All Good Things...

All good things are wild + free.

Sometimes I feel the only thing about me that is wild and free is the peach fuzz that may or may not be residing on my upper lip. Oh but I do dream. But is Wild and Free actually a reality? Can we ever be truly free? free to just up and go, and if so, where?

I don't really think we can ever be truly free... but can our spirits be wild and free? Can we have our head in the clouds and our feet on the ground? We are bound by family ties, monetary ties, jobs, memories, dreams, goals, life in general, and for me- Timothy the Dog. Is that a bad thing? No... being tied to things in life is not bad- those are the things, I feel, will be most important in our lives - I mean not my mortgage payment, but my home, the place we laughed, loved and grew.

So what are some of the things that keep you from being totally wild and free and you are so grateful for? I definitely have a a few...

Share the love,
M.

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Comparison

So, you know when you skulk around Instagram, your favourite blogs, and Facebook instead keeping your head in your own work... well... Have I got a little story for you;

Yesterday I took a day off from "working" and I did domestic stuff. In the spirit of honesty,  I finally unpacked from our China trip (some stuff but not everything),  I did some laundry, I cooked a meal, I cleaned out a closet and I stalked all of my favourite people online.

I went to bed last night feeling overwhelmed -not because I was so excited to see what other's were doing and feeling encouraged. No, I was overwhelmed because I felt like I wasn't doing enough. I don't have enough Christmas prints ready to go, I haven't even thought about doing a new Advent Calendar yet, I don't even have my own christmas cards printed. I need to be printing things and having them available on Esty. I need to have an open house and sell some of my Printables all ready to frame for our Living Life on Purpose Africa 2015 trip. I need, I need, I need- ack!

What have I been doing all year? How am I not being as creative, as productive, as awesome as everyone else.

WAIT!  STOP!  HOLD THE PHONE GIRL! 

Melissa! (or insert name here___________________) Stop comparing yourself to others and get your head in your own work and just be creative.

Stop worrying about what other's are doing, stop looking into their proverbial 'bowl' to see if they have more than you do. I once read somewhere:  the only time you should look in someone else's bowl, is not to see if they have more than you, but instead to see if they have enough. Are they ok? 

This sweet image is from:
www.chibird.com

So I'm being honest... because frankly, I dislike this feeling, I dislike looking at others and feeling that I am not enough, and I think I'm probably not the only one...

I saw this awesome little design from ChiBird and I wanted to share it, because we're all different, we are all kinda awesome. And when it comes to creative work, creativity and productivity... the only person to compare yourself too is you. Am I doing all that I can do? Am I the person I want to be?




There are only 24 hours in the day, (Melissa, or insert your name here______________) you can't do everything, but do what you do well... and sleep tight at night knowing you are awesome.

Thanks to Theodore Roosevelt for saying:  Comparison is the thief of Joy. How true. Yesterday I had my very own experience with this. So I've created a print that I will be printing off and sticking to my forehead,  because it is all too true. Comparison IS the thief of Joy.  Booyah!

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M.

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Carpe Diem.

A simple reminder:
Carpe Diem
Seize the Day!

At the moment I am Carpe-ing my coffee :) TGIF!
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M.

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Find Joy.

Sometimes it is the simple things in life that bring joy. Today I am going to try not to let those simple pleasures pass me by. Instead I will notices them and acknowledge the peace and joy and they bring.

Finding Joy in the simple stuff, ought to be simple right? we shall see... life gets in the way of truly living sometimes- but don't listen to the voice in your head that says- shouldn't there be more? am I doing enough...

YES, you are doing enough, because YOU ARE ENOUGH!

Today choose to find Joy... in everything, loading the dishwasher, taking out the trash, cleaning up after supper, loving your kids, changing a diaper, listening to the birds...

Share the love,
M.

of course, my joy started this morning with coffee :)

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(72dpi- not for print)

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40 in 40. Freeing Up Space in our Homes and in our Hearts!

I was asked to participate in a "40 Bags in 40 Days" project by creating some printables to encourage simplicity, downsizing and well, just plain good sense! I was in! Mostly because I love to design, but in reality more because I have 40 places in my house that need a serious clean up, can you say storage room, art supply closet, front hall, book shelf, junk drawer x 12 ( I think I have one in every room of the house!), winter clothes... etc. I can come up with 40 places in probably 40 seconds.

How about you? are you overwhelmed with a little too much clutter? Do you need a little encouragement to get down and dirty while cleaning up and freeing up breathing room in both your house and your heart? Come along on this journey with us...

Here is a note from Katie about 40 in 40:

I first stumbled up the 40 Bags Challenge a few years ago on Pinterest. The idea is simple - choose 40 spaces in your home and try to get rid of (at least) 40 bags of unwanted stuff. It seemed to me like a good way to clean up my house and organize a few drawers so I decided to give it a try. I quickly realized 40 Bags is much more than a quick, surface fix. As I worked through my spaces, I was forced to take a deeper look at the things we hold on to and ask myself why we surround ourselves with so much stuff. I was motivated to purge, edit, and give away the things we don't really need. In the process, I learned we really can live with less and, more importantly, rediscovered the freedom found in simplicity. The last time I worked through this challenge, it was during the season of Lent, so the 40 spaces corresponded with 40 days. This time around, some friends and I are taking the entire summer (about 12 weeks) to work through our lists at a slower, but still intentional, pace. If you're inspired to find out more, you can follow along on my blog. 

I can't wait to start! There is so much to do in my house... I need to just do it, and with an encouraging group of people who are working through their junk too- I'm encouraged to get it done!


Don't forget to head on over to Katie's blog and participate in this very exciting project... The Terpblog :)

Let's get rid of the clutter in our homes and hearts!
Share the love,
M.

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Love on Leather

A little truth for Tuesday;
Love never fails.

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M.

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Coffee, Draw, Sleep. REPEAT!

So on days when I need to go out and teach, I kinda whine a little bit and udder these words...
I just want to drink coffee, draw pictures and sleeeeeeeep.

Happy Tuesday I hope you are doing what you love!
Share the love,
M.

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Don't Let Your Passion Get Lost in the Planning!

Sometimes the project and the passion get lost in the planning. Starting something new isn't easy. But you've just gotta start!

When we were getting ready to open our restaurant, my Husband's response when asked "Are you guys ready?" came down to: "We're doing it, sink or swim baby, sink or swim." He's kinda my hero. I love when I tell him about something and his response is; "do it, you'll be awesome at that!" Seriously! and then he proceeds to ask me the logistical questions of which I totally ignore, because... well I'm me.  Planning isn't bad, you need to make a plan, but don't do it for 10 years- start something today!

Today is the day!
Today is YOUR Day!
Stop Planning!
Start Doing!
Sink or Swim Baby,
Sink or Swim.

Share the love,
M.

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Pot Head.

I snuck out of my room today and grabbed my coffee pot and rushed back to bed! With full pot of coffee and mug in hand- jumped back in bed.... I'm a pot head. I guess we come in all shapes and sizes and addicted to pots of all different kinds, mine just so happens to be a coffee pot :)

Happy Tuesday!
Share the love,
M.

scroll down a few versions to choose from :)

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