enJOY it

my 2016 word and goals for the new year.

December 31, 2015

My word for 2016 came to me in November and felt right immediately.

ENOUGH.

As in, this is enough. You have enough. You are doing enough. Relax.

I chatted about it in depth with Ali Edwards (who has inspired my One Little Word adventures for the past six years) on this week's podcast episode (yay! Season three! I'm back!) And one thing we talked about is how opposite it is of SHAKE, my 2015 word. And man, is it ever.

But to be honest, I also sort of hope 2016 is the opposite of 2015.

I loved 2015. But DAMN, was it nuts. I have never hustled so hard in my life. It was a crazy year of surprises and upheavals and GO, GO, GO and so much bubble wrap. It would have been a SHAKE year regardless of the word I chose. I wouldn't change anything, but I am so glad I never have to do that (launch a business & have a baby at the exact same time) again.

2016 is going to be all about NOT SHAKING. Pulling in a bit. Relaxing a bit. Looking around and taking a deep breath. I still have a lot of work to do with this new business of mine, but I have almost a full season under my belt now and I think that will help immensely.

With ENOUGH in the back of my mind, I set my 2016 goals. The biggest thing that I notice (and you might notice if you've been here awhile) is the lack of specifics. I don't have numbers attached to these goals. I'm not going to bake 40 loaves of bread. I am not going to shoot 12 rolls of film. I am not going to build 29 things or sew 26 blankets or eat 15 sandwiches. I decided that part of ENOUGH had to be letting go of all the rigid requirements and just trying to do a little more of this and little less of that.

So, this upcoming year:

I want to move more. I hope this means around 70K steps a week on the fitbit. I hope this means active minutes. I hope this means family walks after dinner. I hope this means making it to yoga. I hope this means dancing in the kitchen with the girls. I hope this means going for my first run in over a year.

I want to complain less. I hope this leads to less stress and frustration overall. I hope this means focusing on all the good we do have. I hope this means letting it go when Paul has to work late or when my street is torn up for construction or when the girls refuse to nap or when my day goes opposite as planned.

I want to create more. I hope this means finishing that sweater I started two months ago. And that weaving that's still on the loom. I hope this means pies! I baked a pie at Thanksgiving and it was the most fun. I want to bake more pies in 2016. I want to paint with the girls. I want to grow a garden and not give up on it in July. I want to make time for my girlfriends. I hope to create more friendships. In general, I just want to get my schedule a bit more relaxed so all of my waking hours are NOT spent nursing a baby or packing books.

I want to scroll less. I hope this means putting down the iPad/iPhone and picking up a book. I recently listened to Aziz Ansari on the Freakanomics podcast (great interview) and my favorite line was "I read the Internet so much I feel like I’m like on page a million of the worst book ever." It totally made me laugh but it's also painfully true. Some nights, we'll get the girls to sleep and I'll sit on the couch and scroll and scroll and by the time I look up, 45 minutes have passed and I feel bored but simultaneously over-stimulated. It's annoying and terrible. I love Instagram and I love pinning gorgeous white interiors, but I hate the endless scroll. Here's to turning more pages instead in 2016.

I want to document more. I hope to continue using my film camera though I am not worried about getting one roll shot a month. I hope to write often in the I Want To Remember journal I ordered for the girls (I loved keeping one for Ellerie last year). I hope to record a second of every single day and compile them into a video of our year. (I'm using my goal tracker and this app to do so.)

I want to spend less. I hope to not buy stuff just to buy stuff. I hope to get back in the habit of capsule wardrobe. I got rid of so much crap in 2015. Seriously. 2015 will be remembered as 1. Piper. 2. Ellerie grew hair. 3. Get To Work Book. 4. The year I Marie Kondo-ed our house within an inch of it's life. We are planning to do some light remodeling (!!) in our house and hopefully backyard and I want to be very intentional with my decisions and the expenses there.

So that's it. I'm breaking all the rules by not making specific or quantifiable goals. But for some reason, this next year, I wouldn't have it any other way.

Happy 2016 to you.
merry christmas from my family to yours!

December 25, 2015
2015 gift guide.

December 5, 2015

Every year, I like to share a simple gift guide. It's really just a fun way for me to round-up some of the products we plan to give each other and/or have used and loved recently. Hopefully you see something that might work for someone on your list this year…

Harry Potter Illustrated / in my head this book works for anyone aged 0-125, but Santa will be bringing it to Ellerie this year. It just arrived Thursday and oh man, it's so beautiful. I cannot wait for the girls to be able to really read and enjoy it. I can't imagine how they will print all seven (some of the books are so long) but I would love for our family to collect them all.

Pinhole Press photo calendars / these have already been mentioned on the blog many times, but they deserve it. Hands down the best grandparent gift. My parents always cut it up at the end of the year to frame the photos so this really is the gift that keeps on giving.

toddler stringing bead set / this set is awesome though still a bit advanced for Ellerie. I can tell that we are thisclose to enjoying it. She's also really loving safety scissors and happily cuts paper for 20 minutes (!!)

flamingo swaddle blanket / Piper has no idea how lucky she is that mama pre-ordered this for her. (We have, and LOVE the poppy version already. Everything on that website is just beautiful.)

giant blanket scarf / okay so this I don't own or plan to buy, but I'm obsessed. I actually saw it on a girl at a coffee shop and it looked great (she told me the etsy shop name). I can't justify it given that we hardly have seasons and I already own 4 or 5 scarves, but if you live in a colder climate, please enjoy or gift this for me.

ceramic coffee dripper / Paul is taking his coffee brewing to the next level and wants to try single cup pour-over on the weekends. I am all for it and really just grateful he makes the coffee. Also, we love coffee subscriptions as gifts and Pony Brand Coffee makes great stuff.

The Crafter's Box subscription / this new subscription club was just launched by my friend Morgan and I had the pleasure of contributing to one of the boxes that will be available this winter. It's the perfect gift for my crafty sister-in-law and I am so excited to dig into the first box, a weaving kit and class taught by Maryanne Moodie, as soon as I find a spare moment.

a craft beer subscription / and on the other side of the coin, the perfect gift for my cool brother. Or for Paul. Or for me.

2016 Get To Work Book / for the planner, list-maker, dreamer, doer, wants-to-get-it-done-er in your life. I'd be a complete failure of a business owner if I didn't at least mention it here on the blog during the holiday season. 😉

button-up PJs (in many cute patterns) / I had no idea, but button up PJs might be the ideal item of clothing for the nursing mama in the cold(er) months. With my summer baby I could get away with just a nightgown but I was freezing sitting in my chair to feed in the middle of the night this time around. Loving these.

rewinded candles / I appreciate how long the burn time is and we always get compliments on ours. The scent is perfectly subtle.

ps: here's the 2014 and 2013 gift guide. I'm still a fan of (and even more miraculously we still use!) everything on those lists with the exception of the tripod because I only use my iPhone 5 for photos these days.
december : currently.

December 2, 2015

products above: my top, the wrap, Piper's pants are from Target, the quilt, the banner, the framed art.

typing this on my phone with a sleeping baby on my chest.

enjoying the newborn phase so very much. Reasons: 1. this is our last baby and I know this time is fleeting. 2. Piper is a pretty great sleeper (so far just one or two wake-ups between each night). 3. Breastfeeding has been a pain-free (what?!?) and wonderful success. 4. I am not a wreck like I was last time. 5. And, let me tell you, after you've been a wreck, anything else feels like winning the lottery.

fully feeling like I have won the lottery.

seeing the two girls together and glowing with pride. Of course it's a pretty one-sided love right now, but the future holds so much promise.

commenting daily on how grown-up Ellerie now appears.

reading Flight Behavior.

finishing (and recommending!) Delicious! and also by Ruth Reichl, Garlic and Sapphires.

sticking to a "no buying for myself!" goal in December.

wearing the Solly Baby wrap and this simple watch all the time.

watching Fargo with Paul (and sometimes Piper) and LOVING it. I didn't think they could top last season but it's been excellent. And Kirsten Dunst deserves at least four or five Emmys.

needing to take my film camera in for repair (it suffered a fall and I'll admit there were tears).

ordering photo calendars for the grandparents (this is the most popular gift I've ever given).

packing up Get To Work Books and marveling at how quickly 2016 will be here.

planning so much good stuff for the GTWB brand in the coming months (and years).

thinking about goals for the new year and knowing it's going to be alllllll about simplifying and that very overused and beloved/hated word: self-care.

getting the 2016 daily goal trackers in the shop!

eating Thanksgiving leftovers and drinking all the coffee.

starting to pull out the Christmas decorations. We still need to get a tree and Piper needs a stocking.

introducing Ellerie to Toy Story, which is still my favorite Pixar movie of all time (it really holds up).

hoping we can see Star Wars in the theater…probably from an aisle seat with a newborn in tow.

looking forward to Paul's week off work next week (we had to split his paternity leave into two different months which was a bummer in November but so wonderful now).

knowing I am the happiest I have ever been. It's almost overwhelming and I am so grateful to be present in this time.

wishing you all the best month of December. And sending a big Happy Birthday to my brother! 28 is going to be a good year for you, Ro.
@ 37 weeks.

October 14, 2015
photo is from 35 weeks, but ear-to-ear grin is the same.

I had a doctor's appointment this morning to check on this sweet baby girl and things are looking good. Well, all we really know is that her heartbeat is strong and she's head down… but at this point, that's as good as it gets. I'm hoping for a VBAC and so a head down position is Step 3 of what feels like 450 steps to success. (Step 1 was stay healthy. Step 2 was stay active.) I am currently working on step 4…don't psych yourself out and then step 5…actually go into labor like a normal person. Steps 6-450 will unfold in the hospital unless I get lucky and this kid just flies out with no warning and Paul catches her from across the room football style which is my dream birth plan. 😉

In the meantime, everything and nothing is going on around here.

It's been wonderful to take a break. I feel like I have been carrying a backpack for ten years. And that backpack, for a really long time, was the best thing ever. I LOVED it. I identified with it. It traveled everywhere with me. I planned outfits around it and packed cool stuff in it. It got me through some tough times. It helped me grow as a human, mom and business owner. If they had been cool six weeks ago, I would have covered it with quirky pins because damn, I am proud of that backpack.

But you know what feels really good? TAKING OFF THE BACKPACK. And not taking it off and setting it at the foot of the bed to be picked up tomorrow morning, but taking it off and sticking it on the highest shelf in the garage. The relief is insane. Walking around without a backpack on, even one that I really loved, is wonderful. I'm learning that not only is walking easier, but running too. And dancing. And laughing. And obviously, reclining into a chair.

Surprise, surprise…in this metaphor, the backpack is blog content. Separating my life from blog content is (not surprisingly) really nice. Suddenly, everything seems possible.

And everything seeming possible? I can't think of a better frame of mind to be in as we prepare for this second little girl to arrive. I am so encouraged and excited about the upcoming weeks…not to mention the upcoming years for our family. Ellerie has blossomed these last few months. She's a flower in a toddler body and is turning into someone I am proud to raise, obviously, but really am just proud to know. The idea that we get to do this again? Watch ANOTHER human grow into themselves? It's inspiring. I'm inspired by my girls. The one I know already and the one I have yet to meet.

I'm also hugely inspired by Big Magic. I've been reading it this week and it's a good one. It's one of those ones that I checked out from the library but I know I have to go buy if only to highlight my favorite parts. It's one of those ones that as I'm reading I'm annoyed because I am scared the wisdom is coming too quickly and I'm not able to upload it into my brain fast enough. It's one of those ones that gives you permission to take a deep breath. Creativity isn't going anywhere. Inspiration isn't going anywhere. As long as we are here and we're welcoming, those guys are going to be present too.

So that pretty much sums up my life at 37 weeks pregnant with number two. I'm relaxing, resting, packing GTWBs, washing baby clothes, reading books, signing up for weaving classes, working on one more creative project, visiting with friends up in LA, marveling at my girl, taking photos, going on long walks, drinking ice water by the gallon, feeling inspired, feeling tired, experimenting with the headspace app, complaining dramatically about the Southern California heat wave, focusing on what I can control and simply, waiting.

Waiting patiently for a head down baby girl, who, fingers crossed and please God, is gearing up for a safe passage into the world.

Other posts you might enjoy:
september on film.

October 2, 2015

From a "technically-good" or "breathtaking" standpoint this is probably one of my least favorite months. But for capturing Ellerie at play? Instant favorite. There is so much imaginative play happening in my house right now and I'm so glad to have just a piece of it on film.

Favorites from this roll are easy – the one where she's serving her lamb an onion (her expression! her careful hands!) and the last one where she's "on the phone" with Paul.

These photos are part of my "film project" where I take a roll of film of Ellerie each month. You can see all of these posts here. I shoot with an old film camera similar to this and this lens. I have been using Kodak Portra 400 film. I have my photos printed at Nelson's Photo Supply. These images are un-retouched digital scans of the film.
the one with the break.

September 25, 2015

Cue Ross, "We were on a breaaaaaaaak."

Crazy story: three months from today exactly (Christmas Day! Who starts a blog on Christmas Day?!) I will have been doing this for ten years. That's all of my twenties. That's really my entire adult life. It's hard for me to remember a time before blogging or even an event I've processed without writing about it.

For the most part, I have kept this site small and personal. No guest posts. No contributors. No assistants. Minimal sponsored content (though there have been a ton of affiliate links). All the recipes shared or projects completed are real things I have done…for my life, not for blog content. For better or worse, there have been no photographers or editors. It's just been me, day after day, week after week, typing away.

And it's been a good 9.75 years.

I started this blog in college while trying to find a career direction. It witnessed the move from California to Maryland to live with a boy. It watched that boy become my fiance then my husband then my partner in parenthood. It struggled with me through two deployments and four moves. It was my record as I documented those moves and decorated those houses. It watched my rocky start to motherhood and then my joy as I settled into this role. It saw me try many different businesses before finally landing on what feels like the one.

In some ways, it feels like a lifetime. But then I remember I'm 30 and my life is starting, not ending. 😉 There have been so many highs and lows this past decade, but today? Today it feels like Paul and I are just getting to the good part. We're putting in the time and dealing with the long hours. We're making mistakes, feeling stupid and then trying to improve. We're raising our sweet kiddo and she's teaching us more than college ever did. We're making plans for the future and dreaming the big dreams. Yep, it's a wonderful place in life to be.

And it's also the right time for me to take a break from the daily 5am posting to this blog.

I am incredibly grateful that I started writing when I was 20 years old. I am grateful for these past ten years that I have lived and shared. I've made it clear many times that much of my "career success" is due to this blog. And I've made it clear that much of the blog success is due to "posting consistently." But I've also said (though maybe not as loud as I should have) "when something feels like it's not working, re-work it"

This is not a decision to "quit the blog" but instead it's a decision to figure out how this blog still fits into my job and life. I do think I will write a bit here over the next few months, but I have no idea what that will look like. I'll be using the "time off" to determine what I want this space to be. I need to think about why I'm writing here, and that's really hard to do when I'm still trying to crank out content every day.

In October I'll be working on podcast episodes. I'll be answering emails and monitoring customer service requests. I'll be shipping GTWBs. And of course, I'll be celebrating the time my family has left as just three (and probably watching a Scandal episode or four).

If all goes well, in early November we'll welcome our second daughter (I'll share a birth announcement here just like Ellerie's). There will still be behind the scenes work to do, of course, but I look forward to taking a more consistent maternity leave this time around. I really blew it last time and handled the newborn months terribly. I can't redo that period unfortunately, but I can learn from it and give myself a bit more grace (and space) the second time.

Around Christmas Day, I'll re-evaluate and decide what makes the most sense blog-wise for my family of four and for my business. Posting twice a week? Posting twice a month? Returning to every day? Who knows? I have loved this blog and I am not sure I'll ever want to give up writing completely, but right now I am overwhelmed with relief to be pressing pause.

As always, but even more so today, I appreciate you checking in and reading. I say that often, I know, but I mean it often. The fact that so many of you have shared your comments, stories, thoughts, support and kindness back at me through the Internet is the best part of this whole site.

While posting is sporadic here, I'll continue to IG away @elisejoy so if you're into book recs, recipe shares, podcast quote call outs, coffee mugs, Ellerie pigtails, the occasional real-time craft project, adventures in house-hunting(!?) and yep, bump pics and newborn photos, I'll see you there.

Thank you.
around here…fall(ish) edition.

September 24, 2015

around here I have to add the (ish) because it's been in the high nineties the past few days. I remember this time last year when I told Paul I was totally down for him to take the random billet in the middle of the midwest where the winters were super brutal. When it's this hot in late September snow sounds excellent…but ask me again in January when I'm in a t-shirt and I'll look at you like you're crazy. (Really, I cannot complain one tiny iota.)

around here my girl is going through a "Mama" stage. Partly, I think because my mom is in town (hooray!) and often when family comes that means Mama and Papa go to work or on a quick trip. But also partly because I think she's starting to understand that "baby-seester" is going to be spreading me a bit thinner soon. I'm soaking up the cuddles and the clinging and hanging on to these last few weeks.

around here the shorter daylight hours (paired with excessive heat) are making my walks harder to squeeze in, but I'm still trying. I strongly believe walking helped me "beat" gestational diabetes. Maybe it will help me have a successful vbac? No matter how I end up delivering, I have to hope the extra activity in my final trimester helps me recover faster.

around here I've been listening to a few of the Magic Lessons podcast episodes from Elizabeth Gilbert. It's pretty self-help(y) but it's also pretty inspiring. The first one in particular, I would recommend to new mamas who are struggling to find their creative footing again (I've been there…it's hard.)

around here I've loved hearing from those of you that have checked out the Building a Business eBook! It really was so fun to get so much text on the page and I am glad to know it's clicked for some people already. Keep me posted, I never tire of talking shop.

around here I am taking stock of tiny baby clothes. We have more baby girl clothes than we know what to do with. So many of these things are tied to Ellerie memories and nothing makes me realize how fast this time will go then thinking about how short a period Ellerie was actually in those outfits. The newborn phase was a blink right? A blink and like 700 loads of laundry and then we were on to the next stage. That's crazy. I hope to hold on to it all so differently the second time around.

around here GET TO WORK BOOK 2016 is starting to ship! There is always quite a jam-up in the beginning as I get the first few days of orders out the door, but eventually the bubble wrap settles and the tape sticks and I get a good pack and ship rhythm going. I've updated the video walk-through with the Jan-Dec 2016 version if you'd like to see.

around here I have two girlfriends welcoming babies into the world in the next few days. It's emotional and exciting and really, all the feelings. I am so proud of my friends. I am so glad I have them next to me (okay 100 miles away in LA) going through the same things. And really, mostly, I'm so glad for extended text chains in the middle of the night.

around here there is a lot to be done. But it's all good.
september book report.

September 23, 2015
Eh, I didn't do so well book-wise this month. I started falling back into "browsing my iPad" instead of reading before bed and I can always tell…and not just because I get through less books. I'm more tired during the day and generally feel more bummed out when I'm reading the Internet instead of reading books. Hopefully I can get back on track in October.

But here's what I did get through…

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese / this took me forever to read. I struggled with it a lot at the beginning and sort of waded my way through the middle. FINALLY, finally at the end I felt it click and I would say that the last 150 pages were worth it. But so many people really recommended this book and I have to admit I was slightly perplexed for a long time as to why. I liked it, for sure, I just don't think I would blanket recommend it (though clearly Amazon reviewers would).

Dirty Chick by Antonia Murphy / this was recommended after I said how much I loved The Dirty Life. It was a fun read (and totally laugh out loud funny at some parts) but while there were many crazy stories it lacked some of the farm detail that I think I was longing for.

The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion / wow. This was a hard one for me to read. It was painful and beautiful. So very beautiful. I think I was most struck by the simple power of the relationship between Joan and her husband. It BLEEDS off the page. I enjoyed hearing about the little things, like how they would take separate walks around the park but then always time it so they met up for the end. Inspiring and heartbreaking.

I started and stopped Astonish Me about halfway through and couldn't really get into the Rob Lowe memoir (what's wrong with me?). I am currently reading (and enjoying!) Farm City.

What about you?

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And speaking of books! Today on ELISE GETS CRAFTY I have John and Sherry Petersik of Young House Love fame. I have admired these two for a long time and it was a pleasure to chat with them about their new book and how they've changed since getting out of the daily blogging routine. Subscribe or stream here!

Other posts you might enjoy:
our favorite toddler art supplies.

September 22, 2015

Watching Ellerie make stuff will always be near the top of my happiest parenthood moments. I've talked about this a bit before…toddler crafting time is a lesson in patience more than anything else. But the fact that she is taking interest (and starting to take interest for longer) is so fun and exciting to me. I can ALMOST see the future where she has a little art table in my office and she sits for 25 minutes and MAKES while I sit and MAKE next to her. (Don't even get me started on the sometime in the future days where I get to teach her how to sew and knit and use 700 coupons at Jo-anns.)

Our craft supply philosophy around here is pretty relaxed. Nothing in her reach is off-limits. There are no "good supplies" or "kid supplies." There is no "special paper" or "scratch paper." I pretty much assume that if I am writing on something near her, she's going to want in on it (much of our personal mail goes out the door with scribbles). I have a bad habit of leaving Sharpies laying around so I can hardly blame her for using said Sharpies.

On the whole, this has worked for us. We've had a lot of pen on the wall encounters (easily painted over), but our rugs, carpet and furniture has somehow remained mark free. As she's gotten older I have consistently enforced that we color on paper and overtime, this has sunk in (she now knows where the computer paper is stored in my office and goes and gets a few sheets when she wants to color).

There are three go-to supplies that have really worked well for us and today I wanted to share them in case they're the right fit for your toddler or older child too. We use these daily here.

Alex Toys Jumbo Paints – I finally found a source for our watercolors! The amazon review is bad and I agree, the big plastic case is way too big. But. Ellerie LOVES it. We have used other watercolor sets and this one gets the most use for sure. I think she likes the huge circles to get the paint from. I love the color saturation and use this set too. I can't speak for stains because if we've gotten them on our clothes, I haven't noticed.

Melissa and Doug Jumbo crayons – this set is great. We have small Crayolas too but at this age they break or the paper gets in the way. For some reason Ellerie seems more excited to use these. She can also easily put them away which sort of becomes an activity in itself. Nothing beats the color saturation of Crayola, but until she's a bit older I'm happy with this set.

Whiteboard and whiteboard markers – we gave Ellerie an Ikea easel (chalkboard on one side and whiteboard on the other) for Christmas last year but it didn't really start getting use until I removed the paper and bought some whiteboard markers. She loves to color on this and I love how easy it is to wipe clean and start over. Because we've always just had pens out, she's used to them and we've been lucky that she keeps most of her drawing contained to the whiteboard. The dry-erase pens are not exactly for kids (though they are non-toxic) so they work best after the "stick everything in my mouth" stage.

The other thing that comes up with kiddo art is what do you do with it?! The best idea I've seen yet is this one. But in our house, we hang some, take photos of some and recycle a lot. Yep, recycle as in discard. I've always been a big believer that most of the joy of crafting comes from the crafting itself, more than the end result. Of course I love Ellerie's art wall and there are pieces we will frame and keep forever, but there are also many, many scribbles that we'll celebrate in the moment and then let go of. It's all good.

ps: a five minute kiddo craft project.