Because we work most evenings and weekends, we take Mondays off. They are our "Day of Wonderment" for personal time—no work allowed unless it's an emergency. The toughest thing for me is, I'm really lousy at relaxing. My body doesn't know how to rest, my mind is always running a mile a minute and I feel the need to be busy doing something all the time. I'm not a napper... If I am "at rest" I'm usually trying to go to sleep for the night. Mondays have been a learning process for me and I have honestly had to practice "resting".
Yesterday, against my will [and my lengthy to-do list], I finally rested my mind and body a bit and the unexplainable happened: I busted out in silent, streaming tears. Why? No idea. As I curled into a little ball on the couch I tried to hide the fact that my face was red and tear-soaked. Instead of looking for the root of the tears, I became extremely embarrassed and began reprimanding myself, "Pull it together, Amber! You're acting like a 4-year-old. What's your problem??" I hoped Chad wouldn't notice. He lovingly asked, "What's wrong? Tell me what's on your mind." My response was a wailing, "Iiiiii donnnn't knooooooow....." It was in that very moment that my silent tears transitioned immediately into a blubbering, sniffling, chest-quivering mess. What? Where did that come from??
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Chad and I work full time together in the office of our small, one bedroom apartment. All day. Most days. And we're still happily married. Ha! We've had plenty of friends tell us they could never successfully accomplish this with their spouse. We agree—it's certainly not for everyone! It hasn't always been easy for us, either, but after a few rough months in the beginning, we collaborated to set safe boundaries and "house rules" that help us thrive in the space we have—without killing each other.
Setting boundaries:
Read MoreOctober 4 is one of our favorite days of the year. It marks the first day of the existence of our business three years ago; a milestone that will forever be important to us both. It's a day that reminds us that dreams can come true, that taking risks can bring rewards, and that God is faithful when we obey His call in our lives. October 4 brings us into an attitude of celebration for all the lessons we have learned, all the people we have met, all of the projects that have been completed and all of the photographs that have been taken—through God's power at work within us. We're not all that important or skilled or intelligent, but God has somehow used us anyway. We're so grateful!
I want to share this 'thank you' and little encouragement with you...
Read MoreA few weeks ago, I was in a funk. Ever been there? In 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Paul tells us that we should boast of our weaknesses so that the power of Christ can work through us, making us strong. I'm going to be very honest with you in this post about my brokenness. Stick with me, because [spoiler alert] this story has a miraculous ending.
Read MoreRunning. It can be causal or it can be extreme. I have friends who participate in 3ks, 5ks, 10ks, half-marathons, full marathons, Tough Mudders and I'm pretty sure one of my friends is planning to do a Zombie Run where there are people dressed up as zombies and they try to eat you by tearing off flags that you have around your waste. All of my running friends have tried to get me to go on these runs. For me though, running is very casual, like "only a mile on Wednesday mornings because it's good for me" type of casual. That's about it.
Read more about why I'm talking about running and how it is linked to the race that really counts.
Read MoreThe countdown to our Mission Trip to Arizona is heating up!
We are beyond excited at this point! If you haven't yet heard, Chad and I are heading out on a Mission Trip to Whiteriver, Arizona in a group of 15 young adults from July 6 - 13, 2013. This unique group spans 4 states and 6 churches.
God has been in every detail of this trip, encouraging and teaching us each along the way. Read all about the adventures we've had leading up to this point and what we're looking forward to...
Read MoreLast night, we ended up in some really good, honest conversation with a friend about relationships. Chad and I got talking about some of the "relationship tools" we learned while we were at the CONNECT retreat a few weeks ago. (If you missed the my CONNECT post, read it when you get a chance. Good stuff in there.) While we were at the retreat, we had the chance to be away—undistracted—and learn from other married couples like ourselves and even some Marriage Experts. Everyone was passing around different tips about how they smooth out their communication skills and relieve tension in their relationships. Honestly, after hearing it all, NONE of it was rocket science. It's not even super breakthrough or earth-shattering information.... BUT, it works.
We love LOVE. And we realize, as a married couple, that you really have to work at it sometimes. I thought it would be cool to share some of that juicy info here on our blog in a "Relationships 101" series. Here's the first one...
Read MoreWords sometimes can't describe the AWE of God. We try our best to create words but the words that we invent—like AWEsomeness—don't even scratch the surface of God's character and mystery. Amber and I have had the privilege to go on mission trips through our church's Youth Group for a handfull of years. We've served in the hills of Kentucky (2009), the streets of Washington, D.C. (2010), and the tent cities of Haiti (2011). When we returned from Haiti, God told us that it was time to transition out of youth ministry and into something new—Young Adult Ministry. We were a little nervous at first because we had been in youth ministry for 10 years, but we continued to understand that it was time for a new season. We’ve had unique opportunities to see God working firsthand and we wanted other young adults to be able to experience that too! We started asking God what we should do...
Read MoreLast week, Chad and I had the unbelievable opportunity to be at the very first CONNECT Retreat, a marriage retreat for photographers. Being with 42 other creative couples at the WinShape Retreat Center in Rome, GA is now the highlight of my year—we returned changed & motivated for the future, but even for the day-to-day. It was a unique chance to meet people we deeply admire in our industry, completely unplug from phones / internet, get to know others in our shoes from across the continent and worship Jesus with them, totally out of context from any kind of church setting. We love our friends and family, but we realize it's hard for them to understand us "Professional Creatives". Ha! Also, none of them have their spouse as their coworker... We definitely felt at home on this CONNECT Retreat. :)
Check out these photos and read all about it...
Read MoreOn Saturday, we had the opportunity to work with our dear friend, Laura Juranek. She is an Intervarsity staff worker at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) where she started a campus chapter a couple years ago. The college students, all being artists, wanted to find a way to give back & serve their community together using their gifts and talents. Kelly, a freshman in the chapter, is even giving a presentation in a couple of days about the importance and impact of people simply investing their time & energy back into their communities—and also what that could look like from the artist's perspective.
Read about the idea the action step the MIAD students came up with and the sweet moments that unfolded...
Read MoreGoodbyes can be tough. Sometimes we have a tendency to linger; to drag them out. Winter, I feel like that's where we're at right now. You have demonstrated exceptional resilience this year and I do LOVE a pretty winter.... but don't you think it's time for Spring to have a turn?
At the beginning of March in SE Wisconsin, we received another beautiful, gentle snowfall. It was the kind that covered everything with a soft, white blanket, nice and calmly. It was so peaceful and serene looking—and not all that frigid, either! I figured it'd be the last one like it of the season (not so much, as it turns out, but anyway—) so I went out shooting with my friend Amy. We spent an hour wandering around Petrifying Springs Park in Kenosha as well as the Lake Michigan shoreline outside of my apartment.
I thought if I shared a few photo highlights in a reminiscent spirit, maybe the awkward prolonged goodbye to Winter could be wrapped up. Consider this post my lean out the front door and my wave to Winter as it backs down the driveway...
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