Update: We have a baby!

Hi you guys! 

If you follow me on Instagram, it's no secret... Baby Beckstrom bumped his due date up by 4 weeks and is now coming up on 3 weeks old!

And also no surprise... we are so in love with him. He is the sweetest baby ever and my heart is bursting! For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to be a mom. And to be honest, it's more wonderful than I could have ever imagined. Every time I look at his precious little face, I cannot believe it is real!

Even when I am so drowsy/tired that I feel dizzy, I am still so thankful for him. :)

Anyways, I just had a few minutes to spare.... #momlife (I've been waiting to do that!) and I wanted to share the good news! 

I have plans to share our nursery tour (umm.. when it's done. We weren't quite ready!) and also Beckstrom's birth story, in the next few weeks! Stay tuned!

Photos taken by Creative Exposures Photography 

guest post: how to practice gratitude

Hi everyone! It is my absolute pleasure to feature Abigail from Acreage of Grace on the blog today. She is a fellow Nebraskan and small town gal, and someone I have enjoyed getting to know through the wonderful world of blogging. I know so many of us have a list of blogs that we frequent… Acreage of Grace is one of those for me! 

How to Practice Gratitude In Order to Truly Appreciate Blogging

I very recently started a blog (May 10) and I have read so many “How To’s” about gaining success as a blogger.  How to reach 1,000 Followers on Instagram, How to Utilize Pinterest to Increase Pageviews, How to Use Automated Social Media Apps To Increase “Interaction” with Followers. I appreciate EVERY SINGLE ONE of these articles and continue to seek guidance and tools to help me be successful. I would not say my blog is a “success story” just yet, but I am proud of the articles I write and the social media presence that I have. So here is my “How To” article.

Maintaining a blog is hard work people! Deciding to start a blog and then actually DOING IT was a 3-5 year process for me. Which is saying something because I usually just go at things on a whim and see what happens. But for me, my writing is very personal, so it took a lot of encouragement from my friends and family as well as a total lifestyle change for my family before I was comfortable following through on this dream (click HERE to learn more about that process).

“I can write,” I thought. “I love to take pictures.” “I can totally start a blog.” Though it is helpful to enjoy writing and taking photos, blogging is SO much more than that. I have a degree in Public Relations/Advertising and have worked my entire professional career to promote other companies and products. But the amount of promotion I have done for my blog over the last two months has seemed much more time consuming and so much more foreign than what I am used to. Being a “newbie” blogger, there is so much I still don’t know. Because of this I have made some mistakes along the way (I posted a #FollowFriday on a Thursday….embarrassing).

One of my blogging mentors Chrystie V. over at www.livingfornaptime.com lives by the 80/20 rule. You should spend 20% of your time creating content for your blog and 80% of your time promoting it. I am a full-time stay at home mama and a majorly part-time blogger. Finding time to write and promote has taken a great deal of planning on my end and also a great deal of grace from my husband and children. After blogging for only a couple of weeks I got VERY wrapped up in the numbers game. How many pageviews did I have that day? How many new Instagram followers did I have? How many new Instagram UNFOLLOWERS did I have (totally didn’t know this was a thing until I started blogging :( ).

But then, per usual in my life, I had a great discussion with one of my best friends. She said “Abigail, you need to remember why you started blogging in the first place. What were your goals and objectives? With those goals and objectives, do these numbers you are worrying about really matter?” Wow, talk about some straight truth to knock you back into place. Oh my goodness I have great friends (thanks Laura)! I am not going to lie and say I don’t get excited when I have a great pageview day, or I don’t love seeing new social media followers. But I also am not going to get wrapped up in the comparison game and believe that I am any less of a person because I don’t have the type of “following” that other bloggers may have. We are all different and have wonderful things to offer the blogosphere.

So here is a list of the items I have purchased for my blog in chronological order:

-Blog Design: I know a lot of people would tell you not to waste money on paying a designer. And I know there are a lot of nice templates out there. But I started from 0% knowledge about blogging and knew the only way I would truly do this is if someone made it simple for me, and if I was super proud of the design of my blog. It was going to be really hard for me to promote something I wasn’t really proud of.

-New Laptop: We went from a laptop to a desktop family computer a couple of years ago, and I knew with spending more time “working” from home, I would need a laptop to move from one room to another. I also enjoy the laptop because I am able to go downtown to our local Christian Coffeeshop and write every now and again.

-Thank you cards: This is the third and final thing on my list folks and honestly probably the most important. I had my blog logo printed on shimmery white cardstock and I write personal cards to family and friends who have been supporting me through this journey. I started out doing this as something nice for the recipient, but it has ended up being so gratifying for me. With every single card that I write I find myself remembering WHY I decided to start blogging and WHY I am so grateful to have a blog and WHY the time and effort I put into something that brings me no revenue is so so SO good for my soul. I don’t know a person in the world who doesn’t enjoy a good old fashioned thank you every now and again. Rather you decide to physically write thank you cards, or maybe you decide to send an email or a text or give someone a call or take them out for coffee. However you decide to thank the people in your lives for their support is up to you. It has been so great for me to sit down and identify the people that I want to thank and exactly what I want to thank them for. The cards take so little time and effort, but I have been given numerous compliments from the people I have sent them to.

In summary, here are the three key points in How to Practice Gratitude in Order to Truly Appreciate Blogging:

-Remember your WHY. Striving for and/or reaching your goals and objectives gauges your success, not your numbers.

-”Comparison is the thief of joy”- Theodore Roosevelt said that one and I think Theo had the right idea.

-”There is always ALWAYS something to be thankful for”- Ann Voskamp. Ann is my writing inspiration. Check out her blog over at www.aholyexperience.com and also read her book One Thousand Gifts: A Dare To Live Fully Right Where You Are- I’m not trying to tell you how to live your life, but really her writing is food for the soul. Write thank you cards, make gratitude lists, count your blessings. Make sure to remember the benefits and blessings your blog is bringing to your life or the lives of others.

Thanks so much for reading my article. I truly appreciate it! If you would like to read more, please check out my blog Acreage of Grace at www.acreageofgrace.blogspot.com. You can also find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest!

Blogging About Blogging

Hey and welcome back to the party. That was mostly to myself, as I took an accidental break in blogging. Sometimes there just aren't enough hours in the day, right? Right. Which leads me to talking about blogging.

Today you might notice something a little different… it's a fashion post! Well, sort of. Let me start by saying I didn't create Sweet and Modern to be a style/fashion blog. So this is uncharted territory for me. That being said, when I find an outfit/shirt/whatever that I really love (and it's from a local shop- bonus!) I'm probably going to talk about it. So, that's what's up with being all fashion-y today. 

But it really made me start thinking. I created Sweet and Modern as a creative outlet for me, but also so that I could talk about things that I love to do and enjoy trying. Blogging was (is) supposed to be a fun way for me to express my thoughts. 

And suddenly lately…. it just wasn't. 

And I had to ask myself why? 

So I'm sharing with you what I came up with during my soul searching… haha…. so deep. It's really not. But read on if you are interested. 

If you are a blogger yourself, or follow blogs, you know there are MILLIONS out there. So many. I probably find 20+ blogs per day on Instagram that intrigue me or I am interested in following. And I do follow as many as I can! But because of this, my newsfeed and general thoughts about blogging have been kind of messed up lately. 

For example: I find a new blog I love. I think to myself "what an adorable shirt!" I read the post. The blogger is excited because the shirt is "less than $100". My first thought? I can't remember the last time I thought it would make sense to spend $100 on a shirt. The same shirt that I will probably accidentally spill coffee on? Yeah… no. 

And then there are the handbags. Now, please don't be offended if you are handbag girl. I'm just not. I know and love plenty of people who go nuts for a designer handbag. But I'm kind of over here like…"Oh! Love that color. Saw a very similar one at Target/Walmart for 1/8 of the cost and bought it because sometimes I put food in my purse and disasters happen…." Am I the only one? 

                                                             

And the sunglasses. Please don't get me started on those. Maximum sunglasses purchase price: $28. I say that because last year I spent that much on a pair and it pained me inside. Why? Because the lifespan of my sunglasses is approximately 2-4 weeks, tops. If you do the math, it adds up. A few years ago I found an aviator at Target that was $8. I just kept breaking them, buying them, breaking them, buying them. It worked out really well for me. I think a small part of my soul would die if I accidentally sat on a pair of $300 sunglasses. And apparently I don't have enough class to behave differently…

But…we all have our things. I imagine some of you ladies/guys who read the above and thought "Hey! A good handbag is worth the investment!" feel the same way when you walk into ______ (insert favorite designer handbag store) as I do when I am perusing under the bright lights of Sephora. To each their own. 

My purpose in saying all of this is not to make fun of or belittle any bloggers who love this stuff. I mean, clearly there is a market for it. Clearly. But I find myself drawn to the bloggers who are like "hey, found this cute shirt at Old Navy on clearance for $3, might want to check it out!" Now that, I can totally jump on board with! 

My point in all of this is that when you start comparing yourself to other bloggers, you lose. No, I don't have a professional photographer taking pictures of my make up and palettes every week. Hell…. most weeks I barely have time to blog. And no...I didn't create Sweet & Modern to make money. And no...I'm not interested in finding out how my blog can become my full time job. I pursued a degree to take a job in a field that I truly love - and that's my passion! Again, I LOVE you ladies who blog full time. Your pictures are beautiful. Your blogging schedules are fantastic. I look forward to reading what you put out there for us everyday. You kind of make the blogworld go round. 

This is not to tear any other bloggers down. It's more of a reminder (to myself!) of why I wanted this little space on the internet. Not to spend more money than I have in order to post a photo with a handbag that I don't even want… but because of the fun discussions, the connections you make, the amazing ideas you get, and the relationships you form with people over common interests. The day Sweet & Modern becomes a stressor in my life is the day it will have to go! And that is simply never what I had in mind for this space.

So… in conclusion… you probably won't find me posing in an alley anytime soon (but man do I sure admire my friends and fashion bloggers who do this WEEKLY!) because it is clearly not my forte. But I'll still be here, sampling products, trying the latest under eye concealer, and attempting new recipes. Because that is what I love to do.

And I might even snap an I-phone pic, or two. :)

Lastly… if you made it this far, my super fun romper is from Foi Clothing and was a birthday present from my favorite sister. A few reasons why I love this romper? My butt cheeks don't hang out of it. It has flowers. It is flowy and not tight on my thighs. Highly recommend! The girls at Foi (an Omaha boutique!) are wonderful and I love browsing their online selection. Check it out!

And you can get my exact romper HERE (but navy appears to be sold out!) 

xoxox

Blog-iversary

The other day I was updating some profile information (story of my life, lately... hello name change!) and I realized that my first blog post was 3 years ago this month. To be specific, it was today!

When I browse through my entries, it almost feels like a diary. I can read what I was writing, but I can also recall what was happening in the background, how I was feeling, or what inspired certain events! For that reason, I am thankful to have this little piece of blog-land. It is always fun to see where you have come in the last 3 years.

I desperately wanted to start a blog for over a year before I actually did. For some reason the idea of it seemed scary- plus- my support system at the time wasn't super great. When I finally did, I felt like I was doing something for myself, and it felt amazing.

Fast forward over the last three years and so many things have happened. A few highlights being:

-Getting my "dream" job
-Moving to a new city
-Meeting AND marrying the best guy in the world

I would say it's been a fantastic past three years and I cannot wait to look back in another three!

My goal is to keep the blog a little more up to date- but sometimes life happens and I will always prioritize people and situations over keeping up. However, meeting a happy medium would be a fantastic goal! (Read: no more 3 month respites!)

I would like to leave you with this photo. Here's to hoping my makeup gets better with the coming years!

Thank you to my readers!!

XOXO