reflections from a trip

You know it is funny… sometimes I think I am so not worthy to share who am I on this blog. I don’t have projects to show all of the time, I am not one of those people who makes it my job to post something everyday, I am not so interesting, and I surely am not a very strict person when it comes to life or blogging. I want this to be my space but man sometimes there are so many things to compare yourself to. I mean how do so many people fit all of that into their life and really enjoy their life? I guess for them that works but for me it doesn’t. I love my life and I really love my space here on Modern Sewciety. It has been a struggle of what do I really want this space to be and how I want to handle it in my life.

me and my baby girls

me and my baby girls

Well we just got back from a family trip to Ohio. I am a warm weather girl to the core. I don’t like to be cold and I seem to always be cold. Weird I know. I would much rather sweat than not be able to feel my feet due to the cold. SOOOOO I was so worried. What do I pack for me and the girls? Yes I pack three people when we go anywhere. We are still in that stage with our kids and I don’t mind because at least I know they will have what they need. I put out a message on Facebook, yea you can always count on FB to give you a helping hand when you need one, for some snow clothes. I know several of my friends have kids around the girls age and they go skiing. So lucky for us there were two friends that came through… even I got a snow suit which was a super nice Columbia suit with boots. I was so happy to not have to invest in clothes for one trip. So I set out packing for layers and I think I did a great job. The girls never complained about being cold. We all played in the snow and had a great time. But wanna know a secret? Well we went to visit family, which we have visited before, and asked if I could do some laundry at their house while we were visiting. Yea I did. I am a laundry girl… I like me some clean laundry like a lot. So I did three loads and man that made my trip. I loved that I didn’t have to pack as much knowing we would have some clean clothes half way through the trip. It was great.

TRUE STORY:: I love doing laundry!

So I thought a lot about what inspires me and what I want in this little space of mine. I really enjoy chatting with people. I actually interviewed two people before I left and I am going to post one of those interviews tomorrow. I am so excited. I get excited because I think there are so many people that are oh so inspiring out there that I know you guys want to hear from. I know I do. I love hearing people speak about their passions. I sat many times over that break with no computer (we didn’t want to lug our computers with two kids, a stroller, two carry on bags, and two BIG bags) and the iPad wasn’t working great thinking why did I forgot my pad and pen. Why did I forget something for my thoughts and ideas? I needed that. And there it was. I needed to write. I needed to think on paper? I am feeling that so much more these days. I need to be me no matter who listens but I need to share me on paper or on the blog. I need to write about things. I felt so broken without my things that help me create. I am a creative person and for so long I stuffed that in the back of the to-do list because I left like to be a better mom I needed to have those other things checked off first. I think this trip I realized it makes me better at those other things to make sure I fit being creative into my life daily somehow. Sewing, writing, blogging, photographing, dreaming, cooking, planning, or cleaning something that will make my life better and happier. Yea that last one makes me laugh. I do though. I need to say no more to say yes to the important things to me right now. I read that on A Holy Experience, Ann Voskamp’s site, and it really hit something with me. I don’t say yes a lot but I do sometimes and think why did I do that. So I want to be more present in this space for me. I have some really exciting guests coming on the podcast. I can’t wait.

me and my baby girls

me and my baby girls

One thing before I go. Do you like having featured blogger posts? Or would you just like one and then maybe a giveaway?

Talk soon,

Stephanie

2014 – my goals and dreams

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I wanted a place to air out my resolutions… really for me to put it all out there for my accountability. I am not good at routine and sticking to things. I get side tracked. I want to have something to look back on and see what I have crossed off and what I haven’t at the end of the year.

::the blog and podcast::

I really want to continue to do the interviews with me one week and a featured guest the other week

find more home, cooking, and non sewing related blogs to sprinkle in with the sewing blogs

so some tv series talks – like downtown abby for one (oh and let you know my other series I like on Amazon Prime), project runway is another (maybe get someone to do a weekly chat about them on the podcast)

projects that I tackle – I want to share some of my personal projects around the house and in the sewing room

some patterns and other products from me

::me::

to keep up with my MS planner – I need to share how I hacked my MS disk bound planner to fit me

do the couch to 5k plan on my phone (we walk daily but I want to try to enjoy running currently I don’t:)

stay off social media and blogs and focus on me and my family more – or find a happy balance (deleting social media apps off my phone was step one)

try to write more personal notes to mail to friends and family letting them know how much I love them (it is a joke with my friends that I am the only person that still sends snail mail and they all love it)

keep up with us more – I got a project life for Christmas and I really want to finish this one and not give up half way (I may have had that happen in 2013)

::Sewing::

to make at least 12 things – quilts, bags, clothes, whatever

to make some quilt as you go quilts like Maureen – I think it would help me not dread the quilting step

also to make more original stuff or patterns but with my own twist on them

finish my big heart quilt for the girls room

make something with my fresh cut stash to put on my bed

::house::

go through the before and afters of my house (we speed renovated our house in 2 weeks and did some amazing stuff)

to paint my china cabinet (that is huge) emerald green with some silver-ish accents

work on a solution for a upper kitchen cabinets

organize laundry room and perhaps get some cabinets above the washer and dyer

a new rug for the living room

paint the porch columns white

::family::

more awareness of the NOW

continue to do things in the church that involve the girls (vbs, family night, and christmas pageant)

volunteer at both girls schools to help when needed with their teachers

get our garden BOOMING this year

try to get some chickens (aka talk my husband into it or talk my dad into building me a coop and just surprising John:)

having some parties with our friends whether formal or informal (okay more likely the later!) but have friends over more

Okay… that is a lot but I know this will help me. I will like looking back on this at the end of the year. So do you make goals and plans for the New Year?

ModSew:: Visions and Goals

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#heygirled from #aurilove

So there my husband and I are driving to go out to eat. It was a rather lengthy drive and we didn’t have the kids so that was nice… we could talk about something other than kid stuff. I had just posted the podcast, the first podcast for Modern Sewciety, and he had just finished listening to it before we left. He said as we got into the truck that he had brought his NOTES about the show and the website. Oh no was my first thought. He is a very good editor when it comes to my writing but I was so nervous about the podcast. Why I don’t know because he is so supportive of me having a blog and podcast. He is the reason I listen to podcasts. So there we are driving and I pick up the notes and I couldn’t read his handwriting. he he So he explained that he was very impressed and surprised at how thought out everything was because the conversation flowed naturally to him. He even said he learned something about my passion of sewing and what the modern quilt guild is compared to a traditional guild. He just had some suggestions on sound, music, and little things he thought could amp up the quality. Oh and the fact that I admitted to thinking about the podcast in church. Yea I shouldn’t have said that but that was just real. I was and am so excited about this podcast. I have prayed that I would find a way to use my talents for good and share them with others. I agreed with him completely there are things that could be approved… I love improving so bring it on.

So then comes my ideas for what I want for this podcast and blog. I really feel there is a disconnect between the big events that happen in the sewing/blogging world and the followers. Yes there are the people that post pictures about their experiences but for those of us that don’t have the resources to go we really only have these pictures and blog posts to look at. What if there was something we could listen to or watch. I mean how great would that be. You may not know your favorite designer but you would know what they sound like and some of their personality that you just can’t get from a blog post. Ya with me? Okay back to the above image. I tried explaining how I had saw this picture and it made me laugh but it also impressed me that aurifil is stepping outside of the norm in marketing in the sewing world and really getting fun and modern with the marketing of their products. I love that and I think it makes their brand so much for personable to the customer. Most of us don’t know Alex Veronelli personally, I know I don’t, but we know what he looks like and that he must be a pretty fun guy. (I have heard he has a rather ahem sexy voice… maybe we can interview him on the podcast. hint hint) I think that is what social media and blogging is bringing to this community of sewist and creatives… something new and different. I am so excited about that. Oh and I won’t share what my big idea is with big events, aurifil, and the podcast but maybe one day I will get to share that idea with Alex Veronelli. I have big dreams.

So tell me… would you like to feel more connected to the blogs you read and the bloggers you have grown to know? Would you like to hear an interview with them about how they got started in blogging and being a creative, what inspires them, their favorite things, what family life is all about to them, what they dream about, their future plans? Me too. I can’t wait to share more with you.

If you have a suggestion about a blogger you would like to see featured on Modern Sewciety please send me an email.