3 New YouTube Videos

I apologize for looking/sounding pretty ridiculous in these. But they're in reply to a few requests I received via FormSpring so hopefully they do the trick! Don't forget to head down to the entry prior to this one and download the new Monday Mixtape! Enjoy!




xoxo

Mixtape Monday: So Long Sweet Tennessee

It's been a hot minute since I've posted a Mixtape Monday download, but low-and-behold, it is here! I've really been digging this playlist so hopefully you like it too. No hard feelings if you don't, though!


(click on title to download)

To see and download other Mixtape Monday playlists, click the "Music Monday" label at the top of this entry! It'll take you to all of them! Huzzah! Enjoy!

xoxo

PS; What are some songs/artists/bands you've been digging lately? Gimmie some new tunes! We've got a 16 hour drive to make this weekend to NYC so I'll be updating my iPod!

NieNie Dialogues


I'm sure many of you have heard of the amazing woman Stephanie Nielson of Utah. In August 2008, Stephanie and her husband were involved in a nearly fatal plane crash. They both survived, miraculously, but not without injury. Both Stephanie and Mr. Neilson (as she fondly refers to him) were on the receiving end of third degree burns and Stephanie was even in a coma for 3 Months. As a mother of four young children, you can imagine the obstacles she would be facing upon waking up in a hospital bed and her entire life changing.

But don't be sad for NieNie. Instead, read, watch, and listen to her story... be inspired. I've only been reading her blog for the past year or so, but it was a tweet by my friend Lindsey that directed me to this video, which I seemed to have missed. The entire 8 minutes is just overwhelmingly inspiring. To know their entire life has changed, but she has overcome the initial shock and she's decided to share her story with the world. Oprah has even had the pleasure of sitting with this amazing woman.

I feel so incredibly privileged to just watch this video and read her blog. The way she is able to handle herself is just incredible. She doesn't let her bad days overpower her. Instead, she acknowledges her feelings and she pushes forward. A lesson I think we could all take from her.

Just watch this little video. Regardless of where you find yourself on the religion scale, you can take so incredibly much from this video. Then visit Stephanie's blog by CLICKING HERE.


I hope you were able to see what I saw. Thanks to Lindsey for sharing the video on Twitter. Here's another blog to add to your blog roll! Enjoy!

xoxo

Way Back When Picture Post

Before I had my mom's portrait tattooed on my inner upper arm, I went through some old photo albums at my Nana's house. While I didn't take them out and take them to be scanned, I nabbed a few low-quality photos with my iPhone. They're not great, but they get the job done. And I thought I'd share them today!

This is my Great Grandfather and Great Grandmother, my Nana's parents. They were immigrants from Poland. They came over via Ellis Island in the earlier quarter of the century. (My Nana [grandmother.. not great grandmother!] was born in 1932 in Michigan.) I would really really love to travel to Poland one day soon.


This is my Nana and Papa back when they were first married in 1949. Weren't they gorgeous?! Brownie Franklin and Patricia Genevieve. My Papa passed away when I was 8, in 1996, but my Nana is alive and kicking! I already have a tattoo for her on my calf, and my Papa's will be in August once I return to Nashville.


This is my late Aunt Kay, who everyone says I favor.


My late Aunt Kay again with her daughter Stephanie. Both passed away after a horrific car crash in 1974 when my aunt was only 22 and my cousin only 2. I was named after both of them. Valerie Kay (Kaelah) and Stephanie Dawn (Kaelah Dawn). I've always said if I could have dinner with anyone in the world, alive or otherwise, I'd probably choose my aunt. I'd really like to know what she was like.


My sweet Mama! I used to love looking through her old yearbooks and stuff. The last photo is her senior portrait from 1978 which I had tattooed on the inside of my full sleeve.


As a baby, in 1988.

I always felt like I was channeling Pretty Woman in this photo, just you know, sans the prostitute thing.

Sophomore Year of High School, I believe. Well 10th/11th grade? I will never have short hair again!

Sophomore Year Softball. I'm not even sure I wore makeup haha

Sophomore Year Volleyball, I think. All I know is that hair thing I've got going on was NOT working for me!

Senior Year. Bad haircut, no eyelashes, no eyebrows, lined my eyes with dark black eyeliner. Man oh man!

I'm going to try to find more pictures this week! I'll definitely post them if I happen across them.

Do you have any old photos of your family or yourself? Post them! I want to see! Leave links to your posts if you do!

xoxo

Cute Things!

A cute little post, just to put a smile on your face!

(photos courtesy of F*YeahCuteAnimalss)

If you didn't say "AWWW" audibly at least once during this post, I'm not quite sure you're human. :P You can't deny those sweet baby animals, right?!

xoxo

Georgia Update!

* Please note, the Donate button has been removed because it makes me far too uncomfortable. I'm not worried about the anonymous opinions or anything like that, but I don't feel comfortable posting that anymore. I appreciate the folks that asked for the button to begin with, and I appreciate anyone who has supported our ventures in any way. I'll gladly make you anything from my Etsy, but I cannot leave the button up any longer. Mike and I had a huge conversation about this and how it just makes me feel weird. He has urged me to do what I feel comfortable with, and we both believe that was to remove the button and to 100% do something to "earn" any contribution. Thank you for understanding.


I took Ashley's suggestion and made a little earnings thermometer so everyone can know where we stand on Sweet Baby G's surgery. Also, Ashley sent me such a wonderful email and she's made me cry all morning (in a good way!). She is also a graphic designer and she does some dog tags at DogTagArt.com. It's a website which allows local Asheville artists to design dog tags and receive $1 of each dog tag sold. She has offered to donate her earnings to Georgia's surgery until June 12th! How incredible is that?!?! And you just have to see her little tag! It's a shark! So I cried AGAIN! I'm a big emotional mess! CLICK HERE to read her post and pop over and give her blog a follow! It's seriously such a good read (and I've only been following since this morning!)

Even if sharks aren't your thing, she has a HUGE selection of adorable tags she designed herself up for grabs so CLICK HERE to see her DogTagArt page! She even made a little button for G, too! So if you'd like to post this on your page or anything, feel free! (Ashley, I rehosted so it didn't drag down your bandwidth!)


HUGE Thanks to these wonderful people for blogging about the cause!



And HUGE thanks also goes out to these people for posting the button on their blog!


I know I'm missing a lot of people but if you have blogged or tweeted or anything of the sort, please leave a link to your page below and I'd be so so so unbelievably happy to spread the word!

I really wish I could just meet every single one of you and just hug hug hug you until I'm blue in the face! This means so much to me. You have no idea! ♥

xoxo

PS; I've already received one nasty comment in my FormSpring related to this and I'm just here to clear the air: I will not, under any circumstances, post anything breeding drama into my FormSpring... that's not what it's there for. It's there for people to genuinely ask something they may be curious about, but never for someone to be rude, ignorant, or ridiculous. I also refused to post something where someone shared personal financial information that I should have never made available to anyone, and even though it wasn't a rude comment or anything, just a question, I didn't post it because I don't want that out there again. It only brought drama. I no longer have a paying job, and I won't for the next three months because of my internship in NYC. My future is much more important to me than a job bartending. Mike and I have a roof over our heads and we're not in any sort of crazy financial distress, but thanks to FEMA denying me any assistance with the fact we lost everything, an extra $1100 for Georgia's surgery isn't the easiest thing to come by, especially since I have to support myself in NYC... rent, transportation, food, etc and she needs the surgery in the next week or two. I am comfortable with my financial standing for NYC because of what I've saved thus far. I have budgeted out an allotted amount per day and if necessary, money will come out of that to cover Georgia's surgery. Georgia WILL have her surgery NO MATTER WHAT. Even if I never sold the first Etsy item and never posted the button. She will have it because she's in pain from her entropion eyelids. If it means I take a PB&J sandwich to work everyday, I will. Mike and I will make sure she is NOT in pain. We will do what we have to do. I'm not scared about that. And the only reason I've made this such a big deal is because of the overwhelming support I've received from every single one of you. It's amazing! The fact y'all reached out to me and WANTED to help blew me away. Now in response to someone claiming I'm "begging"... that's far from the truth. I'm offering handmade goods and only posted the donate button because more than one person asked for a way to contribute without having to buy anything (which I have since deleted). I am doing nothing wrong. From here on out, regardless of anything said, I will not be allowing any negativity into my FormSpring. You're not going to bring me down simply because you think it's okay to be anonymous and say things. If you want to troll my blog and FormSpring, feel free. If you want to hate me, feel free. But don't get too offended when I don't give a hoot. The reason this whole "donate" thing makes me so uncomfortable is because I feel like no matter what, I'll have people to be accountable to, and I've never had that before. So what I ask is that you go through my Etsy and purchase something, as opposed to donating (I do custom orders, too), because at least I can do something to "work" for it. If you'd rather go the donating route, I appreciate it, believe me, the fact that someone wants to help Georgia is amazing, I won't deny you of that, But I'd rather do something to earn it. Now, that is all I have to say about that. For now. ♥

Georgia's Surgery & Thursday.

Yesterday was a busy busy day. On so many levels. Mike had the day off but he had to go into work for an hour or two for a meeting... That's a little hard when you live 80 miles away. Well luckily Georgia had a vet appointment so I dropped him off at work while I took her to the doctor. The vet checked up on her and ran test after test after test, trying to figure out why she was losing so much hair on her flanks. (After all the tests and medications, a friend Kelley on Twitter told me that her bully did the same thing and it was from the stress of moving) I'd love to believe it's from stress because it doesn't seem to bother her at all, but I'm not so sure just yet. She was tested for ringworm, mange mites, etc etc etc. At the end of the day, she got two new injections, 2 new medications she has to take every day, a prescription shampoo, and fatty acid supplements to go into her food. Phew! And there was a hefty bill attached to it, as per usual.

I love Georgia more than life itself and this is why I stress to people who want an English Bully to trulyyyy research and make sure they can handle the monetary and medical commitment that they require. I wouldn't trade her for the world. After 2 hours at the vet, I picked up Mike and we ran errands and all that jazz. Then we came home.

Well, on the way home I called to check my FEMA application status... Much to my dismay, FEMA has found me "ineligible for assistance"... WHAT?! You can imagine how upset I got. I started crying immediately. And I didn't stop for well over an hour. Both Mike and I called trying to get answers, but everyone at FEMA was SO rude to us. It's just heartbreaking that I file, go to the inspection, try and provide photos of everything I lost, etc, and I'm somehow ineligible. Yet my roommates received assistance, and I lost SO much more. Anyway, I don't mean to be selfish or anything like that. I just thought that MAYBE I'd be able to get some help from FEMA, but life goes on.

I have to figure out when we can get Georgia to the vet to have her entropion surgery. We're leaving early Friday morning to start our travels to NYC and the soonest they can do her surgery is on Thursday... but we'd have to have her at the vet at 7:30am and that's an hour and a half away... PLUS we'd have to go pick her up that evening... 340 miles of driving the day before I move? I'm not sure we can do it. Plus, we're looking at $1,100 for her surgery. She has to have it though, so she will. We'll make it happen.

I started up my Etsy again and 100% of the earning of that goes directly to Georgia's surgery. Unfortunately, it's just not adding up yet. Obviously haha But I'm confident that all will be fine. Susannah sent me an email the other day and suggested I open up a Donate button from my PayPal to help support Georgia's surgery, for anyone who wanted to donate, but not buy from Etsy. Normally I am very very very wary of this... Mainly because I don't want to ask anyone for anything. I didn't do it in the wake of the flood, and even now I feel out of my element. But she assured me that many other bloggers have done it to support endeavors like Silje competing in the Miss Tattoo USA pageant, etc. I've blogged about things like this in past, including the Help Save Walter post just last month. Both Mike and I donated and felt so good about it. However, I have decided to no longer do the donate button, for it's causing too much commotion and it's leaving me very very VERY uncomfortable.
Georgia says thank you, too. This is her happy face.



Also, I just wanted to take a quick second to say how incredibly grateful I am for every single one of you readers. 100% serious. I need a mushy-gushy moment here! The incredible support I've received from y'all this past month has been the most unbelievable experience. While I feel overlooked via FEMA and such, I feel so blessed to call y'all friends. I've received letters, emails, comments, packages, and the support of my Etsy for the sake of Georgia, and I wish I could meet absolutely every single one of you and hug you all! I find so much solace in talking to my blog readers and getting to know all of y'all. Please, never hesitate to email me or be a penpal. Everything ever sent to me is proudly displayed on my board... even little cards and letters and drawings. If you ever need help supporting a project or special fund, venture, or charity, please share it with me and I'd be happy to share it with my readers. You are all SO special to me. Okay, I think I'm done being ooey-gooey-and-emotional now. ♥

xoxo


PS; Don't forget to enter the Mary Sew Giveaway! It ends this weekend! Win one of her AMAZING Eiffel Tower necklaces! There aren't a ton of entries and you've got 4 chances to win! Odds are in your favor! CLICK HERE to enter!
PPS; I'm still accepting Sponsors for the month of June! This includes the Featured Giveaway! CLICK HERE to see the pricing or just email me and I can show you proof of my traffic! KaelahBee(at)Gmail(dot)Com!

Dujour Mag: The Virgin Issue

I really love sharing my designs with all of you here on my blog, and I'm even more tickled when you actually enjoy them. (Who doesn't like compliments, right?!) Over the past few months, I've shared with you work that I managed to do in my Print Design 2 class at O'More... including the upholstered book (all 168 grueling pages!) and the logo and store design for my vegan bakery (which is a long way away!) called Sweet Cheeks. It's old news that I'm known as the "tacky flower lady" by my friends (a title I'm so very fond of!) and I often times load some of my favorite designs up with pastels, feminine touches such as lace and tulle, and floral print galore! Give me whimsical fancy or give me death! I even described my bakery as "Marie Antoinette meets the 1950's"... Well, for me, that is the appeal of Dujour Magazine. Dujour is quite possibly the editorial personification of my design aesthetic.

Dujour is most certainly a publication I'd love to be affiliated with and to design for. Something about that little girl, fairytale whimsy... ah! It just gets me every time!

They're offering up a preview of their latest work, The Virgin Issue. Check out the preview below, powered by Issu!




Now, I dare you to tell me you're not inspired! But really, does anyone else see what I'm talking about? Gah! I just want to print it all out and wallpaper my room with it! Love love love!

Pop by their website by CLICKING HERE. Even the website makes me drool!

xoxo

PS; Shh! Don't tell! I totally swiped the gorgeous background from their blog and it's now decorating my desktop! ;)

New Etsy Update!

Since all of my Etsy inventory was ruined thanks to the flood, and Georgia has to have her third eye surgery (this time it's a double-eye surgery!), I've decided to craft my way through it :) I've made some floral rose barrettes, brooches and headbands, along with lace bows and things of that nature. I've priced them all very modestly (at least I think so) so hopefully some people would be interested in buying some. Georgia's surgery is not going to be cheap, so 100% of the proceeds will go directly to that. Her vet appointment is tomorrow so we will schedule it then and find out the damage. The most important thing to me is that she's happy and healthy.

Her surgery is due to the fact her eyelids are rolling in as she grows, thus causing her hair to scratch her corneas. This happens to a lot of dogs so I'm sure the surgery will go smoothly.

I will be taking my craft supplies with me to NYC so I'll be able to keep up with it while there as well. Any and all support would be more than amazing. She's my little sweet pea so this is all for her. I hope you enjoy the update!


There are 30 new items to choose from. I am happy to do custom orders, both in quantity and look. Any fabric you see can be paired with any other for a double or triple headband, as well as any kind of brooch and barrette.

CLICK HERE to see my Etsy. :)

xoxo

PS; Karlie is selling some of her clothes. Check out her stuff and see if you're interested!

PPS; Thanks for the sweet responses to my video tutorial! A lot of people have asked me to make more videos so please suggest things you'd like to see! I'm bad at coming up with stuff. Someone in my FormSpring asked me to do a relationship advice/positivity video, so if you have anything you'd like to ask or add, please leave it in a comment below or head over to my FormSpring! Feel free to suggest anything! xoxo

How-To Video: Dying Your Hair Red!

Someone in my FormSpring asked for an *exact* How-To on how to dye your hair red. So here you go! I really just needed to dye my hair today so this was an incentive to do it. And someone else in my FormSpring has really been wanting me to do YouTube videos. Don't make fun of my chubby face and the slicked back hair'do! I know it looks rough! hahaha Oh well! Hope this is helpful!


xoxo

A Recap of the Past Few Days...


This weekend, we had Toby and it was Mike's Dad's birthday so we loaded up and headed down to Lawrenceburg Saturday morning. We had a lovely little lunch with his immediate family and grandparents, etc. We spent the day blowing bubbles (or at least watching the kids blow bubbles) and eating cake. We lazed around and then Mike's brother Ryan, sister Lanie, her friend, Mike's neice Kaitlyn, Mike, Toby and myself went for dinner at the Brass Lantern (if you're at all familiar with Lawrenceburg you'll know it's one of the only places to eat and it's pretty much a staple there). Mike and I ordered Pasta Primavera and I asked for marinara on top of mine but much to my dismay, they brought it to the table and it was a little bit of red sauce mixed with SO MUCH beef! Ugh! I was 30 minutes late for work because we had to wait for them to bring me another dish :( Either way, the food was good and the company, too.

(my roots are SO bad! ugh!)

I rushed to work (it's about a 45 minute drive) and it was just work, ya know? Not too busy but not dead either. It was my last night so they wrote things on the glass and Rick, the DJ, kept announcing it and yadda yadda yadda. I didnt leave until after 2am so I didn't walk into his parents' house until 3am. phew! I was exhausted. We woke up at 10am for breakfast and then at 11:30 we were sneaky and went back to bed for 2 hours. DREAMY! Our room had no windows so it was pitch black. So so good! Mike did some housework for his parents before we left and then at 3pm, we headed towards Franklin with Toby in tow. We grabbed some lunch at Blue Coast and ran some errands. Sarah was a bit late picking him up but we didn't mind spending more time with him.

We came home and watched Knocked Up before bed. Much to Mike's surprise, he didn't have to work Monday so we had to go BACK to Franklin to meet with the FEMA inspector for his claim. Here are some photos of the house...


After that, in typical Franklin fashion, we went for lunch at Genghis Grill and then ran a lot of errands. We spent a good portion of the day just shopping around for stuff and getting me things for NYC. I can't believe I leave next week! I'm not ready! Gah! We worked up an appetite before leaving that night so we went to Blue Coast Burrito (its one of the only places we can eat 100% vegan so we eat there a lot haha). On our way home we stopped in Spring Hill and went to several stores and got Mike new shoes and all that jazz.

We came home and watched Cirque Du Soleil (Mike had never seen a performance, and I LOVE LOVE LOVE Cirque!) We watched "Dralion" and then went to bed.

Yesterday I woke up as he left for work and I stayed in my jammies all day. But I was SO productive! I wrote out schedule for myself and I stuck to it! For two hours, between 1 and 3pm, I did nothing but crafts for my new Etsy (more about that later). From 3pm til 5pm I worked on some freelance designs for Knitcole.com, and then from 5pm until 8pm (but really 11pm), I crafted yet again and worked on penpal packages.

(yes, Charlie, the Bichon, DOES have a mohawk. Ha, I know)

Mike came home and made some yummy dinner (Whole Wheat Pasta + Squash & Broccoli!). It was so so good! He's a dreamy cook! And we caught up on some Community and Office before heading to bed. Phew!


So here I am once more... going to try to be productive today. I'm going to try and maybe dye my hair (with a YouTube video since I get asked exactly *how* I do it) and I'm going to take photos of new Etsy things to sell. 100% of my Etsy earnings will go directly to Georgia's double-eye surgery which she's about to have. It's going to be super expensive thanks to the anesthesia but she needs it so we'll make it happen. If you're interested in buying a headband, barrette, pin or brooch, stay tuned!

xoxo