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Lost & Found

Finding Treasure My maternal grandmother is my earliest recollection of the impact of combining words and photos. I was so blessed by her “pen pal” style letters that periodically landed in my college mailbox. They always included a couple of photos from our last visit, or the latest treasures that bloomed in her garden. Whenever I saw my name written in her handwriting, waiting to be discovered in my mailbox, my heart would flutter with excitement. My Mama Dede was such a fun loving role model in my life. She had a laugh that would make anyone smile or join in- whether you were in on the joke, or not. Reminiscing brings it all back again… so much love. I am so blessed.  Partners in Crime Not only a master gardener, Mama Dede (known as Edith to her peers) was president of her gardening club in the town of Elizabeth City, NC.  She would design, organize, decorate and make the town bloom with her [...]

By |2023-05-24T16:45:19+00:00May 24, 2023|connection, declutter, digitizing, finding help, managing photos, Photo Tips, photos, preservation|
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Loud & Proud

Note to the reader: The content in this post is deeply personal. If you are part of my story- YOU didn't hurt me; I love you. How this music teacher finally learned to sing Thank you for being here as I "think out loud" - My  hope is that we can resonate on a subject of growth and healing.  I grew up as the first born of two kids, eager to make the world happy.  I tried to be a good daughter, a good student, a team player, and a good friend because I was afraid of making others angry or disappointed in me.  But one thing I never tried to be good at as a child… was just being ME.  I didn’t know what that meant.  As far as I knew, following the rules meant there were fewer threats. I thought “being good” is the way to make other people happy  Everything I knew revolved around rules; Written and unwritten rules. The 10 [...]

By |2023-04-05T16:46:25+00:00March 28, 2023|finding help, managing photos, mindset, personal growth, Uncategorized|
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The Worst Thing Ever

When we struggle When things that happen (or don't) in life and we look at our role in the unwanted outcome, stress & overwhelm take over. Assigning blame doesn't help; It just makes the pain increase. We lose sight of the actual facts of any situation when we are drowning in all of the negative emotions that cloud our judgment. It’s as if our FEELINGS become the negative story tellers. Is that really an objective, helpful, constructive voice?  Are you living your worst case scenario in one area of life that casts shadows on all other topics, too? When we're talking about our personal photo collections, this is a perfect example of how the lack of clarity guides us directly out of success mindset and deep into a mental torture chamber.  When we are full of grief, regret and stuck there, often we discover more layers of  “worst case” scenarios unfolding. If you've ready any of my blog before you know I'm no stranger [...]

By |2023-03-13T17:25:33+00:00March 13, 2023|connection, digitizing, finding help, managing photos, mindset, online course, personal growth, preservation|
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The REBL(TM) in Me

Ever have a time when you're smiling on the outside, but screaming on the inside? It was like a tropical storm in my head; Wind swirling around, large objects tossed around, smothering any sense of peace and adrenaline was at an all time high. Upset, hurt feelings, raw emotions raked the back of my mind. But they were there to prompt me to practice what I preach. HERE'S HOW IT STARTED Wednesday: A grumpy text message from a friend who wanted to unload on me... I decided to get my family going before reading more. Notifications waiting for me- The tuition check money was withdrawn TWICE rather than once.   I walked away and let the dog out. Headlines of collections for the family who's home had burned down, a sob stuck in my throat as I prepared food for the pets and put the kettle on for tea. Urgent interruptions from family members- not all important The technology that wouldn't cooperate Thursday: The dog [...]

By |2023-02-12T19:33:00+00:00February 12, 2023|capturing moments, finding help, online course, personal growth, Photo Tips, photos, preservation, Sharing Photos, Uncategorized|
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Finally- A Breakthrough

It happened when she decided to put her needs first. Then the clouds broke up and the sunlight poured in... Finally. Adversity; conflict, natural disaster, loss, and major changes give us choices. The people who take times like this and create something new and beautiful are the people that inspire me most in life.  Enter Janica.  A single mom of 3 kids, the oldest of 5 siblings. She's not afraid of carrying the kind of heavy loads that many shy away from. Janica LOVES her family above all else, and works 2+ jobs to support them.  They call her their 'ROCK', but she’s still human. Janica’s lost both of her parents in 2014, and she then took on the responsibility of her parents estate, their home, and managed to send her oldest off to college while balancing her own home and two jobs. Strength embodied. Pushing her grief down, to be strong for her family, she decided not to make any immediate decisions regarding the family [...]

By |2022-11-07T00:33:52+00:00November 7, 2022|declutter, Digital Peace, digitizing, finding help, gifts, managing photos, Photo Tips, photos, preservation, Sharing Photos|
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My Fire Story

The one time I felt completely hopeless, my house was burning with all of my memories inside…. It was an absolute nightmare smelling something on fire but having NO IDEA where the smoke and flames were coming from. I began checking items like my computer, cords on the baseboards, and that’s when I smelled something. I ran down the hall. Smoke seeped through my child’s bedroom carpeting, but no sign of flames to be seen.. I sprinted down the stairs to find 5-foot flames licking the side of our garage refrigerator.  It was right next to the car with a tank full of gas, the snowblower and a full tank of fuel.  Holy S$&%, I needed to act quickly Shoes, daughter, scooped up the cats into a suitcase … We got out FAST, grabbing my cell phone and then dialed 911.  Then the smoke detectors started wailing … like nails in my ears. Trucks, sirens, helmets, smoke, commotion, adrenaline. I held my daughter on [...]

By |2022-10-31T02:46:35+00:00October 31, 2022|capturing moments, Digital Peace, digitizing, finding help, managing photos, online course, photos, preservation|
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Confessions of a Control Freak – Letting in Joy

Do you know why babies laugh? I believe it’s because they have no restrictions, filters, or hesitation to keep them from filtering out a joyful response. When I hear baby laughter, I can't help but smile or often laugh along. They snap me out of my trance called “adulthood” and remind me of my natural joyful state. I LOVE THAT.  But over the years, we build layers of skin formed by our experiences, influencers and systems that were designed to make us productive members of society. Things don't always go the way we like, or we don't take criticism lightly and we go to extremes to avoid all faults and opportunities just to be criticized. And the result for me is: perfectionism starts to take over. Have you ever considered that the more room we make for perfectionism, the less space there is for joy? Time to clean THAT closet out; let’s get a little messy for the sake of letting stuff go that [...]

By |2022-10-17T16:56:57+00:00October 17, 2022|declutter, Digital Peace, finding help, managing photos, online course, personal growth, special event|
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Confessions of a Control Freak

This one’s for my fellow life-long learners and uplifters... the ones who know there's always room to grow. It all comes down to how we talk to ourselves. I hope these words find people who also want to live a better way- to prosper, connect, enrich and appreciate the beautiful lives we have. Let’s add more fun and more beauty as we go! What are we telling ourselves? We gather information from our own experiences and by observing others, often mis-interpreting how things unfold. Then our brains file them away as rules to live by- that’s life. Our ego adds details for our own protection… sometimes making the situation far more dangerous to keep us away. Well, that’s how I lived until recently. Decades of gathering mis-information has grown into layers of self-limiting beliefs for me. I’ve been doing some self evaluation, gained new awareness, and now I’m choosing to give myself compassion & forgiveness. I’ve decided to confess & release those layers [...]

By |2022-10-01T22:10:37+00:00October 3, 2022|community, connection, Digital Peace, digitizing, finding help, managing photos, personal growth, special event|
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“I was about to slam my computer shut…

...because I couldn’t find my photos, and then your email popped up.” I opened this message from a subscriber of mine recently. I understood. This is what I deal with all the time. Not the first message like this  and it won’t be the last.  It happens all the time. It can feel like some kind of ‘Photo Gluttony’. There are simple fixes that have lasting success and I love to help them get back on track and feel immediate hope and prompt relief! And NO you don't have to stop taking photos... it's what comes NEXT, that needs some adjusting. :)  People take more photos today than they ever have before, in addition to old devices full of thousands of jpegs. They're important and they're in lock down, in all different places. People cannot manage memories trapped in all sorts of places- out of sight; out of reach. They struggle to find the ones they are looking for, let alone sharing and enjoying [...]

By |2022-09-26T20:11:03+00:00September 26, 2022|capturing moments, declutter, digitizing, finding help, managing photos, Photo Tips, photos, Sharing Photos, special event|
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I was once a bank teller- HATED IT!

Did you know this about me?  First of all- NO DISRESPECT to any bankers out there. I actually may have loved it if I’d taken a different approach. No placing blame, it’s just a story with some lessons.  I was in college and needed a summer job. I jumped at the opportunity to collect a regular paycheck -without considering if I’d LIKE the work. I can honestly say it was the WORST job experience of all time for me. Can you relate?  Looking back, it’s now easy to find so many good lessons that were waiting to be learned from every experience- even the unpleasant ones. At the top of the list- knowing what I DON’T like is just as important as knowing what I DO like.  Without a challenge, or negative emotions to help us recognize something we dislike, how else would we look for something better to aim for and appreciate? Rewards are all around us, waiting to be allowed in!  Now [...]

By |2022-09-15T19:15:02+00:00September 19, 2022|capturing moments, connection, digitizing, finding help, photos, Uncategorized|
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