girl loves friday

Well...this has certainly been a week to remember with the leaving of the day job and all. February 15th will be my last day sitting behind a desk and doing work that I no longer enjoy. I sit here eating my yogurt, shaking my head at that last sentence. 2/15 seems like forever and until then, I will still do my work as best I can. I vow to not get "short timers" and finish out the remainder of my time being the employee I have been for the past 11 years. No reason to burn bridges, right? Although admittedly, when I get an email that makes me want to scream "!)#@ I'm not dealing with this anymore" I take a deep breath, glance a the calendar and remind myself that it will all be ok. Onto girl loves....

Here we are in the third week of Project Life 2012 and I've hit a wall. I don't want to give up but it's just not striking me as awsomely as my friend's PL's.  Vee's is the layering queen and it all just comes together so well. Then Jed's who makes me want to chuck my 12X12 out the window.

If I were a fashionista blogger, I would want to be like her. Loving this bold contrast of color.

And how about another "make" statement.

Happy Friday! xot.

girl loves friday

I really wish I could stay in today and not drive anywhere. It's pretty nasty out with the latest snow storm to hit Anchorage. Kind of freaked me out at one point when all I could see was white, no road. I was so happy I made it home safely. Other than that, it's been a fair week and I'm ready for it to be over.

Onto girl loves.

*Now that I've Cameo'd basic things I've downloaded in their store, I'm ready to venture out and do some of my own designs. This inspires me to do just that. *I've been tossing the idea of converting our garage into a studio so I can take quirky family photos (like this) of us. *beautiful quote.

xot

girl loves friday

Haven't done this on in a long time. But now with the help of Pinterest, it'll be a bit easier to get back on track. *Kind of loving neons + brights in a big way. I wish I would have seen this banner before Tyler's first birthday. I love the mix of shapes. *This steak recipe from Pioneer Woman. She really can do no wrong. *I never tire of reading this quote from the late Steve Jobs. "...The only way to do great work is to love what you do." Now that I think about it, I'm going to print it out and frame it. *Loving this cozy neutral look. Except my sweater would have to be a tad longer since I do not have perfect model thighs or butt. Add thick socks=perfect weekend "I'm staying in because it's too effing cold to do anything + I plan on burying myself in paper and project life bits" outfit.

Happy Friday! xot

girl loves friday

So much to love about today! The weekend before Christmas. Wow. I'm starting to feel that bit of excitement you feel as a kid. Does it ever go away? Be honest. I know we as adults get tend to get so caught up in all the negatives that surround the holidays. The over-crowded malls, the traffic, the "oh you bought me a gift...I thought we weren't doing gifts" routine, the gluten, the bills you're adding up in your head after each purchase, the coworker you predict will get so wasted at the Christmas party, they'll regret Monday morning. Everything that wants to kill your Christmas spirit(except for the last bit...that will actually be funny). I'm not giving into it this year. Especially the week before Christmas. That stint of bad luck has cleared from the beginning of the month. Going forward, it's nothing but yuletide goodness This week is the best week of December. *my mailbox will be riddled with Christmas cards and I will love every. single. one. * I will watch my favorite holiday movies...The Family Stone (I love this movie so much. This is my "me only" movie) Christmas Vacation (we watch this on Christmas eve late at night. The is "our" movie) Home Alone (this brings back so many memories) Micky's Christmas (old school cartoons. I miss these cartoons.) *I will wear my thermal pj's with colorful snowflakes and wear cozy slipper socks. *I will dress Tyler in equally warm and festive pj's *I will try but not succeed in getting Jeff to wear festive pj's (he's missing out) *I will drink more hot chocolate than one should. *I will miss my parents who will be on a cruise during Christmas. (It's good that their getting away.) *I will wrap gifts while singing along to Mariah Carry's Christmas. (in my head, I am Mariah Carry singing) *I will wear a pretty dress and attend the office Christmas party. *I will eat King Crab legs and drink a few Alaska Pale Ales. *I will so enjoy watching Tyler open up his first gift from Santa. *We will snuggle and be merry together and I will be so very happy and content in that moment.

Happy Friday. xot

***Ali Edwards Christmas Quote Strips***

oh friday, how I love thee.

Another week down, another weekend to enjoy.I'm not sure how many times I've mentioned to coworkers, friends and family..."can you believe Thanksgiving is next week?!". Can you though? And with Thanksgiving kicks off the whole rush of the holiday. Crap. I feel like I should be better prepared for all of this. But I'm not, never am until crunch time. I'm struggling to figure out where we're going to put our Christmas tree being that Tyler must and will get into everything he is not suppose to get into to. A tree decorated with pretty shiny sparkly things will surely throw him in a grabbing frenzy. Guess we'll figure it out. Even if the tree ends up being in the dining room, it will go up. December daily? Another one of my concerns. Everyone seems to have covers decorated and pages done and I'm left wondering where to start. I did a bit of planning tonight, gathering things from my stash, going through old kits. An SCer commented "shop your stash" on the boards which sounds like a perfect idea and one I intend to do. And the whopper, Tyler's first birthday. I'm stressing about hosting his party in our tiny, not so functional home. I'm worried about the projects that have yet to be completed, the walls that are semi decorated, the dust bunnies, the kitchen cabinets that desperatly need a new paint job. I looked into having it elsewhere but Vee says I should do it at home and she's right. Tyler would be way more comfy here and although it'll be COZY with 15 people in a small box, I will do my best to make if fun for the person who will matter the most that day. My boy.

I've got a few more mini Polaroid cards up in the shop for the weekend. I only have a few calendars left from the first print batch as well. I will be doing one more run and that'll be it for 2012!

Happy weekend everyone.

xot

girl loves friday.

Weekend to do's: Finish editing 3 sessions before senior yearbook deadline. (man, these seniors love waiting until the last minute to get their photos done! ;) ) Scrap. my inspiration has renewed, somewhat. Try to stay away from Pinterest. eh, can't really promise that. Dust off my camera remote for a few family photos. not sure how this is going to pan out. Take a drive out to the valley to see dad. Last quick fall photoshoot with Judith + company. Get Polaroid calendars to the printer! yay! Relax, play, repeat.

xot.

(giveaway is still live, please post below)

girl loves friday.

photog style fall 2012

 

I've learned a few things here and there on what to wear for a photoshoot. I think we all focus so much on what a client should wear that we don't consider the importance of the photographer's attire. I found that although I love wearing scarves, it would constantly get intertwined with my camera strap. Plus I tend to overheat midway through the session so I ended up tossing my scarf in my bag. Who says photographing doesn't burn calories? I always wear layers in the fall/winter because of this. I also don't own an actual camera bag. It's on my want/need list but for now, I use a cross-body bag. I only use 2 lenses so it works out for me. I wear boots because I tend to not watch wear I step and because I'm normally outdoors, I've been known to step right into dog bombs as well as goose droppings. Easy to wash off when I get home. I just slip my boots off and into my Toms when I get in my car. I wear jeans that I don't mind getting dirty because half the time I'm on my knees.
There have been times I've just thought I could get away with wearing yoga pants and a sweatshirt as I book shoots first thing on Saturday mornings but what kind of message would I put across to the client? In a creative profession, I think it's important to dress in a manner that fits your image and your photography style.
Happy Friday everyone! I'll be enjoying my holiday weekend with multiple sessions, laundry + this little goober.
xot.

girl loves friday cont.

Reasons why I love today. I took a personal day. My little buddy/Ty's cousin stayed over last night. We made cookies and stayed up late watching Megamind. I got to wake up to my baby and my girl both in their snuggy flannel pjs. I soaked in some awesome fall "golden hour" photos. in the process of editing those now. I scouted locations for tomorrow's senior session. I purged even more scrapbook supplies. I'm talking Basic Grey circa 2005. Felt really good. I made a pot of my favorite sausage corn chowder. Jeff and I have an exciting Friday night planned. Couch+snuggly new throw blanket+Boardwalk+Bridesmaids+sleeping boy=good times. Happy Friday. Tina

girl loves friday

It's been a wonky week. Uneven. Unbalanced. Just wasn't right and I'm so happy it's over. I cannot wait to wake up to silence on tomorrow. No alarm clock. No make up. Just me and my guys, hangin in our jammies and straight up chilling. I have made it a priority to get all grocery shopping and misc errands done during the week so the weekend can be dedicated to real family time. Thinking of hitting up the zoo, it's so pretty this time of year. Tyler's first time at the zoo! :) This is my current life cycle: Autumn edition. Traded my ice coffee for hot cup a joe. Perfectly placed mini pumpkins. Cozy new scarf. Turning leaves in the most beautiful shades of yellow.

Welcome Fall. xot.

current life cycle.

Starting a new blog feature (for myself and for any of you who want to play along) Goes with the whole "currents" them. With Instagram all the rage these days, it's easy to track you life cycle during the week. My current cycle consist of the usual but capturing it on Instagram and my new favorite app, CrossProcess makes it more fun. happy weekend! xot.

girl loves friday.

Weeks have just flown by. Months actually. Tomorrow the boy will be 8 months. Where did the past 7 go? One part of me wants things to slow down...for him to say this cute, stout cuddly little being. The other cannot wait to see him grow into the great man he is destined to be. Sigh.

Onto girl loves.

I think I've mentioned this before as a love but I'm still enjoying the whole "balance of work/life/baby" series over at A Cup of Jo. It's nice to read about other mothers who have so much on their plates yet still remain a mom first. Not that every mom in the world has their plates full. Overflowing may be a better word. I'm at the point of wondering if it would make me a better mom to cut some of the things I enjoy and that I'm trying to attain out of my life. This was the one thing I feared when I was pregnant with Tyler. I didn't want to give up aspirations and goals only to regret them later in life when Tyler is grown and on his way to college. With his arrival, there were many other things set into motion. Things that I feel would give us a better life in terms of being able to spend more time with him and just being a better person myself. Because I would be doing the things that I've aspired to do my whole life.

These goals I speak of have not been met but they are in the works. That seems to be the hardest part for now. I'm sure this is really only the tip of the iceberg though. I foresee much more labor but it's really all good. It's all a labor of love and I hope to be able to share what I'm working on soon!

Next week I'm going to be re-opening the Life.Love.Paper Etsy shop. You'll see past prints as well as some newer ones. 2012 Polaroid calendar is also in the works and should be available by August 31st. Stay tuned! If you're interested in pre-ordering one as this will be a limited edition, email me at lifelovepaper@gmail.com

BTW...if you're in the same position as me with starting your ventures in a creative business, I found a great resource I'm just tapping into called Scoutiegirl.com. Really motivating and informative stuff.

This weekend to do list: maternity shoot with the beautifully pregnant Nina. family bbq (Tyler meets his great-grandmother on Jeff's side) finish editing Meghan boudoir shoot. complete a project for the lovely Kara. (loving her new site. she is just so beautiful) play with the massive package of goods Jamaica sent me. (aka awesome fabrics and a pinhole Polaroid camera.) clean office/creative/Tyler's play space. laundry. always laundry.

Happy Weekend friends! xot.

Oh, one last bit. I've got several questions I need to attend to and plan on a Q&A blog post next week so if you have anything to add, please feel free to email me or post your question here. :)

***

haven't done girl loves in awhile.it got to be too iffy to post all those things from the web. i've noticed a lot of blogs stating that permission is needed. i've always linked with love but it still feels weird to post someone's photo to my own blog. plus all my loves are in the form on pins. :) happy weekend! xot

love, friday.

Oh, how I love you Friday. I really do. I love the overall mood you bring, not only to me but to my colleagues. I love when J and I make plans for the weekend while drinking our morning coffee before we're off to work. I love that I get to stay up past midnight and not having to set the alarm for the next morning. That's life, some love, now for some paper:

6a00d8341c10ec53ef010536f9e223970b-800wi

Dare #126. Outlines. Just a little blurb about being guarded. And yes, I do realize I misspelled the word. grs. I hate that.

Before I head off into the sunset...er...sunrise, a quick update on the Valentine mini cards. I'll have some in the shop later this afternoon. Thanks for all the support guys! I never thought I would get such great response, I would of made more in the beginning. :)

Enjoy Friday and have a great weekend.
Tina

oh, and happy friday.

totally borrowed that post title from one of my very favorite blogs, SFGIRLBYBAY. so very inspiring and original.
About my post the other day....I feel as though it may of been taken the wrong way by some. I tend to put thy foot in thy mouth more often than a normal person should. I don't apologize for writing it but I do apologize for those of you who did read it. Probably something I should of just written in my moleskin. I'm sure I came of way bitchy about the "don't like it here, than leave" rant. Fact is, I was in a foul mood that day. I read something on the internet that pretty much topped off said foul mood. I didn't like the negativity that lingered in that post. What it comes down to is that I don't consider blogging to be a popularity contest. I'm going to leave it at that, k? :)

J and I had a fab time at the fair yesterday. Didn't start out so fab though. I was delighted at the thought of all the pretty ttv shots I would get......the locally grown flowers, the ferris wheel, all the odd things you'd find at a fair. I get out Argus, set up my contraption, stick the digi down, focus, snap. Go to look at what I had taken and then I see the message "No CF Card". *!@#. I was not a happy fair-goer. J felt so bad for me. It's all I talked about the past week. Of course not one single booth sold memory cards, not even the Radio Shack that carried a whole mess of cards except the one I needed. I had the biggest frown on my face but after some beer battered halibut and a few purchases, I felt better about the whole deal. Plus it was J's birthday and I couldn't go on being a party pooper.

How good is it that today is Friday and it's a going to be a long weekend? Good indeed. I've got so much I want to do. Winter isn't far off so it's all about cleaning the garage, getting the heater turned on, some lawn work and possible car shopping. There's a lot of good car deals up here right now and I want to take advantage of it. I'm going with the mindset of "I don't really need a new car but if the price is right, I'm sold". Dreading the sales part but my bro's got some connections so it shouldn't be too bad. Plus I'm ok with walking away. Not before where I shared a vehicle with my husband and desperately needed/wanted my own mode of transportation. Wish me luck! Hopefully by my next post, I'll be in a shiny, new car.

Oh and before I move onto actual work, I want to remind you that I am giving away one of my prints that I will be selling on Etsy. Just leave me a comment here or the post below. I'll pick a weeener Sept 2nd. :) Here's a few more peeks of what I'll be offering.

Etsy 1

Enjoy the holiday weekend!
Tina

hello friday.

Mosaic9968563

The very best day of the week, in my opinion.
I recently read an article on blogging in Macworld magazine about not forcing a post(not that I have a Mac but it was the one closest to me in the hospital waiting room)...that readers can sense a fake post. So with that....I simply leave you with well wishes for a lovely weekend.
:) 
Tina

ps....Dare 103 is in full effect. Check out Gen's diginess and get to work.