hello.

it's been a looong time coming. where do i start? a whole lot has happened and honestly i have stayed away so long that i was just about to give up blogging all together. i thought-what's the point? i haven't blogged in so long anyways.
there was still a part of me that didn't want to let go. i like this space and i truly appreciate it more since i've been on this long vacation..diving deep into my life, myself.
i have been doing a lot of art. i've made a lot of jewelry. i've done a lot of jumping around.
you see, i love to create and i have a hard time sticking with one thing for a long time.
while on this break, i have been stuck on my art. i love to paint, people. i do.
i am learning slowly to start sharing with the world.
take a chance.
let loose.
bust that bubble of COMFORT and SAFE.
so..here i am. coming back.
i want to make this place part of my journey again.
hi there!

slowing it down a bit.

i love looking and finding pictures i've forgotten about, don't you? funny how much they're tiny faces have changed. so much has been happening around these parts. change. it. is. good.
lately i have been taking time.  i noticed that when i take my time at whatever task is at hand, i do better. i am kind of an impatient person so when it comes to 'taking time' i have to put in some effort.
little moments i am learning to appreciate...
when i do dishes.
folding the laundry.
hugs from my little ones.
taking a stroll though the neighborhood and really being aware of my beautiful surroundings.
the sound of the rain.
autumn in the air.
cooking a meal for my family with love.
laying beside my beautiful husband.

the older i get the more i am taking my time to enjoy those little moments.

life is truly beautiful. look around you.

soul searching and stuff

hi there. yes, it's been a long time. the summer was wondeful. some were not. some were growing pains..changes. i had a chance (long chance) to do some in depth searching. i took the break from blogging and cut back on a lot of other things as such.

it felt great. i did, however, miss this space. this space that is mine and i can journal. feels good to be back!

i've been doing a lot of painting. the wave of inspiration has hit and is in full force.

during the break i got to watch my little ones grow, discover and just be happy. we also went through some personal changes..but it's all good :) mommy, daddy and kiddos are all well and happy (for the most part) :)

i can't wait to share some more art on here and soon my etsy shop. i am happy. it feels good. really good!

hi world.

what a busy, busy summer break it has been already! i know, i'm bad about blogging. eek. i sometimes wish i could do it more often and stick with it..afterall, i do this so my children will have sort of an online journal. why is it so hard?

it's a question i'd love to answer...i hope that everyone is having a fun spring! i will post some pics of a little 'photo session' we did downtown...

that's me up there..self portrait..camera in window thingy and snap. me.

love doing those and  you should too..no shame in my game. ha.



creative and everything else rut.

yes. i 'm here and i wasn't even sure when i'd be coming back and blogging again. i know that i needed the break to work on some things and i'm glad that i took it. i feel renewed and i'm getting my groove back.
between being a wife, mother and a hundred different roles that we sometimes have, we tend to let ourselves somehow get lost in there. even when it came to this blog, there always would come a time when i'd ask "is anyone even reading my words?" all the thoughts and ideas that i had to share...where were they going and what good were they doing...if any.
then it just hit me...who cares? i mean..really. who cares?
i keep this little place for me. to see my journey transform in time.
somewhere that maybe my children may be interested in at one point in time.
well, we shall start again. you and i. or just i.
and that's ok too.

little whispers

i love the fact that i have this blog. this little place where i come and put thoughts down, memories and creative inspirations. does anyone ever read this little blog? i have no idea. maybe.
know what? i have this little place because i want to look back and see a piece of my journey and if it inspires someone along the way, awesome.

today i want to write about those 'little whispers'...ya know. those dreams that you have and maybe you choose to ignore because they seem "TOO BIG"? they 'seem out of reach, years away, maybe one day' dreams? yeah, those.

everyone that knows me knows that i have a natural passion and drive for all things creative. jewelry, art and thrifting. my hubby is one that know many of my 'far away-out-of-reach' dreams. some dreams i wouldn't dare tell other people. what would they think? maybe they will think i'm crazy for even dreaming that big! ha!

what if you did voice those dreams? or wrote them down? even told someone about them? there's a certain power behind voicing or recognizing something, isn't there? it almost gives you a little freedom. yes, dare to speak those dreams. as silly or as big or as crazy as they may seem, they're YOUR dreams and they matter.

i think that we all have these dreams and they come in whispers within yourself and we can hear them if we truly listen.

well, i am going to dare myself to document my whispers...on  the internet. on this blog of mine. yes, i am. i'm going to release it unto the universe.

for years i've had this dream of owning my own shop. a thrift shop of my own. i want to find used clothes, furniture and treasures and i want to have them in my very own shop. i want to have my own jewelry and art in my shop, too. everything that i love to do would be incorporated into this little shop.

i want my shop to be small (not too small) and i want to paint the walls all white- that way all my treasures can pop out. i want to have a washer and dryer in the back so that as i bring clothing in, i can wash them and display them in the shop. i want to be in a great location and i want to plant flowers in front of my shop. i want to have coffee in my shop so i can share it with a great customer.

these are the things i want. i've had these whispers in my life for a very long time. this is the first time that i've 'voiced' these whispers to others besides people that are very close to me. ya know what? it feels oh-so-good.

what am i going to do with those whispers? i am going to map out a plan. a strategy.
i am going to show up. i am going to believe that there's a perfect spot for me to have my store. because it's supposed to be mine. i am going to buy treasures and sell them so i can save money for my shop. i will believe that 'i have my very own thrift shop'.

ahhh...i feel better. do you have whispers? what are they? give those whispers a louder voice. write them down...if you can in detail. tell a friend. look in the mirror and tell yourself. you would be amazed at the power of owning something.

just by me voicing my dreams made them seem less intimidating to me. i choose to live life according to what makes my heart sing, not someone else's. the older i get, the more i choose to live without permission. i hope that you choose to do the same. follow those dreams, whispers...no matter how BIG or small or crazy...

after all, this is YOUR life....YOUR JOURNEY...do it your way~

new year.

what. a. year.

when 2010 arrived i decided that my word of the year would be brave and i must say that i had a brave kinda year. i tried new things that i once would've passed up and i bravely got serious about my art. i followed my heart with braveness. i learned so much this year. some were good and some were yucky. i don't like yucky.

although yucky can be very uncomfortable i have also realized that yuckiness is filled with a lot of great lessons. like, man...i am a lot stronger than i thought i was. i have learned to just live through the yuckiness and let things sail along. through that, we can find the deliciousness that we never expected. 

i knew that my little family and i were always very tight and strong, but these past few months i have proof. i have a wonderful husband and three beautiful children that i get to watch grow everyday. boy, am i lucky. 

so..what's my word for  2011? embrace. i want to embrace whatever life may bring. good or bad. delicious or yucky. because i know that with anything that comes our way, we will be okay. we can look back at those moments and know that i've learned something. 

i want to learn to just let go and ride with this beautiful thing called life! and to know that i am strong and can overcome whatever may come my way. 

what's your word for 2011?

whatever it may be, i hope you have a wonderful brand spankin' new year!!!!

little me.

image: little-me-starfire

have you ever had a moment that you totally felt your existence? like..at this very moment i feel alive and it feels so good kinda moment?! i get that feeling when i'm on the floor and i can feel three little bodies climbing all over me in laughter. those are the moments i totally feel mommy. or when they need my kisses on their boo boos. or when my husband looks at me like i'm the most beautiful woman in the world. or when i do something for nice for someone i can feel their gratitude...

well, last night i felt alive again by a total stranger's simple sentence in my post about a book, hand wash cold by karen meizer miller. just a simple, "if he doesn't come through, let me know. i have a book with your name on it." what? who? (as i carefully looked at the name of the commenter). none other than karen maezen miller herself!

wow! as you can read how the rest of the story goes (all in the comment section) ...needless to say, i felt alive. that sentence alone made me feel so special. i guess what i'm trying to say is that you never know that just by a small gesture you can make someone smile. you can change someone's mind. you can change someone's life. you can make someone that was having a hard year have another beginning. 

karen maezen miller made my day. i was so excited that i called my husband from work and said "you have to go and read my blog. the last post. look at the comments. you must stop what you're doing this very moment and look at it now!". and he did and was just as happy as i was at that very moment. 

thank you, karen (if i may) for making my night so exciting and my morning too. i will never forget that. ever.

gratitude~

i've basically forced myself to finally blog. this week has been really hard for me. ya ever have one of those days that everything goes wrong ?whatever else happens..you're like "well, ok." i've had that type of week and boy i am tired. we are going through some tough times as a family right now, but we have also tried to stay positive. sometimes that can be very hard to do when your faced with serious issues. today started out as a good day. then someone said something to me that put me in a different place, i didn't like that place. then the stress headache started..yeah. BUT there is hope..the reason why i forced myself on here is because i need to do a "what i'm thankful for" list. seriously. and it will help me get out of this poopish mood. i don't like poopish. so here goes :) i'm thankful for:

• God..He's probably sick of my voice
• the way my children look at me when i get home from somewhere..as if i've been gone forever.
• a warm home
• the 3 cups of coffee that i had today..i needed every sip :)
• a job, even if it may not be what i 'love' to do
• my passion, creating is therapeutic for me
• vaseline..that stuff is the bomb during these dry months-forget the expensive stuff (baby scent kind, yummy)
• last, but no least, my husband- who truly loves me and knows that we are in this together. makes me smile when i'm down and has my back. in his eyes, i'm more than enough. just the way i am. 

ok..ya know, just thinking about all  those things as i was typing them put me in a lighter mood. going through something that makes you uncomfortable can sometimes make one realize what is important. material things don't matter. what people think about you doesn't matter. what does matter is that you are true to yourself. that you are doing what makes your heart sing and the rest just falls into place. believe that even though things around us we cannot control, we can control how we react. sometimes things happen for a reason (so cliche) and they do! we may not understand at the moment..or the reasons why. our higher power has other plans and all we can do is have faith. every little thing's gonna be alright :)

a little fearless~

in the beginning of this year i promised myself that i would do things that i was afraid to do. they may seem like nothing to some people, but to me..they were a little scary. here are some of the things that i did on my little "fearless journey" i'm still adding to it..

1. decided to officially start my own jewelry making business, and did
2. launched a blog/site for my bizz/got bizz cards (finally)
3. went jet skiing (so fun, i so recommend it)
4. didn't ask hubby to help me kill the scary bugs (as much) this year. ha!
5. leaned to say 'no' when i felt the need (still working on that)
6. went down a long, curvy water slide-now that was a little scary. but my first time & i did it!
7. drove to another town and got lost (i hate getting lost) and did not freak out-amazing.
8. shared some of my art with people
9. reached out and made a friend through blogging
10. trusted in God more. when things seemed all wrong, i tried to keep a positive attitude and trust that God would see me through those times, and He did. Amen to that.

faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase-martin luther king

      i love my family. i do. i just look at my kids and my hubby and i am in love. just like any other family, we have our ups and downs and i believe that in life, those downs actually change you. they make you stronger. they bring you even closer together. i met hubby in college and more than a decade later, this is our life. often times i joke around with him and say "imagine if in college we could've looked into the future and we could see what kind of life we would have". wow. i think if i did, i would've fallen in love with my kids. i mean, me? a mother of three? NO WAY. to tell you the truth, it would've scared me. the thought of all that responsibility. hmmm...maybe that's the magic of the unknown? it is scary. it is exciting. it's fun and full of possibilities. sometimes our imaginations get the best of us, doesn't it? fear itself can make us freeze.

~~~~~~~~

 i still have issues with the unknown.

i have been making jewelry for 10 yrs or so, i'm self taught. i would just stay up for hours and watch video after video. i would go to the bead store and if there was someone there buying beads, i would use the opportunity and ask questions. i wanted to make jewelry and i knew this was a passion. for a long time i created pieces for myself and people would compliment me on it. then, of course, i would tell them i made it. people loved my pieces and yet i was still scared to show many people my work. i was afraid that they wouldn't like it or it wasn't good enough. fear.

~~~~~~~~

 as years went by i got more comfortable, and eventually to the point where i started selling some pieces to friends and family. everyone thought that i should go into business, get an online shop and start sharing with the world.

here we go again. that feeling.... fear. the 'what ifs' started setting in. what if they don't like it? what if i'm pricing too high? too low? what if this isn't good enough? what if I'M not good enough? so what happened? yup. i froze. i just stayed where i was comfortable, making jewelry for family and friends. half the time i gave it away. don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with giving my jewelry as gifts, but this is how i wanted to make a living and i couldn't get comfortable with selling.

finally, one day as a dare, hubby suggested that i start a blog. i didn't know one thing about blogging, but here he was daring me. i knew i couldn't resist, so i started one. i started blogging about my everday life as a mommy, something that my children could look at when they grew up and see all the memories that mommy documented. i loved having my family blog. that was a step out of my comfort zone and i took it!

after a few years of doing my family blog, i still felt like i needed to do something that was my own. something that allowed my creativity to buzz, to inspire others.

~~~~~~~~

 i started really concentrating on making my jewelry and getting serious. i sold more pieces in the last couple of years than i ever have! yes! that is big time for me. i had to just have a talk with myself and get real. i finally decided to make my own blog and this was for my creativity and everything that i, evelyse, loved. i needed a place to just connect with other creative people. and guess what? i have and it feels so good. i have that little community of people just like me. people that are doing what they love and making money at it. it makes me feel like "hey, i can so do that". it gets me excited and inspired. i am so glad that i started this blog.

taking those little steps have given me a little bit more courage. step by step, i get a little more confident. i get a little less scared of the unknown and more excited. i have more confidence in what i do because at the end of the day, people care more about the connection they have with me. i want to make beautuful pieces for people, pieces that make them feel unique, at the same time i want to share with you a part of this journey. it's amazing because you get to go on this ride with me. that's very cool.

~~~~~~~~

 where am i at right now? i'm working on inventory and hubby is working on my website. to tell you the truth, for the first time in a long time, i don't feel scared. i don't know if people will like me or if they will buy my jewelry. it's not about that in the end. it's about following what my heart is leading and continues to lead me to. i am showing up and and the rest in not in my hands. i can only be myself, share my story and i hope that i can inspire someone else to follow their dreams. i'm letting go of the fears and the whatifs. this is what makes my heart sing and i'm gonna let it sing! every time i  take a tiny step, the next step isn't as scary.

~~~~~~~~

 i am so excited to share my creations with with you! i'm also excited to have others wear something that i, evelyse, created. how cool is that? mostly, i'm excited to inspire. i want to write my own story and i have been all along without knowing. all those fears and unknowns was part of my story. i went though them for a reason. i can finally have something here that i can not only use to share my creativity, but i can use to inpire you. for you to see that you, too, are writing your story. don't let fear take over and write it for you. take that little step with me and start listening to those little whispers. we can feel the fear and we can stomp on it and we can hold each other's hands and take those steps together. today can be the day that you can start living and creating the life you want. we deserve it!

                                                                                                      

seasons change

 

ok. so there is literally a few hours left of summer. i can smell fall making it's grand entrance. it's everywhere you look. pumpkins fill the stores, leaves are getting a little crunchy and i've been caught wearing my sweater at night. yes, i do love fall.

i think what i like and appreciate about seasons is they change. i tend to get bored after a while. hmm..maybe that's why i'm an artist. i don't have to ever do the same things over and over. i can always be me, but with change. 

                            

i have to tell you that i am so ready for it. i will miss some things about summer. my roses. the ease of just throwing flip flops on and getting in the car and ready to go. but, i know it will be here next year, and i welcome change with open arms.

i feel that the cooler months allow you to slow down, take comfort of the more simple things of life. it allows to sometimes, start over again. or maybe, to just start. and i really like that.

                                

fall into change....



beautiful summer~

(me, riding)

as summer slowly comes to an end, i find myself reflecting on all the wonderful memories we've made. it has been a summer of change, discovery. i feel like there was times that i was truly being tested and i faced whatever i had to face and pulled through. somehow.

(kyree, at 4th of july parade)

overall, my summer days were filled with lots of laughter. my baby girl doing things for the very first time. my son loosing some more teeth, and smiling so big and proud. my youngest son getting so much taller that last years pj's look like capris. my hubby and i finally taking the kids on our very first family vacation to disney world.

(my boys, at the beach)

i have also learned to let go a little more. to just simply show up to my dreams and calling and the rest will fall into place. while following the path where i am supposed to be going, i can also enjoy the ride. totally.

love~

(painting by me, hangs in my bedroom)

these past couple of days have been trying. i lost a dear friend and my heart is sad. going through this has made me think about a lot of things in my life. i think that mostly, it has taught me to say "i love you". i've been such a lucky girl, surrounded by people that love me and truly care about who i am. people who have my best interest at heart. those people know who they are and they know that i love them. nothing has changed about that. the only thing that has changed is that i want to start saying it more. sometimes it takes something sad to happen to help us reflect on the people we love. i want to start looking at moments differently, with more care, more attention. i want to start saying "i love yous" more. i want the people that i love to know that because life is so short and we never know what tomorrow brings. so, i want to live and laugh. and oh, i want to love.

yummy summer

summer. i love summer. the colors..the lazy days. even though it's not really all that lazy. the kids have kept me pretty busy. i've painted on some of those days and there seems to be so much more creativity inside of me that sometimes i want to burst! ok..i'm calm.

right now i am just taking things as they come. enjoying the process of getting things going. in the meantime i am appreciating all that i have.

i hope that all of you are doing the same. sometimes i feel like i'm just typing away to myself and no one will read this, but it's good to just let these thoughts out. have a wonderful day!!!

happy place.

hi. me here. so...i was thinking (hence the photo) that lately has been really, really good. yummy, in fact. i am trying to look at things a bit different than i did before. looking at things with more joy. feeling happy is a lot of fun i tell you. yes, i have my days just like anyone else, but i don't try to let the small things get to my spirit. lately i've loved to just lay with my baby girl and just smell her. she smells so good :) i've been also enjoying kissing my little boys all over their precious faces because i know one day they will not let me get away with it. i've enjoyed listening to the rain and blaring music and dancing with the kids like it's nobody's business. i've been making jewelry and i've surprised myself with the inspiration that's spilling over the designs-yes. love that. i hope that you too can be happy, choose to be happy. look at all the good that you have- they so outweigh the stinky and things we cannot control! enjoy your blessings because, honey, you so deserve it. good day.

Exhale~

I have been on this journey of "creating" for a long time. Not just creating, but more of finding myself and what it is that I was meant to do. What is it? Is it real that I could make jewelry and paint and STILL make a living? Maybe it's all meant to keep in the "hobby" part of my life. Funny thing is that when I'm working out there in the real world, I still kept coming back to my artistic side. I have been a follower of Kelly Rae Roberts (http://kellyraeroberts.blogspot.com/) for about two years now and she is such an inspiration to me. She started out in her artistic journey just as any normal person would. But the great thing about Kelly is that she followed her heart and stuck with it. She believed in herself even when she was scared. I am doing Kelly Rae's e-course and I have to tell you that even in a day I can feel my mind clearing and the possibilities for myself are endless! For a long time I felt that maybe I wasn't smart enough, or talented enought to own my own business. The day that I became all those things, I would start. I was so good at pushing others to do what they loved. Cheering them on. When it came to me, I was stuck. Stuck in this treadmill of watching everyone getting somewhere and enjoying what their talents would bring them. After a day of the e-course (yes, a day!) I have recognized what my fears are, written them down and I've had time to sit and think. I am going to follow and do what Kelly is offering and I am going to give myself a chance and start asking more questions like "what if I can really make a living at this?" This is the beginning of a new journey and if there is anyone out there that feels like I do- come along. Like Kelly said, there is enough room for all of us. So, let's all exhale and put the fears aside. Let's start living the lives that were meant for us to live, let's start listening to those little whispers...let's go!