30 Before 30.

 

 



So tomorrow is my birthday and I finally finished making my 30 before 30 list. It was harder than I thought. Trying to come up with 30 things I wanted to do in the next year that were PRACTICAL and DOABLE. I mean sure there are a TON of things I would love to do but for various reasons (money, baby coming this summer) it's just not possible. But eventually I did it! The interesting thing is, without meaning to I ended up picking a LOT Of things that fit well with my new years goal.

2013 Goals:

To be more intentional...

*In relationships

*In finances

*At home

*In memory keeping.

Not everything fell into one of these four categories but a lot did. So without further ado....

30 Before 30

Personal:

1. Memorize 30 verses.

2. Read, finish, or get rid of all MY unread books.

3. Fill up my half-used journals/smashbooks.

4. Sew the Super Tote pattern by Noodlehead.

5. Do one Show.

6. Make 500 things.

7.  Cook a recipe a month off of my pinterest boards.

8. Visit Bush Garden's again.

9. Submit an article to be published in a magazine.

10. Plant SOMETHING.

11. Learn How to drive stick shift.

12. Try at least 6 tutorials off of my pinterest boards.

Relationships:

13. Invite our neighbors over for a cook out.

14. See one of my far away friends again. (Missy, Amber, Mary, Andrew, Laura, Colleen)

15. Go away with Josh for a night.

16. Send 30 snail mail letters.

17. Go away with friends/sister for a weekend.

Finances:

18. Pay off 3 debts.

19. Save $1,000.

Home.

20. Establish some of my favorite childhood traditions in my family.

21. Purge 100 things from my house.

22. Plant SOMETHING.

Memory Keeping/Blogging:

23. Attend a class/seminar/conference to improve my blogging.

24. So SOMETHING with all my photos.

25. Learn how to really use my camera.

26. Post a tutorial on my blog.

27. Write/Finish a list of 1,000 gifts.

28. Spend a day taking a photo every hour.

28. Take the same photo once a month for a year.

29. Take a photo a day.

30. Blog every day for a month.

I am great at  making lists but not very good at sticking to them, so we shall see how it goes. I've actually already broken a lot of the goals down into smaller ones, like how many verses I need to memories each month and how many cards I need to write so that I don't get to next April and realize I'm really behind. As always with me one lists leads to another so I am already making a decent dent on number 3 as I make list after list.

What would be on your list for the next year of your life?

Noticing

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is so easy to look around at our life and think "This isn't what I signed up for" or "How did I get here?"

We look at our big plans. We look at our facebook feed. We look at our favorite blogs. We wondered what happened. We wonder why we don't have the life we so desperately want when every one else makes it look so easy.

The funny thing is, I think if most of us slowed down and looked around we would realize that we are in fact living the life we wanted. Our lives, for the most part, aren't that different from the blogs we drool over. We bake, we take walks, we go for ice cream, we do special activities with our kids. The difference between our lives and the lives of the people on the other side of the glowing screen and polished blogs is documenting. The ONLY way that "other" woman is different from us is that she taking the time to notice, document, and dwell on the little moments. She takes time to make much the life's small celebrations.

Like ice cream for dinner on a hot Thursday night.

Baby's in diapers on hand-made quilts.

A big jar of pop beads.

A baby dedication.

The first watermelon of the season (even if it is a bit early).

Hot dog fingers.

So here is to noticing my life more. Lifting up prayers of gratitude for simple moments. And capturing the beauty in the mundane.

Looking Forward

 



With 2012 now nearly 24 hours in the past and 2013  upon us, it would seem the thing to do is take a look back on 2012. However, I feel like I have done quite a bit of that this past year. With so much having happened this year I feel like I have already one a good bit of reflection. If you would like to read those posts you can here and here.

At this point in time I am ready to look forward. I am ready for a new adventure. I am ready to dream, plan, set goals, and draft a map. I'm ready for change.

I'm not entirely sure what exactly I want these goals and plans to look like. I know I will be taking some time off for my shop and drastically reducing my custom spots when I do. I want to focus more on creating as the mood strikes, sewing for my girls, sewing for friends, making what makes me happy, finish the huge pile of WIPs.

I want to focus more on my writing. For The Clutch Guide for The Motherhood Collective for my own blog, and journaling. I want to make a point of being a memory keeper. I love the idea of Project Life. Not sure if I will attempt 365 days strait, but would love to make a habit of at least weekly capturing the stories we are writing now, as well as those that come to mind from the past.

I want to focus more on our home. Not entirely sure what all that means but I I want to declutter our home and make space. Not sure for what, but space is always good. Getting rid of excess helps me breath easier. I also want to be more intentional about what I bring into my home. (Does it serve a purpose, do I already have something that could serve the same purpose ect) I am hoping this will help with being a better steward of both our money and our space.

Ultimately I want to invest in what matters most to us. Our faith, our families, and our friends. I want to live more intentionally and be more aware of how I am using our resources.

What are you goals for 2013?

Three Years Of Dolly Making

Four years ago my daughter Abi Bear was turning one and I went in search of the perfect "first" dolly for her. During the process my good friend Marliessa introduced me to Waldorf Dolls. (You can read a rough description of them here). At the time I couldn't afford the beautiful dolls I found on Etsy so I let it go.  A year later when Abi was turning two I just couldn't get this sweet style of doll out of my mind so I attempt to make my own.



Here is Miss Abi Bear and Annie Doll.

Since that first doll I have truly fallen in love with this art and have grown a business around it.I have tried my best to make dolls that I believe in. I think every one should be able to afford an heirloom quality doll for their child that protects the beauty and purity of childhood. When so many dolls are made of plastic and are holding up unrealistic ideals I wanted a dolly for my girl that was as sweet and innocent as she is.



My dolls have changed and evolved over time but I feel like they still hold the sweet innocence that I fell in love with and Abi still loves her Annie Doll.

To celebrate three years of doll making and as a way of making sure I stay true to why I started, I am offering ONE THREE custom 6 inch doll for $20.00. First  person three people to comment bellow with their paypal e-mail address will get an invoice and e-mail from me with details.

Much love!

~Joy Leanne

Weekly Five

1) The office is mostly done. Just need to move the futon in, take down the paint along the ceiling and put on some finishing touches. But all in all it is done and usable and I am loving it as is Maddie. It's currently her favorite room. As I type this she is walking runaway across the room singing what I think is supposed to be "Ta-da" but is coming out "tana".

2) The first full week of school went great. Bear cried when I picked her up on Monday because she wanted to stay like the rest of the kids. Thursday I let her stay and realized while it may be fine once a week we are not ready for full day all the time yet. She took a nap at nap time and Mrs. Roberts said she had a hard time waking her up. You could tell and she was crabby for me the rest of the day. Goose is going to my friends house two days a week. Leave it to me to find some one else to home school my kid. Angie enjoys having the set schedule, Maddie enjoys doing flash cards, and I enjoy having a few hours a week all mine to write and work on shop stuff. Actually getting some custom orders wrapped up and out the door!

3) Josh sold quite a few Mazda 3s in August which meant a nice bonus and he showed up Friday night with a new lap top for me!!

4) Josh and I have been talking a lot lately about the miscarriage and how so many people stories end with "but then I got pregnant with so and so...." While that is beautiful and I know all things work together, that isn't turning out to be our story. And that is ok. We have a but then, but for now any ways it doesn't include another child. It's more like "But then God filled our lives with good things. We still are sad we don't get to meet that child. But life is good and so is our God." and it's a place we are ok with being, for now.

5) We went to Busch Gardens on Sunday. Just a day trip which was a blast till the three hour drive home at 8 pm. But all in all so glad we went. We took his parents and were able to spend some good time together as well as all doing our own thing. A pretty good end to summer!

Anything possible?

As children we are told we can be anything we want to be when we grow up. We are told anything is possible if we just try hard enough. And then one day, the world stops telling us this and instead points out all the obsticles keeping us from our dreams. It is an odd phenomenon. One which I am straddeling at the moment. I find myself already telling my 5 month old daughter that she is amazing and can do anything she puts her mind to. And yet, I am constantly telling myself why my own dreams are simply that, fluffy cotton candy dreams. What message am I sending to my child? Why should she be confident that I believe in her, if I display such little confidence in myself. Maybe I need to pursue my dreams, not for my sake but for hers.