Posts from the ‘Personal’ Category

Feb 26

Fun Gifts with Messages

I love quotes, sayings, and mantras. In fact, quotes are shown all over our house! I can’t live without them! I somewhat recently discovered mantras and saying on jewelry. I discovered Mantra Bands through a friend at the end of last year; and I discovered Dogeared a little over a year ago. These pieces are made in the USA and they make wonderful gifts for friends and family.

Mantra Bands are bracelets with uplifting mantras, which make great gifts. A few of my favorite mantra’s, including my word for the year, ‘present,’ are shown below.

Links: Be Present; Follow Your Bliss; Live in the Moment; Faith Hope Love; Brave; Fearless; Everything Happens for a Reason; Forever Family; and Never Give Up.

Dogeared is a line of jewelry that contains different types of jewelry pieces that are simple and versatile. Each piece tells a story of individuality, self-expression, love, and friendship. A few of my favorite necklaces are shown below.

Links: I am Brave; I am Fearless; Love Knot; Circle; Pearls of Happiness; Good Karma; Sisters; Happy Tails; In Dogs we Trust; Healing Gem; Going Places; and I Have Angels.

Happy Friday! We hope that you have a lovely weekend. We are in store for some sun and warmer temperatures, that we hope to take advantage of with our freshly bathed fur girl, Victory!

Feb 19

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Around Here: February

Well, winter is truly here. We have had quite a bit snow, and it has been cold here, but it will be a warm weekend reaching near 60 degrees! Below are some items that have occurred around here in February!

-continuing to work steadily on my long-term photography project, and one portion of the deliverable remains to be completed; hopefully, I have a couple more months to go to finally finish!

-working on a new design for my website, which I hope will be finished later this spring/summer.

-my Mom and I have finished planning the final details for my sister’s baby shower next month!

-we are working on the final details of Victory’s portrait, which will be Audrey Hepburn inspired, to be painted this year, similar to Biscuit’s painting where they will hang side by side in our home!

-working on a color spot — one for Biscuit and one for Victory to hang in our home.

-we have planned our vacations for this year, and they will all, of course, include our fur girl, Victory! She is getting to be a well-traveled little sheltie! We are doing our vacations a little different this year than in past years. We are spending them with each of our families and taking a few shorter trips on our own. This year we are headed to Keeneland located in Lexington, Kentucky; Lake Michigan; Atlanta; and Charleston! And, for one of our trips, there will be three Ergos! It will be so much fun!

-burning candles in the house!

-enjoying date nights with Doug!

-enjoying a fun Valentine’s Day with my loves!

-enjoying cooking with Doug and trying new dinner recipes. Here are a few of our recent favorites so far this month: Louisiana Chicken Pasta and Chicken Di Pana.

-still enjoying my yoga class!

-I began reading When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi — a really good read.

-watched the first and second seasons of Mozart in the Jungle — a good television series.

-started the second season of Better Call Saul — a good television series.

-excited and looking forward to going to Michigan to meet, hold, and photograph our soon-to-be nephew in several weeks! We can’t wait to spoil him!

-using my new Fitbit and I’m hitting 10,000 steps per day most days.

-continuing to make more progress on our ever-growing to do list!

Happy Friday! Have a wonderful weekend! We are hosting a dinner over the weekend, and it should be fun! We also will take our fur girl, Victory, for some outings to take advantage of this warmer weather as it has been quite cold here. Victory will also get a much needed bath this weekend, and thankfully it will be warm!

Feb 12

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Happy Valentine’s Day – Doug and Victory!

Happy Valentine’s Day to my two loves — you both make my life so much sweeter! (Biscuit is never forgotten and he will always be our first fur love).

We cannot believe that it is our third Valentine’s Day with little Victory, and for Doug and I it is our twelfth Valentine’s Day together! Where has the time gone! I can still vividly remember our first Valentine’s Day together. I have every Valentine’s Day card (and every other card) Doug has given me; and on our first Valentine’s Day, we gave each other the same card unbeknownst to each other, a good omen!

For Valentine’s Day, Victory is getting some fun valentine themed chew toys, and a couple of small bowls for her snacks/treats! We are excited for spring to come, in a little over a month, and we hope that it comes early, as we are in a deep freeze here! Doug and I are celebrating Valentine’s Day this weekend by going to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in D.C. and then we will spend the evening together with our fur girl, Victory, likely watching a Netflix/Amazon marathon! My loves, Doug and Victory, are shown below!

Happy Valentine’s Day to all! I hope that you have a lovely long weekend!

“Keep love in your heart. A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead.” –Oscar Wilde

Feb 10

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Good Read: Inspirational Books

I thought that I would share some inspirational books!

Savor: Living Abundantly Where You Are, As You Are by Shauna Niequist: Savor contains 365 daily readings, plus there are great recipes included throughout the book. Each daily reading is short and poignant, and designed to help you pause in your day, to consider your everyday life, to slow down, and notice the beauty right where you are. Each reading ends with a question or statement to ponder throughout your day. Below is an excerpt from this book.

“I want to arrive. I want to get to wherever I’m going and stay there. That’s why I used to be such a ferocious planner of my life. But I’ve learned to just keep moving, keep walking, keep taking teeny tiny steps. In those teeny tiny steps and moments I become who I am. We don’t arrive. But we can become. And that’s the most hopeful thing I can think of. In the passing moments of our lives, in the small steps we take, we are shaped into who we are becoming. What small steps have you taken recently? How have they shaped you? Who are you becoming?” –Shauna Niequist

Brave Enough by Cheryl Strayed: I love quotes, and this book is a collection of quotes and nuggets of advice and inspirational wisdom. This book makes a great gift for women. Below is one of my favorite quotes.

“The thing about rising is we have to continue upward; the thing about going beyond is we have to keep going.” — Cheryl Strayed

Outrageous Openness: Let the Divine Take the Lead by Tosha Silver: This book is about opening up to life, intuition, and divine guidance. Each chapter contains pearls of playful wisdom. Silver urges one to be open and provides examples of what happens when we practice from that place. This book focuses on putting one’s faith in the divine/Universe/God/life to bring us what we need, while bringing an attitude of curiosity, acceptance, and generosity towards ourselves and others.

A Year Without Fear by Tama Kieves: I first read this book, a collection of daily inspirational wisdom, last year, and I am rereading this book again this year. Each day’s reading provides inspiration. Below is one of my favorite quotes.

“Trust each moment to take you where you need to go. You won’t always have the same feelings or thoughts or perspective. One day you wake up and new opportunities become available. Opportunities are like a carousel ride with colorful horses that sail around and around. When it’s your time, you’ll see your horse. You’ll jump and fly through the air like a natural. You’re always a natural in the right time. Today I remember that in the right time, I’ll see my opportunity.” –Tama Kieves

Feb 8

Finding the Time…

“How do you find the time?” is a questions that I get asked I have been working away for three and a half years on my long-term photography project that is really important to me. I think the simplest answer to this question is that if you want something badly enough, you somehow find the time, and you find the time in the most unlikely places. There are many people who do not finish projects, let alone a long-term project that requires, a lot of work, effort, perseverance, and patience. Below are some ways to find more time to devote to a creative endeavor with our limited and constant 24 hours per day.

1. Stay Organized: Staying organized is key. The more organized you are, the more you are able to foresee space to carve out on your schedule and dedicate time to a project ahead of time. It is helpful to keep a running list of items you want to accomplish.

2. Identify your Most Productive Time: Everyone has a time of day where they are most productive and alert. Figure out what this time is for you, as it is best to carve out time during these optimal times and leverage these times accordingly. The mornings are my most productive times, and I utilize these times, and wake up earlier to utilize this time.

3. Set Aside Time: The more you are able to set aside time on your calendar and treat it like an important appointment, the less likely you are to waste this time.

4. Prioritize: Instead of watching television or surfing the web, social media, apps, etc., use this time to get constructive work completed. It is amazing how much time is needlessly wasted engaging in these activities, when this time could be used for more productive creative projects.

5. Avoid Interruptions: While you are working on your project/creative endeavor, to help maintain your focus, turn your phone off; turn your email off; and turn social media off to prevent distractions so that you are able to solely focus your attention on your project. It is amazing how small interruptions easily get you track from the task at hand.

6. Say “No.”: It is really easy to take on more work and commitments; and then you find that the time that you have carved out for your project is gone. It is best to not take on anymore commitments than necessary in order to guard and protect your creative work time.

Happy creating!

Feb 3

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Four Year Blogiversary!

Today is the four-year Blogiversary of www.biscuitsspace.com in conjunction with my photography website. It is really difficult to believe that four years have already passed by so quickly! The blog has, fortunately, come a ways since I started the blog four years ago! My favorite part about the blog is the header, featuring Biscuit and Victory!

If it were not for our beloved Biscuit, I am not sure I would have ever started blogging and I know that I would not have started my long-term photography project, for which Biscuit and Victory are my inspiration. Biscuit was such a blessing and gift to us. Biscuit permanently changed our lives in so many ways and Biscuit sent us our precious little rescue sheltie, Victory, who we adore and love, shown below! And, coincidentally, Victory is as old as the blog!

Thank you for reading this blog for however long or short you have been visiting! I truly enjoy creating content for the blog to share with all of you, and I hope that you continue to enjoy visiting and reading the blog!

Thank you so very much! xoxo

Feb 1

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2016 Happiness Jar

This post is a little late this year. However, starting at the beginning of 2014, I decided to make and keep a happiness jar throughout 2014. In 2015, I kept a larger happiness jar, which I filled up during 2015, pictured below, which I sifted through after the Holidays. It is nice to have the ability to reflect upon the past year through tiny pieces and snippets of paper.

This year, I bought an even larger mason jar for my happiness jar in 2016, shown below. At the beginning of January this year, I started to write down at least one happy/grateful sentiment/moment at the end of each day and place it in my new jar in order to create and cultivate a way to remember snippets from each day and to foster more gratitude this year. It is easy and it only takes a few minutes each day, and there is no simpler or less demanding spiritual practice. I highly recommend this practice. I am also still using my wish ball!

Happy Monday!

Jan 19

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Around Here: January

Winter is really here! Our walks are much cooler these days. I do not love winter, as there is much less light during the day, however, I enjoy the changing seasons. I am using this time to work steadily on my project, which I hope and plan to finish this year! There is finally some light at the end of this tunnel I have been wading through for some time! Below are some items that have occurred around here in January!

-continuing to work steadily on my long-term photography project, and one portion of the deliverable remains to be completed!

-celebrated Doug’s recent well-deserved promotion! Yay! I am so happy for him.

-working with my Mom to finish planning the final details of my sister’s baby shower! (I found the most adorable baby shower invitations!)

-helping to plan and coordinate a fun summer family trip together near the water.

-burning candles all over the house!

-enjoying date nights with Doug!

-enjoying cooking with Doug and trying new dinner recipes using our slow cooker.

-still enjoying my yoga class!

-I am reading Sally Mann’s memoir, Hold Still Sally Mann. It is a fascinating read, and I enjoy learning about the lives of artists I admire. If you are interested, here is an interesting interview with Sally Mann about her new book.

-started the documentary, Making a Murderer. (Here is the trailer).

-started the final season of Downton Abbey.

-watched the second season of Transparent.

-enjoying playing Mexican Train Dominos. (Doug is really good at this game!)

-started using my new Fitbit and I’m aiming for 10,000 steps per day, and making this goal most days.

-finished outlining some of my personal goals for 2106.

-decided on my one little word for the year for 2016.

-finished making my Happiness Jar for 2016.

-continuing to make more progress on our ever-growing to do list!

Victory is pictured below during our 2.6 mile walk together at a park near our house this past weekend! She was a trooper and she walked the entire way! We are making progress!

Happy Tuesday!

Jan 15

Things I Love: Winter 2016

It is officially winter with the colder temperatures, and I wanted to share some items that I love! Winter, along with the cold temperatures and short days, is not my favorite time of year, but I am making the best this season this year, while focusing on finishing my project. The cooler weather provides more time to do editing work for my photography project and it also provides time to catch up on things inside our house that I would otherwise put aside. Below are the items I am loving during the winter!

1. Mantra Bands – A friend recently told me about Mantra Bands. I love them and I sent several as Christmas gifts this year. I have the one that reads, “Be Present,” which is my word and mantra for this year. Thus, I am constantly reminded of my word for the year!

2. Athletica Down Vest — Doug got me a vest from Athletica, and I love it. It has come in very handy, especially since the beginning part of winter has been unseasonably warm. It is very comfortable and keeps me warm without simultaneously being too warm!

3. Goody Hair Ribbon Elastics — I recently discovered these hair ribbon elastics, and I love them. I find them to hold my hair much better than regular hair rubber bands.

4. Clinique Face Primer — I have been using the Clinique Universal Face Primer, and I love it. My makeup, when I wear it, goes on so much more easily, and it prevents flaking in the dryer, cooler months.

5. Fitbit – As part of my Christmas present from my parents, I got a Fitbit, and I love it. It helps keep me on track with my movement, and I have been reaching 10,000 steps on most days!

6. Hold Still Sally Mann — After the Holidays, I started reading Sally Mann’s new memoir, and I am enjoying this book. I love reading about other photographers and artists’ lives. I like Sally Mann’s work and it is really intriguing to read more about her life and her artistic process. I recommend this book to any artist.

You can view other things I love here!

Happy Friday!

Jan 12

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Fun Tangible Images

I am a big supporter of printing personal images, therefore making them tangible. I am currently in the process of having archival fine art prints made, which we will frame and hang around our home. It will be really wonderful to soon finish this project!

I have printed photo magnets, which we’ve placed on our refrigerator/freezer, which has brought great joy, along with my quotable magnets, which I love. These photo magnets have also made great gifts, too! These magnets are also really easy to update with more recent images, thereby keeping the images current. Also, they are always a conversation starter, when we have guests over. Below is a snapshot of the top portion of our refrigerator/freezer. We have photo magnets and quotable magnets all the way down to the floor on our refrigerator/freezer! If you would like to showcase some personal images in your kitchen, and if you are interested in having photo magnets made, check out Sticky9!

Happy Tuesday!