips just like this one.

ANY HOO! A hobby I've always had, but never really consistently stuck to (shocker I know, I stick to nothing - like an old post it note) is refurbishing things. Particularly furniture. I've got a shelf hanging in my kitchen that I picked up from a garage sale a few summers ago. Just an ordinary wood shelf - very 80's country home interiors feel to it when purchased. Jacob (hubby) sanded it for me and I added a few layers of white stain and some cute knobs from Hobby Lobby. I don't have a before pic, but I think it turned out great. I get so many compliments on it. I think all in all the shelf was $7, paint $3 and knobs $1 each...? So $15 total!




I found this mirror at the thrift store. I wasn't going to get it, but when I went back to the same thrift store a few weeks later. It was still there. I couldn't say no twice! I love the swirly details at the top of it.





I'm thinking of staining this one white again, but black or a fun pop of color could be great too. I'd like to add knobs or hooks to this one as well. I'll be sure to post new pics when its complete. I'm hoping to find a cool chair at a sale this summer. I've always wanted to refurbish one. Start planning a day with some gal pals or a loved one for a garage sale trip. Who knows what you'll find!

Inspiration

I AM SO OVER WINTER! I cannot remember a previous winter when I wanted spring to get here sooner! Today the sun is shining and if it weren't for the 100 some other people that work here with me I'd be sitting on the floor right in the middle of the hall by the windows that are so far from my desk, soaking in some vitamin D. I've been feeling a real lack of inspiration lately. The only thing driving me these days is my upcoming vacation. At this point I'm more than just excited about it, I actually need it. Blog topics have been hard to come by recently. Everything just seems so boring [yawn]. Needless to say my internal sources of inspiration are at dangerously low levels! Inspiration is like food to a creative person! I've got no energy and no desire to do anything but sleep! Dang am I depressing! Thankfully there are a ga-jillion creative people in the world and so many of them have wonderfully colorful and inspiring blogs. One of my new favorites is sfgirlbybay. She's got this great "blog mashup" going on right now, called Blog It Forward. Blog It Forward features 300 some selected blogs from February 10 through March 24. Each day a different blog is featured. When its your day, you post about what inspires you. I've been following it pretty regularly. Since my blog isn't featured there (tear) I thought I'd do my own list of inspiring things, in hopes that some where in this journey of blogging I'll find some new inspiration.

So here goes... in no particular order....

Friends and Family
especially my sister who is wildly talented at her Etsy card shop and so GREAT with design, everything she tocuhes is gold























Music - all kinds
especially folk/indie (below, my friends Ellery)
1.)















The Great outdoors
especially soothing, zen places
2.)




















Lists
especially on sticky notes
3.)















Nail Polish
especially fun and funky colors
4.)













Organization
especially with labels!
5.)





















Accessories
especially earrings, belts and shoes
















Magazines
especially Better Homes and Gardens - DIY
















Photographs/Photography
especially of people/kids and dogs














Pictures: 1.) Ellery Music 2.) BHG DIY 3.)Inadvertent Gardener 4.)Nail Polish by Kaarin 5.)Almost Bunnies

what inspires you? leave some inspiration or pictures, I'd love to know!

Crafty Creatures

For those of us who don't have homo sapien children, our cats, dogs and other furry friends can be quite easy to obsess over. Even folks with animals and kids know that there's nothing quite like a kid and his dog. There's just something special about having a pet as part of the family. One of my favorite things about Martha Stewart (besides her fab recipes, organizational skills and cute crafts) is her love for her own poochies, french bulldogs, Francesca and Sharkey. They even have their own blog - The Daily Wag! The blog includes things like photo galleries, pets that are up for adoption, favorite things and other miscallaneous items that would be included in a dogs life! haha! I don't about yours, but my puppies sleep all day, eat, poop, play and then sleep some more!
Josie and Ruben Burlingame


I'd like to specifically highlight a couple of pet projects from Martha, that I'm planning to try. I won't go into all the details since she's got them posted on her site, but here's the skinny. First is a pet travel cushion made from towels and quilt batting. This is much easier to cart around than blankets and its machine washable. This project couldn't be simpler! My dogs already have their own towels, so I know just the ones I would use.

The other project is a little more time consuming but I think well worth the out come. Its ADORABLE! Who wouldn't love a tote with the silohette of their favorite furry loved one on it!? Could be cute on other things too, like on scraps of fabric and framed, for some funky, fun, mod wall art.

Get creative out there and don't leave your pets out of the loop! They love craftiness too!!
Pictures from Marth Stewart.com

Prescription for Cabin Fever

Diagnosis: Cabin fever is a term for a claustrophobic reaction that happens when a person is shut in, in a small space, with nothing to do, for an extended period. Symptoms include restlessness, irritability, forgetfulness and excessive sleeping and an urge to go outside even in rain, snow or the dark.

Prescription for Relief: VACATION!

When endless gray hangs in the sky, why not spruce it up with a colorful get away! Even though gray is my favorite color, I prefer it in other places besides the weather. I love People Style Watch magazine and in February's edition they featured a few pages on Vacation Style. My friend Lindsay and I are heading to Florida in a few short weeks to visit our best friend and her family for a week's worth of gal pal time. We're leavin the boys at home! And what girl doesn't love to plan an entire week's worth of outfits for a fab get away!? I'm so looking forward to blue skies, palm trees, sand and that big yellow thing I think they call the sun - and of course quality time with friends and a break from work. Even if you don't have a get away planned, you can incorporate fun pops of color - like these yellow nail polish selections - into your outfits.

I had picked out the "Lite" color from Sally Hansen (on the left). I wore it once, until one of my dogs got a hold of it.... ergh! The one on the right is called Lemon Dash - I love that!


Here's some of the details I picked out from the article:


Glam Look - G-L-A-M, O-R, O-U-S I love that one by Fergie Ferg! Full on luxe, warm hues like orange, yellow and my favorite coral. Gold and sequins are absolutely essential for this look. I especially love the one shoulder bathing suit.


Classic Look - relaxed yet crisp, pair navy and white with red and gold (I love this color combo) It has that sailor feel. Rope details and gold accents. Great for a cruise!

Casual Look - Comfy and cool, nuetral pieces that are super easy to mix and match. Can you say jersey knit!? I love the Fedora and aviator sun glasses are a must.

What's your style? I think I'm a little of each of them, with a touch of boho!

Here's some outfits I picked out from one of my favorite Flickr folks miss vu. Her artsy shots of every day style have given me plenty of inspiration for my vacation wardrobe or for boppin around town during warmer months.

Mad Love ♥

Happy Valentine's Day! I know its a little early, but I'm feelin' the love today. Maybe because its Friday. I always seem to feel more love on Fridays. My patience level with people is always higher and I generally just feel happier on Fridays. The problem is Friday is only one day a week. Sooo one day a week I love people?? -ooo that's not good- Especially since I consider myself to be a woman of faith. I believe that Love is more than just a feeling. Its a choice. Its actions that you choose to act upon or not act upon. For example, here's where I get my cues from 1 Corinthians 13:7 - this is the message so if your familiar with the bible its not exactly word for word KJV!

Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
Love doesn't strut,
Doesn't have a swelled head,
Doesn't force itself on others,
Isn't always "me first,"
Doesn't fly off the handle,
Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn't revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.

I suck at all of these. If I had to count on feeling love, rather than choosing to take the above actions as a mind set, I would only love 1 day a week! You better hope you always run into me on a Friday. Thankfully, God's grace is bigger than my inadequate forms of feeling love. Mad love to all in my life. I both feel love for you and choose to try to love you in the above ways.

Here's a few pics of some V-Day inspiration.
Will you accept and be my Valentine!?

Vintage Love....



These pictures are of valentines I made! I even baked
the cupcakes, photographed them and added my own
photoshop text! Gotta thank my sis for the help and
the ink from her printer.

Photoshop!

I'm SO excited! I've finally got photoshop! I've done a couple of projects now and can't wait to incorporate more imagery into my blog with it. I've been reading online tutorials on how to use it and am pretty proud of myself. The pictures below are shots I took of some old sleds that my in-laws had. Don't they bring back memories of sledding as a kid!? They do for me. I've been looking for the perfect photo to try out vintage photoshop effects on.
I love how this one turned out.

The Perfect Winter Weekend

You could say it was the universe aligning - I say it was God's good and perfect timing. The past few weekends in my life have been busy and emotional. My parents have been in town from Findlay visiting, due mostly to the fact that my youngest sister (Abbey) high tailed it out of Findlay a few weeks ago, and has since been living back and forth with Alaina (my other sister - who is a year younger than me) and I. Having an adolescent living with you can be very draining, especially one with Abbey's level of complexities in her life. I won't go there, but if you ever feel so compelled to pray for a young person in your own life, please think of my sister Abbey and send a prayer for her too. This is not the point of my entry on this fine wintry morning, but it is essential to the story. This weekend was looking to be like an uneventful one - I was pumped. After 3 consecutive weekends of visitors, my house was a mess and I was exhausted. I needed a weekend of NOTHING! The weather-lady was forecasting another huge winter storm and what do you know she was right! This weekend was getting better and better! An early release from work on Friday (due to deteriorating road conditions) was the cherry on top of the closing work week. With a pantry full of food, dry wood in the garage(for a roaring toasty fire of course) and a fresh shipment of wine from a tasting party a week ago, being snowed in was better than I could have asked for. Here's some other items - that in my opinion - make for a perfect winter weekend....
1. Zero Plans.
2. Snow - check! (and plenty of it)
3. The perfect pair of gray sweat pants and college sweatshirt, circa 2001.
4. Soup! Italian Sausage - from EatBetterAmerica.com
5. Fire in fireplace - duh!
6. Wine and coffee
7. A weeks worth of DVRed shows, books and unread magazines.
8. Internet and inspiration for blogging.
9. 2 cute dogs :)
10. A good friend or lover to bunker down with - my husband. You have to find your own of course. Mine's booked for the weekend.

Stay warm and indulge a little in the comforts of a perfect winter weekend.

Picture courtesy talents of Jared Williamson

Dazzle Me!

LADIES! Lend a listening ear! A friend at work told me about a shoe of the month club. Are you drooling yet? I was! I've purchased 2 pairs now and have been really happy with the system thus far. Founded by THE Kim Kardashian herself (you know I'm a huge fan - I think its our common big booty trait that gives me some kind of a connection with her) ShoeDazzle.com chooses the most current shoes for you every month based on your style. You fill out a "Fashion Survey" and based on those results each month a stylist chooses 5 pairs of shoes for you to select from. YOU then pick 1 pair from the group and order for 39.95/month. The best part is if you don't like your selections you can request a new group of 5 shoes OR if Valentine's Day has you strapped this month, skip it with NO penalties! You'll recieve an email on the first of next month with 5 new pairs to choose from. Here's a couple that I've picked! These boots were a steal at $40! I love the bow at the top. The blue snake skin pumps were hit with my outfit on New Year's Eve. Don't judge me, but I've even opened a seperate checking account for this shoe club! What?! I coudn't stand my hubby rolling his eyes at me any more! You won't either!

No One Hit Wonders Here!

While doing some R&D for my blog, I came across another blog called One Post Wonder. It debuts blogs that people have created, and only have 1 posting. My most recent fav is ABLOGOFMYOWN - Dedicated to Butterteam. This 1 post 1der is a shout out to another blog! It says "What is up chicken butt?" Isn't that hilarious!? Worth a good laugh... check it out. Since I committed to doing this blog for a year there was no way I'd end up on that site and here's my next posting to prove it!