Decade Recap: Creative Things Learned & Made Life More Colorful,

Everyone really does have a creative side, some of us just explore it further. I didn’t believe this 15+ years ago, but I thought of creativity as drawing or painting. It’s more than that and we all have a creative side in one way or another.

Travel doesn’t have to be expensive. People assume that you can’t travel because they cant afford it. Travel can be affordable, I make my travel affordable. You can give up something small and save for a trip. Sacrifice that fast food or make coffee at home.

Life is really what you make out of it. You can choose to be a victim, be the whoa is me kind of person or you can be a survivor. You don’t have to use past experiences as excuses for bad behavior, we ALL have baggage. (One day I’ll share my soap opera)

It took me almost half of this past decade and half of last but hey, I finished! It was a goal I had set for myself. I switched majors and that added an additional semester but I ended up happy with my choice. 

Motherhood is a completely new world for me. I had no idea how it was going to change me and the world around me. All for the good. Priorities changed and I understand deeper love. From Motherhood.

As we get older we tend to be set in our ways. Yet we have to let go and let life or the universe lead us sometimes. Great things happen when you don’t try to control everything.

There’s such more work to being an artist than just sitting in your studio making art. I know that I had no clue about this. I assumed your work consisted of just making art, but I was wrong. As an artist you are your own business, you are making a brand for yourself. This all requires hard work of a one person staff. You are the artist, the marketing team, the customer service and pretty much your own IT team. All this while somehow you make time for art making and entering exhibits.

I wish I had more artist friends. I don’t realize it until regular people don’t want or don’t understand the things I want to do. I wish that I could have a shared studio at times, but then realize why I don’t, some artists can be really stingy or secretive or untidy. Plus, I work better alone. 

Chosen family is sometimes a deeper connection than blood family because it was your choice.

Buy art from artists when they’re starting out, that’s the cheapest it will ever be. I’m not at the same prices as when I first started pricing my work to sell, I was also clueless back then. A teacher told me to double my frame, and I listened. Cheap, cheap, and even cheaper. That’s why I encourage people who want to buy art affordable, do it while the artist is starting out or as they are students. They don’t know much about pricing and it will be the cheapest it will ever be. I follow this myself for art I purchase. (You should still like the art you’re buying)

Not every friend will be on the forever train with you. It’s sad but true. See them leaving as you are moving on to greater things destined for you.

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One never thinks of exploring their own backyard (city) as traveling but it is. If you don’t know where to take an out of town guest for a few days you don’t know your city.

Never assume an opportunity isn’t for you because you don’t have enough experience. Easier said than done I know. I remember being intimidated about entering an exhibit along with graduate students when I was still an undergraduate art student. I’m glad someone pushed me to do it. I’ve also been intimidated when it’s at a big gallery or museum. But if you let all those things get in the way, you will never know, and you will be wondering what if. Don’t get discouraged if you don’t get it. 

Failure is part of the learning road. Failure means you tried. Some people don’t even try.

I read this somewhere and I wish I would have read it to my younger self. It took me years to understand that not everyone will like me, or many. That this is perfectly fine. Those that really get you don’t have to be many. I am definitely not for everyone.

I used to be so careful with my art supplies while a student because you know you barely have money. Then I realized that supplies go bad or I really don’t know what something can do if I don’t use it.

I’m a huge advocate of document life in general. I’m also attached to a camera. Life is shorter than we think and it goes by so fast. Those memories that we document is what preserves life for ourselves and for others.

It’s so simple to do, we have it so easy to just do that little part for the environment. If you want motivation, you can get paid to do it.

You always think to be sick or to be diagnosed with an illness is for old people. Yet, I saw the symptoms of my PCOS getting worse and more noticeable as in my early 20’s. 

They have so much wisdom and stories to tell you. Embrace them, especially if they are your family. I got to know where my story started, the stories of my ancestors all from talking to my grandparents. 

If you imagine history as a soap opera, you might enjoy it more. I’ve always been a history nerd but the more I read about history the more fascinated I become. Yet, my husband was not a fan until I would tell him all the juicy parts, he really thinks of it as a good real life soap opera.

I always heard a saying that you couldn’t love someone else until you loved yourself. In my case how could I join my life to someone if I didn’t really know who I was. I went and I found myself, it took a long time and lots of tears but I am better because of it.

Follow through in anything you set your mind to do. If you want to do something or say you are going to achieve something, do it! It’s a waste of energy, time and air to just say things and never do them. It bothers me when I have something set in mind and I can’t get to it. Worst yet, don’t include me in plans that you don’t plan on seeing through.

I’ve learned to not compare. By comparing you are stopping your path, the way it’s supposed to flow to try to follow someone else’s way. Do you, your way.

I set goals in my life for my career and relationships. It’s something to strive to achieve those goals that make you better and stronger. Achieving them is an entire sense of acomplishment.

Lately all of the books I read are about art, countries I want to visit or history.  Books enrich our lives and feed our brains. People think reading is boring, but if you choose a subject that you enjoy you will love the book. 

I used to feel bad about saying no to someone. Why? I don’t know, maybe it was my people pleasing flaw. Now I say no all the time and never worry about it. I’m not obligated to do anything if I don’t want to.

I’m a control freak, so this comes as a hard lesson for me. Yet, I’ve learned to accept that you can’t change somethings, people are who the are and life is full of curveballs.

This decade turned my boyfriend into my fiance. We came a long way and I made him wait a long time. I just wasn’t ready, I needed to find me. Like a saying I’ve heard since I was young, you can’t love someone else until you can love yourself. I was missing a part of me.

Not only did I get engaged and married all in the same decade. Now we have celebrated a few anniversaries. Love happens when you least expect it, not looking for it, and wrapped up in a person you needed.

My time is the first thing that comes when speaking of sacrifices. I could never picture myself as a mother, maybe because of my rocky relationship with my mother. Yet, here I am as happy as can be, giving my life, time and energy to a little boy. If there is time in the day I get to do my things. My priority is that little boy. 

I also sacrifice meaningless things (material things) that I can live without for you guessed it, the travel life.

It may have taken me half my life to figure this one out but I did. It’s just more time consuming, a bit more expensive but your health is worth it. 

In a lot of things less is more. Quality over quantity. In material things, in friendships, in people in your inner circle and makeup. 

I say this as I type at 10p.m. because I’m caught up on sleep right now. Pre baby life I didn’t realize the importance of sleep. Sleeping is amazing. Ask your brain if you don’t believe me. Our entire body begs for enough sleep.

I do appreciate him for all the things he does for our family. He works hard so I can stay home with our little one. He’s also a hands on father, helpful husband that will do housework to help me out. Plus he is my biggest fan. 

I never realized how little I was walking. I used to walk all the time. I guess when you drive to everything and nothing is in walking distance this tends to happen. I changed this, having my tracker and making sure I reach my goal everyday.

I’m glad I finished school and decided on a BFA degree. Yet, there’s a lot of things that college didn’t teach me, that I wish they would have. For example #7 would have nice to know while I was still a student. These were all things I had to learn on my own how to do and how to apply it to my art business.

Study abroad is something that has always been on my bucket list. I also thought it would be for six months or more. Still one month in Italy did wonders. I learned a lot about myself and it confirmed my decision on choosing an art career. From Study Abroad

There is never a “right” time or age to go somewhere. Go! I have learned that there is no magical perfect time formula. This applies for a travel, moving to another state/country, going to school, starting a business, or starting a family.

From our Thanksgiving roadtrip