Wandering with my Camera

Life has been pretty hectic for me lately - Mr A has been overseas for work for 2 weeks meaning everything is left to me.  I have not had enough time to do all those creative things I so love to do *sigh*.  This morning I decided to pick up the camera and just go for a wander - take a little time to just take in what is going on around me - absorb - I am so very drawn to nature when out with my camera - showing the earth sign in me I guess.  

I am starting part two of Sheye Rosemeyer's fantastic online photography course in just over a week and I can't wait - I am ready to learn more.

Enjoy my morning wander with the sunshine, the bees and the spring flowers









Leanne

Why do you blog?

Sometimes it's easy to get caught up. Isn't it?

For me it's work. And housework. And trying to be a super-mum. Failing miserably. Feeling like I have to blog/ tweet/ Facebook/ Youtube every second to keep up. With what, I don't know. Again, failing miserably.

I love my blog. But this year Ive taken a step back. I used to think constantly about it - what dazzling bit of literary genius I could unleash on a daily basis. worrying about how many followers I had/ didn't have, tweaking with gadgets and gizmos to give myself the 'edge'...

I started my blog three years ago as a way of recording my life and the inspirations I came across along the way. I had given up work and was a bit lost. At the time there were about a tenth of the blogs there are now; I felt like I could keep a grip on the content that was out there and I quickly developed 'friendships' with fellow women on similar paths. At the time, no one else I knew blogged.

Nowadays of course, nearly everyone has some form of blog. Don't they? And where I once felt cozy and warm in the little blogging bubble I often feel like a little fish in an Atlantic sized fish bowl, with barrages upon barrages of information that I can never possibly hope to keep up with no matter how hard I try. And I find the bigger it gets the less I try...

Blogging is harder to keep up with now, don't you think? I mean. There's conferences and national awards and large companies beating down doors to get access to this rapidly expanding inner sanctum of the modern woman. I've been approached by prospective 'sponsors' along the way but a conscious decision I made early on was not to dilate my space with advertisers and advertising. I never started a blog to make money. Money as not a motivating factor for blogging for me at all.

They say in order for information to exist is has to have three forms of backup. Well, if you don't have a personal blog, a Facebook and Twitter account... do you exist? I sometimes wonder...

This year - of course - I started my Bubby Makes Three business. My little Etsy store that started with five sets of bloomers/ singlets and has now grown and expanded in ways I could only have dreamed! It's given me a new focus and creative outlet and has given me a new purpose and vigour for life... I love everything about my little business and the success I have had in such a relatively short time and I have bigger dreams for it that I will share with you later...

People often ask me where I find the time. And the answer is - I don't! The truth is folks, there are only 24 hours in the day. I've got two little kids. And a a business. You can't do it all (I know, I've tried!) and something's gotta give. In some ways for me, its been my blog. I can't give it what I used to but I've stopped feeling guilty about it!

My blog is still here bubbling away in the background and I still have a soft spot for it in my heart... it's just that its taken a backseat to other things. I still blog because I still have things I want to say. To share. To communicate with the outside world. And I still cherish those that take the time to visit. To leave a little comment. To pop me an email. I never get tired of that.

But it's not my sole focus. I want to take time out with my children to feed the ducks. And today folks, I did! With girl's from the original mothers-group I attended with Fern...

why do YOU blog? Do you think the blogging landscape has changed since you started and how? Do you feel you need to 'keep up'? I'd love your thoughts on this!!
x



eastern beach

while on our holidays we took a short drive to Geelong {in Victoria} home to these friendly peeps!!





along the sea front @ eastern beach you could almost feel like you were a million miles away soaking up the rays somewhere tropical





there is plenty to do



& see



a perfect spot to enjoy lunch & a ride on a carousel {more of that later!}

how beautiful

are these 

gorgeous wall decals. from here


Image of all the stars tiding
Image of you are my sunshineImage of dotted garland






blog here

it's on the list...

The Brooklyn leather camera satchel from ONA
the evening lounge chair list. our pipe-dreaming list of unlikely purchases. now our second bub is due, the focus (scuse the pun) has shifted from exotic travel destinations to objects of desire. as far as the 'his and hers' category goes, a big bunch of Apple products would come in handy, along with a new film scanner - to convert our growing collection of unprocessed rolls into easily scanned images for uploading.

as for the bag, it's as much about compartments as it is about style. I should probably be lusting after a designer nappy bag, but many seem a bit costly given the generally 'soft' nature of the contents. on the other hand, protection for a pricier camera/lens combo is an expense you could almost justify. food for thought: maybe there's a gap in the market for a mum-photographer-blogger nappy bag? so friends, what's at the top of your list?

The rainbow party invitations I didn't buy


I had this great concept for rainbow party invites... which is probably why I didn't buy them at the newsagency. Which is probably why I never buy them at the newsagency - what other creative outlet have I got besides Tsunami birthday parties? I just love 'em!




On the other side of the rainbow are all the details of the party. I confess I took that cute little cloud face from Paper Glitter's rainbow party suite (which may be the wrong thing to do and I'm really sorry... but I couldn't resist that little face).

Can't wait to show you what else I have planned for this little shindig. But, of course, absolutely nothing else is ready yet. I've got plenty of time...

How important is it to you to stretch your creative muscle*?
Have you been working on something lately?

For more creative muscle limbering, head on over here!

*Pretty much the only muscle I'm working out right now!

Red Lilly

Red Lilly
Enchanted forest place mats by Red Lilly
Fabric bird decoration by Red Lilly
Ceramic bird stopper by Red Lilly
Easter boxes by Red Lilly

This week for my 'shops i love' page I bring you Red Lilly. I chose Red Lilly this week as they have some adorable bird home and gift accessories.

Red Lilly is an online boutique selling an eclectic mix of stylish homewares, gifts, jewellery and bags. As well as their own label they also stock Scandinavian brands, British labels and exotic finds from further afield!

I adore the ceramic bird stoppers and must get more of the hand painted birds for this year's Christmas tree. Currently I have an aqua one that resides on my bird cage notice board in the kitchen and another pink one that hangs on my louvre doors.

Have a sweet day!