Puddle Jumping

One thing you might not know about me is that I am a homebody--couch, fireplace, and comfy clothes...yes please!

If I had the option of going out or staying in, most of the time I choose to stay in. However, I love having people over and hanging out with lots of friends.

Travis and I are spending this afternoon sitting on the couch doing some business. We worked with LRT Graphics to design some business cards today and are really excited to see the finished product. I work for Dennis and Andrea at LRT and they do great work.

I hope you are enjoying this change of weather and looking forward to the weekend! Just because it is raining, doesn't mean you have to stay inside:)

Thanks for following--go jump in the puddles!

2 for 2 Best

I have been reading Kelle's blog for a few years now and it really is my favorite. She has a beautiful family and a beautiful heart--she is a phenomenal writer. Her daughter, Nella, has Down Syndrome and she is such an adorable little girl. Kelle is raising money with the National Down Syndrome Society for children with Down Syndrome and I believe in her.

Oh, and try to watch this video without crying--it got me.

Every child is beautiful.

Every child needs to feel love.

Every child deserves a chance.

$5 helps.

If you want to help Kelle's fundraiser, please click here. Either way, check out her blog--it really is great! You will fall in love with Nella and Lainey.

It's Friday

It's Friday, Friday...gotta get down on Friday.

I just had to type that out. When you saw the title of this post you thought it too, right? 

Anyways, thank you to all of my friends and family who were so encouraging about the last post. I am feeling very fulfilled and excited! I'm excited to see what this new year holds for us--especially with Photography. 

And, thank you to Trader Joes for making your basket of grapes look so delicious. Are you a crunchy grape kinda person? I'm crunchy all the way--toss out those soft grapes.

One thing that really feeds my soul is friendship. That is why I do not mind when my kitchen looks like this...

...it means that we had a lot of fun last night with people we love. I'm not saying that I will not be excited for come clean countertops:)

Anyone else just so excited that it is Friday?? Enjoy your Friday evening and if you are really feeling it...eat a grape or two. 

Doubt and Reassurance

I despise self doubt--but, it is not a stranger to my every day life. I doubt whether I am doing a good job at work, at home, in my relationships, etc. I think, overall, I doubt that I am not the only one doubting. That was confusing...

So, Travis and I have been talking a lot about this Photography business of ours. We absolutely love working with people, hearing their stories, and getting to capture the beginning of new chapters to their stories. But, when you least expect it...doubt starts to creep in. Are we good enough to 'make it'? Do people really like us? Are we continually striving to be better?

We have been going back and forth about whether we should go 110% in our business. Meaning, should we kind of revamp our business. Should we invest in more equipment, get a new professional blog host, advertise more, etc. I love the people that I work with. Really, we love this-- we have already put so much time, effort, research, money, etc. into our business. We have some Weddings booked in 2012 that we are so excited about and would never want to miss!

Rewind to last night. I was laying in bed, with my laptop, checking emails and such. As I was logging into my business email, I am telling myself "Okay, you need to figure this thing out. What if you told yourself "If I don't get any Photography inquiries in two weeks then maybe that is a sign that I should not pour my heart and soul into this business."" Low and behold, I had an email inquiring about Wedding Photography. I felt like this was a sign from God that I am doing what I should be doing. I shouldn't doubt myself, but know that there is a plan for our life, for our business, for our family. I don't have to know what the plan is to believe that it is going to be grand.

So, all of that to tell you that you will be seeing more AlbiniPhotography updates in the next few months. I will be sitting in this colorful nook in our home...

...journaling all of the things we want to do. More business cards, updating our Website, getting a new blog, investments, etc. Oh, and I'll have a cup of my favorite coffee with me--because, what is journaling without a warm cup o' joe?

My mom got me this mug from England and I love it--makes me feel fancy even when I'm in workout shorts and my husband's tennis shirt:)

This will be fun and I hope you will come along for the ride!

My favorite project so far...

With all of the projects and chores done around the house in the past few weeks, I'd have to say that our Master Bedroom Headboard has turned out to be my favorite. Here is what our Master looked like before/during:

 My SIL Torrie used her router to cut out the design in the wood on the top two slats. She also hand drew the stencil and spray painted it on the wood.

We decided to go with a mustard yellow for the stencil to add some color to the room. Our comforter is light blue with some grey in it so we were originally thinking grey would be the color of the stencil. After some thought, we decided on yellow and I love it! 

I couldn't be more pleased with how it turned out!!

 Because I didn't want the stencil to be the only yellow in the room, I spray painted a thrifted frame and put a picture from our wedding in it(it is my husband's side of the bed:)). I am still wanting to add more yellow around the room but Travis told me not to go overboard. He is a minimalist:)

 Torrie also built our side tables for us. 

Some things still left to do for this room would be to add some decor to the walls, add some length to the curtains by sewing in a pretty panel, and add some yellow fabric to the decorative pillows.

Cost breakdown of this room:
Paint for walls, headboard, bed frame, dresser, and side tables:$80
Wood for headboard and side tables:$100
Bed frame and dresser: given to us by my in laws
Lamps: previously used in our apt but I think they were $15 at Big Lots
Curtains: $7 on sale at Walmart
Curtain rods: $6 at Walmart
Comforter Set: $200 from Kohls (+came with dec pillows and two sheet sets)

Thanks for following-- Let me know what you think!