photo-a-day: march

96% for March. The only day I missed was my grandma's birthday. This month was colorful. And sunny. And SPRING. I love it. March, I'm sending you out in style. April, I'm excited for what you (and a new year of life!) have in store. 

on inspiration

"What inspires you? In your life? In your day? In your art?"

Life: People. Everyone has a different story and if you look hard enough, you can still see their childhood imprinted in their eyes and the way they smile. My people—my family, friends, coworkers, people I see on a semi-daily basis—they are the most inspiring. They have shown me strength, courage, bravery, grace, and all the goodness in the world. My people are truly an army. They have raised me up when I was at my lowest points, and they have shown me that it's the little things that really matter. It's like in the season 5 finale of Grey's Anatomy, Meredith says, "Did you say it? 'I love you. I don't ever want to live without you. You changed my life.' Did you say it? Make a plan. Set a goal. Work toward it, but every now and then, look around; Drink it in 'cause this is it. It might all be gone tomorrow." 

Day: Morning. I always wake up an hour or two before I have to be somewhere so I can have some quiet time to myself. I drink my coffee and sometimes take a picture for my #annalovesmornings series. I check social media & blogs. I take selfies on Snapchat while I do my makeup and get ready. It's routine. Quiet. Calm. It helps me settle my head and emotionally prepare myself for the day ahead of me. 

Art: I am inspired by light, shadows and shapes. I am inspired by color. I am inspired by texture. I am inspired by lines. I am inspired by imagery and text. I am inspired by the process. Making things starts off as a rush and ends as a rush but the in between is a constant series of highs and lows. "Is this good enough?" "Does this look okay?" "I don't ever want my art to be good enough. I need to take pride in my work, damn it!" "I hate this. I'm starting over." "Actually I think it's done." I'm a starter. I only get about halfway through things most of the time before I lose interest (see: summer mini book, that pink & grey scarf) and they sit collecting dust until my creative energy comes back to them. That's why I think in order to understand the ebb and flow of the flighty temptress, inspiration, you need to understand how you work and what your processes are. And figuring that out is half the fun. I love making things and I will be a happy camper if I can just keep doing that for the rest of my life. 

march 29

Spring looks like...

...plants starting to show up at kmart, golden sunlight, the sun setting at 7 pm, cotton candy sunrises, hanging laundry on the clothesline, daisies, the first Adrian's visit of the season, picnics, walks in the park after work, swinging, neighborhood walks, a new year, green & pink & yellow, flowers, iced coffee instead of hot, bright lipstick, pastel nail polish, new knitting projects, the sunshine emoji, inspiration everywhere. 

methods of self care

When life hands you super bad cramps... go look for flowers, put on a dress because you think it's nice enough outside for one (and then regret it when your legs are cold), wear cute shoes, do your makeup, bust out your favourite lipstick, go get iced coffee from mcd's and take a walk in the park, close your eyes and bask in the sunshine. 

friday

"I spend so much time looking up, it's no wonder I don't sprout wings and be free."

good things:

1. The coffee is strong & free flowing

2. We got dumped with (at least) 8 inches of snow last night. 

3. There are icicles hanging from rooftops. 

4. Monday is supposed to bring 50 degree weather. 

5. Happy Thursday. 

long time no blog

The first day of spring was 3 days ago, and Mother Nature decided to give us the gift of snow instead of sunshine. I'm always a sucker for snowflakes in hair and tree fringed snowy skies. Happy Wednesday!

currently, march edition

watching grey's anatomy so I'm caught up for the new episode tonight

drinking coconut creamer with my coffee... tastes like summer

using snapchat like a crazy person (@annagutermuth)

loving my new phone! I upgraded to an iPhone 6s from a 4s this week and I can't get over the upgrade in quality

also questioning how I used the 4s for two years because it's so small compared to the 6s

craving java chip from Adrian's and

celebrating that they opened last week 

shaking my head that I haven't worked there in 3 years and can still tell you they open on the second Friday in March & always open with butter pecan ;)

counting down the days to my birthday & the start of a 5 day vacation

cuddling with my new "velcro baby" aka the Mew cat who has decided not to leave me alone ever

catching up on deadliest catch before the new season starts on the 29th

brainstorming an idea for a new knit blanket

missing my best friend more than words can say

enjoying my Thursday... I hope y'all are too!

magic monday

Nothing says "Happy Monday" like daylight savings, working breakfast, McDonald's caramel iced coffee, walks through the park, and 60 degree weather. So in love with life and these little moments I get to savor all to myself.  

hello spring

Today I opened at work. Got done at 1. Went to the park to swing. Took a walk in the woods. Took pictures. Swooned over the sun. And the 74 degree temps today. I love you, Spring. Please stay a while. 

i love light

magic sky

I had a thought while working last night. Golden sunset light was filtering just right through everything and I thought, "Damn it, I love light. If I could marry light AND Justin at the same time, my life would be pretty awesome." I love the sky and pretty sunsets. 

84 years

My grandma would have been 84 years old today. I miss her. I wish I could call her and wish her a happy birthday and tell her I love her. I wish more than anything that I could hear her voice again and give her a big hug. So I'll just say it here: Happy birthday, grandma. I miss you and I love you more than ever. 

photo-a-day: february

100% for February. Most of these were edited with a combination of the vscocam app and AColorStory by A Beautiful Mess (I'm in major love with their filters). 

Bing it on, March! It snowed last night, and I'm proud to report that I'm already 100% for day one.