2012: It's been a good run...

I stole a kiss in Times Square on our trip.

I've always loved New Year's Eve.  The glitz, the kiss, the resolutions, the champagne, the friends, the exciting last 10 seconds of the countdown, the confetti, the noisemakers...it's such a fun & glamorous night.  I always used to wish I had one of those unforgettable moments where I'm standing in the middle of a crowded dance floor (wearing a gorgeous Valentino gown, of course) & the man of my dreams swoops in at midnight to kiss me.  A little silly, right?  Eh, what can I say? I'm a hopeless romantic.

However, I think God knew how important and magical that midnight kiss was to me.  I didn't have that mind-blowing, room-spinning, firework crackling moment I dreamed of but...the only boy I've ever kissed on New Year's Eve is Jason Carpenter.  It is one of those beautiful moments in my life that just belongs to us.  He truly is my prince charming.

One of my favorite quotes is: "Don't spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; but remember that what you now have was once among the things only hoped for. "

Now, I kiss those same familiar lips at midnight year after year & I wouldn't change it for the world.  I may be rocking sky-high stilettos and an awesome mini,  I may be in sweats & a tee shirt or (one day) I may have a baby in one arm and a kid wrapped around each leg & spit-up running down my backside.  Either way, those kisses will be just as thrilling & precious to me because I know that I got through that year with my best friend & I look forward to ninety-nine more with him. If I must climb high mountains, if I must chase new dreams, if I must conquer old demons, then I don't want the mystery man - I want ol' faithful by my side.  Here's to many more adventures, my love. :)

 

Farewell 2012 & Cheers to 2013.  Trust God.  Dream BIG.  Enjoy the blessings you are given. Live every day intentionally like it's your last & you'll live a life with no regrets.

Colorfully Yours,

Count Your Blessings...

Well, it's been a whirlwind of a week so I am just now having time to stop & settle in for a little blog time.  On this dreary day, I'm going to talk about what's GOOD in my life.  Jason & I are both in great health this year, God has led us to an amazing church that we are pretty confident about joining soon, our relationship with God & each other are deepening daily, our businesses are growing, we've consistently made time for dates each week, our Maggie-Moo continues to provide the utmost in entertainment, I have the best sisters & friends a girl could ask for, we have a strong roof over our heads with AC in the summer & heat in the winter, our vegetable garden is flourishing, the weather is phenom, we have amazingly supportive parents, both my website & blog are finally up...I could go on & on.

God is blessing Jason & I with so many amazing opportunities lately, which I will list in just a moment.  Things I've always wanted to cross off my bucket list for years!  I try to stay positive and count my blessings on this blog.  Trust me my complaints, worries & woes about my life could easily outweigh the blessings--if I allowed them to get in the way of my happiness.  Don't stand in your own way!  That's no fun!

Also, don't ever let anyone else steal your joy.  There will always be people who are competitive in your life who will try to belittle or make you feel bad about the blessings you've received- don't worry about them. Give the praise to God and pray that those individuals recognize the many blessings in their own lives, instead of comparing themselves to others.  Because that way of living/thinking is a lose-lose every time.

First, things first...we are going to NEW YORK CITY for Thanksgiving.  Amazing sightseeing, scrumptious meals & the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade are all in our future.  We are SO excited to be spending Thanksgiving with two of my dear life-long friends!!!!  It will be a blast - I hope spending Thanksgiving with these family friends becomes a tradition one day like we always hoped for as kids!

Secondly, speaking of things that make us proud to be an American - Jason & I went to the Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics.  I loved seeing the Fab 5 from the USA Women's Gymnastics team in action!  My heart was doing backflips!  I seriously will never let go of that little junior olympian inside me!  Go for the GOLD! :)

Third, Carrie Underwood concert is in TWO WEEKS!!!!  Can.not.wait. to see this beautiful, talented woman in person!  She is such an amazing role model to me!  Jason & I are totally stoked about seeing her LIVE!

Last, OKC Thunder pre-season has started!!!!!!!  We share season tickets with two other couples so we go to our first game of the season next week!  Woohoo!!!!!!  Can't wait to Thunder Up all season long!!!! :)

I'm so in love with my sweet husband and none of this would seem nearly as fun to me without him by my side. God is so good to us....always!  He always provides in the bad times, and He continues to keep us humbled & full of gratitude through the good.  These times in our life are fun & bring us closer and closer but the real reward is seeing how far God has brought us in the last 6 years.  That is one of those amazing blessings that you can never put a price on. 

Enjoy life to the FULLEST while you can as it can be here today & gone tomorrow!


Colorfully Yours,

WOO-HOO! New website is finally here!

I'm SOOO excited to finally unveil my new Heather Carpenter Photography | Design website to you all!  It's been quite the journey getting this up & running, dating all the way back to August 2011 when I first purchased the base files.  So yes, I am happy it's out there.


Some things you should know (before you go!)...

1) The website & the mobile site will look completely different.  The website itself is bright and colorful & has lots of cool features, while the mobile one is going to be very basic, as any mobile blog or site would be now.  This is for your convenience so you don't have to zoom in and try ever-so-gingerly to only hit one button on the menu. You know what I'm talking about! :)

2) The website isn't 100% compatible with smaller screens, such as the iPad or Kindle Fire...yet.  In fact, it may look a little janky right now if you try!  However, I've got my hosting team working on this issue right now & should we get it resolved- I will make an announcement for you!

3) On laptops, it may fit perfectly if you have a newer model/wider screen or it may fill up your entire screen.  The answer?  Zoom out a couple notches.  Mac users, just hit Command (⌘) + (-) button at the top of your keyboard.  For PC users, I have no idea what you guys use - is it Ctrl + (-) button perhaps?  Sorry it's been a while! ;)



Here's a sneak peek!  Go to the site for more! Enjoy! :)

 Colorfully Yours,

We can't do everything...

I have to My husband has to constantly remind me that I can NOT do it all.  I've always been a big, BIG dreamer but I was tired of sitting around & waiting for life to come to me.  This year, my New Year's Resolution was to go from dreamer to doer.  Since then, I have accomplished a lot of things in very short amount of time which is great, but...I rarely stop and smell the roses anymore.  I want to do everything & since I am a very results-oriented person, I want to see it all happen ASAP.  As you could have concluded, this causes me a great deal of stress, frustration, anger, disappointment...you name it, I've felt it within the past month.

I'm starting to slow down a little bit in some areas.  I enrolled in art classes at the local vo-tech school.  For 3.5 hours a week, all I do is give my undivided attention to a blank $8 canvas.  It is the most relaxing, stress-relieving thing that I could have done for myself.  I've adjusted my busy schedule to fit in this small window of meditation and reflection, & I'm so thankful.  It's really teaching me so much about myself.

Not only that, it's a creative outlet for me.  I get so bogged down in all the design legality of my day job - I forget about "breaking the rules" & "thinking outside the box" in my photography & design.  Painting rejuvenates that free-spirited, inner flower child.  When I get stressed at home now, I bust out the oils & just let me imagination run wild.  I'm a colorful abstract painter - who'da thunk it? ::sarcasm::

Anyone who knows me well knows I develop extreme ADD if I'm not engaged in something I'm 100% interested in, so I was a little nervous about the 3 hour class.  Surprisingly, time just FLIES by there.  I've learned to focus in on the tiniest of details instead of zooming through the big picture saying "success" or "fail".  I've learned to channel the energy & emotion I'm feeling into a masterpiece.  Last week, I spent 3 hours on about 3 square inches of an oil painting.  That's a miracle seeing as I barely have the attention span it takes to un-tie and re-tie my shoes before going to the gym (ask my husband - it's a stressful 30-second ordeal.)

The greatest thing my instructor has taught me about oil painting is that it's all about "perfecting the imperfect."  The paint doesn't fully dry for weeks & even when it does dry you can paint over your mistakes.  So allegorically, I've started to use that way of thinking in my own life.  I don't have to give up on a goal or project just because I've made a complete mess along the way.  I just step away, refocus & work on it again later - which will most likely lead to more successes (and optimism!) in the end.

My point is...we can't do it all & trying to do it all will result in complete burn-out.  Everyone needs to find an outlet that refocuses & inspires them.  Sign up for a new class, start a new hobby, have a craft night with friends, join a yoga or gym class, go read a book outside, schedule one inexpensive, fun date a week with your significant other...

Sometimes we become SO focused on who we want to be, where we want to go & things we want to accomplish that we miss out on all the wonderfully amazing things that God is patiently waiting to do THROUGH us.  Ask Him, then shut up & listen. 

We all know that we want God to tell us to continue to do exactly what we're doing at the rapid pace we're doing it all....  But if you're not finding any joy in it.  If you're constantly running into closed doors.  If you & your family are suffering or will inevitably suffer because of the way it impacts you or your self-worth.  Ask again, unbiasedly.  Your answer may lead you down a completely different path or it may just provide you with the outlet you NEED to blow off some steam.  However, I have no doubt that in the end, it will rock your world. :)

My cheesy First Day of School photo!  My husband thought it'd be funny & I agree. :)

My first oil abstract painting, "Stretch".

My first still life with a coloful abstract twist.

A sneak peek of my latest piece, "Chaos"...the paint is still wet & it's definitely a work in progress but I love the colors. 

Colorfully yours,

 

Living Colorfully in OKC: Dale Chihuly Exhibit

I was lucky enough to be the photographer at my company's international sales rep retreat this week at the Skirvin Hilton in downtown Oklahoma City.  On opening night, we had party at the OKC Museum of Art with amazing hors d'oeuvres & drinks which included an exclusive free tour of the Dale Chihuly's glass sculpture art gallery.
 
I was familiar with his work after gazing upon his magnificent 3-story installation in the foyer of the museum countless times, as well as at the spectacular ceiling work he did at Bellagio in Las Vegas.  I knew it had to be good!  The museum said I was free to take as many photos as I wanted to share with you all as long as I didn't use flash-- so of course, I took them up on the offer. 

I walk in...& nearly died.  I think I will have to go back a thousand more times...at least.

Here are some photos I took from the gallery.  Chihuly is my newest hero.  ENJOY! :)

If you haven't ever gone - I strongly encourage you to check it out! It's amazing!  If you don't live in OKC, try to find one of his other galleries or just admire his work online here. You won't regret it!

©Heather Carpenter Photography - please do not steal or alter these photos in any way.  Thanks!



Colorfully Yours,

Night at the Fair: Winner's Shoot {OKC Portrait Photographer}

I am so excited to give you a sneak peek of Reese's shoot at the fair!  She invited her two best friends, Sara & Claire (from mydevising.com) to come with her--even little Duke came along for the ride!  They told me they didn't have any good photos of all of them together so I made sure to throw in a few posed "framer" shots.  However, for the most part, I took a very journalistic approach to it all.  I just followed them around at the fair & watched them have fun together like they always do through the lens of my camera!  They were all so sweet & funny - I just LOVED getting to work with each of them!

Enjoy the sneak peek & congrats again to Reese for winning! :)

 

Colorfully Yours,