these are a few of my favorite things (living room transformation).

Yessss, we get to finally knock a project off of our list of things for the condo.   The laminate flooring we put in completely opens up the room!  I am pleasantly excited about our living room.  Here are the BEFORE pics of what it looked like when we moved in, what it looked like after we painted a bit (midway) and what it looks like NOW--finished!  (The lighting is terrible).

Final Product:

 

 

 ***********************************

These are a few of my Favorite Things:

1.

This is on our dining room table, and they are lyrics to the song we danced to in our wedding, a song that brings a lot of meaning to us-- "You Make it Real" by James Morrison.

All I did was get a piece of wood, a wood heart, paint, glitter and adhesive paper flowers to make this. I ended up not using the paper above.  It took very little time and was simple to make, but I love the warmth it brings to the table.

2. 

 

This was my very first real painting.  I had a friend, a professional artist, help me create this look with paint that I bought that I felt would go with the room famously.  It brings so much character to our condo and every time we have people come over, it's the center of attention.

3. 

 

I don't know what I love about this little corner the most:  the birdcage clipboard with special photos on it, the candle holders I got at a garage sale for 50 cents, the fabulously fun curtain covering the window looking at our porch, or the blue photo frame with a tree decal I stuck on.  It may sound silly, but these all are special pieces to me.

4. 

My grandma took a photo from our honeymoon and turned it into a painting.  Two years ago when we came to Colorado, she surprised us with this.  I just love it.

5. 

This coffee table is the only plain object in this room.  I always contemplate on whether I should paint it or not, but for now I like it white.  I love the simple touches you can add to a plain coffee table like a table runner, candles, and baskets used as storage bins.

6.

 

I love love love love pillows.  You can do so much with them.

The one in the front is my favorite pillow and was $15.00 at Pier 1, and the one in the back was from a garage sale.  I think I paid $1 for it.

7. 

This mirror is the bomb (is that a cool word anymore?).  I got it at, yes, a garage sale-- and it was only $13!  I'm telling you, that's where you find real treasures.  The woman who sold it to me said, "This mirror brings good vibes to your room" and she was very correct.

So, there are a few of my favorite things.

Thanks for checking it out!

the journey.

Every day is a step in the journey.
The journey is the life God has planned for you
and you must live it out.

Sometimes this is an easy quest and it isn't hard to pick up your feet and follow the path, but other times it's the opposite and your feet are heavy and your soul is weary.

My husband and I have been through a lot of both just this year alone.  There have been trials we have faced, and tremendous joy.  We've been so blessed in the midst of everything, yet there are moments I wish we could have taken back, or done differently.

But that's the journey for you.  You don't get to choose the elements you face.
And every day is a test.  You have to take each day with a step of faith, because it's more than you can handle on your own.  You aren't suppose to take on the burdens of this world by yourself.

I'm so thankful that I've known Jesus since such a young age.  I have messed up so much, my hands are anything but clean...but he died for me and all my mistakes.  He took the place on a cross when I should have been there.

We're undeserving.  We're imperfect.  We're broken.  We're reckless.  We're lost.  We're human.

But with Him, we are more than conquerors (romans 8:37).
That's something to get excited about.
Now, thank Him for taking your place, and abandon your fears.
Move forward with confidence.
We are meant to live for SO much more.

We're warriors.  We're strong.  We're unbeatable.  We're found.  We're deeply love.  We're children of God.

date night with gavin degraw.

So I'm in love with Gavin DeGraw.  I have been ever since I bought his CD at the age of 16.  He's just plain amazing.
When I met David, I sang half of a line of his  (unpopular) song out loud, and David finished the song sentence.  It was crazy.  This is when I knew he was the one for me.

When we were engaged (long-distance) he went to a Gavin concert without me.  I was so upset with him.  Fast forward three years later... our friends Zack and Sonja told us that he would be playing at the Tampa Rays Game and they wanted us to come with! :)

(PREGAME LESSON:  Don't order a Starbucks beverage from a hotel bar.  My frappuccino tasted like clouds.  If you don't know what clouds taste like it is basically water in a cloud-like consistency.  No coffee.  No pumps of anything.  Just clouds.)

(At least this was legit. Beer brewed in Tampa!)

I've never been big on sports, so to pass the time away I took pictures, of course!

Oh, and this kid made the night go by faster, too. David and I were playing peek-a-boo with him and he kept asking for his picture taken.

After the game, we had to wait in a long line to get on the field to see Gavin. By the time we got there we were a good 50 feet behind him.




Do you think enough people had their iPhones, cameras, iPads, flip videos, cellphones and video cameras out? Jeez

 

 It was an amazing night.

America the Beautiful.

Many of you who saw my tribute video to Colorado singing "America the Beautiful" have come to this page asking me questions and wanting to know who I am, so here goes!

Hi, I'm Shaylee. :) I'm 22 years young.  I can't actually play guitar that well, but I like to try. ;)
This is my blog and I've been writing in it ever since I moved here to Lake Mary, Florida near Orlando.  I'm a singer/songwriter with a dream to make music that changes the world.

I DID grow up in Colorado Springs, Colorado.  I lived there for 19 years before I left. I still consider it home and it is definitely where my heart is.  Practically all my family lives there.  I'm a Wasson T-Bird (spent all my school years in District 11) and after graduating I attended New Life School of Worship where I met my husband, David.  Then I got married and moved.  Leaving the Springs was extremely hard for me.  I missed hiking, climbing, running in fresh air, and most of all--the mountains.  I feel alive when I'm in them and I guess a part of me hasn't been the same since I left them.

So, it comes as no surprise that when my parents called me and told me about a fire in the mountains, my heart sank to the floor.  And then when Tuesday the 26th rolled around, every single one of my friends started posting pictures on facebook and I was right there with you all--no sleep, worried, praying nonstop just wanting to see a miracle.  It was that day that my uncle Brad, aunt Lynn and cousins Delaney & Lunden were asked to evacuate their homes (they lived on Ashton Park Place).  When my uncle had gone back to his house to get some more valuables Tuesday afternoon, the smoke was so thick he couldn't even see in front of him.  It was so eerie and he didn't see any more people driving near his streets, so he left.

It was confirmed a few days later that they lost their house.  I can't imagine the feeling of not being able to come back to a place you've built memories in and to a place where you've raised a family.  I thank God that they are all safe and they seem to have such a positive outlook on it all and it really has made me inspired and has made me think about gratitude and being okay without possessions.  I've had to ask myself if I lost everything, would I still have my faith?  It's a hard question to answer.

{ Enter picture of my family here as soon as I get a good one!! :) }

During the day the fire started to the time structures started burning, I knew there wasn't much I could do but pray (and us Floridians were praying hard for you all, too) and create something that would inspire. So, I immediately thought of "America the Beautiful."  To me, that song is the epitome of the Colorado mountains and that view you see at the top.

Music is a universal language and it speaks when words can't.  I'm so glad that this video has touched you and inspired because that was my hope and prayer while recording this, finding images, and telling you the story of my family.  Thank you to the firefighters who are risking their lives to protect this AMAZING city, and my heart continues to go out to those of you who lost a home (or a loved one).  Please share your stories with me, I would love to hear them!  I am overwhelmed by the stories I've read so far of loss and hope.  I know, without a doubt, Colorado Springs will rebuild and will come out stronger than ever because you all are the definition of what community looks like and I'm proud to be associated with all of you.

I posted the video below in case you haven't seen it yet.
To like my Facebook music page:  http://www.facebook.com/shayleesmusic
I hope you all stop by and say hello! :)

--Shaylee

lately (my florida realizations).

Lately I've been seeing life from a new angle; a new leaf, if you will. I didn't even realize it until I stayed up until 4:30 AM texting my best friend Holly on Friday night.
We were talking about the insanity of life, dreams, hopes...but then we started talking about Florida.
Recently, David's heart has been geared toward moving back to Colorado so we can be near my family & start our own family there. I want that, too... but I don't want it right now.
And before my Colorado friends/family flip out, let me just explain myself.

I've always been superrr close with my family. We tell each other everything, they showed me unconditional love (still do), and we were just very tight-knit. Then I met David who flipped my world upside down. I wanted to marry him, but I didn't necessarily want to move across the country the day after our wedding so that we could be with his family/friends. I knew marriage was about sacrifice--I had watched that from my own parents--and I chose to make the leap of faith, even if that meant leaving my family.

People ask me all the time, "How did you do that?" "Wasn't it hard?"
Um, yes. I started this blog as a means to express some of the stuff I was going through, which wasn't even the icing to what was really going on inside of me. {I may seem open on this blog, but I'm not generally an open person. I keep a lot inside and only tell the deep parts of me to a handful of people}.

Anyway, adjusting to the first year of marriage is hard enough in itself. David and I didn't live together before we were married, and throughout our entire engagement we had a long-distance relationship. So, add all that up with the fact that I was 19 years old, had never lived on my own before, and we had only known each other for a little more than a year and those were ingredients that would either bring us closer together or drift us further apart.

Spring Break 2009

At first they drifted us apart. I've talked about this several times before. Our marriage wasn't strong in the beginning.  Somedays I wasn't sure if we would last.  And when we would fight, I would leave... but I had nowhere to go.  All of the people that I would feel close enough to share things with lived 1,600 miles away.  So, eventually I would have to come back home and we would talk and work things out (sometimes until the wee hours of the morning).

See, if I would have never left my family physically, then I would have never been able to leave them emotionally.  I'm still close with my family, don't get me wrong, but I think God knew all along that though moving would be hard for me, it would grow me and stretch me and it would all become part of my testimony of things that I've been able to overcome.  Also, this and other circumstances that I've endured with David have brought us closer than I ever thought was possible.

God doesn't want us comfortable. Ever.  Our lives should be constantly growing, morphing into something that may seem ugly at first but you better believe it's going to turn beautiful.  This is why I question if moving back to Colorado is the path we should take.  There are two sides of me.  One side is family, family, family--I love them all so much and my heart aches to be with them.  But the other side of me is music--being able to pursue my dream of singing and performing, which has been instilled into my heart since I was very little.  The opportunities I have here in Orlando are completely non-existant there.  So, I'm waiting.  I'm praying.  I want the next move to be completely up to God.  I don't want to live here forever, but I don't know what the future looks like... it's hard being patient sometimes. :)

The best is yet to come, and the future is bright (literally).  After 2 and a half years, I'm finally starting to see the small things that make me love Florida.  Here are a few...
1. Animals.  All I ever saw in Colorado was deer, maybe a bear or a fox.  Here?  I see twenty different species of birds (and I LOVE birds) a day right outside my window.  I always see armadillo, more dead than alive, unfortunately, while driving to work.  Lizards... what can I say? At first I was so intrigued, now I have to watch my feet when I walk down my stairs so I don't accidentally step on one as they dart all around the stairs. I still think they are super cute, though.
Then there are the animals that are ever-present that I (thank God) have not encountered yet: Gators and Panthers.  And don't forget the insects.  I hate all insects, but I promise you every single day I see a brand new insect that I've never seen before.  I actually start to look forward to it because I'm a nerd and like to do my research.
2. Weather's the same all the time.  I miss seasons a whole lot.  However, it is nice to know I don't have to scrape snow off my windshield before I go to work.  My two essentials:  Sunglasses, and an umbrella because Florida's storms are fast and furious.
3.  I'm able to wear cute flip flops and sundresses all the time.  Enough said.
4. A "vacation" is a 40-minute drive away.  The beach/beach condo? 40 minutes.   Disney World? 40 minutes.  Universal? 40 minutes.  SeaWorld?  Less than 40 minutes. :)
5.  Family BBQ's with the in-laws.  I'm blessed to have awesome in-laws.  About once a month we have a BBQ in their beautiful screened-in backyard with David's sister Shanon and her husband Tyson.  After we are done eating, we swim in the pool or hot tub, or we sit at the table and play Apples to Apples or Catchphrase.  If I never moved here, I would have never became close with Shanon or David's parents.  :)


So, there's a few.  Have a beautiful weekend!  Enjoy where you are and live in the moment!

weekend recap.

cheap finds. a good friend. the beach. awesome seafood restaurants.
that's what I call a good weekend.

dreaming.

We've been doing a lot of dreaming lately.

Yesterday officially marked our 2 1/2 year anniversary and it's crazy how fast time has flown. We are now officially at the stage of being able to talk about babies and houses.  We may not be ready for either right now, but we are looking at houses all over the United States.

It's crazy because for the first time in my life I have no idea where we will be in one year.

At the start of our marriage, all I wanted to do was start a family and have a bunch of kids.  I felt like I was ready, yet God thankfully had another plan.  The first year to two years of our marriage was spent adjusting.  It's easy to live with one sinful person but then you add living for another imperfect person into the mix and it's a whole other dynamic.  We've been through some extremely rough patches.  Somedays I didn't think I was going to make it.  There were moments when I cried to God, asking him why he would bring us together if we were not meant to be.

But God had his hand on us the entire time.  He still does.  God is working in all areas of our lives even when we don't see them or feel His overwhelming love.
I'm not perfect, David's not perfect and our marriage will never be perfect.  But I thank God every day for His grace that He has extended to us.  It doesn't matter what you've done or said in your life--God loves you and when you ask for His forgiveness, His love, mercy & grace outpours into everything in your life.

Let this be an encouragement to you.  Wherever you are in life you have a God who loves you deeply.  It's a love that we as humans cannot begin to fathom or wrap our minds around; it's an unconditional love that isn't judging or condemning.  His love for us is a perfect love.

The other day at church I saw a picture on the wall that perfectly brought the message across of God's forgiveness.  This young man was broken and crying, but was wrapped in Jesus' arms.  Underneath was this Scripture:

"If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins, who could stand?  But with you there is forgiveness; therefore you are feared."  Psalms 130:3-4

Look at the people you around and surround yourself with those that show that grace and compassion to you.  Being honest is needed in all relationships, but being a judgemental friend is a whole other story. If you feel condemned, find new relationships. If you're somebody who sees yourself as a person who doesn't do much wrong, you need to evaluate your life.  I mean it.  Sit down with a pen and paper and ask God to speak to you about the things in your life that need to be changed in your heart. All of us have dirty hands.  Not even the greatest Preacher who has spoken 50,000 sermons and has helped save 1,000,000 lives is innocent.  In God's eyes, our greatest works are still filthy rags.

These last two years--but even more recently--we've evaluated.  We've evaluated the love we need from each other, we've evaluated what it means to be a Godly husband or wife.  We will always be evaluating until we die.

But at this moment in my life I feel my marriage is the strongest it's ever been.  Though Satan has attempted to use people or events to destroy us and although he has tried spreading lies into our family, we choose to not let him win.  And we refuse to feel condemnation from the enemy.  We run to the arms of God.  And every time we fall, we will keep running.

We're going to fall a lot more in this life.
It's inevitable.
But we are blessed to have a Savior who died for us.
And he fights for us & will until our mission is done here on earth.

That's the best feeling in the world.

Because of Him, we are able to dream.  We are able to create, to hope, to plan.  He's the center of it all.
Thank you, Lord.

photo shoots have their own page now!

So, as you can see I have a lot of interests and hobbies.  To keep this blog more organized, I have created a seperate blog for all photography-related posts.  You'll be able to see all my latest pictures on there.  The website is here. :)

one day.

one day I'm going to have a little boy.

he's going to be my heart and soul--a piece of what david and I have created in life.

because we're nerds (but mostly dreamers) we already have his name picked out. it's the perfect combination of adorable cuteness for a baby and masculine manliness for a grown man.

I'm excited for that day.

not now, but one day.

{pics taken with the incredibly cool bradyn, 3 years old}

birthday festivities.

I went outside this morning to get something from my car and was taken aback by the humid and hot temperature.  Yes, I know I live in Florida, but I thought maybe we would have a few more weeks of nice, subtle mornings.  I'm guessing that's over now and summer is coming in full-force.

It's perfect timing because we are escaping to Colorado for a week in just a few sweet days.
I'm so excited--it has been 9 months since I have seen my best friends and it has been 6 months since I've seen any of my family.  It's going to be good.

My birthday didn't really go as expected.  I ended up working that day about 15 hours.  By the time I got home, I was so tired and just went to bed.
The next day was celebration.  And my husband did a good job.
Many times I have to remind him of the things I like, the places I want to go... etc but when I woke up and went into the kitchen to get water, I started bawling uncontrollably.  There was a hand-written love note to me and six yellow roses.  Nothing does it for me like hand-written things and beautiful blooms.  But what was so sweet about it was that I wasn't expecting anything like that.  And just to read his heart on paper made me cry.  Yes, we live together and see each other everyday, but we don't always tell each other we love each other enough.  Life gets busy and other things demand our attention.  It was so sweet of him.

Later that evening after he got off of work, he told me we needed to leave because we had somewhere to be.  I quickly got ready after being lazy all day and working on projects.  We drove to Orlando, which is very rare for us.  Generally, we avoid Orlando unless we absolutely have to go there.  The traffic, the chaos, the tourist drivers... no, thank you.  But when we do go to Orlando it's usually for something exciting.  He took me to Dexter's.

It's a restaurant we have near our house, but this one was a different atmosphere.

He ordered this Asiago Cheese dip and I had a few nibbles.
It was delicious to say the least.  I still kept with my shrimp salad, though.
Afterwards, we walked around outside--looking at the cute boutiques and shops.  I found this owl necklace I really loved but it was like, 50 bucks.  Bummer.
Next, we went to Starbucks.  It's not a hang-out with David unless there is Starbucks involved.
We told the barista it was my birthday and asked for something free.  He said he couldn't do that.  And then David whipped out a free drink coupon for HIS birthday that was back in February.  The barista accepted it and said, "I'll make this myself for you."
He gave us two grande frappucinnos with a shot of expresso in each--for free.  The guy was awesome.

Please excuse the burn on my hand...so not attractive at all

After I got over my massive stomach-ache from that fat-filled frappe, we walked to the movie theatre.  He originally had planned to see Titanic in 3D with me, but they wouldn't accept his vouchers for a 3D movie which is stupid.  Nonetheless, we saw the Hunger Games (his second time seeing it) and it was an impressive movie so I was happy with it.

It's funny.  Every time either of us plans to do something, our plans usually change in the middle.  We have NEVER had a hang out that was perfectly orchestrated and planned.  I like that.  I like being married to somebody who's spontaneous.  He makes life so much more interesting.