distance.

Oh! Hey! Look at the new layout.. Compliments of Alexa.. She's my tech-savvy friend. Check out her blog for all things adorable :) Oh! And make-up. She's a boss when it comes to cosmetology. Okay, okay. End shameless plug for Horizon & Form.

Soo.. Speaking of Alexa.. that reminds me of the subject matter of this post. Distance.
With new technological advances, it's so easy to stay in touch with those you love who aren't exactly within walking distance. People capitalize on that privilege every single day. Some more than others. I am one of those people. Some may say that's rather..sadistic of me to mainly choose to spend my time talking to people who are far away.. I say it's choosing the people who play a huge role in my life wisely.

Let's see. Where do I start? Well, first of all, my dad. He's like a best friend to me, and he lives in Michigan. He has lived there most of my life, so it's just kind of a thing I live with and accept as a norm. Sure, the distance can get in the way when life in general gets in the way. It's easy to let a relationship slip away when there's distance involved. I am guilty of that. Sometimes I've even hurt loved ones because of my lack of effort put into a relationship. That includes my dad. I take full responsibility for being terrible at returning calls, texts and Facebook messages. I like to think that I've worked really hard at turning that around.

Moving right along. Next, there's my grandmother, Mom Becky. I've recently been an absolute turd when it comes to communication with her. And she doesn't even live that far away! We are still in the same state. I could sit here and list off all the excuses that seem to be logical reasons as to why I couldn't/didn't initiate conversation and/or reply to her attempts at communication with me. And for that I'm sorry. With distance in the picture, it's really easy to put important people in your life on the back burner to deal with whatever life crisis is currently at hand. But it's still no excuse. These two relationships mean the world to me. They are actually the two key relationships that I credit for my turning out to be a decent individual. So, in these cases, I allowed distance to become a driving factor in the decay of my relationships with two of the most important people in my life. This is something I have started working on and will continue to work on.

Next, there's what I call my "Eisley family". These are people who I have met and grown to love because we share a love for the band Eisley. I found pretty much all of them on Instagram with the exception of my friend, Kasi, who I've known since probably the beginning of secondary school. The others are spread out across the states and even in Canada. These are relationships that I work really hard to keep alive. These people are so important to me. They are there for me whenever I need a shoulder--even if that shoulder is an entire country or states and states away. We always have something to talk about and advice to lend to one another. It makes my days easier. It makes life a little sweeter. And one day we will all unite and there will be an explosion of bunnies and rainbows and unicorns and cupcakes and Disney and Hillary Calhoun bows and happiness. Yes, one day that will happen. So, there's an example of how distance can be just an absolute piece of cake.

Then, there's Isaac. Oh, boy. The saga of Isaac and Chelsea is just too extremely long and complicated to share here. But! I can give you the short...
I met that kid at a Sucre show, which in my opinion is probably the most epic way for me to meet someone I would end up (after lots and lots and lots of complications and sacrifice) being in a relationship with. Yeah, this Isaac and Chelsea thing is quite the complicated matter.
You see, we live four hours apart. Ouch! Right?! I guess it could be worse. We could be separated by many states, many countries, many rivers etc. But instead we are lucky, and we are only four hours apart. I guess we could be more fortunate and live in the same town. But at the same time, I think we like the distance just about as much as we hate it. It allows for each of us to focus on the essence of what makes us our individual selves. And that's so important to both of us. While the road can definitely be rocky at times, we make it work. Do we ever second guess the entire situation? Sure. But we always arrive at the same conclusion: our love for each other surpasses any amount of distance. And sure, juggling our lives in our separate cities has proven to be tiresome at times. However, it's worth it. He's worth every mile.
So there you have it. An instance in which distance is both extremely hard and extremely easy.

Distance. It's a big theme in my life. It certainly makes me appreciate those people so much more. I think I really like the struggle of keeping things alive.. whether it be plants, baby kitties (which by the way, we have two kittens now) or relationships. I think I was born to live with distance being a prominent thing in my life, and I've come to accept and embrace that fact.

Friends, meet Fiona Apple. 

Oh! I took the ole tripod out the other day. Here's an outfit. Yay for Autumn and falling leaves and cardigans!

Polka dot cardigan: gifted

Bob Dylan shirt: Target

Black skinnies: American Eagle (so many seasons ago)

Marilyn Monroe and JFK shoes: painted by a friend in high school.. they have so many miles on them! Even Samson thinks they are kind of strange.. 

Thanks for reading!

xo   -chelsea

Birthday parties and downtown hangs

Well, I'm posting two days in a row. Let's see how long this will last, because I know myself. Life gets in the way, and it is likely that I will forget about this blog for long periods of time. Consider yourself warned.

Two weeks ago I got the privilege of photographing one of my oldest friend's daughter's fourth birthday party. Sometimes my camera makes me a couple dollars, and that's nice. The party was fun. I love seeing a kid's face light up with each guest who arrives. Sure, presents are fun, but that's not what it's all about. Don't get me wrong, she loved opening presents and blowing out the candles on her cake, but having loved ones there was enough for a while.

Here is the birthday girl, Kailee-Ann, and her beautiful mommy, Candice. I feel so fortunate to have this family in my life. 

Little cousin, Link, was just too cute to NOT take pictures of. One of the most well behaved little ones I've met. 

Little sis, Zoe-Jane, was being a major ham!

Link's mommy made it, and he was so excited to see her. 

I've known these ladies since I can remember. They've always treated me like family, and as you can see, they are an absolute pleasure to be around. 

Kaden and his mommy, Amber, are just adorable in this picture. I love capturing those moments of happiness that aren't exactly planned for pictures. 

So, after I finished my "job" (to me, it's too fun to be called a "job"), Kaden decided he needed to practice his photography skills. Candice, Amber and I were forced in front of the camera. 

How dreadful :)

Sister sandwich!

Aaaand... this would be my default pose..

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In other news..

This morning after dropping Iley off, I decided to get my camera out and walk around downtown for a bit. I have always had this insatiable wanderlust, but in more recent years, I've learned that I should enjoy the world around me. I'm in no position to move away at this point in my life, so why not make the most of the environment I have? I've actually come to love this place that I couldn't wait to get away from. 

It's not so bad. I actually miss it when I'm away. I went to visit my man friend in western Kentucky for a week last month, and I found myself searching for a body of water. I guess I'm so spoiled living right on the Mississippi river that I automatically assume that everyone has such beautiful scenery. We really do have a lot of cool antique shops and just downtown area in general, as well.  It isn't until I got to other places that I realize it could be worse. 

The midwest has never been my first choice, but I think I'm finally embracing where I am. I think all parts of the world have so much beauty, but sometimes our preconceived notions prevent us from basking in that beauty. I've learned that only I am responsible for how the world around me appears. It's all about perception, and I choose to perceive all places as beautiful. Even if it's only the graffiti in a city that stands out...in my opinion, that's beauty. Yeah. Beauty. This world is full of it. Open your eyes. 

Today's playlist is Lana Del Rey and Buke and Gass. Yes. Today is a beautiful day. 

-Chelsea

Here we go...

Well, here we go. 

I've been meaning to do this for such a long time. My mind races all day long with rants and random thoughts about this and that. That's pretty specific, eh? 

So, what can I tell you that you don't already know about me? Well, I guess that depends on who you are. Maybe you've known me my entire life. Maybe just a year. Maybe just a day. Maybe you don't even know me personally. I guess I'll go with that. We will assume that you know nothing. Now the question has become 'what do you need to know?' Well..

I guess I could start by telling you about a day in the life of Chelsea Bere'. But then I guess that depends on what day of the week we are talking about. Most days start with my alarm singing me lovely tunes--right now it's Currents by Eisley. Oh, Stacy King, I will wake up for your beautiful voice any day..

Let's see, where were we? Oh! Yes. Good morning.. Well, to be honest, what comes next isn't always pleasant. I have to wake sleeping beauty to get her ready for kindergarten. That's often a task. It usually goes something like this:
"I don't want to go to school!"
or
"I need more sleep than that!"
or
"Is it the weekend, yet?"
or
"Nooooooooooo.."
and rarely
"Good morning, momma! Can I snuggle you for a little bit before we put my uniform on?"
..but that one is so rare that I'm not even sure why I shared it.. 

After that, it's uniform time. This is all new to me. And Iley. She isn't exactly a fan of being so limited on her wardrobe options in the mornings. I invested in some super wacky socks and belts in consideration of her... well.. eclectic taste in clothing. That helps a little, I guess. 

So, now that we have Princess Peach dressed, it's time for breakfast. This usually involves a lot of prompting to take bites and quit staring into space or petting the kitties. Then, it's time to brush teeth, grab the backpack, lunchbox, water bottle and violin--because orchestra starts in kindergarten these days.. Child prodigy anyone? <--hey, I made a funny, because her school has "prodigy" in its name. Coincidence? I think not. 

From here, I take her to school and give her about hundred kisses--because she will do anything to keep me around as long as she can--and who am I to argue with kisses?

So now peaches is at school, and it's time for me to do all the things that I find hard to do when she's home. I may pick up a book or turn some music on. I read my psychology journals in search of articles that might contribute to the dreaded introduction portion of my current research project. Oh! And we cannot forget kitty snuggles. I spend a chunk of my day doing that, and I have zero regrets about it.

Coffee is also a huge part of my daily life. I used to be a coffee snob, but being a poor college student and parent sometimes slaps you in the face and tells you to wake the eff up and look at your bank account. So, home brewing it is. 

I guess another thing about my daily routine that I have yet to shared is spinach. I love spinach. And pretty much all fruits and vegetables. Because when you're a vegetarian, you have to like those things or you could very possibly form a vitamin deficiency. And ain't no body got time for that! 

So, the rest of my day is made up of picking Iley up, taking her to dance or gymnastics, cooking nutritious and delicious dinners, discussing what she's learning in school, practicing violin and reading a bedtime story. Right now we are working on Harry Potter and the sorcerer's stone. We both enjoy fantasy worlds. Hey, I'm still eagerly awaiting the arrival of my acceptance letter to Hogwarts. Never giving up that dream.. or becoming a mermaid. That's going to happen. I have faith. 

I guess that'll be enough of my ramblings. Stay tuned for my rants, random thoughts and insight on my many areas of expertise. Because making spinach and hummus sandwiches counts as an area of expertise, right?

Thanks for reading.

Chelsea