Christmas Eve

Good morning, everyone! Today is Monday, December 24th. What does today look like for you? I hope you're spending it with your loved ones, preferably snuggling in front of a fire eating copious amounts of sugar cookies. Unfortunately that's not what our Christmas Eve is going to look like. This morning I am working just a few hours for my job at the bank, and tonight Isaiah is working a long shift until 11:30 p.m. Not exactly ideal, but we're working with it. Who's going to set out the cookies for Santa with me? We don't have family in town, but this weekend my in-laws and brother in law are coming to visit and we have a pretty intense schedule of events lined up (per usual).

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So instead, I will be home alone tonight. I was pretty pouty about this for a few weeks. I'm so used to "going to my mom's side for Christmas Eve, opening presents from Santa on Christmas morning, and going to my dad's side on Christmas Day". Even in college I was able to visit my family over the holidays and I lived a lot further away! But instead of pouting I've decided to make Christmas Eve a lovely evening of reflection, prayer, and celebration.

Yesterday I spent some time cleaning the house and preparing for this relaxing and thoughtful time. (I can't remember if I've written about it on this blog, but one of my "stumbling blocks" to making things happen is having an organized space- almost to the point of lunacy). It's not perfect but it will do. I prepared some sugar cookie dough so I can do the fun part- baking and decorating!

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I'll also be spending a good amount of time reading the Bible and journaling. "Me time" is not something I make time for on a regular basis and is definitely going to be a focal point of 2013. I can foresee myself diving into motherhood without a single introspective thought, only to get burnt out too soon. I hope that this time of reflection will help further guide my intentions for the next year. For Christmas tomorrow, one of the gifts I'm going to give my husband is a large, handwritten letter of each and every one of my honest intentions. Usually I'm very private with aspirations. Not the ones that are easy, (i.e. go to the gym more, eat healthier foods, call my mom more often), but the deeper intentions, the desires of my heart that seem unreachable. This year, I want to be more fearless. I want to dream bigger and share those things with my husband. Truly, this is the most meaningful gift I could give, the gift of my heart, over and over.

I also wanted to share my favorite Christmas song with you all. This one has been on the top of my list for years now, specifically the one by Sufjan Stevens. It stirs my heart Christmas after Christmas, a joyful reminder to give my heart away.

"Come Thou Fount Of Every Blessing"

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing

Tune my heart to sing Thy grace

Streams of mercy, never ceasing

Call for songs of loudest praise

Teach me some melodious sonnet

Sung by flaming tongues above

Praise the mount, I'm fixed upon it

Mount of Thy unchanging love

Here I raise my Ebenezer

Here there by Thy great help I've come

And I hope, by Thy good pleasure

Safely to arrive at home

Jesus sought me when a stranger

Wandering from the fold of God

He, to rescue me from danger

Interposed His precious blood

O to grace how great a debtor

Daily I'm constrained to be

Let that grace now, like a fetter

Bind my wandering heart to Thee

Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it

Prone to leave the God I love

Here's my heart, O take and seal it

Seal it for Thy courts above

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing

Tune my heart to sing Thy grace

Streams of mercy, never ceasing

Call for songs of loudest praise

Teach me some melodious sonnet

Sung by flaming tongues above

Praise the mount, I'm fixed upon it

Mount of Thy unchanging love.

Blessings on this Christmas Eve!

Rachel

Moving Forward

I'm not going to apologize for my lack of blogging over the past month. There has been so much going on! In this post, I want to do a little recap of where I've been and what I've been up to for the last month, but I also want to set some personal and professional goals for the next year, and line up what my intentions are for this blog for 2013. This may or may not take up a few posts.

I left off mentioning that we were about to embark on a vacation (not a trip!) to Isla Mujeres to visit my in-laws. Let me just say that the trip was magical. We spent hours strolling through the downtown streets, eating popsicles and laying around on the beach. The weather was iconic and it was great to just spend time with my husband, his brother and my in-laws. Together we celebrated my 24th birthday, Thanksgiving, and a some big news.... Isaiah and I are having a baby!

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Yep, you read that right. At the time of our visit, We were just about 12 weeks along and were able to tell our family in person, which was so important to me. Unfortunately my parents heard the news over the phone, but were obviously still thrilled. I want to write more about our trip and share some of the photos too.

As of today, I am 16 weeks along and feeling fabulous! For a while I was pretty sick and very tired, so I'm glad to be in this new stage of pregnancy. We also had our third ultrasound on Wednesday and found out that we are having a sweet baby boy! Honestly we could not be more thrilled. I am enamoured with him already.

Because of this huge news, my life is taking a drastic turn in the next year! I think about all the ground work I've done in building my event planning business: the hours I've put in at a job that is (almost) the furthest thing from fulfilling, working weddings for free, pulling all-nighters painting watercolors for clients, rising before dawn to finish floral arrangements so they are the freshest as can be. I know in my heart of hearts that event planning and floral design is where I am called to be. Do I know when I'll be able to pursue that full-time? No. But I do know that I have the most loving family and support system. I am blessed beyond measure with a husband that not only supports my dreams of running my business and being a mom to our kids, but a man who is level headed about money and who wants a secure, happy life for us all.

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For now, our "plan" is to have faith that everything will fall into place in it's right time. This summer I was planning on working 8 weddings (that was my goal), and now I've had to turn away clients. This doesn't upset me because I know that these actions support my greater intention of being a loving wife and mother. I can't wait to share more of this journey with you and move forward with this blog. Thanks for reading, it's going to be a crazy year!

For now, a little to-post list. :)

-Isla Mujeres recap

-Baby Progress so far

-Personal Intentions 2013

-Professional goals 2013

The Stress of Measuring

This post is inspired by what I read this morning on Leo Babauta's blog, Zen Habits. As you know, this year I've been focusing on living an intentional and fulfilling life. My time is spent designing my "ideal day" and closing in on what really, truly fires me up. Thanks to Making Things Happen (Lara, Emily, and Gina are superstars) I've gotten some much needed clarity on what this means for me and my business.

Leo's post talked about the stress of measuring- why we are constantly tracking everything by a number. How many miles did I run, tweets sent, likes on my facebook, hours slept, etc. His examples were supreme and really hit home for me. Especially ones like, calories consumed, e-mails sent, etc. I started to think about what I measure. It was time for me to "get real" (a phrase that my husband loves). Clients booked, dollars in my bank account, "real life" friends, twitter followes, body weight, items on my to-do list. My friends, these are all very real parts of my life that either make or break my mood. It's not easy to come to terms with my fears. I can feel my heart start to race when I think about my bank account being drained or not booking clients or gaining weight over the holidays. Is that what I value? Lara said that to name your fears is to destroy them.

Since I've finished school and started this journey of building a business, a marriage and a life in a new city, I've been so thoughtful of each step. Planning everything so carefully, to the point of praise by my friends and family. It was only this morning that I took a giant step back and realized that I am not following my intention of authenticity by measuring each and every thing in my life. Planning out the next 10 steps will get me nowhere if I'm not happy and making the right things happen in that moment. I know that's what will make my long term intentions come to fruition.

A few weeks ago I turned down my first client. It was really, really hard for me to do. She was amazing and truly looked like my ideal client. When I went home from our initial meeting, I got this nagging feeling that it just wasn't right. For one, it could have been great financially for Occasions, it was a large event and would have taking a lot of time and creative thought. Serious thought went into it and eventually I let her know that I wasn't going to be able to serve her in the way that she deserved, or give her the level of service that I pride myself on- for a number of reasons. After I sent the e-mail I immediately felt better, relieved. My number of "clients booked" wasn't increasing, but I felt so much better and like I was doing the right thing. I was turning down this client to make room for something bigger and better, but not in the traditional sense. In business school, we called this "opportunity cost". In my heart of hearts I knew my business wasn't ready to handle the wedding this client needed. And by reccomending another vendor in my area that will truly knock it out of the park, it was a win-win situation.

I hope that as Occasions grows into the elegant, fun, flower loving, rose-colored, rustic-but-refined brand that I've been dreaming of and creating that I can continue to make tough decisions on behalf of my intention. In other areas of my life I hope I can slow down and enjoy the little things. Isaiah and I are headed to Mexico for the next week and I cannot wait to hug my mother in law and dig my toes into the sand. Things not on my packing list: laptop, alarm clock, to-do list. Instead I'm going to wake up each morning, practice some gentle yoga and put my swimsuit on. We're going to walk to the cafe down the street and eat fruit, toast and coffee before we head to the beach with our books and towels. I'm going to soak in each moment with the people dearest to me. I can't wait for that quiet time. It'll be the perfect way to spend Thanksgiving.

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Next week on the blog, some really exciting news. I cannot wait to share with you all!

Making Things Happen Recap

Alright you guys. It's been a week since I attended Making Things Happen in Chigaco. I purposely waited a little while to share this with you all because I wanted it to "soak in". Going into this workshop I basically had no idea what to expect. I didn't know one single person. I left two hours early from a friend's house where I was staying because I was so nervous about traffic. I hardly ate breakfast. I waited in a hotel lobby for 45 minutes. Then, I introduced myself to a couple other girls. Thankfully, they were really nice. As in- thank you for calming my nerves even though I don't even know you- type nice. I didn't know what was going to happen in that room, but I knew that I wasn't going to leave the same. For one thing, I didn't think I'd be diving headfirst for the tissue box within the first hour. And those tears were important. They made me realize that what was happening, what I was feeling was real and tangible.

All of the fears I have surrounding my personal and professional life are real. They live in my head and hold me back from truly living my ideal day and my perfect life. It was through the hard work we did that day that I was able to gain clarity into what all of these thoughts and anxieties meant in my life. I remember one day about 3 weeks ago sitting on my living room floor. I thought to myself, "Things are pretty good. I take life one day at a time." I though that really loud and clear! But then there was this voice in the back of my head... "if something truly catostrophic happened, what would I DO? How could I make decisions and keep living life?" This really scared me.

Since MTH, I've have very little time to really sit down and reflect. I have all this newfound clarity about my fears, distractions, and most importantly, what fires me up. I need to make time do hash it out. Like Lara said, the real work will come when you walk out the door. I know what she meant. In six months I hope I know even deeper. In one year I hope I'm still learning and improving.

image via Shay's post, here! too perfect not to add. :)

Whoa!

Wow, you guys. The past 10 days have been nothing short of an absolute whirlwind. You remember that workshop I blogged about? The Making Things Happen event in Chicago? Well, I'm going! I could not be more thrilled to have this opportunity. I'm leaving this Saturday for Chi-town and will be staying with a good friend from college. We're planning on shopping a little, going for a run and having a nice dinner out. I love girl dates! On Monday I'll be at MTH all day and then I have to drive all the way back to Traverse City. Crazy right? I know- I have to keep telling myself it'll be worth it. It's going to be just the kick in the pants I've been looking for!

Another huge thing that happened this week- my husband started his new position at the hospital! I'm so proud of him. He works so hard for our family. Not only is his position at Munson full time, but he's also still a firefighter for the county. This means lots and lots of hours. He is tired. But so strong at the same time. I feel so lucky to be married to a man with such dedication. Isaiah, if you read this- you are the best! :)

At Making Things Happen, there will be a lot of "tough questions". Now I've never been to one of these magical workshops but I've been thinking a lot about the things I want to focus on, my intentions. Even in the past week my intentions have shifted and I'm really looking forward to exploring those next few months and especially in 2013. I'm excited to share more when I return from the workshop! Lots of exciting changes around here at Occasions and the Moger pad. Pretty fun!

-Rachel

Making Things Happen

Okay you guys, I know there are only a humble few of you out there who read this blog. But those of you that do know that I tend to be a perfectionist... but in a strange way. Those of you that read my blog know me deeply, and know that I have big dreams. Bigger than I think I'll ever be able to share on this blog. I've recently realized that my problem with "perfectionism" is a-typical compared to others. I go to bed with dishes in the sink, my purse is full of receipts, cookie crumbs and more crap that you can imagine. But despite my messy girl tendencies, I still have this weird mindset around big projects. I can't seem to start until everything is

perfect

.

When something is really important to me, like getting a good grade on an exam or starting my business, everything has to be in place just right. Trust me, it took a year and a half before I even started this blog because I was afraid. I made excuses upon excuses- I don't have a professional logo, I don't have time, what will I write about, is this my purpose?, etc, etc. Eventually, after hearing it a million times... I decided to just start. And even though each little thing isn't exactly right, I'll keep moving forward. I'm starting to

make things happen.

When

Emily

posted about the

MTH scholarship

, I knew I just had to put my name out there. This business of mine, what is so so important to me, has the potential to be big. My clients, both past, present, and future, deserve an event designer who isn't afraid- who is ready to grab the bull by the horn and go for it. So here I am, putting myself out there. I'm ready to make things happen.

This summer my husband and I were given an incredible, life changing gift. The support of our family members has really awakened something inside of my to be intentional about my life, something I've talked about before here on the blog. I want to make sure that I'm taking full advantage of the life I was blessed with and give back in a way that I can. For me, Occasions is the way I can do that right now. To bust out of my shell and show the world what I'm made of. I think attending the

Making Things Happen

event in Chicago this month would be just the push I need to let go of the voice of perfection and just get it done. I am so excited!

Styled: Work from Home

Something that is true to my career as a wedding designer, and that I also happen to love is the importance of looking put together. When you're selling a service on the basis of a promise that you're going to make their wedding day stylish and beautiful, you have to look the part!

When I'm wearing an outfit that's appropriate to job I'm doing, I feel confident and I showcase my own personal style as a designer. While I spend countless hours creating inpiration boards for events, I hardly ever take the time to curate my personal style... until now! My new column,

Styled

, will be published on a whim whenever I feel like it. ;) I hope to put together looks for different aspects of my day to day life as a wedding planner and how they might change seasonally. Keep your eyes open for future posts on what to wear to meetings with clients, vendors, the whole wedding weekend and for formal events. This should be fun!

For my first look, I wanted to show you what (in my dream closet) I'd like to wear when I'm working in my home office. I need to be comfortable, but professional enough to run out for a meeting. I like to get dressed (shoes and all!) first thing in the morning to put myself in a "I'm at work now." mindset. But not in a boring sad way.

Styled: Work from Home

by

hello-rachelelizabeth

featuring a

bow belt

Being Intentional.

In my first few years of university, there were severeal

buzzwords

around campus. I was fortunate enough to attend a relatively small, private university in Seattle. As a factor of this, living on campus was a

big

deal for everyone. It seemed like everyone was coming from the furthest reaches of the globe, I was only from Minnesota! "Community living" was the most important aspect of your first year college experience. Orientation week slammed you with words and phrases to memorize- PA, ASSP, SFS, Res. Halls, etc. Then there are words spoken so often on campus they almost became a mantra for student life- community, relationships, calling, 

intentional

. Looking back on my education, we thought these things were silly at times. Why did I have to be so "intentional" about relationships in my little bubble at SPU? What did it even mean to find my

calling

? Are you lost, yet? ;)

my beautiful campus

My gorgeous alma mater,

Seattle Pacific University

 The point is, I truly was intentional about trying to soak up my college experience. I met all sorts of new people, explored the city and dived head first into internships to find my calling in a way that was authentic to me and my journey. (Fellow SPU students are probably totally picking up on the lingo now!). Even though I had a tendency to be a little bit cynical about the whole process, I can truly see the value in finding your calling and being intentional about reaching your goals.

After reflecting on this for a while and reading Jess Lively's

blog

about Business with Intention, I've been inspired to start a new column on this blog about how I intend to

intentionally

bring Occasions to life in an authentic, real to me way. I want to explore the aspects of my business that could easily be swept off the side- to be deliberate about writing a business plan that will work for me now and in years to come. I want to design a

space

that will serve my purpose and allow me to better serve my clients. This section on the blog will be ongoing as I experience the "growth" stage of Occasions Event Design. Look for more posts weekly!

To your journey,

Rachel

OED workspace: part 1

I am so excited to start this mini-series on the blog today! As a new business owner, there are so many challenges to getting "up and running". Theses challenges are varied- from setting up a website, registering an LLC, purchasing business cards and more. One "challenge" that I've been looking forward to is the design of my new home office! This is a huge step for Occasions as a business, and one that will truly mark my humble beginnings. As of right now, my "office" is either my couch, my favorite coffee shop, Morsels, or a kitchen table with hot glue spilling all over the place. We don't pay for internet but rather borrow a spotty signal from some unsuspecting neighbor. So when I tell you I'm on a budget, I mean it. ;)

For my wedding gift, my husband decided to give me the best thing EVER. He decided that we should dedicate an entire room in our little abode to my growing business. I cried. He even told me he was going to build me a desk. So over the last few months we've gone through some trial and error over what the space should look like. First we were going to keep our TV & futon in there too. Our basic idea was that it could be a fusion room: part tv room, part guestroom, and part office. This seemed like a decent compromise to me but when it came down to it, it just wasn't going to work. I needed a space that was fully mine. That I could organize my props and supplies- cut up tissue paper without Isaiah sweeping up after me 24/7. He loves being clean and organized- it's more of an effort for me. :) So this room is small but it's going to pack a big punch. I'm ready for a big desk, bright lights and internet that will acutally load youtube videos in less than 45 minutes. Bring it on!

Here are some pieces that I am using as inspiration for my space...

 These two prints from

Jess LC

are amazing in person.

I ordered them about a month ago while I was dreaming of this space.

Jess Lively

is one of my favorite bloggers and a business owner that I truly look up to. Her shop carries a few motivational prints and I couldn't resist. I'm planning to mat and frame in white against my persimmon colored wall. I hope that I'll be inspired to strike a balance between big dreams and living in the moment. Later on I'll share more of my process of being intentional about my space and about building my business.

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West Elm

Okay, please don't yell at me for choosing a white parsons desk. The truth is, I crave a clean space that dirty up a little bit with lots of papers, coffee mugs and paintbrushes. This will be an outward facing desk with two removable chairs for clients. That way, I'll be able to host meetings in my office- a dream! Against the wall I'll have a small dresser for storage space and shelving. This way I can switch back and forth between two (or more) projects at once. I tend to do that.

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Ikea

Isaiah and I bought this shelving unit as one of our first pieces of furniture together. I have to say- it's HUGE. It's been everything from a storage unit to a book shelf. Lately it's been living in our guestroom but I'm taking it out of retirement and into my office. It needs to be spiced up a little bit. Let me know if you have any ideas! I have a few baskets and hope to use a row for each client's props and supplies to keep organized. It's not my favorite piece of furniture but it will be very useful.

I'll be back soon with more on building my office space! I'm so excited about sharing this process with you all. Still working on the smaller details, should I get a desktop computer or stay with my 5-year-old macbook? Pay for internet or stick it out? I think the last one's a no-brainer.

To your success!

Rachel

The Morning After

Well technically it's the Monday morning after, but just go with it. If you were here to read my post on Friday, you'll know that I was gearing up for a crazy weekend of wedding madness. Seth and Renee, it was such a joy to spend this weekend with you. I know your marriage will be a reflection of your wedding day- full of laughter, surrounded by those dearest to you and beautiful in everyway possible. I can't wait for the photos to come back to relive those amazing moments with you both! Congratulations!

I'll be back soon with a first look! So many beautiful florals and details to come on the blog. Love to you all!

Seth and Renee... Engaged!

You two lovebirds... I cannot even begin to explain how much I have loved working with you both leading up to your wedding day. Your energy and passion make you the perfect client. Tomorrow you will stand together as husband and wife in front of your closest family and friends. It will be the perfect day. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to be a part of it.

Can we just talk for a second about how beautiful these engagement photos by Andrea from

Northern Art Photography

 are? S & R are great models, you can't even tell how chilly it was that day!

This bottom photo is one of my favorites from the whole set. The area they chose for photos is so representative of their journey to marriage as a couple. They met at North Bar beach, introduced by mutual friends and have been insperable since. The rest is history! Seth proposed in January at this very spot on Old Mission Peninsula and they decided to return for some photos there. To top it all off, we decided on a watercolor theme for their wedding day celebration. Each table will be designated as a body of water in Northern Michigan. The bride and I hand painted everything you'll see later on... This event is going to be jam-packed with details and I can't wait to share them with you all! I I have a full heart as I head to to set-up and rehearsal. This will also be my very first full service floral design client! It's been non-stop pretty this week. Follow me on instagram for more sneak-peeks of this loveable couple.

Love,

Rachel

Softly Spoken: Like Air

“Marriage is those two thousand indistinguishable conversations, chatted over two thousand indistinguishable breakfasts, where intimacy turns like a slow wheel. How do you measure the worth of becoming that familiar to somebody—so utterly well known and so thoroughly ever-present that you become an almost invisible necessity, like air?”

-Elizabeth Gilbert

Image by

Crissie McDowell Photography

via

Style Me Pretty

On a couples' wedding day, I can't help but think of this quote. Isaiah and I haven't been married long enough for two-thousand breakfasts, but we have been through a lot in our time together. He can always count on me to remember that he does not like his steak cooked

medium

, but rather

medium-well

. I have the deepest comfort knowing that Isaiah will always kiss me on the cheek first thing in the morning. Even if I'm sleeping when he does it, I know he'll be right there with a little lovin' first thing in the morning. Marriage is truly becoming one person. My individuality became that much more poignant on our wedding day when we were made one.

This is the fabric of marriage. Knowing eachothers' thoughts at the core of your being. When I'm standing with a bride in the last moments before her ceremony, my heart is so full. She doesn't know how good it's going to get. When the officiant announces the new Mr. & Mrs., those smiles just about knock me over. Marriage is a gift, sometimes loud and most of the time quiet.

With a full heart,

Rachel 

Inspired: Love

by

Grounded on the Daily

via

Pinterest

I came across this quote on Pinterest this week. Though I've heard these lyrics countless times through my earbuds, it looked differently to me on "paper" than it felt listening to it. I'm a firm believer that the small moments we invest our time in each day end up defining our lives. Not to mention, I'm totally digging the color scheme. Perfect for the last sunny days of August. 

xo

Rachel  

Inspired: Breakfast in Bed

This inspiration shoot by

Love by Linzy

 literally took my breath away. You should have heard me squeeling with delight when I stopped by Style Me Pretty on Sunday. The poppy red and vibrant pink truly emphasize the excitement of a breakfast in bed proposal. How much fun would it be to wake up to a stack of pancakes and a bunch of flowers, let along to the man of your dreams ready to pop the question?! Would you ever consider a pink and red color scheme for your wedding? Head over to

Style Me Pretty

for even more gorgeousness, including some amazing shots of the couple jumping on the bed!

Love by Linzy

via

Style Me Pretty

In Love and Kindness,

Rachel Elizabeth