Dare

I started reading The Artist's Way this week and when the author said, referring to the assigned weekly tasks, "in choosing which half of the tasks to do, use the guidelines, pick those that appeal to you and those you strongly resist....remember, in choosing, that we often resist what we most need.", I laughed out loud and knew I had been given the right book to read. I resist. That's what I do. I resist.

For instance, when I'm offered a list of items to complete, let's say my own to do list, I will always start with the things I find easiest, the things I want to do, not necessarily the priorities. I resist doing the things that aren't as enjoyable and push them aside until I can't stand seeing them in red anymore and either change the date, yes I do that, or finally get them done.

Do you resist?
Why do we resist?

I think it's simple. The things in our life that are the most meaningful are usually the hardest for us to do. We need them, but it's hard so instead of facing it head on we overlook it and hope by ignoring it, it will eventually go away. When really if we would accept the challenge and let it change us we would be better for it. I know this to be true, however, knowing doesn't make it any easier.

If we have two doors place before us and door 1 is presented as something we've done before, something we've already proven and we know how to do, and behind door 2 is something new, intimidating, work, and perhaps uncomfortable...which door would you choose? I'd like to think I'd choose door 2, but most the time, if I'm completely honest, I'd choose 1. I'd go for what I already know because let's face it, it's easy and simply put, comfortable.

My friend Hannah shared on her wall this week, "the person who doesn't make mistakes is unlikely to make anything."

That really hit home with me. A glaring reminder that mistakes are not the problem. The not doing and not trying...that's the problem. No mistakes means there's no creating and no progress. Relationships, art, sports, daily living, you name it...get messy. They all at some point reach a stage where you either stay stagnant or get messy and move forward. Without the mistake how would we ever know what we're capable of?

We have to choose between being comfortable and being uncomfortable. One of the reasons I chose to focus on "choose" this year is to remind myself that my life is under my control. If I'm not progressing it's because I'm walking away from an opportunity. I'm resisting the very thing I need the most.



I have dreams, ideals that I have not yet reach, but I believe dreaming is the easy part...making your dreams come true is the real challenge. I think that's what they mean when they say, dare to dream. Are we willing, do we dare, to do what it takes to make them come true?

It's been far too long that I've resisted my "creative" inner voice. Honestly I can't be sure exactly what it's telling me. I know what direction I'd like to go, design, but I'm letting my lack of knowledge and confidence in this area stop me from moving forward. I'm resisting because I just don't know.

So I'm looking forward, admittedly with a little trepidation, of making my way through the Artist's Way. It's an intense 12 week course that the authors says, "will make you excited, depressed, angry, afraid, joyous, hopeful, and, ultimately, more free." Does that statement scare me? Yes, yes it does, but it scares me more not to try and become the woman I want to be.

xoxo,
amy

gratitude friday (including creative wednesday)

*I'm grateful to have uninterrupted time the last two days to work on the gratitude journals. Thank you Jill, Robyn, and Kathy for splitting your time with my girls.
*I'm grateful that meant I was able to spend the evening with Adam, just the two of us, eating, talking, and laughing. It is never just an ok night out with him around...I'm always entertained.
*I'm grateful the weather has cooled enough for light sweaters and wool socks in the mornings.


*I'm grateful I learned how to sew so I could quickly put together a skirt for Bella's costume. Hopefully it will fit, I made the pattern up on the fly. This and working on the journals is what I did for creative Wednesday this week. Did you do anything creative?
*I'm grateful for books with good messages to keep me company while I work. I've been listening to The Power. It's a little cheesy, the audio anyway, but hopefully it will be what I need to help keep me thinking positively.
*I'm grateful to feel happy today.
*I'm grateful to have friends in my life that fill me up in ways only a friend can.
*I'm grateful my to do list of things to do before leaving town is almost complete.
*I'm grateful to have the opportunity to go out of town and see North Carolina for the first time.
*In light of what a friend of mine is facing, I'm grateful my children are healthy and happy little girls. With everything that can go wrong it seems like such a miracle.

What are you grateful for today?

xox, amy

12of12 | October

01.Tuesday mornings are hard these day because the girls have to wake up at 5:45a to be ready and out the door at 6:30a for violin lessons. I don't love getting up, but I do love having it over with in the morning.
02. I took some photos of my friend's kids the afternoon and quickly took this while moving from one place to the next. There were beautiful colors up in the canyon today. Perhaps I didn't miss it.
03. We're usual up with Adam on Tuesdays since we leave early. This is what his mornings normally look like, him making his shake before he heads off to the gym.
04. Meg at her violin lessons.
05. Saw this beautiful tree while out running errands.
06. Me and my P90X. I have finished the 12 weeks, but am doing it here and there when I feel like it. Today was legs and back. My legs are killing me right now.
07. Went to the bookstore today to buy the Artist's Way and while there looked through a book about North Carolina since I'm headed there next week (more on that to come).
08. Meet up with my friend Amy, spur of the moment, the give her her book and lunch. Good times.
09. Picking the girls up from school. Tess raced down the hill and was waiting for the others to show up.
10. After school homework underway.
11. Tess during her gymnastics class. She said she likes it way more than dance.
12. Lights from some of our Halloween decor.

It's two bad my two run ins with the cops didn't happen today. Thanks for playing along this month. Hopefully it was a good one. Don't for get to share.

lesson learned...twice

The best line of the day was from Bella or Tess, I can't now remember who it was, but she said, "Here he comes, act natural."


If you can't tell from the photo she was talking about the cop who was about to issue us a ticket. You would not necessarily think I would be laughing at that moment, but when I saw the lights for the second time yesterday, yes you read that correctly, the second time I couldn't do anything, but laugh.

Let me start from the beginning.

Around 10am yesterday morning when I was out doing a few things I should have been doing today (Tuesday's are my errand days), I got pulled over just a few yards away from my destination. The officer must have seen the shock on my face when he told me my car registration was late. I could of sworn it got done, but no, apparently it late as of July. Imagine my frustration and embarrassment (I never do stuff like that). He gave me a ticket which I was so devastated to get, but it didn't hit me as hard as it will when the amount comes in the mail because honestly, in that moment, I think I was more mad than anything that I had to drop what I was doing and go figure it out. Plus I had a brake light out in the back so it wasn't an easy one stop. Bleh!

So I spent my morning getting that taken care of and drove home feeling confident with a sticker to prove it.

Fast forward to yesterday evening when the family was out heading to Gardner Village to see the witches and, yet again, lights flashed in our rear view mirror. Sure enough, he said our registration didn't come up as current. I laughed. Seriously, what are the chances to get hit twice in one day? WHAT ARE THE CHANCES? I was so glad I had taken care of it earlier.

So take it from me and don't forget to register your car. I still can't believe I forgot.

As of today there have been no cop incidences, though funny enough, a cop opened the door for me at Barnes and Noble.

P.S.

Don't forget...tomorrow is the 12th for those of you participating in the 12of12 challenge. Remember if you're just hearing about it now it's never too late to begin.

Have fun!

saturday goodness

When I woke up Saturday morning I had no idea what was in store us. I figured it would be a day full of shuttling kids back and forth from violin practice to soccer games, when in fact it was the moments in between those two events that shaped the rest of our day.


It started with bagels, of course, like all things start for Adam and the girls on Saturday. It was enjoyable to sit back and watch them, they're pros at it now, each of them ordering for themselves with confidence. This is a new side to bagel day I hadn't seen before. They are growing up.









After dropping Bella off for her violin rehearsal at the Conference Center we decided to stay downtown until Bella was done and after I realized Megan's game wasn't until 1pm it seemed like the perfect plan. We took Tess and Megan to Memory park to walk around, but what I didn't realize is how busy it would be on a Saturday morning. There was family after family and engagement couples running around every where getting their photos taken. In fact there were even people waiting in line for certain spot. It was craziness, but fun to see so many cameras milling around the park.










I enjoyed getting another round of fallness...hope it stays for a little while longer.

Afterward we still had about 40 minutes so we decided to take the girls to one of our old haunts when we were downtown dwellers...Sam Weller's bookstore. It's a quaint little store with a great selection of new, used, and rares books. It smells like what I imagine the forgotten books from the book The Shadow Of The Wind smelt like. Delightful. I was happy to hear both Megan and Tess complaining when it was time to leave.







This part of the day seemed brief, but it's exactly what we needed to make an okay Saturday into a great one. I need to remember it doesn't take much...and to think, I almost didn't go.

xoxo,
amy

request

What started out as one girls request...


turned into an afternoon at the salon.


I guess I need to thank their friends for being unable to play.

Good times!

creative wednesday | week 4

This is a bag filled with dreams & recipes for soup & she's deciding right now which she's really hungry for. -storypeople

I read this yesterday and it made me laugh out loud. I guess you could say I was lying in bed trying to make myself get up and be productive when all I really wanted to do was pick up a book and stay cozy for a little while longer.

What to choose?

You'd be happy to know though, I picked my dream. I got up, did my essential morning activities, and headed straight to my studio to keep my creative Wednesday appointment.


I continued working on the gratitude journals I started last week, folding the signatures and punching holes. Now they're ready to be sewn.


I put together cards made from photographs from my Oregon trip.


Then I added the cards and other photographs onto my etsy site...it's been empty for far too long. It's crazy how much time that takes. Visit my site for more.

It was a busy day, but a very successful creative wednesday if I do say so myself.

--Did you do anything creative today?

reminder

"Life is perfect for none of us. Rather than being judgmental and critical of each other, may we have the pure love of Christ for our fellow travelers in this journey through life. May we recognize that each one is doing her best to deal with the challenges which come her way, and may we strive to do our best to help out."
-President Thomas S. Monson

I've had these thoughts swirling around my head ever since I heard his talk. I can't seem to get it off my mind...I needed it then. I need it now. It's such a great reminder of how similar we all are, how we're all working toward a common goal, how we all deserve the same amount of kindnesses as we go through life, no matter who, what, or where we are. Today while working I listened to it twice more letting he's words sink in a little deeper...hoping if I hear it enough, I will never forget.

"True charity is love in action."

If you'd like to read or listen to the conference talk go here. It's definitely worth your time.

xxox, amy

fall at last

I would never say this hasn't been a good fall, but it has been a strange transition from summer to autumn for sure. At least by now we would have carved pumpkins and had fires and worn sweaters, but we've done none of that. Although when I look up at the mountain it does look like fall, it sure hasn't felt like it. For the majority of September it was hot, summer hot. Just as the leaves were beginning to change colors the heat wave showed up and never really left.

Finally, as of yesterday, it's feeling more like fall out there, cool and earthy, so we went to the canyon last night for FHE to enjoy it.


This is megan telling me not to take any pictures, so I only made them take one.

this one...

and I only got it because adam was entertaining them...we'll leave it at that. :)















We either missed autumn's bloom or the heat messed with the leaves because there wasn't a lot of color out there. I was let down to say the least, but regardless we had a great time and believe me, that was not my last attempt at searching for fall.

--Has it been a strange fall for you?

xxox, amy

celebrate the everyday

because

the common or mundane

moments and interactions

that daily might seem

inconsequential ---are perhaps

among the most critical and

influential in character

development and nurturing

family relationships.

-seeing the everyday

There's a reason I stopped pushing my photography business...my family. It wasn't so much that it was taking too much time away from them, but rather, it stole my desire to document our everyday. The reason I fell in love with photography in the first place was to capture my family the way we are. Starting up a photography business was the catalyst I needed to help me realize what I truly wanted.

So it was then I began to focus on everyday photographs. Photographs that captured us eating together, the girls walking to school, getting ready for bed, our morning routine, night time routine, etc. This change in focus is what had me gravitate toward 365 (photo a day) and 12of12 challenges. Challenges that further helped me to see the beauty in the normal everyday experiences I was overlooking.

I have found focusing on the everyday not only keeps me present in the moment, but helps me to see that even the most basic of activities provide an opportunity for closeness, an opportunity to strengthen my relationship with those I love. It amazing the kind of conversations I can have while doing my daughter's hair or folding laundry together. I guess you never do know when they're going to open up to you.

So today I am grateful for those everyday moments. Moments that keep me close. Moments that keep me present. Moments that help me experience and love the life we have created together.

xxox,
amy

four for friday

01.
I have my brother's girls here with us this weekend so my dear Adam is out numbered once again, 6 to 1. It's kind of nice that their coming falls on Conference weekend because it means we can hunker down at home and have no need to go anywhere. With all of us together it's hard not to imagine what it would be like being the mother of all 5 kids, girls no less...I'm thinking pretty crazy.

02. After scrubbing my nieces puke off Megan's floor this morning, yep she's sick, my darling husband kissed me goodbye and managed to rip half my toenail off. Poor guy was mortified when it happened. I for one couldn't focus on his apology as the pain almost caused me to faint...apparently I don't do good with this sort of thing. It was a strange morning. Strange day really.

03.
Do you know the power of the silly bands? Apparently they are great bribes. My girls will do just about anything for a package. BTW ebay has some great deals if you're in the market.

04.
Spend a good portion of time earlier in the week at barnes & noble pouring over Communication Arts Design Annual. It was loaded with so many idea I kept telling myself to make a mental note of certain projects when in fact I know I won't be able to and just need to buy it so I can use for future reference...Adam you getting this?

I was going to do five, but I only got four in my right now. I hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

xox, amy

creative wednesday | week 3

I started my creative day making a duplicate of the earrings I made last week. One for myself and then one to sell (I will add it to etsy when I can take a decent picture), a necklace to match, and another pair of earrings (I don't want to share just yet because I have someone in mind for them). It was about the time I was finishing up the last pair of earrings that it occurred to me, Christmas is just around the corner...I better start fulfilling my orders for the gratitude journals before my work gets mixed up with the holiday craziness.



So I spent the rest of my time double checking my design and printing copy after copy of the book. In fact my printer is still going. Crazy how long just that step takes. It involves coming back to the computer about every 20-30 minutes reloading paper, checking the printing, printing the reverse side, etc. But I am thankful for this one easy step because the real work is ahead of me. I'm not complaining though, I enjoy making them and knowing they are going to be enjoyed by someone for a whole year gives me enough incentive to spend my time making them.

I'm hoping to make some extras for my etsy shop, but that will all depend on my timing. I'll keep you posted when I have some available for purchase.

xo, amy

**Did you do anything creative today?

missing one

It's just been the four of us for the last few days. Seems like it's been the four of us for a while now since Adam's been traveling almost every week. It's such a strange departure to what his schedule normally is at work it's beginning to wear on me. It's not that I'm frustrated by his going or that I can't be the only parent for a few days, it's just not seeing him each night as we're winding down the day is, well, sad. I miss him.

I realized something though, this time around, the girls and I not only hold the fort down we have a good time doing it. Once they're home from school we get all the unpleasantness out of the way, like homework, then we play. We make dinner together, take walks, play games, or maybe watch a show. Whatever the activity we end up doing it together. It's like we're all keeping each other company until we're all together again. (Once I write it all out it doesn't seem different than any other day, but I guess there aren't a lot of playdates and friends coming over so they're spending that time with me.)

It's 8pm, the kids are up, and were anxiously awaiting Adam's arrival. We're leaving to pick him up in just a few minutes so the house is all a buzz when normally I'd have 3 already in REM.

ok hate to cut it off there, but we've got to go!

xo, amy

who knew sponge bob could bring us together

shades of gray

I was feeling a little stir crazy yesterday evening and believe it or not Tess is usually the one I can count on to come with me without really knowing what we're going to do ahead of time. Not even I knew where we would end up, just that I had to get out of the house.













I love that she's such a quality time kind of girl. That the desire to be with trumps anything else she might be doing at the time. I understand that need and am grateful we have it in common. It makes it easy in the quiet spaces to know we are happy to be here, walking along, holding hands together.

fives steps....

I believe this list was called the plan of life in five, but I can't be certain. I just know I liked it enough to not want to forget it.



01. Come to earth to grow

02. Can't grow without change.

03. No change takes place without conflict.

04. No conflict is solved without sacrifice.

05. All sacrifice creates some kind of pain...emotionally, spiritually, and physically.