We Do Design

I am so excited to be included in a fabulous week of design over at The Charming. All week there will be two sessions every day with tons of design tips and tricks, giveaways, printables and lots of great designers. You’ll want to check it out. Tons of fun stuff happening over there!

My session was posted yesterday and its all about creating and using a Blog Mission Statement. You’ll be amazed at how much this one thing can help you find and develop your voice as a blogger.

Creating a Blog Mission Statement is one of the first things I have my blog design clients do. It helps us both have a clear vision of where the blog headed.

Are you thinking about a blog redesign for spring? Check out my Blog Design page for more details about working through the process with me. I’d love to hear from you!

Hanging on blogs with Canadians

Its like riding in cars with boys, but better…

This month I am sitting in E-Ho’s sidebar over at Hope-Squared and got to take over her blog for a day this week. I answered some of her questions about my approach to blog design and together we’ve got a pretty terrific giveaway in the works. I’ve got a blog header design and a download of my handwriting font and Emily is offering a space for you in her sidebar next month. Pretty sure she’s going to make us all ‘blog famous’.

Here is your chance to enter the giveaway! Head on over and get to know Emily a bit better and take a peek at my answers to her interview questions. And follow the steps below for even more chances to win.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I can't wait to meet the winner of the giveaway and get to know them better as I work with them to make their blog pretty and make it feel like “home.” And even if you don’t win, check my blog design page for more information about what packages I offer and shoot me an email if you’d like to work together.

What is your favorite feature of blog designs?
What thing do you look for first when you discover a new blog?
How do you feel about fonts?

Featured on the BBN

The Better Blogger Network is an amazing online community for bloggers and by bloggers. Blogging is something that I’m really passionate about and is a big part of my life, and the BBN is a great place to find like-minded people. It is an open and welcoming community where you can find tips and tricks for blog design, creating content, advice on many blogging related topics, and also discussion about life, which fuels all of our blogs, right?

I am so excited to share that I am the featured member this week on their blog and site homepage. Come take a peek at the post.

I shared my favorite things about blogging and my advice for brand new bloggers. I’m really enjoying being a part of this community. Great bloggers sharing and supporting each other. Come check it out!

And if you’re new here visiting from the BBN or elsewhere, WELCOME! Check out my about page to learn more about me and what you’ll find here in my online home. Looking for a blog designer to work with? I do that too! Check out the packages that I have available. And I’d love to hear your thoughts on celebrating the everyday. What does that mean to you? So glad you’ve found your way here. I hope you’ll say hello in the comments and be back to read again.

Have a great weekend everyone!

What does celebrating the everyday mean to you?
What is your favorite thing about blogging?
Are you a part of the Better Blogger Network?

Guest Blogging

I am so pleased to share a guest post with you that I did for Zie of Darling Dear. It was so nice to go over my 5 ways to celebrate the everyday again. I needed the reminders…to be present in each moment and use little things to celebrate.

I'd love it if you’d pop over, check out Zie’s cute blog and maybe find yourself a little tip to incorporate into your everyday to help you celebrate.

Thanks for having me Zie!

I hope you all had a great weekend. My weekend was full of thunder and lightning storms, the Russian language (I’m slowly but surely getting better at reading Russian!), free movie rentals, deep cleaning the shop where I work, an unsuccessful shopping trip and loosing money from pockets. And I work every day this next week, so my schedule is a little bit different...I have a feeling this is going to be a long week.  But I’m working on two new blog designs that I can’t wait to share! And then on Saturday I’m taking pictures at a wedding reception for some friends of mine, which I’m really looking forward to. Lets make this a great week, k?  Deal!

What was the highlight of your weekend?
Have you had any crazy summer storms where you live?

I got to Guest Post!

I am so excited to share that I got to do a guest post over at From Kristen, With Love today sharing my 5 ways to Celebrate the Everyday.  If you've enjoyed all the guest posts here on my blog the last month, then please hop on over and read my personal tips too. 

Thanks so much for having me, Kristen!

Guest Blogger: Kara Haupt

My darling friend Miss Kara is my guest blogger today and I'm so excited for you to meet her. :)  I've been reading her blog since she was 16 and lived vicariously through her as she moved to New York and now to Portland to go to art school.  She takes pictures, she teaches classes and she scrapbooks.  She's like the cool creative little sister you want to spend your weekends with.  So please, read on, and enjoy her perspective on Celebrating the Everyday.  Thanks Kara! 

A strenuous and busy semester of college just ended for me and I'm currently making that transition out of the crazy school busy-ness into a quiet summer. One of the things I've been thinking about a lot is how I want to spend these days. I'm living in my first apartment and my "independence" is the most it's ever been. I have a whole city to explore and the freedom to do whatever I want. 

Celebrating the beauty of that, the "everydayness" seems daunting. There is so much I can do. But more often than not, I find myself dreading the mundane tasks that make up my days. I have adventures I will go on, but transforming my attitude about the simple things is a block I don't want to stumble across. There is the apartment to clean or the retail job to go to or the grocery shopping to do. I've been working on changing my attitude toward these things. To enjoy the Saturday morning walk to get groceries or the sounds of the open window for late-night dishes washing. 

Celebrating the everyday, to me, is putting on some beautiful music and pretending the dishes are more magical than they are. Taking the moments to watch the headlights of the cars on the street play across my darkened wall. To have deep conversations with myself as I walk to work. I have a lot of exploring to do this summer, but I'm hoping the "normal" is just as lovely as the exploration. Or maybe the exploration is the normal?

Find Kara on the web:

BLOG <<>> FACEBOOK <<>> TWITTER <<>> SHOP

Guest Blogger: Kyla Roma

I'm so excited to introduce you to Kyla Roma today.  I started reading her story on her blog a few years ago and its been so cool to watch her grow and really live her dreams.  We connected through her blog (I sponsored in 2010, which is a great way to get to know other bloggers better) and have kept in contact through the years.  Kyla is inspiring and authentic and a joy to know.  I am so happy she was able to share her thoughts on Celebrating the Everyday.  She's compiled a list of 5 things that help her, and maybe they'll be just what you needed to hear.  Thanks Kyla! 

Celebrating the everyday is a big part of how I live my life. To me it means finding joy in small things, being aware of my surroundings, not being too "in my head", and appreciating the moments in-between the big life events instead of taking them for granted and always moving on to the next thing.

I'm a "getting down to brass tacks" kind of girl at heart though, so this is how I take those ideas and put them into action:

1. Remember to stay present

I'm a planner, a scheduler, and a worrier but if I let my mind wander to the past or the future all the time, I end up missing what's happening in the moment. When I'm working I try to remind myself to come back to the present every time I glance at the rings on my fingers, and at home I remind myself to stay with the moment when I see my little dogs. Having visual queues has been a great help, and I find that as I've been practicing this my days seem longer, I'm more relaxed and I'm less stressed.

2. Allow for silliness, sleepiness, sadness and wonder

Working for myself means that I always have multiple timelines on multiple projects up in the air, and sometimes I get carried away with scheduling my time. Remembering that I need down time in the evenings and on the weekends allows room for my life, and for me to be spontaneous, give myself the time I need to process difficult things that happen, take naps, and daydream. Giving myself that space makes me a better designer, business owner, friend and wife!

3. Keep a camera close by

For a long time I was great at this, but over the past year I've been out of this habit and only recently realized how much I miss it! When I have my camera nearby I look at things a little differently because I'm on the look out for beauty. It helps me to approach my life with gratitude and to recognize the power of simple things, like seeing wild rabbits in my neighbourhood while walking the dogs in the morning, to make me happy! If everyday life can make me happy, I feel like I must be setting myself up for a meaningful, beautiful life.

4. Make meal time sacred

While I love to bake, I've never been a big cook but this year I've been trying to change that. By making mealtimes something that I look forward to, from the planning & prep to the dishes, I've been able to add more times into the day that I'm focused on taking care of myself in a really tangible (delicious!!) way. I eat a number of small meals every day, and each one holds possibility for creative flavours to mingle, and healthy habits to become more a part of my life. It also means there's something to look forward to every few hours! You can't beat that.

5. Stop apologizing & start celebrating

For a long time in my life, I wasted a lot of time agonizing about things I didn't like about myself and worrying about what was going to happen next. While my worrying and anxiety was eventually diagnosed as an anxiety disorder, so many women struggle with similar feelings. Being trapped in a negative thought cycle, or by your worries, is terrible, but being aware of the negative thoughts you have and beliefs that you hold is a powerful step toward letting them go! In the past few years I've stopped apologizing for myself & fixating on changing things about me and have started celebrating myself and adopting positive habits instead. I'm loving the quirky parts of myself better than I have in a long time, and it makes every day so much more fun.

Thank you for having me, Shaina! I hope that these ideas are helpful and that they bring a little every day happiness into your readers lives :)

Find Kyla on the web:

BLOG <<>> FRECKLED NEST <<>> TWITTER <<>> PINTEREST

Guest Blogger: Jennifer Evans

I met today's guest blogger a couple years ago through an online class we both took.  We became online blogging friends over our shared love of scrapbooking and redesigning our blogs.  Jennifer has been an artist for the last 15 plus years and brings her artistic eye to her scrapbooking, photography and her life. Please enjoy her post today all about what Celebrating the Everyday means to her.  Read on for her 4 ways to stop and enjoy the everyday.  Thank you Jen! 

It wasn't until I was laying on a picnic blanket in the backyard with my five year old son last week that I could really comprehend what "celebrating the everyday" meant to me. It was peaceful. Beautifully peaceful.

I looked up at the trees swaying in the wind against the blue sky and then I looked over next to me. It was a lovely time and we weren't "doing" anything besides spending time together. I realized that no matter what the day brings, sitting down to soak in the everyday is important. Time goes too fast. Pretty soon my little man will be all grown up and I don't want our day to go by without capturing some of those moments.

Ways that I stop to enjoy the everyday are:

1. I start every day in God's Word. Psalm 46:10 says, "Be still and know I am God." I have realized that if I don't wake up before my family to take time to "be still" I feel like I am trying to play catch up the rest of the day.

2. My son and I often have picnics together inside or out. We read books together or play games during the day. It is during these quiet times that we bond.

3. We are often capturing our everyday with our cameras. My son has his own camera so that he can capture the everyday through his own eyes.

4. Our family spends weekends at home or away together. A day at the beach or a walk to the park keeps us focused on what is most important. Each other.

Find Jen on the web

BLOG <<>> PHOTOGRAPHY <<>> PINTEREST

Guest Blogger: Dani Johnston

My guest blogger today holds a special place in my heart... there are some people that you meet and get to know online that become your true friends, even though you've never met in person.  Dani is that friend to me.  We're soul sisters. Celebrating our triumphs and tragedies together, inspiring and pushing each other, and just reaching out with a little note to say we're thinking of the other person.  I am so glad to be able to share a little bit of my dear friend with you today.  She took an evening for herself to write about taking an evening for yourself...pretty perfect really.  I think you'll love and appreciate her thoughts on Celebrating the Everyday.  Thank you Dani!  

So this evening, I’m sitting here at my desk, trying to think about how I celebrate the everyday. 

I can hear my daughter fussing in the living room.

She’s been fighting off a cold the past few days, and I think it might be getting the best of her tonight.

I keep trying to bring my focus back.

How do I celebrate the everyday?

But I still hear her.

My husband is fine. He is capable. He is happy to take over bedtime tonight. (In other words, he is awesome!)

But I can still hear her.

So I think about how all day I’ve been waiting for these few hours to myself. And now, I can’t stop thinking about my daughter. Maybe I should go in there? Maybe she just wants me tonight?

But wait.

How do I celebrate the everyday?

By accepting and loving this life. 

By loving my daughter like crazy of course.

But by also trusting that she is in complete and capable hands with my husband tonight. 

By dedicating some time to myself each week. 

For whatever.

For scrapbooking or art journaling.

For editing and organizing the latest giant batch of photos I’ve recently taken.

For blogging or blog reading.

For a hot bath and good magazine.

For, again, whatever.

There are so many things my daughter and I do together to celebrate the everyday. For example, we have recently built and are tending to a garden. Something my daughter loves to participate in. She plays in the dirt with her watering can. She stacks up the pots. She tries to chase the ducks around the yard. And I try to make sure that every moment with her is present and aware. I’m not perfect in this...who is? But I try.

But there need to be moments now that I have to myself. Because raising a human being is no small task. I am not just taking care of my baby. I am raising a person. This small one will soon grow and become an adult. She will soon step out into the world and make it better or worse. This is no little thing that I have taken on.

And so, in order to be present, and in order to fully and completely celebrate our everyday, I need to also tend to myself.

I’ll be honest. I’m really writing all this as a personal reminder. I have struggled with this lately, a lot. I truly let the mommy guilt slip in most of the time. I let the wife guilt slip in too. I am a pro at putting myself aside when it comes to personal time. I’ve never really been an out and about kind of girl. I’m not much for lights and noise and tons of people. But I do love a hot bath and a good book. I really love fresh paper, pens and paint. I adore my time spent reflecting and blogging. 

And so, just as I need to nurture my relationship with my little girl and my husband, I need to nurture my relationship with myself. How good can I be to them, when I ‘m not good to myself? And I know, that this is advice many of us hear all the time. Mommas and daddies or not. But how many of us really take that advice? I’m telling you again, I’m telling myself again, take it. 

It felt good to write this.

And as I’m finishing it up, I notice my daughter is no longer fussing.  My husband has settled down in his chair, with her in his arms. She is sleeping and he is happy to cuddle with his girl.

And I will go to bed myself, in a little while. Feeling refreshed and recharged. My creative spirit more fulfilled and the momma in me excited for what tomorrow will bring. Celebrating my everyday, because the everyday is right now, and it’s going by way too fast not to enjoy it.

So please, enjoy it!

Find Dani on the web

BLOG <<>> FACEBOOK <<>> GALLERY

Guest Blogger: Vee Jennings

My guest blogger today is one of my favorite scrapbookers.  She makes magic with spray ink and cardstock.  Her work and creations just inspire me, and have for years.  And the cool thing about the internet is that you can really get to know people through their blog, their tweets and the things they share. Vee is someone worth knowing. :)   I am so glad she agreed to be part of the celebration this month with a guest post.  I love her perspective on Celebrating the Everyday.  Thanks Vee! 

Thank you Shaina for having me as a guest on your blog today. I am here to share my thoughts and experiences on how I  celebrate the everyday.  I do believe that everyday is a gift and should be celebrated because thoughts equal moments and these moments become treasures.  Everyday for me is a day to be respected but by no means do I expect everyday to be perfect and happy.  However, I do choose to relish in the present and beauty that each day brings.

I celebrate and cherish daily moments with my children daily because I know these moments will never come again.  Our daily routine is a bright light in my everyday.

I find that I am more balanced when I am creating, doing something I love at least once a week makes me a happier person. It is my form of therapy when I am down, it really lifts my spirits and makes me happy that I have a life to documents and share.

Daily I try to take pride in who I am as a person and in what I create for myself and my family.   It truly brings me great joy to create,to be a mother and document our lives.  By celebrating your life everyday is makes you and others around you more positive and that is the path I will continue to live because that is what works for me.

Find Vee on the web

BLOG  <<>> TWITTER  <<>>  THE DARES <<>> GALLERY

Guest Blogger: Elise Blaha Cripe

My guest blogger today rocks out everyday life, and I have come to love her blog because of that.  Please welcome Elise.  She blogs over at enJOY It  and its one of my favorite regular reads.  She posts about her paper goods shop (and new stamps!), her DIY projects, lots of yummy recipes (I'm really excited about her newest 40 pizzas idea), her scrapbooking with mini books and Project Life. I love the way she writes and how she shares the joy and struggles of life with such grace.  I sent her a couple questions around the theme Celebrating the Everyday, and she was kind enough to answer them for me to share with all of you.  Thank you Elise!  

1. What does "celebrating the everyday" mean to you? 

Celebrating the everyday is about being thankful for the normal.

2.  What things do schedule into your day help you celebrate or savor each day?

I have a cup of coffee and breakfast with my husband each morning before diving into my work day. It takes only 10 minutes, but it's so nice to sit down (with no laptops, iPhones or iPads between us) and just chat before separate and get to work for the day. This is especially special for us because Paul recently spent seven months deployed to Afghanistan. Just being able to sit across the table from each other feels like a big deal. :)

3. How do you think that taking time to “celebrate the everyday” lends itself to personal fulfillment?

The way I see it, only about two weeks (maximum!) of each year are considered "celebration" days and include major holidays, birthdays and vacations. Two weeks out of 52 isn't that great of a percentage, so I think celebrating EVERYDAY is totally worth it. I love the mindset that each day is special and worthy of celebration. I think it helps develop a postive outlook and that is very important for personal fulfillment. 

4. In what way does being a blogger add to your ability to celebrate?

The best part about having a blog is creating a record of things I've done and things I have thought. I am so grateful that I have posts from the past six years to look back on and and see how I have changed and grown. When I think about it, the blog has become a celebration of everyday life in itself. Plus, for the blog, I have to take tons of photos and usually they are of just the normal life stuff. All of these photos have become even more special and important to me as time goes on.

Find Elise on the web

BLOG <<>> WEB <<>> SHOP <<>> TWITTER

Guest Blogger: Kristen of Confession of GDS

Not long ago I did some blog hopping...clicking on this link, clinking on that link which led me to a super cute blog called Confessions of a Graphic Design Student.  I was instantly drawn to the blogger, Kristen, and commented on one of her posts she'd done about a website project.  And she emailed me a response to my comment.  I love that!  We kind of hit it off.  We both have what Kristen calls "obsessive-hair-disorder" and a love of design.  I'm sponsoring over at her blog this month, and I'm excited to share her thoughts with you here on celebrating the everyday.  Welcome Kristen!! 

Good morning fans of Shady Lane! Shaina has graciously asked me to take over her blog today to talk about my thoughts on "Celebrating the Every Day."

When I first thought about this, I had trouble coming up with ways I do this... to be quite honest, it's a struggle for me. I tend to get caught up in the past or the future and sometimes fail to seize the day. 

Life can be so rushed at times trying to get everything done in those short 24 hours, and I have times where the anxiety gets so high I don't know what to do with myself. Time goes by so fast, and it's those times I have to force myself to slow down, take a step back, and focus on that specific moment. 

• I'll sit outside for a long time and feel the sun on my skin.
• I'll call each one of my family members just to let them know I'm thinking about them. 
• I'll get lost in a trance staring at the birds flying together in the sky.
• I'll find myself inspired by the endless colors- the greens in the grass, the blues in the sky, the pastels in the flowers. 
• I'll set aside an hour and get outside to play and laugh with my dogs.
• I'll take every opportunity to eat something delicious- life is too short to worry about dieting!
• I'll get dressed up just to express myself and feel pretty, knowing I won't be young forever.
• I'll laugh! I seek out the humor in life to remind myself not to take things to seriously.
• I'll find myself in long embraces with my husband- just feeling how lucky I am to have love in my life. 

After I do this I always feel better. It's essential for me to reflect on these things to remind myself what life is all about. When you think about it, your life is just a combination of multiple days- and how you spend them determines your destiny. 

Life is too short- get outside your mind and just enjoy being you and your life at this moment!

Find Kristen on the web

BLOG <<>> FACEBOOK <<>> TWITTER

Guest Blogger: Whitney Lane

I am very excited to introduce you to a special artist today...my cousin Whitney.  She became a photographer just in the last few years and its something we've been able to share as a common passion.  We talk about our dreams and our goals and she pushes and inspires me.  She is also a full-time volunteer minister, which has taken her to some spectacular locations around the world helping people learn about the Bible.  I am so glad she agreed to share her thoughts today on Celebrating Life Everyday.  Thank you Whitney!

A couple of days ago I was sitting on a little island that my husband, dog, and I had kayaked to up a fjord off of B.C’s coast. Sitting on a rock facing up the inlet towards the snow capped mountains, watching my best friend and puppy playing in the sunshine on the beach below I mentally took a photo and did not want to forget that moment.

I never carried a camera with me when I travelled for years. I never wanted to worry so much about having my camera that I missed the experience, the tastes, the smells, the adventures. I realized though that I have an entire photo library of images in my mind that I snapped of specific moments in time that I never wanted to forget. Photography for me started as an outlet during a difficult time in my life. I wanted to learn how to focus my attention and look for all the beauty in the world rather than the things that bring you down. It worked. I have become addicted to capturing life and history through my eyes, and having a physical representation of what I have learnt along the way.

I have learnt to see the beauty in everyone.The love a family has for their kids when they watch them create a new family on their wedding day. The love mothers have for their children by creating a home for them out of nothing in some of the world’s poorest countries. The joy on a kids face while he plays soccer with no shoes and torn clothes.

I believe that celebrating life everyday means that you have to live it. Never think doing something is a pipe dream, or limit the experiences you can have. If you want to do something enough you can, it depends on where you put your priorities. It is amazing what we can accomplish. So whether you decide to learn how to fish, buy a tennis racket, book a flight to an awe inspiring destination, or just learn how to cook creme brulee. Living a life you can look back on with satisfaction is completely up to you. Looking for the joy and those photographic moments that you never want to forget can be everyday. How will you know that you don’t love something unless you try it? Often it is the things your most afraid of that turn out to be the most worthwhile.

Find Whitney Lane on the web

WEBSITE <<>> BLOG <<>> FACEBOOK