2011: Getting Creative

Probably the most surprising thing that happened this year was how thoroughly I found my creative side.

I'm a blogger. Back in January I started my blog. The purpose has been consistent, mainly to just share my experiences with my family, house and life. It has been a great outlet for planning and getting more creative juices flowing. Blogging has not only encouraged me to write more often and think things out, but it has also improved my camera use and abilities. I try (albeit unsuccessfully) to take more pictures and I try to take better pictures (since it is no fun to share crappy pictures with you all).

Wedding Crafts. The wedding was one of my initial craft endeavors. Last winter I decided to start with my own Save the Dates and then my bouquets and invitations came along quickly after that. (I still have to thank all my girls for their help!) It was a lot of fun to make something more formal. Also a unique experience to make 100+ versions of the same thing. I really had to research to find the right way to do things and it involved some trial and error. I definitely don't think a DIY wedding is for everyone, but I think it worked well for me and my vision of the wedding and made me feel that much more into wedding planning.

DIY for the home. Thanks to Pinterest and blogging I have had a lot of ideas for DIY projects for our house. I think I have really only done one so far is my Fall wreath. I have a lot of inspiration and still a lot of blank walls to fill up so there will definitely be more to come. The more I DIY, the more stuff I end up with overall!

Decorating. Along the same lines of DIY projects for the house, I have fallen in love with decorating my house. Again, I get so many ideas online that I just want to go right out and do it all! Fortunately I do wait and sit back and research and usually blog about what I am considering before I do anything. I really want to make sure I am making the right choice and/or the right purchase. This is really helpful because not only does it mean I am being more thoughtful about my house, but since I take my time to weigh my thoughts, I end up spending less in the long run.

Piano. I have very briefly started learning playing piano. It has been like 2 months since I last played, but I did get some excellent piano books for Christmas so I can keep learning. I love music and I am definitely excited to get these specific creative pieces of my brain in action.

Even Dylan has mentioned a couple times this year how pleasantly surprised he is at how creative I have been. I am an accountant for my job and I obviously like to organize things and tend to be meticulous, so it really is refreshing to know that right side of my brain works a lot too!