Wed. Words of Wisdom

Ok seriously - this needs to be my mantra .

In starting this blog I'm honestly not quite sure what direction I want to take it in yet .

Will it be strictly about my family life and motherhood ?

Design ?

Home projects - ya know, if I never get to them ?

A little of each - and will that allow me to find a niche ?

I wonder the same thing about my shop.

What is my long term goal ?

What am I doing right ?

What am I doing wrong ?

What should I do next ?

And when you look at the best of the best - the people who have been doing this for years with their beautifully streamlined blog layouts and topics , their orders on Etsy in the thousands - you wonder ... how the heck will I ever get there ?

I guess the answer is , you just have to keep on truckin' .

Where you are is just where you need to be and whatever it is your chasing , you'll catch it eventually .

Wow - cheesy much ?

But seriously - love this quote and will be keeping it in mind as much as I can during this process .

- e



Etsy Round Up : Be My Valentine

I am so grateful to have a venue like Etsy to share my products on .

It allows so many creative and talented people to share their passion and craft with the world .

So , I thought I would show some of the other amazing shops on Etsy a little bit of love!

Take a little look at some of my favorite Valentine's Day products !

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18.


xoxo ,
e

My Weekend via Instagram

While I had great intentions for this weekend in terms of productivity , our days ended up being blissfully lazy instead .

Here are a few Instagram photos from the last few days :

While a part of me has to admit that I feel frustrated about the fact that I didn't get my " To Do " list fully marked off , a bigger part of me frankly . . . doesn't care .

It was the first full weekend just the three of us in over four months .

I'm actually grateful that it wasn't filled with errands and projects around the house .

Sometimes you just have to let it go and enjoy the moments that feel as though nothing is really happening - they are always full of little somethings that are fleeting .

Someday , I'll have an empty house and nothing but chores to keep me busy .

In those moments , I'll be grateful that I took the time to read Brown Bear Brown Bear for the 100th time and listened to Annie beam as she shows off her animal sounds , that I sat and watched Blake and Annie cook in her little kitchen , or that we danced the Hokey Pokey over and over .

I'll miss Annie's hand grasping for mine as she lays across our bed between the two of us , her head in Blake's back and her feet against my chest .  I'll ache to be woken up from an afternoon nap by a toddler knocking a boot against my head and shrieking " Mama! Mama! " I'll stand in front of my mirror brushing my teeth and I'll smile remembering how Annie had her very own collection of them, scattered all around the house .

There will always be lists and projects to be done .

But this weekend , they can wait .

I hope you take a moment to do the same with your family !

- e

  



Family Photos : Dec. 2012

Over the winter holiday , we had a little photo session done with Blake, Annie, and I - our first since she was only a newborn!

We had the privilege of working with an immensely talented photographer , Jessica Schaak of RAE Portraits  !

It was so very important to me that we have these images to document this time in our lives while it is still the three of us . We could not have been more thrilled with the outcome of our little family photo shoot. Seriously y'all - if you live in the Dallas area ( or she sometimes comes to Utah ! ) you MUST check her out !

We will be clients of hers for life !

This is only a portion of the photos from that day - I'll be adding all of them to Facebook soon !



 - e

Just FYI:



My first outfit
Lace Top : Anthropologie
Jeans : H&M
Cowboy Boots : Gypsy Wagon (old)
Watch : Michael Kors
Diamond by the Yard Necklace : The Impeccable Pig

Annie's Yellow Dress : Boutique buy in San Fransisco
Solid Tights: H&M
Shoes : Zara

My second outfit
Dress & Sweater : The Impeccable Pig
Belt : Forever 21 (old)
Boots : Steve Madden

Annie's Dress w/ Lace Trim: Zara
Striped Tights : H&M
Shoes : Zara

Blake's Shirt & Sweater: Old Navy
Jeans & Khakis : The Gap

My Word for 2013

During these first few weeks of the new year , as we have settled back into old routines , I've also dedicated a fair amount of time focusing on how I can set new goals to keep me moving forward and continuing to grow as an individual , as well as how we can continue to evolve as a family .

I'm not much of a resolution maker - I sometimes get discouraged when I make incredibly specific goals and don't meet them. So this  year I decided to dedicate myself to one word - a word that will sum up my hopes , desires , and dreams for the year ahead .

For the year of 2013 , my word is together .

When I think of the word " together " , so many other words come to mind : time , relationships , goals , educate , integrity , growth , self assurance , routines , habits , lists , accomplishments  , creativity . 

This year will be a year where the time we spend - both at home and in travel - is spent together .

This year will be a year when our house will come together and finally become a home .

This year we will come together as a family and grow in the gospel .

This year , I will be a more together individual .

There is so , so much more that I could say about this topic , but I've decided to try and keep my thoughts on here short and concise , just to see how that feels for a while .

What will your word be for 2013 ?

- e

Happy New Year

Happy New Year y'all , from our family to yours .

I have quite a bit of updating to do , and I promise that is coming soon , but for now we've just arrived back to our home in Utah after four incredible months in Dallas .

Blake and I have so much gratitude and humility in our hearts as we look back on the opportunities that have come our way this past fall , and are so grateful for every single person who has helped us along the way .

We're looking forward to an incredible year ahead ! 

Let the unpacking begin . . .

- e