my humanness

are there things about yourself that you've just "come to accept" ??  who says that has to be a bad thing?  that was my inspiration for my last (and favorite) page i created with the ACCEPTANCE kit from Scrapbooking from the Inside Out.  its called "accepting my humanness."

my journaling says:  i am just a human.  i am imperfect, vulnerable and authentic.  i cry at Hallmark commercials.  my naivety is a blessing and a curse.  i love completely.  i laugh with my entire soul.  i drink too much coffee and have an unnatural love of paper.  i have a story to tell.  i am me.

are you ready to scrap about your own humanness?  well, i've got a special deal for you from Scrapbooking from the Inside Out.  As our thanks to you for all your support and business this year, from Thanksgiving Day through Monday, we've got some special cyber weekend offers to share. US and Canada customers will get FREE SHIPPING and shipping to other countries will be reduced by $9.00. And, if you buy 2 or more kits, you'll ALSO get 10% off your order!  for full details go HERE.  and don't forget to sign up for our newsletter too.  you'll get lots of deals and exclusive content in your inbox. 

can you believe its the end of november?  it feels like i was just creating my ACCEPTANCE pages and and now its time to reveal december's kit.  i know i say this every month, but i just LOVE this kit.  come back for the reveal on December 1st.  want a sneak now?  peek HERE.

winter adventures

so winter has arrived.  this year it did not have a graceful entrance... normally it eases its way in with a "oh hello...how are you this year?"  but not 2010!  its has arrived with a banshee scream and maniacal laughter while saying "oh this is going to be so much fun!!" 

but its not fun.  not even a little bit. 

last week chris got his garbage truck stuck in the snow...twice.  they had to call a tow truck to get him out.  he had on 17 hour day because of it.  he came home so sure his toes were frost bitten. 

and then came the best part.  the water froze out in our back house.  ever since things fell through with the purchase we have barely gone out there...we were just using it for storage and haven't really given it much thought.  but we should have... cuz the pipes back there froze and we had no hot water in the main house.  so we got right on it...turned the heat way up, but a space heater right by the pipes and it was back the next day.  but then this morning for some reason chris decided to go out there.  and its a good thing he did!!  two pipes and burst and we had water GUSHING out and all over all of our things.  we have no idea how long it had been running back there, but it is a MESS.  chris jumped under the house and was able to find the turn off to the back house water and we got it stopped (minus a persistent drip).  and since then we've been sopping up all the water with all available towels.  what a disaster. 

chris squishing the water out of the towels before we put them on a spin cycle in the washer.

the pipes that burst are under the counter on the left. 

 so its been quite a week....  unfortunately our landlord lives on the other side of the mountains and can't get over here to look at the damage or fix anything.  we shall see what happens...

but all of this madness makes me SO UNBELIEVABLY GLAD that the purchase of this place didn't go through.  we were not supposed to have this house.  and this is becoming more and more clear as it slowly falls down around us. 

we are eagerly searching for a new place to live. 
please keep us in your thoughts.

in the meantime, i can take cool pictures of the frost and snow.  there has to be some good thing that comes with winter, right?!  :)

head shots in return

here are my favorite head shots that i did for my friend marta and her website.

i love having photographers as friends.  :)
come take a peek at her website here:  www.vongreyphotography.com

today i am...

staying inside.
drinking lots of coffee.
hating the WINTER that just landed on my doorstep.
watching HULU.
so glad i went and bought toilet paper yesterday.
hoping husband gets home before his toes fall off.
editing pictures.
refusing to go anywhere today.
thinking about scrapbook pages.
dreading the drive to work tomorrow.

how 'bout you?? 

open your heart

i think a huge factor that comes with ACCEPTANCE of any kind is the opening of one's heart.  it is an integral part of accepting yourself, accepting other and embracing life.  that is where i found my inspiration for my next page im going to share with you.  it was created with November's ACCEPTANCE kit from Scrapooking from the Inside Out.  this kit literally could not get any better.

my journaling says:  2010 has been a year like no other...the reason?  because i have been cognitive of the passage of time; accepting its ebbs and flows.  each week i have captured an image of life and preserved words from my soul.  i have been present in each moment, trying not to forget the present while planning for the future and learning from the past.  2010 has been wholly embraced and it is special because i will always remember.  

how are you embracing life?  is it something you want to work on?  do you have a way you're preserving your thoughts and feelings as time passes??  come scrap about it with us.  we'd love to have you on our forums.  :)

one of my favorite papers from this kit is the BasicGrey Pyrus Honeycomb paper which i used on this layout.  except i flipped it over and turned little bits of it into flowers.  see?  sometimes using papers in an unexpected way can give your layouts that little something special.  do you have a layout where you used a product in an unexpected way??  i'd love to see it! 

i have one more ACCEPTANCE layout to share with you next monday... i can't believe this month is almost gone...

exciting things on the way...

i am excited to share that i have begun work on my very own photography website!!  i have been working for the past year on building my portfolio and figuring out who i am as a photographer and what my style is.  it has been a rewarding, enlightening, exciting and worthwhile time in my life. 

so now im taking on the next step.  creating my online home.  when i heard Jasmine Star speak in Seattle at the WPPI Roadtrip she talked a lot about your online image as a photographer.  she said that your website is like your handshake and your blog is your voice. 

im hoping to have a nice firm handshake.  one that says:  hi!  this is me Shaina Longstreet.  and this is what i do. 

i think that an important part of that is having authentic headshots for your website so people can see who you really are.  fortunately i have a terrific photographer friend Marta VonGrey, and we got together for just that purpose.  i've been editing some of the pictures she took of me and wanted to share. 

i don't have an estimated "website live" date yet, but im working on it.  let me know what you think of my new headshots.  i'd love to hear your thoughts. :)

SHADYlane Photography: the VonGreys

last Sunday i had the pleasure of taking some pictures of my dear friend Marta and her family.  we did some headshots for her (almost finished!!) website too. 

i've been having some fun editing (until my PS crashed!!  if you can help me please e-mail me!!) and wanted to share a couple cute ones of Marta and Erich. 

im sure i'll have more to share soon.  we got a lot of really sweet ones of them together.

we found Spencer!!

our poor little puppy was gone for almost 5 days, but now he is home safe.  and its a good story with a happy ending!

A lady called yesterday and said she saw the ad on the paper and spencer had been at her house yesterday morning super skinny and looking for food. She fed him and saw the ad later in the day and called jessica (who he's been staying with) to let her know. Jess took a chance ...and drove the road the lady lived on. She heard a bunch of dogs at one house and stopped to ask if they had seen him. He was there!! Had been there only that afternoon. Just on a whim she picked the very house he was at. so amazing. He has a couple cuts but is in surprisingly good shape. so happy!! he was just exhausted last night, and was not wanting to go outside this morning. can't blame him! poor thing was out in the elements, and through a huge storm.
im sooo happy he is safe. i was beginning to think we would never find him...

my heart is happy.

vulnerability

"vulnerability is the birthplace of joy, creativity, belonging and love."

please watch this touching discourse on this woman's research of shame and empathy.  it is something the lovely viv shared with us in her "you are your own muse" class and i just had to share.  it moved me... i took notes... i am yearning to believe i am worthy.

one part that struck a cord with me in what she said was that "connection is a result of authenticity."  i feel like i have connected with so many of you through this online space and i want to take this time to thank you... 

thank you for making connections with me.  for your kind words and comments.  for you bravery in reaching out and for your time. 

thank you for being part of my journey.  thank you for helping me to embrace my vulnerability. 

spencer is missing

last night about 5:30 we got a call from our friend, jess. spencer has been staying with her for about 6 weeks since our landlord said we couldn't have him at our house anymore. we got spencer from her, and its been a fabulous place for him to stay cuz he's with his doggy mum and dad and one other dog. he loves it!
but i guess yesterday sometime, the gate got open and all the dogs got out. (my friend said she thinks it was the PUD person checking the meter). when her son got home he saw that the dogs were gone, called his mum who came home early from work and they started searching. by 5:30 when she called they had found her other three dogs, but Spencer was no where to be found. we headed right there after she called and spent two hours in the dark ourselves searching for him and still nothing.
i was hoping maybe he'd be on her front porch this morning when they woke up, but no luck. he doesn't have a collar on cuz she says they fall off while the dogs are playing. im so worried someone just took him!!!
i have been frantic and almost beyond consoling since we found out. he's just a puppy and its sooo cold out at night.
we put an add on the radio, one is going in the paper today and we've got fliers up. hopefully someone will be honest and bring him home.

i'll keep you posted on how things go...  hopefully he'll turn up soon. 

just not right now

there are many aspect to ACCEPTANCE...and a lot of them are explored in our journal prompts found on our industry exclusive Inspiration Page over on our website.  the one that really matches the emotions i've shared in this next page is:

Giving In: What have you experienced that has forced you to give in to life’s twists and turns? Have you faced circumstances outside yourself that have challenged you to accept things that have caused you pain?

 lately it seems my life has been full of twists and turns and things beyond my control.  i chose to focus on just two of those things for my layout:  spencer and our house.

my journaling says:  right now our puppy spencer cannot be with us.  i miss his sweet face and his little puppy sighs so much.  it is hard to accept that right now he isn't part of our lives.  but soon our family will be complete again.  right now we don't have a house to call our own.  we thought that this house was it, but life had other plans.  it is hard to accept that right now we are floating.  but soon i know we will have a home together.  

want more ideas for scrapbooking ACCEPTANCE for yourself?  come peek at our challenges and Inspiration page.  i know i'll want to dig deep with us. 

things i love thursday

today i am not full of words, but full of interesting links and images.  so i want to share. :)

to begin with here is my collage of Flickr faves.  i find myself being drawn to the color yellow and soft beauty found in this world captured by cameras.

1. friday splurge, 2. take a hike, 3. Untitled, 4. day three hundred and thirty one, 5. Untitled, 6. day three hundred and twenty four

and my links to the marvelous wonders in on the internet who write like i wish i could...

• seeing past what it seems.  an amazing, touching soul story everyone needs to read.
• how to carry a genuine smile every day.  a lovely piece from marta writes' "how-to" series. 
• first time photography advice from one of my favorite photographers: jasmine star. 
• true words from a fellow muse.
• and fun creative project from the ever-talented elise.

i hope you all are having a wonderful week.

quote of the day

 

thank you kal barteski.  you always have just the right words.  

(picture from her blog)

i could not waste this light

i took a walk today 
in the still of the cool autumn air
where the chill whispered its secrets to me 
and told me truth:
i am good enough. 
i am worthy.
i am brave. 
and for once
perhaps twice 
and most definitely a third time i believed. 

she knows me

this is my best friend kelly-anne.  and this is a picture i took of her back in june when we were up in Canada for a visit.  i think she is radiant in this photo.  her spirit shines through her eyes.  it is an honor to call her my best friend.  and that is what this page is about.  i found this quote in my searching for our ACCEPTANCE theme this month at Scrapbooking from the Inside Out and knew i wanted to use it on a page about Kelly. 

quote says:  "a friend is someone who understands your past, believes in your future and accepts you just the way you are."  

on the tag i wrote a little letter just for her thanking her for the love and support she's given me through the years of our friendship. 

isn't this paper amazing??  i am loving all the doilies popping up all over the scrapbooking world lately and the colors in this one made it stand out to me.  i wanted to make it the feature of the page, and thought it matched my picture soooo well. :)

want to get your hands on this amazing kit?!!  there is plenty of time to buy and participate in our challenges.  and we're having a DESIGN TEAM call going on right now too.  come by our website and check it out!! 

a sweet story

this is the sweetest wedding story i've heard/seen in a long time. just had to share.


we said vows. from Jeremy on Vimeo.

found via this post on design*sponge

i know that once chris and i decided to simplify things for our wedding we were able to be so much more present for our moment...becoming husband and wife.  and we are able to be more present in our life together too now that we're simplifying and focusing on what really matters. 

its a beautiful life lesson. 

pitter patter of my heart

lately i have been spending time thinking about the types of things i am drawn to... like what captures my imagination visually, am i detail oriented or to i love big picture moments, what do i like to turn my viewfinder on.  i am searching deeper into who that makes me as an artist.  i am discovering my personal visual voice.  this is of course thanks to the lovely Vivian McMaster and her You are Your Own Muse class that i am so honored to be a part of.  i have learned a lot through this year's 52weeks project, but in just this first week of class my perspective has changed.  i know that i am not afraid to step into my pictures, in fact i love knowing that i always have a subject for my photos!  but my focus is shifting... i am yearning to tell more of my story. 

so in response to this yearning, i wanted to share something that has really caught my attention this week.  Nancy shared some artwork over at the SFTIO forum as a source of inspiration for our theme this month.  and one particular image really stood out to me... because i'd seen this artist's work before and i had forgotten how much it touched the artist inside me.

the artist's name is Stina Persson.  and she makes magic with watercolors.

this last one is the one that was familiar to me... i saw it in a magazine and still have the page safe in a folder somewhere. 

i am struggling with the words to explain why i am so drawn to these images.  i think they have hearts and souls of their own.  through line and color they tell a story. 

that is what i am aiming to do in my own art and medium of choice: self-portrait photography.  through line and color and heart tell my story. 

ACCEPTANCE revealed

it is November 1st already (crazy eh?) which means that i have the pleasure of sharing with you the November ACCEPTANCE kit from Scrapbooking from the Inside Out.  It has such yummy patterned papers from Crate Paper, My Mind's Eye, Basic Grey and American Crafts.  these are totally MY kind of colors.  i swooned when i opened this kit.  i loved the bright purple thickers and the die cuts too. 

sometimes i find myself having a hard time with the theme of the month, but for ACCEPTANCE i ended up with too many ideas and not enough paper!  I am so eager to share with you what i've created.  here is my first page:

this page is called "my own terms" and is is about coming to grips with the fact that im getting older now and its "about time" for me to accept and live by my own terms and not any one else's.

my journaling says:  for most of my life i have lived and accepted other people's requirements and terms.  and i was good at it.  i got a 4.0 in school.  i was obedient to my parents, did what was expected of me.  but now that im 24 i need to set my own terms for my life, for my actions, for my motives.  i know i will accomplish my goals because they are on my own terms and i accept.  

feel like creating along with us??  you are more than welcome....

OCTOBER 2010:  this month was one of extreme highs and lows in emotions and weather.  i focused on my PURPOSE with the amazing kit from Scrapbooking from the Inside Out, spent some quality sister time with my sister megan, was creative in ways i hadn't been in awhile, thought about auditioning for My Fair Lady and deciding right now is not a good time for so many responsibilities, missed my puppy, spent some real time with chris and we fell in love all over again, welcomed autumn to our neighborhood, got my hair cut (so needed it!!), celebrated our friend's 5th anniversary in Spokane, did my very first newborn session and fell in love with taking pictures of babies, watched chris play a lot of Assassin's Creed II, made the decision to get rid of our TV service for 6 months and we haven't missed it, thought about intentions vs. actions, figured out how to use chris's phone as a mobile hot spot, drank less coffee, had too much fun at karaoke with friends from out of town, got a huge box of chicken and a huge bag of onions for free and have been eating too much of both ever since, got flu shots for free from chris' employer, played and won my first RISK game in like 10 years, took some more fun self-portraits, embraced the things within my control, was featured on the Cartwheels in My Mind online magazine, missed having taya around something fierce participated in a DARE and did a scrapblog layout, had a great visit with my parents and enjoyed the circuit assembly in Omak, had trouble sleeping and was grateful that it never hurts to ask.