Being A Girl Is Tough

Okay, don't get me wrong, I love being a girl. I like getting dolled up, doing some shopping, drinking wine and watching chick flicks... but being a girl in today's world is hard work! We must have 3D white, straight teeth. Our skin must be acne-free, tanned, and luminous. Our hair has to be silky-smooth, and styled to perfection. Even "messy" has a specific look to it these days. We are judged for not wearing makeup, or for wearing too much makeup - although I often feel like the people judging the amount of makeup on a girl's face sometimes have no realistic standards. But, do any of us have realist standards anymore? Have you ever searched makeup tutorials on YouTube? Those things are 5-25 minutes long! (Some are even longer!!) And half of it is done in fast forward!!! That is so much time spent putting on makeup!! EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. Add to this style, fitness, creative outlets, cooking, cleaning, handwriting, and there is a lot that we are expected to be masters of simply because we are girls.

I'd like to pretend I'm a girly girl every now and then... (my Pinterest would lead you to believe that I am!) but I'm just going to come right out and say it: I suck at all things girly. So, this year, I've decided to try and add a little bit of perspective to the online world. I don't know about you, but, as a female/lady/woman/girl/person, I all to easily fall into the HORRIBLE habit of comparing myself to other females/ladies/women/girls/people. Especially since I've got two super-model sisters and a mother who is always confused for another sister. They are seriously beautiful, AND they are all really good at being girly! (sound like comparison, anyone? woops.)

This year [2015] I want to share with you ME. This year I am going to find my own style, and stop comparing myself to those around me. There is going to be a lot of trial and error, and I'm going to plaster it all on the internet so that, when I'm having a bad day, I can look back and laugh at myself. I'm inviting you to explore and laugh along with me. You may SHUDDER at the shortcuts I take in my "daily makeup routine," (or lack there of) or maybe it will inspire you to take some shortcuts too. ;)

here we go.

The Little Miss:: Maddie

In the last week of May, I started "nannying" this precious little girl two days a week. I had been working five days a week at State Farm and doing photography during the evenings and weekends, but I was feeling the need to shake things up a bit. Anyone who knows me knows that sitting at a desk all day is beyond challenging for me. I'm a child at heart and I would much rather be out having adventures than being a responsible adult. But, as life continues to fly by, the fact that I can no longer spend my hours daydreaming and pretending has become impossible not to accept. I still long to fill my days with laughter and fun, however, so when the opportunity presented itself to change up my schedule and spend two days a week playing and laughing and exploring with a sweet little 13 month old, I couldn't resist. I checked and rechecked my budget, worked with my boss to rearrange my hours at State Farm to Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and took on my nannying position Tuesday and Thursday. I also took on a SEO job that I can work from home on Tuesdays and Thursdays to help supplement some income (and still fill up my photography schedule as much as possible!). And I have absolutely LOVED it. It has been the perfect mixture for me of working my "adult" job, and doing something I am passionate about. I've loved being home more (and actually working to keep my house cleaned and somewhat organized - yay!), and I have absolutely fallen in love with the precious Little Miss: Maddie. Here are a few, or maybe more than a few, pictures of our time together. Maddie has been a huge blessing - she is so much fun to take care of, and we love playing all day long. Maddie is always ALL smiles, and she loves to snuggle up and read some books.

I've loved every second I've sent with this girl so far, and I plan on enjoying every second that I have left to spend with her! She'll be back to spending her days with Grandma once school starts up again in August - and while I know that will be very special for her AND for Grandma, I will definitely miss our days together!

On a side note - IT'S THE MIDDLE OF JULY! How did the year fly by so quickly?! It has been quite a year so far for me, and I hope it's been a great year for you too, whoever you are!

Thanks for reading.

Kortney Alacyn

Plan Your Work and Work Your Plan

Fweeeeeeeew. Made it through the crazzzzzzzzy holiday season. Seriously, I'm pretty sure October-December is lived in fast-forward. I loved every second of the last three months, but (for possibly the first time ever) I am excited to get back into a routine and start putting my plans into action.

Speaking of plans.... here's what I've been working on.

Organization:

 **Taylor and I took a day and a half of solid working hours and went through our main level and did some deep cleaning. We got rid of a bunch of stuff we don't use/need, and we cleaned things we've not cleaned in the whole three and a half years that we've lived in our house (um...GROSS). Here are a few pictures of our progress.

 The big challenge is going to be tackling our basement - which has become a dumping grounds for everyone, and is piled high. I'm also slowing working through my bedroom. The idea I'm trying to keep in mind as I go through this process is:

"Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful." William Morris.

This has been really inspirational for me as I have started going through and getting rid of - a process that I should have started many years ago.

**I bought myself a planner, and I've started writing down my goals instead of just having the idea in my head.

**I have written down some of my January goals in my pages: exercises, meals. I also posted in my thoughts on starting fresh :)

When You Fail To Plan, You Plan To Fail

If there is one thing in this world I'm terrible at, it is organization. Growing up, my idea of "cleaning my room" was stuffing things in drawers, under my bed, in my closet, anywhere out of sight so that my room looked clean and I could play. I'm also a bit of a hoarder. I have SO much stuff that it's overwhelming. I don't need/use/enjoy 95% of it. And I have finally decided that ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. It is time to clean out, it is time to get rid of, and it is time to organize my life. This, my friends, is going to be quite the journey.

Simultaneously, I'm taking a big step towards "fixing" my health. By today's standards, I'm quite a healthy person. But in reality, I'm not doing everything I KNOW I should be doing to give my body what it needs. You truly have to change what you believe before you're going to get results, and I've been so stuck in my ways that I haven't wanted to change what I believe. I like food a lot. I am a HUGE bread and sugar indulger. But my body doesn't want all the garbage in there, and I BELIEVE it is time to give my body what it deserves.

Help me along the way. Keep me accountable. Journey with me.