Excitement.

I'm looking forward to the opportunity to put ads on my page. I just placed my first ad and got my first follower, all in one go! Please visit Marissa Moondaughter's page :) It's quite lovely.

xo, Sierra

Throwback Thursday

That little munchkin in the photo above is me when I was just under a year old. Precious, no? That lovely woman laughing her butt off is my gorgeous mama. It's crazy to think that I am roughly the same age as my mother in this photograph. She was twenty-five when she had me, and I'm twenty five now. When I was younger, my dream was to have a baby when I was 25, just like my mom. And now that I'm 25, I understand the want.. because I definitely feel it, but I'm not ready to give in to my feelings. My hormones have been all over the place though, it's been a pretty crazy year! Baby fever, man! Can't live with it, can't live without it.

Is anyone else experiencing this?

xo, Sierra

P.S. If you want to read more about my baby fever, feel free to read my post about it from earlier this month, called Critter Love.

Today's favorite.

I thought I'd tell you about one of my favorite online shops. My friend Kacie is the owner of an adorable little online shop called Blissful Bird Studio. If you like really cute handmade earrings, you should plan on shopping on her etsy site. Her earrings are presh! I'm actually hoping to get some custom earrings made for a christmas gift, that's why she's coming over! Well, that and to have tea and hang out with me! :) Hopefully my house will be warm by the time she arrives! Look around her website, check out her blog. 

Treat yo' self! :)

Gettin' schooled.

  photo via Red Velvet

 

I made an investment towards two e-courses through my favorite blog, A Beautiful Mess called Blog Love and Blog (Design) Love. ABM had a Cyber Monday sale, they were 25% off, so I couldn't pass up that amazing deal! Blog Love has all Elsie's tricks of the trade, blog wise. She shows you how she started one of the most successful lifestyle blogs online today! Blog (Design) Love is about how to design your blog and branding, etc.. I'm really excited to start doing the homework for that one too :)

I honestly cannot tell you how excited I am to start improving my blogging. I used to love to write, and I wanted to be a writer until I learned photography and realized that was my dream. I am extremely passionate about art and I'm excited to share my passion with you all! 

xo, Sierra

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Goodbye, November..

November is disappearing fast, the weather is changing drastically here. For the past few days, it's been extra cold and foggy, typical almost December weather. Yuck! My bike ride to work this morning was FREEZING - even with the gloves, winter coat, scarf and winter boots. I guess, that it's time to start carpooling with a friend from work. The rain starts tomorrow. Living in the Pacific Northwest, there is more rain than sunny days. Our winters are cold, and rainy.. it's so moist that it barely ever snows in the winter but when it does, it's gorgeous... but destroys almost every thing it touches. So, the locals don't exactly enjoy snow so much.. but the kids love it. ;) On the more positive side of winter, it's a time for getting cozy with your loved ones and staying inside and making crafts, watching movies, over dosing on tea and hot chocolate and staying warm! I have a few highlights of my favorite autumn month that I'd like to share with you.


Highlights of November:

1.) My 25th Birthday. BOOM! That was fun. We partied, ate a delicious homemade Autumn Meringue cake, my brand new birthday bike, flower bouquets and lots of love.
 2.) Holiday Market. Making extra money on the weekend while working for my mom at her Holy Donuts! booth. Visiting with my market friends. Eating Tamales for breakfast. Yum. Burrito bowls for lunch. Trading donuts for food and gifts :)
3.) Invested in two E-Courses to help me improve my blog, and business. I'm really excited to start doing my homework. So, lots of exciting new things coming up in the next month. I'm excited to start having actual readers who follow this blog! :)

I'm looking forward to meeting you all! xo, Sierra

Wannabe

(I'm the one on the left)

The beginning: I'm a practical gal. I tend to wear clothing that's comfortable. I don't normally wear make up of any kind on my face. I don't wear perfume. I'm just not materialistic. My signature outfit is t-shirt, hoodie and jeans. Yup, I'm just plain ol' Jane. I don't like spending a lot of money on clothing either.

The Transformation: Over the past few months, I've been slowly reinventing myself. I got my hair cut and dyed recently, I have dark brown hair (again) and bangs (again). Instead of the simple blue jeans, I purchased some colorful Se7en jeans at TJ Maxx for only $30 (whatta deal!). On my birthday, my mother took me on a very rare & special shopping spree to Target. I bought my first lipstick (Revlon Raspberry Pie), some liquid eye liner (not sure how that works quite yet though), two different eye shadows (day & night) and some concealer that actually is the same color as my skin! I never realized how white I was until I bought this concealer. Ha! I just love the way I look in this make up! :) I'm slowly updating my wardrobe. I'm in the process of a personal weight loss challenge, so I'm trying not to do lots of shopping right now but when I get to my goal weight I plan on taking myself out on a shopping spree and buying lots of cute & stylish clothing :)

Anyone else a make up virgin? ;)

Easy as Pie.

Good morning, 6 A.M.! My boyfriend and I made a pumpkin pie to bring to our thanksgiving day feast today at my mom's house. It looks great!

You're probably wondering why I woke up so darn early! Well, I'm walking in the Turkey Stuffer this morning, the Turkey Stuffer is a 5K for charity. I've never done anything like this before. I'm really excited! Of course, I have no idea what I need to wear or what I'm doing it for. Except maybe for health reasons and the fact that I have some friends doing it with me, so I have some support. Ha! Wish me luck! I'll take some photos while I'm out there. 

Here's a couple snap shots of the cool vintage inspired book that we used...

10 things I'm thankful for.

Hey guys, it's almost Thanksgiving. Here are the first 10 things that popped into my head that I am so thankful for this year (no particular order, my brain doesn't work that way):

1. My parents. They are the most loving and caring people I've ever known.

2. My boyfriend, Josiawa. He's the most amazing person. He loves me unconditionally. I've never had that with anyone else. He's been great. The past two years, have been amazing.. I look forward to the years to come. More milestones, more adventures.

3. For my sister, Jennie. Even though we're not that close, it's nice to know that I have found my half sister, and I look forward to the day we can reconnect and become better friends/family. Always searched for her when I was a child, because in my immediate family I am still an only child.

4. My best friend, Kelsey. Seven years of friendship, gets you a million memories and laughs that will fill your world a thousand times over. We're definitely perfect together, we're practically sisters. We fight like we're sisters ;) Even though we fight, we always make up and hug it out. :) True Wuv.

5. My cousin, Jessie. She's one of my best friends. Since I'm an only child, she was the sister I never had growing up. She fills my life with smiles and laughter. I just wish we lived closer to each other! I will always remember when we were at a bar last winter and while we were drunk, she said to me.. "Out of all my family, I can picture living next to you. I would love to be your neighbor someday, and have our kids grow up together." Yes, I would LOVE that.

6. All the little kiddos in my life that make my life worth living. Iris, Logan & Liam. Noah & Logan. Roland. Trillion. Ember.

7. My job. I'm thankful I have a job. I'm thankful I love my job. I'm thankful I know what I want to do with my life, career wise. And I am thankful that all signs are pointing to.. CREATIVE. And in this case, right now.. they're pointing to: PHOTOGRAPHER.

8. Amy Silverman. For introducing me to BEACHBODY. I've lost weight from working out with ChaLean EXtreme and changing my diet, and it's taken me forever to lost even a pound from just going to the gym. I love being a beachbody coach! See "what's beachbody?" above for more details.

9. The Hubbards. I am thankful for Josiawa's family because they treat me like family! A moment with Josiawa's sister was when she introduced me as her "brother's partner", I was ecstatic after that! All smiles :)

10. My house. We definitely found the perfect house for us this new chapter in our lives together. I'm so thankful for Kim Still, our land lady and friend, because she told me about this house in June and I fell so hard for this little house. Obviously, I named a freaking blog after it! ;) It's presh.


What are you thankful for?  
*please a comment! I'd love to know!

Puddy Tat.

some days it seems like she's forgiven me for leaving her behind. others she makes it obvious that she still holds a grudge. i miss the affection between us. i miss the connection, the love. but most of all, i miss my naive believe that i wasn't allergic to her.

Red.

Photos of the Morning...

 Leaves.

~

 The sky.

~

 Self-Portrait.

~

Skinner's Butte.

~

Birthday weekend.

I am officially half a century old. I spent the weekend with my loved ones. My boyfriend took me out to a really nice dinner at Rye and we came home to a small gathering of my friends and family in our home. We had a lovely evening.

Here's a few photos from my perfect birthday weekend.

 My best friend, Kelsey and me.

~

 My boyfriend, me and my dad :)
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 Three generations. My grandma, mom and me.

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 Another one of us.. we're pretty awesome, we know ;)

~

My new hair cut and color, and necklace from Kelsey.

~

 

 Gift from my boyfriend, a brand new bike!!! I was so surprised!
oh and that rug is new too

~

 Birthday bouquets:

left: from my boyfriend, Josiawa.

right: from my mom <3

~

 One of the birthday desserts that evening. Chocolate from Rye.
make a wish

~

This is how I started my birthday morning.. with sun! after a whole night time of down pour!
~

I had a great birthday, I do feel older. Thank you for all the birthday wishes <3

Tenderness.

photo credit: unknown

"Being tender and open is beautiful. As a woman, I feel continually shhh’ed. Too sensitive. Too mushy. Too wishy washy. Blah blah. Don’t let someone steal your tenderness. Don’t allow the coldness and fear of others to tarnish your perfectly vulnerable beating heart. Nothing is more powerful than allowing yourself to truly be affected by things. Whether it’s a song, a stranger, a mountain, a rain drop, a tea kettle, an article, a sentence, a footstep, feel it all – look around you. All of this is for you. Take it and have gratitude. Give it and feel love." - Zooey Deschanel

Edit.

photo credit: sierra gross photography

I'm aching to edit some photos. 

I can't wait to buy my new computer so I can finally upgrade my software 

and 

buy CS6 and install Lightroom! 

<3

Patience.

"Patience is a good starting point to demonstrate true love. 

It may be more of a process, but it's a resolution worth adopting. 

Think of it as a marathon, not just a sprint. 

You can set a new tone in your communication by committing to patiently listen." 

- The Love Dare

Pick me up.

photo credit: unknown

Sigh.

 photo credit: sierra gross photography

Do you ever feel like you're always searching?
I'm almost there.. I've just hit a few pot holes. I know I just need to breathe, and keep on.. keepin' on..

Green.

photo credit: unknown

I feel extremely behind. I can't help but feel envious when I see women the same age or younger with successful photography businesses but I know I can't compare my life to anyone else's. It's just hard to be patient for something you've been excited about your entire life.

What do you do to stay calm?

Stop.

Everyday.

Birthday Wish List, Nov. 17th

My birthday wish list.

 

Bag from JoTotes

 Blog E-Courses from A Beautiful Mess
((PURCHASED))

 Blog E-Courses from A Beautiful Mess
((PURCHASED))


Dream Wish List

 

My dream camera, Nikon D7000

My dream computer, 21.5" iMac Desktop computer

My dream lens, 50mm 1.4

My dream software, Photoshop CS6

Critter Love.

I'm not even sure how to explain this feeling. For about a year now, I've been noticing changes in my emotions towards infants. Last October, on my cousin's birthday I just started crying out of no where because I wanted to hold her friends baby. It was so embarrassing! I choked it back for about a half hour and then tears streamed down my face. Her friend just stared at me, sort of smiled and then handed Lance to me. I was so excited at that moment, the tears subsided. I held him and I was at peace. That was the first moment I realized that I was at that age now, I could have a kid and would be happy with that decision. Trippy. 

This year has been one cry-fest over another, I was getting emotional walking through the neighborhood just hearing some kids laugh and scream. When I see a couple walking down the street holding hands with their 3 year old in the middle of them, I tear up. I find myself openly saying "I want one" now. It's scary and exciting all at the same time. I know that if I had a baby right now, I would have friends and some family that would think that is insane, but I definitely don't think it'd be so bad. There are things I'd like to accomplish before I have children. For instance, I'd like to be married. I'd like to be successfully self employed. I'd like my boyfriend, Josiawa, to know what he's doing with his life - job wise. I want to make sure he can support a family. Last night, he told me that he really wants to go back to school and that makes me so happy because that means we're getting our lives on track. We've had the "kids" talk and he knows how much I want a baby but we're just not ready yet. That being said, we're ready for a puppy.

I think a puppy is a great transition for us. It's just like a child in the sense that we take care of it, and treat it like our baby. It will be our first child, therefor, it will take us a while to find the perfect one. I've been looking on craigslist for about a month now, but the other day Josiawa told me that we weren't going to get a puppy until the Spring so that we won't have to walk it in the rain. It'll be hard enough training a puppy, let along training it in the rain. So, I understand where he's coming from.. but it left me heartbroken. I had a dream that night that I found the perfect puppy and he told me that I couldn't have it, so I cried all night long. When I woke up, I felt sad. I hate dreams like that. I told him about the dream, he suggested we get a rabbit. I was excited about the idea yesterday, until I really thought about it. When I get a puppy I won't be able to focus my energy that way. I see myself playing with the puppy more and I feel like the rabbit would get neglected. So, I shouldn't get one. I just want something to love. There's an emptiness inside of me, where a baby needs to go. And I'm just going to have to live with this feeling a little while longer. I'll be 25 on the 17th of this month, that was the age my mom had me. Apparently 24yrs old is the age where your internal clock ticks. I'm gonna go through more of these kinds of days, I just know it.

xo, Sierra

Rainbows

Hope you all had a great weekend!

memories

just a couple of bonsais

kitchen seal plants

my bonsai and rainbows

<3

Bloglovin

I'm really excited to be apart of the Bloglovin' community! New and exciting adventures await. I look forward to meeting fellow bloggers. Please comment and say hello! I'd love to meet you! <3


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Detail #5

Here is a little terrarium I made for Josiawa and I. He gave me the lioness, and he already had the lion. There's a rose quart that symbolizes love and passion in the center of "us" and the cat skull is just something I've had my whole life. We found that feather in front of our house when we moved in. It's just a little symbol of our love and life together. 

xo, Sierra

Introduction

Hello reader! I'd like to introduce you to our house, Mabel. She's a small cottage that looks like she's straight out of a fairy tale. She was built in the 1930s with hardwood floors through out, antique built ins and a breakfast nook. She's light yellow with a purple trim. She has a small private backyard that welcomes in a few neighborhood strays. She's the perfect little house for us. 

Here's just a few of my favorite details..

Detail #1: Built in Bookshelves

Cookbooks, my vintage camera collection + bird candles.

Details #2: The Plaque

One day we were wandering our yard and we found this plaque between the garden boxes under our kitchen window. A hidden plaque with our house's name on it! How charming! :)

Detail #3: Magic Crystals

I love crystals. This is only a few from our collection. I keep these on the window seal because I love the way the light shines through them. 

Detail #4: Viva la Vintage

If you couldn't tell already, I really like cameras. Especially vintage cameras. In fact, I collect them! 

Follow me on IG: @sierragrosss

P.S. You may be wondering.. well, where did we get the name Mabel? We know our lady lady personally, and the previous tenants as well. They told us that was her name, and my boyfriend thought he would want to change it but ever since we moved in.. we decided she was a Mabel, indeed. Quirky, cute and 80+ years old! ;)

Confessions of a Pedestrian/Bicyclist.

I enjoy exercise very much, but I don't consider myself an athlete. However, I do bike and walk all over town. If I'm going farther than a few miles then I'll ride the bus to my destination. I'm sure you're wondering why I don't just drive there? Well, I don't have my drivers license or my permit. However, I do have an adorable little car in my backyard that matches our house perfectly. Now, you're definitely wondering why I don't drive, right? Well, here's a little story about WHY...

When I was 15 years old, I got into a car accident. Mind you, I was just like any 15 year old, I was stoked to get my drivers permit. I would sit inside my mom's car and check myself out in the mirror. Ha! It's so funny to admit that, but I like to think that I wasn't the only one who did that. Sadly, one day I was in the passenger seat of my friend's step mom's Mini Van and we got hit by another driver. It was completely his fault. 

Now, I must tell you that I'm HUGE worrier! I stress out really easily. So, having a traumatic experience like this one, really freaked me out. That was just the beginning. Fifteen years old, and scared of the world around me. I watched that car come at me, and smash into my door. It was terrifying. I'm over it now, it's been 10 years after all, but back then.. I was scared to get into car for about 4 months afterwards. Then for another 4 months I was scared that every person I was in the car with, was going to get into a wreck. Then after that, I just got used to getting around on my own, out of fear of having my life in the hands of someone else. Then after about a year, the fear disappeared and I became my own person. I was independent, and stopped being scared, and yet still never got my license. Now, I'm almost 25 years old. 10 years have gone by!! I've been bitten by the travel bug, therefor, I plan on getting my license. I've been studying off and on over the past few months. I feel as if I'd make a great driver, I'm very cautious and safe already. I know all the bike and pedestrian rules, so I'll know to look out for them, for sure! Anyways, that was my story on that. Thank you for reading.

I normally bike to work every day, even when it just mists or sprinkles, 

but as of late, it's been pouring rain.. so I've been walking to work.

Here's some photos I shot with my iPhone..

 

 Follow me on IG: @sierragrosss