Scrapbook

^^^ In an effort to update you on our house, ^^^

I attempted to take this "cute" picture of Greta walking down our driveway.

She was a fan. Obvi.

I will try to put more pictures up,

we are just not feeling completely settled yet.

^^^ Remember how I told you I would be teaching Photography for the first time this year? ^^^

Well, along with learning camera basics, we are also learning Photoshop.

I have had the program on my computer for a few years now, 

but have always been UBER intimidated to use it.

I know that I have only scratched the surface of what Photoshop can do,

but I am getting all kinds of excited playing around with the few tools I have discovered.

If you are my Facebook friend, you probably knew something was up when I changed

my cover photo and profile picture to Photoshopped designs.

^^^ This is about how we all felt Friday evening, ^^^

so we laid low and stayed home,

which I am kind of hoping becomes our Friday night tradition.

Work weeks are tiresome.

^^^ Most of the weekend, I spent prepping for my first art fair experience on Sunday. ^^^

I was contacted via Etsy to participate in a local arts & crafts show.

At first, I scoffed at the idea. 

I am too busy. No one will buy anything. This must have been a mistake.

all ran through my head, but Alex encouraged me to give it a go.

So… I said yes and got to work.

Most of my designs are old and have been in my Etsy shop for a few months,

but a few are new!

^^^ One new design is this "Be the Light" verse from the book of Matthew. ^^^

This is what Greta would refer to as an "UH-OH".

I accidentally scanned this puppy in, uploaded it to Etsy, pinned it,

and then realized, "Shit! There was a piece of hair on the scanner!!"

I have since rescanned, reuploaded, and repinned,

but just in case you saw the original… my apologies!

^^^ I celebrated the sweetest momma and her soon-to-arrive son ^^^

Saturday at a beautiful shower. 

I just can't get over those painted Ball jars. 

I think a DIY project is in my future!

^^^ After the shower, Alex and I decided to take Greta to the cross-country meet ^^^

that was being hosted at the local park (that is practically in our backyard).

She was mesmerized by all the running "big" kids.

She clapped and cheered and danced.

^^^ And then, when given the chance, she was happy to run herself! ^^^

^^^ After the race, we continued our field trip ^^^

at a local petting zoo.

Greta was in hog heaven, no pun intended. 

She mooed at the moosed,

squealed at the ducks,

and diddledooed at the rooster.

^^^ Greta made sure to show the donkey her nose too, ^^^

just in case he was wondering.

^^^ Today I participated in my first arts & crafts fair. ^^^

It was a long, at times chilly and at times sweltering day.

I must say, art fairs might not be my jam,

but I am incredibly thankful for the experience.

As a people-pleasing, perfectionistic, introverted artist,

it was difficult to watch strangers gaze at my work without a single smile.

It was hard to watch people walk by completely uninterested in my work.

It was even harder when people made jokes about giving my art as a prank gift.

Y'all, this shit is not for the tender-hearted.

There was a moment when I thought I might have a panic attack 

and just give up and start crying like a toddler.

But then, family and friends and students and their parents started showing up.

Man, oh man, did that lift my spirits.

Everything seemed to turn around from there,

but when I got home,

I started reflecting about how I would coach a student through the disappointing parts of today.

Surely we all feel like failures at times in our lives. 

I mean, try as we might, we can't all succeed at everything all the time.

But I was thinking how I would tell him or her that risks are worth taking,

you have to put yourself out there and learn from your experiences.

And most importantly, you are not defined by your (perceived or real) failures.

The action(s) you take after such attempts is much more pertinent to your overall success

than any single failure. We live. We learn. We grow.

I learned a lot from this experience and I made some money too!

So, really it was a win-win situation.

I am grateful for each and every person that stopped to give me some encouragement

and am especially thankful for my booth-neighbor who took me under her wing

and shared some very helpful vendor tips.

Thank you to every single purchaser, too.

You seriously made my day!

While my heart is filled with gratitude,

I am absolutely in no hurry to set up another booth.

I think I will allow strangers to judge my work freely with their blank stares

behind the anonymity of social media vehicles, 

whether it be a smart phone, tablet, or computer screen.

:)