Lindsay Jane

Yesterday I got to go to Knoxville for some photo training with super cute pregnant Lindsay.

The lovely Maraea was our model!  That was a lot of information, Linds!  I'm hoping I remember it all.  Or even just some of it!
Yeah, I have a lot going on right now.  

Just keeping it real update:  I had a head on collision in the grocery store.  I totally rammed some poor woman with my buggy.  How I deviated that far from my side of the lane....?  That just goes to show my state of mind right now.   I'm just putting one foot in front of the other and hoping things settle down after the initial madness of the move.  I need to get SUPER organized!  Anybody have any tips for me?  I seriously need some!  Actually, I made some major headway on the unpacking today.  So that should help free up some available brain space.  Hopefully this weekend we can hang pictures! 

I'm so grateful for all of your enthusiasm about my new projects!! Thanks!!!

here's to hard work!

OK  I hope you guys are going to be really excited. 

 I meant to give some sort of heads up.  But once again it looks like this may be coming out of left field.  And I appologize in advance for hardly taking any interesting pictures!!  If you look really closely at the picture above you will see me in the reflection.  Yeah, I was super lazy in the photography dept the past couple of days.

Last Thursday I headed out for Houston, by myself, to International Quilt Market!!! I was doing research for a possible little online shop.  I had the cutest idea ever.  Really.  I did.

 

 I also brought along with me my finished portfolio!  I know, I've stopped talking about it.  But I never stopped working on it.  I kicked it into high gear back in August.  I was obsessed.  A woman with a mission. 

 I shopped it around to different fabric companies. I got a lot of positive feedback.  People loved my use of color and I kept hearing again and again how original it is.  That was huge for me.  The best compliment I could get for sure!  Originality is golden.  And sometimes it's so hard to even know if you are or not.  So out with the good news already right?!! I got a couple of offers on my line!    Actually, my first offer just felt like home. I LOVED them and was very excited.  I had to leave immediately and go cry.  

My new friends, designers Tula Pink and Holly from Urban Chicks insisted I keep showing it and I'm glad I did.  It was great to get so much positive feedback from other companies even if many of them didn't have room for anyone new.  I have heard that it can be pretty brutal.  Overall it was a great experience.  I met the cutest girl Bari of Bari J designs.  She was also pitching a line.  I just checked out her website! Wow!  If she made the same decision as I did it looks like we both may be at spring market together!  I have a lot of editing to do.  I over designed for sure!  We all want options right!  I had 17 different designs and 6 color ways!  I will be cutting and editing that down to about 6 and 3 respectively.  And something totally new may even emerge in the mean time.  

So between that and Lindsay Jane Photography, I've decided to hold off on my shop idea for now.  I know I'll be super busy for a while.

I have to leave you with this quote that I heard at Market.  "Opportunity is missed by most people because it is often dressed in overalls and looks a lot like work."  Thomas Edison

I'm grateful for these opportunities and for all the hard work that lies ahead!

things my kids teach me

It's easy to be happy.
It's fun to learn to do new things...even when they seem hard to reach.
And of course, stop and smell the roses.
Don't just smell them, really get in there and roll your nose around in them!

I sure do love these two...

Hello Nashville!!

To greet our new town we have been doing LOTS of exploring!
Partly to get to know our new town...
And partly to scout out future photo spots.
Photo shoot locations are needed when you are training for your NEW JOB with Lindsay!
Wish us luck!!  I am SO grateful to have this new opportunity to LEARN!! 

I am also so grateful that miss Chickie's new school experience is going very well!  I really didn't have high expectations at all.  Her last school was just so amazing.  However, I am blown away!  And we can walk to school since we only live .3 miles from it.  The girls in her new class shouted with squeals of joy when she was introduced to them.  (what a relief!)  AND the best news yet...we only live 3.5 miles from the temple! I seriously get chocked up every time I think about it.  What a huge spiritual opportunity! yay!

Oh, and one more thing...we rented out our house today! What a blessing and a relief (yes, another).   

playing tag instead of packing

Beth tagged me.  I know I should be packing right now but this is more fun!  The challenge is this:  Go to your fourth photo file and find your fourth photo.  And post it!  Easy enough.  I can't believe this is my fourth photo!  I totally lucked out.  This is from last Christmas.  Chickie made her dad a tutu out of blue construction paper.  Then she held a ballet class.  So funny!  I have it on video, too.  No time for that now though!

I tag Mandee,  Katie,  Lori, Melissa!! You're it!

PS. You ALL have to go visit my sister Katie's blog and read all about our little sister rockin the  stage at BYUI!! Congrats Rose!  Aren't my sisters gorgeous!  And they both can sing like crazy!! My sister in-law who is also drop dead gorgeous sings like an angel, too.  Unfortunately neither Buffy nor I live near Katie or Rose, sad.  Too bad.  They could start a band.  

a fun day for Chickie, I fess up

Heather told me that she wanted to spoil my kids so that they wouldn't want to leave.  I'm pretty sure it's working.  Last Friday Bentley was crying when he had to leave her and come back with me.  Today was Chickie's turn.
What little girl doesn't want to be a twin?  
Get her nails done?
And her hair?  Chickie and Riley were in total girlie girl heaven.
Aren't they cute!? (I took this pic above--the rest are compliments of Heather!  Thanks!  They turned out great!)  Hmm, luckily for us most of Heather's family lives in Nashville.  Unfortunately I was packing during most of this time.  The packing itself is going as well as can be expected.  I'm pretty much a moving expert at this point.  

I guess it seems like a total shock on my blog.  We have actually been working towards Nashville since summer of 07.  We've just been pretty tight lipped about it for once, an amazing feat in itself.  I just wanted to make sure that we got ALL of the details perfectly right because I am SO over moving.  And I'm pretty sure everyone who has ever met us is sick and tired of hearing us talk about where we might like to live.  Believe me, we explored every option.   I have also been studying a book my (very intelligent--you have to be smart to be married to an actual rocket scientist, don't you?) Great Aunt Jean recommended to help in the decision making process.  Lately, it has only been a matter of  when.   Meanwhile, Chris has been out of town for 2-4 days a week for the last month or so.  And even though he misses us, he is in dancing heaven over at DanceWorld.  And he should be, they are oozing with talent and professionalism over there.  We were holding out for this house to sell, but with the market like it is we finally gave up on waiting for that.  Even then I  have been dragging my heels because I didn't want Chickie to have to change schools during her very first year.  Into that mix, add my vague freak out moment and a lot of praying... and there you have it!  Intellectually it all adds up, and prayers about it bring me a feeling of peace.  Chris finally gets the go ahead from me.   Chris is happier than he's been in a long time.  Nothing is guaranteed.  But you know us, we're willing to take the risk!  

news

Have I not mentioned it yet?  We are moving to Nashville this Saturday!  I'm packing like crazy.  Chickie is having quality time with friends.

a day in the life (sort of)

As promised, I started out Thursday with full intention of cataloging my typical day.  I woke up and normally I go for a run first thing Thursday mornings.  But this Thursday it was c-c-cold.  And I am extra super cold right now because I hardly eat anything these days.  So I was also less motivated to run, not like I have had any issues with eating one too many of anything in the last few months.  And my fall clothes are in storage, and I don't feel like running inside (excuses, excuses).  So in very UN-typical Andrea fashion, I started out my day by getting sucked into the vastness of the world wide web.  Shocking I know. 

Then I decided I'd better take advantage of Chris being in town for once and go get some stuff out of the dreaded storage unit:  
 Duh, duh, duh.   Intimidating, no?  Somehow, by miracle and a combination of agility, flexibility, and sheer stupidity I was able to rescue a few key items from the BACK, and BOTTOM of this storage unit.  I shimmied my way across the back of the couch and played life size tetris until I found myself at the almost bottom (I think I was one box above ground).  Therein lied a book that 3 months ago I would never imagined that I would need this badly now.  I also rescued out a salad dressing maker, two stuffed animals, my fall clothes, and a box of baby clothes for my brother and sister in law.   While I was down there I wondered if the boxes all caved in how long would it take Chris to come find me.  At least there was a lot of good reading nearby, but unfortunately it was poorly lit.  
I came home with my spoils to find this:
Then I find the book I am wanting to make and read over the instructions.
Is anyone still reading?  Are you bored yet?  If not just you wait!  It gets worse...

Chris heads off to work.  We get ready to go to the store.  Chickie and I both notice that we are all wearing black shoes.  Hey! Let's take a picture of that.  That certainly follows under the category of normal, mundane, everyday life. 
Bentley tries to take Chickie's snacks.  Chickie is holding onto the two animals I rescued from the storage unit.

Another try for me to get the picture, and for Bentley to get the snack.
Bentley gets the bag and runs.
try again
and again
Bentley is successful, I still am not.
Now Bentley wants the camera.
And he's off again.
He's gone.  I think, "Getting out of the house takes long enough anyway.  Am I seriously trying to document this?"
We do a little gluten free shopping.
I get home and make this granola minus the nuts.  I used a nut free nutty-rice cereal.  
The good news is that this is so insanely good.  Even Chris ate it.  You can eat it too, find the recipe here.   I overate for the first time in a very long time.  I was in total heaven, but wishing I had gone for that run.  And the bad news is I'm REALLY allergic to this granola.  Dang it!  Ah, well.  It was probably the dried fruit.  I was pretty sure that I was allergic to some dried fruit, but I was feeling optimistic. 
While I was cooking the evil witch Manessa came over for a visit. 
She stayed in character the whole time.  When she flew out the window, she left her clothes for Chickie to play with.  What a thoughtful mean witch!

There was also some laundry folding this day.  And some computer working.  Working over finances. That kind of thing. You know.

This post was ultimately silly.  I guess I am ultimately silly.  But for seriousness...I am going to journal it.  The silly and non silly of life right now.  And maybe next year I can pick up some clues of what I have and haven't been doing right.

This weekend I'm enjoying conference weekend.  I already feel so comforted!  I loved the messages of hope we heard today.  You can watch it online tomorrow as well on BYU TV.  Definitely great if you want to be inspired!

time travel?

Before I get started, let me just warn you.  These pics are random moments from this week that didn't make their way into my blog.  They don't relate to the post other than the fact that they just do.  Be patient.  You'll see!

Yesterday I was walking down the street with the kids thinking that all I wanted to do at that moment was put on a long, stick-straight, glossy, dark-haired wig and some bell-bottoms and bust out my own rendition of "If I Could Turn Back Time."  If only I knew what today felt like back in March I would have encouraged Chris not to buy this house!  Sometimes being an optimist bites you in the rear.  Then today I had the thought, "If only I could see what happens from now until the end of the month, then I could just relax."  Later, I talked with my little sister Rose and she completely agreed, but for her own reasons.

  If only...

All was delightful on this outing with Grandma and Great-Grandma, until Grandma decided to GRAB a goose.  By the neck.  There were tears (from my kids) and hissing(from the geese).  She said it was so close she just couldn't resist.  That story really deserved a post of it's own.  OK. What was I saying?

And just a bit ago I saw this and then this.  I am not a scrapbooker (yet?).  This blog is as close as it gets.  But I love this idea. A scrapbook of life right now, be thankful for today.  Pay attention to today.  The mundane, the ordinary, the routine.  And I think I want to make an accompanying book that is a guess/wish list for what my life will be like a year from now.  Will I be right?  Can I make it happen?  Will it be as great as I think it will be?  Rose and I were talking about how fast time flies the older you get.  Yet, I still feel impatient for things to happen.  

I really enjoy certain bloggers who have amazing creative projects in the works. And they talk about how they have been working on project XYZ for x number of years.  Hmm.  I know we all want to be amazing and fabulous. 

I keep looking and searching for clues on how they make it happen.

Chickie had this duck eating out of her hand.    

Seriously, what has to be done to lead the life you really want to lead?  How much smarter will I have to get?  How much harder will I have to work?  

I used to be a total magazine addict.  Now I'm much more of a blog addict. I love it when people really share with you life and processes.  I love the reality and personal nature of blogs.  I love the teaching aspect of it.  I love looking for clues in the success of other's realities.  

The only reason a dancer would have bits of blue tape on the bottom of their shoes is if they dance in a "non-traditional" dance space. 

So, I don't think there is anyway I am actually going to make a scrapbook right now.  But perhaps a scrap-post.  Later in the week of life right now.  Don't you want to do it with me?  Let's find out, really pay attention to what seeds we are sowing in our lives.  Then a year from now let's see what we harvested.  Anything?  Then learn from that and start all over the next year with a little more insight!  Are you pumped!?  I'm imagining myself punching a punching bag (like in Run Away Bride) and I'm thinking of the old days when my friend Adria used to come over and watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer.  She always did high kicks during the intro.  I'm totally psyched!  

In case you are wondering...this looks like a For Rent sign, but what it really says is:  Nashville or BUST!!!! 

my sweet little artist

I love to watch Chickie draw.  When she draws herself, princesses, mermaids, or herself and her friends as princesses or mermaids, she always draws the dress (or fin) first.  We have several unfinished pictures with a fin or dress and no body.  I should have known by her strong individual sense of style that she would be a budding fashionista!