My first Project Life album!

I am super excited about this post today because I have something crafty to share with you! It's no secret that our family has been on a pretty twisty journey the past year or two, going from adoption to now foster care.  Throw in a few other curve balls of life and you have me sometimes feeling a bit worn out.  I am pretty good at recharging though and crafting is one way I like to simply have fun!  I'm always kind of surprised when a mom tells me they feel guilty for doing something fun or resting or fill-in-the-blank, whatever fills you back up.  My favorite quotes about this very subject are "an empty cup can't fill others" (or something like that), and "learn to rest, not quit." 

I believe whole-heartedly in taking care of ourselves, because so many of us mamas are taking care of so many others!  In order for me to give, give, give, I must sometimes fill back up.  I do at least one thing a day to fill back up, even if it's a 10-minute sit by the fire or a cup of tea and a good book before bed.  

Crafting and photography set almost everything right in my world.  When I'm partaking in either of these activities the noise is silenced, my soul is at rest.  It's when I reflect, pray, and worship.  It was with this in mind that I began looking for a way to combine my love for the two in a tangible, hands-on medium I could easily fit into my busy life.  

I considered my own form of bullet journaling, but it just didn't ever click for me.  In the end it felt like too much work for a lot of lists, when really the things I want to remember aren't my lists but the stories and photographs.  Enter Project Life!  

I discovered the idea of a Project Life scrapbook album years ago but haven't ever made one.  One day recently at Hobby Lobby as I was talking myself out of buying every single scrapbook item ever made, it clicked.  I should totally make a scrapbook and put all the cute stuff I already have to use.  I started reading up on Project Life albums to see how others started and kept up their own yearly scrapbooks. 

I was delighted to see that anything goes, truly! You can spend as little or as much time on a Project Life album as you like and I like that.  

So what is a Project Life album?  It is a scrapbook album that you fill with scrapbook items, like these cute graphics and art cards you see, and photographs during the year.  You can purchase a BIG album like I have, which is the 12x12.  You can also purchase the clear pages with pockets to go inside the album.  Last, there are scrapbook accessories GALORE online or at Hobby Lobby you can also fill your pockets with.  

These are my first pages!  Or really, one page, two-sided.  You guys, this was SO easy and so wonderfully fun to do.  I have my own printer so I quickly scaled some photos as close to 3x4 as I could and combined them on a sheet to print.  Next I cut out all the photos, slid them into pockets, and journaled on a few scrapbook cards.  Last I slid the scrapbook cards into the pockets and added a few extra embellishments here and there. 

This was so super quick to do and I love that!  I can easily keep this up by taking a few minutes each Sunday night, printing a sheet of photos, and having my page made for the week in under 30 minutes.  

Here's a close-up of the pages I've finished so far! 

Isn't that so fun?! You know how much I adore the blog, but I'm a very devoted book fan over a Kindle any day so it completely makes sense that my personality craves a real-life book of my life story.  

Of course it didn't take long for the girls (ok, Anna) to spot some of my cute supplies laying around and get totally inspired. 

I mean she does come by it naturally, doesn't she? 

I had both the girls pick out some cute scrapbook cards and print some photos.  Then they each got their own binder and we filled the table with stamps, markers, glue, and more!  We've left this out on our table all week long and it is adorable to see how many times I'll find one of them quietly and happily working on their scrapbook.  I'll share their pages with you soon! They are precious. 

In this ever so busy season of life, scrapbooking is saving my sanity.  It's keeping my creative spirit alive and that feels so good. 

What about you?  Have you ever done a Project Life album or another kind of memory-keeping? 

How I make lists

Good morning friends! Welcome to the first blog post of 2017! Any thoughts on the new year?  Mine could be summed up with my calendar quote you see there.  I read that cheery statement months ago at Barnes and Noble and after tears quickly jumped into my eyes I figured it was a calendar and message both I could use.  It's kind of like my favorite saying "Today is a good day to have a good day."  Sure beats having a bad one, doesn't it?  

Today I want to talk about lists!  Boy, I sure do love a good list.  Listers gonna list, right?! I am a chronic list-maker, or at least I used to be.  You know what I mean.  That receipt in your purse?  Something scrawled there, although you don't know what.  Your lists at home?  Hidden around the house, where you'd have to attempt an easter-egg hunt effort just to find them.  I was becoming THAT kind of lister.  Yet I couldn't let go completely because there is still just something about putting pen to paper.  I started poking around Pinterest and came across the bullet journal idea.  I entertained the thought and even began to draw out a "practice" bullet journal.  Hours into it I realized this wasn't what I was looking for either because I was spending more time on the list-making than the actual doing of the tasks.  Next idea please!  

Here is what I came up with instead and it is working great for me.  On the left is a $3 binder from the Target dollar section and on the right is a monthly calendar planner.  I use both.  The monthly calendar gets all the important dates like volunteering, school activities, foster care requirements, etc, etc.  ALL the things.  I really like seeing a month grid at a time.  It also has a column next to each month where I can jot a few things down if I like.  For the most part though I'm scheduling in the big, blue planner.  

The tinier binder on the left has really become my favorite.  I'm an idea person and I'd like to even think of myself as a photographer/artist/writer.  All that to say, there is a LOT going on inside this head of mine.  Writing it down makes me feel relaxed and much more calm.  So on the first page of the binder I made this table of contents/key page.  Then on the right side of the pages I simply put a piece of washi tape with the first letter of each "subject" in the notebook.  This took all of 5 minutes and I instantly felt organized and like I had a spot to put each of my ideas/inspirations.  With the washi tape tabs I can easily flip to a section, jot something down, and move on with my day.  I keep this binder and my planner right next to the kitchen, where they can both be easily grabbed.

This binder is for more long-term kinds of ideas, like ways I want to grow in photography and ideas I want to blog about. 

Last (see I told you I liked lists!) my most recent addition to my list-making collection is this simple dry-erase board on the right side of the wall.  I picked this up at Hobby Lobby and used my 40% off coupon so it was super cheap.  This is my favorite way to list. EVER.  This board is divided up into different sections and helps me manage the day-to-day stuff.  

For example right now I have the following sections written down: Foster care, creativity, food/meal plan, to-do, and grocery list.  Right smack in the middle of these sections is a giant circle with my guiding three words for the year, but more on that later. 

I put the board by the garage entry so really Brett and I are the only ones that see it.  Usually each night I dump my thoughts and to-do's at the dry erase board and then it's so easy during the day and week to simply wipe something off when it's accomplished or even take a picture of my grocery list before I head to the store.  

Using these methods totally has me feeling like I can do 2017 and considering how much we need to get done in the next three weeks for foster care that's a very good feeling. 

Do you list?  Care to share your methods?

I look forward to sharing more how-to's in the new year with you!  If you have something you'd like me to blog about, send it my way via email, blog comment, Facebook, or on IG! 

(now I have my nifty binder to write the idea in, remember?!)

Gratitude Journal Pages and Art lately...

 Good morning friends! Are you looking towards the new year or still wading through the wrapping paper and Christmas cookies?  We had 5 Christmas celebrations this year and truly enjoyed each and every one.  Time with family is simply my favorite.  The girls have tons of cousins and relatives to play with so I end up getting plenty of time to visit with the grown-ups, which is a rare treat! 

I feel like we're in a totally new season this winter as the girls are 3 and 4.  It's a whole new adventure having two toddlers instead of two babies.  With that said, my art/creating time is becoming more deeply infused into our everyday rhythm and routine, looking for pockets of opportunities to use my creativity in our everyday lives.  Studio time is quick these days, but I still have to goal to create every single day. Sometimes that means I pop into the craft room and paint on a canvas for 10 minutes, other days it means a simple sketch, and a lot of times it means working on my gratitude journal.

 For the past four years, I've always kept some sort of gratitude/real-life journal going.  Not the kind where I pour out my deepest thoughts, just something with tidbits of the rosy in my routine.  I adore keeping a blog and don't anticipate quitting, but there's just something about having a paper copy in my hands of the timeline of God's grace over the months and years.  I don't create or write in this journal everyday, but I do at least weekly.

 I keep an old metal tin on my kitchen island, stocked full of paper scraps, photographs, washi tape, and memories.  Every now and then I'll sit and design pages.  Doing this while watching a movie is my fave!  I like to design several pages at once and then go back and journal on them later.

Another thing I enjoy? Flipping through old journals.. filled with cute things the girls said, the goodness of God, and memories.  Sweet, memories.

 Of course, as soon as the last Christmas is over my mind begins to reflect on the past year and dream towards the future one.  I usually enter January with grand plans and scribbles in a notebook for days. Ideas spilling over and competing for first place.  This year is different.  If the past year has taught me anything it's been to seize each day and hold it precious.  That a plan isn't always the best route.  Surprises are good too.  So I plan to be surprised by God this year.  

I will say though, some ideas that have been brewing for months are finally going to happen in the new year, like teaming up with Brett to make handmade wooden frames with my art/photography inside for the shop.  I'll be listing some of these closer to spring! 

 I can also say there will be new paintings added to the shop come spring also.  While my shop is on vacation I'm having such fun playing and painting, pressure-free.  

I anticipate 2016 being my most creative year yet.  

How about you? 

What is filling your heart with gratitude and expectancy? 

Thank-you for joining me on this journey.

Found in 14: Art Journal Confession and Update

Remember this fun little series I started, called "Found in 14?"  The idea behind it was that I would start setting my phone timer for 14 minutes on a daily basis and make art in my art journal.  You guys evidently loved the idea.  It sparked many comments and was one of the top highest read blog posts!  So thank-you!

Now lean in close for my confession.  And promise you won't throw your bucket of colored pencils at me.  I started this challenge a couple of weeks ago so you do the math.  That should mean I have tons of pictures of my art journal right?  

Wrong.  

The truth is I have done a terrible job of keeping up this challenge!  I could blame it on the girls getting sick (and me too) and preparing for Vintage Market Days and the Photography retreat but really those belong in the same pile of excuses I had when I originally started the challenge in the first place!  I've just let too much life get in the way of letting my fingers work their magic.   Can you relate? 

 I DID get a few pages sketched or painted lately and I loved it.  Of course I did…..THIS is what it's all about for me anyway, the creating and sketching and imagining!  

So the challenge must go on.  Even if days have past and I haven't kept up my end of the artsy bargain. I'm not letting Found in 14 go and you shouldn't either!  That's the great thing about being an artist.  And the same thing I love about mornings.  There's always a new day for a fresh start.  Don't wait another day longer!  I won't either.  Let's pick up our pencils and paints and start this off right….again! 

See ya soon with a whole slew of art journal pics to share. 

Until then, here's to keeping it real. :)

Found in 14 {an art journaling series}

Yeah! I'm so excited to introduce you to my new daily art journal practice….called "Found in 14". 

This idea was totally inspired by Rae and her 15 minutes of mixed media prompts and videos she shares on her lovely blog.  

Something I really enjoy is browsing art journals online.  I love to see what other people are creating and how they make use of different art mediums in their journals.  I realized I was always left with the question though "How do they have time to art journal?"  In my creative free time you can find me blogging, answering emails, watching online art courses, painting canvases, or working on my Etsy shop.  All good things, but I was left each day with nothing in my art journal.  Each time I'd think about starting I'd hear "those" voices.  You know the ones!  "You don't have enough time", "You won't like what you make anyway"….etc, etc, etc. 

So I decided to change all that and come up with my own daily art journal challenge.  

The "rules" I set for myself are quite simple.  Gather a few supplies ahead of time and then set my cell phone timer to 14 minutes.  No erasing or critiquing after the timer is finished.  I just must create something.

This particular day I was proud I'd even finished a few seconds early!  I'm noticing that once this daily exercise has started to become more of a habit for me instead of just a random idea, my creative flow is getting faster.  I'm not pausing so long to think "What should I do next?"  My fingers are becoming more accustomed to thinking quickly. 

Something to keep in mind about this little challenge is the whole reason for the name.  Found.  I don't always love what I create in these sessions.  To be honest, sometimes I don't even like what I've made. But I do know this is true.  Only when I create piles and piles of stuff, the good, bad, and ugly-do I reach what I really, really like.  It's just the process…you can't skip the practicing.  There is such good to be FOUND when we give ourselves time and permission to make, make, make! 

I put a funny story up about this little lady on Instagram.  The black and white picture above is how she looked after the 14 minutes.  I wasn't pleased with her eyes and decided to add a bit more detail, leaving her looking like the colored version of herself below.  I like her..but those eyes!  In the South we'd say "bless her heart." :) 

I can't wait to keep this Found in 14 series up on the blog! 

I'd love to hear if you do a similar art journal challenge or not. And if not, maybe you'll leave encouraged to do so! :) 

A peek inside my Art Journal: Finding my voice!

 I'm finding my voice, my style.  I suppose that sounds like a rather bold or brash thing to say. However, this has been one of those searches that's quite like the hide and seek games I play with my girls.  Lately I've been trying things out, chasing ideas this way and that.  Every now and then I've actually captured an idea, a concept, an art supply, a technique that I really adore.  That gets my heart pumping extra fast and my inspiration whirling.  Then I've tucked that little treasure away in my artists' toolbox and moved on.  Time for another chase.  Another seek.  

It's quite like capturing lightning bugs, plopping them into a jar and watching their lights flicker on and off.   All those ideas together…..create a glow that feels safe, just comfortable enough, but not too much so.  Not where I'm done growing.  Just enough of a glow to feel comfortable and like I'm home.

 And so, I'm learning the language my art likes to speak.  Which brushes feel best in my hand and glide across the paper like I love.  Which steps to the whole process of creating a canvas or art page I like.
(for example, art that looks too neat and tidy generally makes my skin crawl)
 I'm learning the perfect formula for me…the right amount of thinking and whimsy.

 I hope you enjoy seeing what that looks like in real life.  It is certainly quite scary to show up and be so vulnerable over and over again.  To show the bits (usually on Instagram) that I may even deem a less favorite piece.  But I suppose if we, the incredible human beings that we are, don't show up as ALL of us….good, bad, ugly, beautiful-what else is there?

This is me.  My art, my evolving journey.  The messages stuffed deepest...

(the journaling on the left was inspired by a post I read on Momastery's blog…..About how there's enough!  Enough opportunity, love, time….She made a very beautiful point about complimenting those around us when they get opportunities because we should be happy for them, not worried we missed out on something great too.  As soon as I read that I thought of you lovely readers.  You beautiful souls who have cheered me on, encouraged me….and clapped the loudest when good has come my way.  I thank you, I thank you, I thank you….)

I must confess that a lot of these pages I now love, but didn't at the first try.  In fact, you've probably even seen a few of these pages before, you just didn't know it because I covered so much up with more paint. 

I think this needs a quote or word stamped in the middle, don't you? 

What would you pick?

Thank-you for taking a peek into my artsy world lately!
Today I've thanked God for art and painting a million times.

Have you created lately?  

Often times for me, the absolute hardest part is starting.  Sometimes it feels like it's all I can do to open the paint bottle and begin.  But then I do start and I get lost in that land of painting and I wonder why it took me so long to begin in the first place. 

Be back soon with new canvases, Rosy Life style.  All my own.