Category: live easy

Our Front Door Makeover

Earlier this week, I shared how Adam and I transformed our old shutters with a fresh coat of Blueberry Twist from Behr. As awesome as that makeover was, I think it is fair to say that I love our front door makeover even more. Before we get into the nitty gritty about removing the kick plate, repairing damage, and correct painting techniques, let’s just sit back and admire how beautiful this thing is…

What a transformation right!?

Ok, let’s talk about how I got this thing done.

First up, I wanted to remove the brass kick plate and repair the damage it left behind. Best case scenario, I expected to have to patch a few screw holes. Well, I wasn’t lucky enough to end up with a “best case” scenario. When I removed the kick plate (and the thin cork barrier behind it) I was left with many holes and some rust damage. Here’s how I felt about that:

After a lot of Goggling and a prolonged stroll through Home Depot, I had a plan to fix the damage before painting. (FYI, I have a wooden door with a metal front and back. Therefore, I was dealing with a metal surface. If you are removing a kick plate on a door with a wooden surface, this exact plan of attack obviously would not work for you… also, you wouldn’t have rust. So, there’s that…)

(1) Use wire brush to remove as much rust as possible.

(2) Use power sander with 150 grit paper to thoroughly sand all the damaged areas.

(3) Carefully fill defects in door with filler.

(4) Let filler dry overnight.

(5) Sand filler again until it is smooth and level with the rest of the door.

(6) Thoroughly clean surface of door and let it dry completely.

(7) Paint!

Of course, painting itself required a bit of prep work. First and foremost, I used painter’s tape to tape off the frame of the door to prevent getting blue where I didn’t want it. Then, I had to remove the existing hardware and let’s be honest — that brass piece of crap ended up in the trash can FAST! I replaced it with this nice set I found on Amazon for only $70. Since we decided to go with a bronze finish and I wanted to keep the door knocker (it has character) I decided to simply spray paint it to match the new hardware.

When it came to the actual paint, the job went as smoothly as it did with the shutters. As with the shutters, I used a small foam roller for the flat sections of the door and an angled brush for the “inset” parts. Here’s a bit of a visual for you:

The arrows denote where I used a foam roller and the direction in which I used it. If it doesn’t have an arrow on it, then I painted it using the angled brush. Also, this picture gives you a good idea of what to expect your patch job to look like after you’ve finished. It isn’t pretty is it? In fact, after the first coat of paint I was actually a little worried because you could totally STILL see where I had patched up the damage left behind by the kick plate.

See how the damage still shows up after one coat?

Much to my delight however, a second coat took care of that and you can’t see the patch work at all. Woo! In case you were wondering, I let the paint dry about 30 minutes in between coats.

Once the paint was dry, it was time to add the finishing touches by installing the new hardware, putting back on the newly painted door knocker, and applying an adorable decal I bought on Etsy over a year ago! I don’t remember the exact shop I bought mine from, but you can find lots of options with a simple Etsy search like this one. So after all that hard work, it was time to just sit back and admire the new view…

And of course, there is still a lot of work to do on our front porch to make it the dream I’ve been pinning about for quite awhile. But for now, instead of focusing on doormats, welcome signs, and flourishing plants, I’m just going to spend some time hanging out and appreciating how far we’ve come on #FlorkenFirstHome in only a year. I sure do love this home and I love its welcoming entrance even more now.

May 28, 2015
A Shutter Facelift

When we bought #FlorkenFirstHome in February of 2014, we knew that we had a lot of work to do. It would start by tearing down the wall between the kitchen and the living area and where it would end was a complete mystery to us. We vowed to tear off more than we could chew and to always do projects in moderation. This method, while much slower, would overall help us stay on budget and prevent us from becoming overwhelmed by household projects.

That said, I still get pretty giddy when we finally finish something that I envisioned doing from the start. It is like seeing another small piece of “the plan” fall into place. Over the past month, Adam and I have been working hard on one such project and I’m thrilled to share it with you today. We finally got around to cleaning and repainting our front door and all the shutters on our home!

The final product: I’m in love!

I absolutely love the final result and honestly, the project wasn’t as hard as I had feared. So, here’s how we did it.

First up — we worked on the shutters. (I’ll share the front door in another post later this week!) We had to buy a rather tall ladder to get them all down. Trust me when I say that screws that have been in brick for over 20 years do not like to easily come out. It took some muscle to get the job done. In other words, I took down one set and then begged Adam to come to the other two so I could rest!

Here’s a reminder of what the shutters looked like before painting.

Once the shutters were down, some simple cleanup was needed before we could paint. Luckily, our shutters are vinyl and all that was required is a little elbow grease and some soap and water. No harsh chemicals required! However, before tackling them with my hands, I used a broom to sweep out a majority of the junk and then the water-hose to give them a brief rinse. These things hadn’t been cleaned since they went up on the house over 20 years ago! We found all kind of crap on the backside including creepy-crawlies and even a wasp nest or two. So, be careful cleaning guys.

A sampling of what we found behind our shutters. Looks fun right?

Once the shutters were off and cleaned, it was time to pick the color. For the longest time, I’ve been obsessing over beautiful blue doors and shutters on Pinterest. It only seemed natural then, that I would search for the perfect shade of blue to compliment our house. A quick trip to Home Depot and I lucked out… I brought home a gallon of Behr’s “Blueberry Twist” in a Satin finish. I also opted for the paint and primer in one to cut down on the coats I’d need overall.

After picking my color, I simply laid all the shutters out and got busy. It really wasn’t too hard. I used a small foam roller for all the flat surfaces and an angled brush for all the inset parts. Keep in mind that to properly use an angled brush, you have to rotate it to suit the angle you are painting. If your brush never moves in your hand you are using it wrong. The angle should make it easier for you… not harder.

This is me demonstrating precisely where NOT to use the foam roller. The bit I’m painting here should be painted using the angled brush. Trust me — it’s easier that way!

We painted these on a particularly hot day and the drying time in between coats was seriously less than 5 minutes! Each shutter got approximately two coats. After letting both coats dry, we simply got a few new screws and put them all back up. As you can see in the picture above, they really pop now. To demonstrate a little more clearly, here is a before and after of the paint changes:

Obviously, we still have a lot of landscaping work to do our #FlorkenFirstHome but I seriously cannot stop driving by the front of the house and just staring! I love it all so much.

Tell me — do you dig the Blueberry Twist as much as I do?

I can’t wait to share our front door makeover later this week. Be sure to check back for more on that… including how to remove an old brass kick plate and restore the metal door!

May 26, 2015
A Neutral Nursery

As I recently shared, Adam and I aren’t finding out the sex of our Little “Florken” due on September 30th. I feel like not knowing the sex really makes us open our minds to more possibilities when it comes to nursery decor, clothing, etc. I’ve been dying to share some of our nursery inspiration with you guys so here goes nothing.

Neutral Nursery Inspiration by theflorkens

As you can see, we are keeping it pretty basic but I am IN LOVE with the choices we are making! We ordered the crib from Target about a week ago and already have it assembled. But that my friends, is just the start. Let me share with you exactly how long our “Nursery To-Do” checklist is…

As you can see, we still have plenty of things to do. That said, I feel like we have a decent start. The last weekend of this month, I have family reinforcements coming to Little Rock to help. My Dad will be building an entire closet system and Adam and my brother in law will be putting up beautiful wainscoting throughout the room. In addition, my Mom, step-parents, and sister will be helping me redo an old wooden dresser and glider I’ve already bought secondhand.

I think my biggest challenge will be finding someone to make us some custom blackout curtains and to recover the old, nasty cushions that came with the glider I picked up. (If you have any tips for finding talented local seamstresses please let me know.)

I also have the cutest idea for a DIY mobile that I cannot wait to share with you guys… assuming that is, that it comes together in real life as adorably as it does in my own head.

My master plan is to have all the BIG things done by the time I reach 30 weeks. That way, I can turn my attention to accessorizing as I run across things that I like and worry about washing all the cloth diapers (yup, we plan on doing that!) and baby clothes I buy or receive as gifts.

In all, I love the idea of a super calm, neutral space for our little one. I can already picture myself rocking Baby “Florken” to sleep in a space this calm and serene. Granted, in real life it might not be as calm with a screaming infant in it, but I’m hoping that every little bit counts!

Tell me what you think about our nursery inspiration! Would you ever consider a gender-neutral nursery?

May 19, 2015
Why we aren’t finding out the sex…

A full week ago, I sat nervously in a doctor’s office awaiting our “big” 19 week scan. Normally, I wouldn’t consider myself an anxious person. With this pregnancy though, all bets have been out the window. It’s probably because I’ve had a miscarriage before, but as I waited with baited breath for someone to confirm that our baby really was “ok” I felt the seeds of doubt creep in and take hold.

Luckily, the radiology tech confirmed that our little one was completely healthy. Brain? Check! Four-chamber heart? Check! Functioning internal organs? Check! No clef palate? Check! Ten fingers and ten toes? Check! As the tech moved over each part of our little one and told us that things looked completely normal, I feel like for the very first time, I can get truly excited about this pregnancy and start preparing for a baby in the fall.

Now, when you talk “baby preparation” everyone wants to immediately know the answer to one question: What are you having?

My typical reply is, “Probably a baby” but then again, I’ve always been one for sarcasm. You see, Adam and I are not finding out the sex of the baby. People have lots of good reasons not to find out the sex. Some people really like surprises. Some people don’t want gender disappointment so they put off knowing until the baby is born. Some people say it gives you extra motivation in the delivery room. Some people like the old fashion nostalgia it brings. All of these are probably good reasons.

None of them are why Adam and I are waiting.

We are waiting to find out the sex because frankly, we both abhor gender stereotyping and sexualization.

Yup — you read that right. Sexualization.

I think babies should be babies. Do you know what babies care about? Eating. Sleeping. Pooping. That’s about it. So it bugs me to no end to see babies get shoved into stereotypical gender boxes at birth. Even worse, I hate seeing adults push grown-up emotions and motivations onto small children. Still don’t know what I’m talking about?

I’m guessing you all have seen at least one onesie some of these sayings:

Big Flirt

Hung Like a Preschooler

Daddy says I can’t date until I’m married

Does this diaper make my butt look big?

I hate my thighs

Future Pimp

Future Heartbreaker

Stud in Training

Ladies Man in Training

Too Sexy for my Diaper

I swear I didn’t make up any of those. I found them all online or have seen them handed out as gifts at baby showers. Somewhere a baby has worn a onesie with these things on them and frankly, it really disturbs me. I don’t understand why we immediately force tiny beings who only care about eating, sleeping, and pooping, into adult roles. Can’t a baby just be a freaking baby? A 3-month old boy isn’t a ladies man in training. He is pooping his diaper and likely peeing on his own face accidentally. A 9-month old girl doesn’t hate her thighs. I can bet she doesn’t even think about them. And yet, we tell the boy from such a young age that he should grow up to be a lady slayer and we try to convince the girl that it is perfectly normal to grow up hating her own body.

For us, the total pink and blue closets are bad and are something we definitely wanted to avoid at all costs. But we also refuse to participate in the the over sexualization of our child — a child that hasn’t even entered this world. Since sometimes that sexualization occurs by people who only mean well (i.e., “What’s the harm in a funny onesie?”), the best way to accomplish these things for us personally is simply to not find out the sex of the baby. Of course, this only prevents these things from occurring prior to the child’s birth and I’m sure we will have plenty of inappropriate or unwanted items to return or politely refuse after Baby “Florken” arrives, but we feel our decision is a step in the right direction for us personally.

Our little one’s room won’t be dripping in princesses or Tonka trucks. It will be neutral and calm. The Little “Florken” closet will house a wide array of clothing colors — reds, blues, greens, yellows, grays, blacks, whites, pinks, purples, oranges, and more! As he or she grows, we will encourage them to seek out their own interests, rather than convince them they are “girly” or tell them what toys a “big boy” plays with.

Perhaps Adam and I are nutters. I’ve already had more than one person tell me that we’re crazy and that “all” our opinions will change when this kid comes along. Those people are right in the sense that we’ve never had a kid and we don’t quite know exactly how that experience will impact us. That said, Adam and I both have very strong opinions about gender stereotyping and the hyper sexualization of children in today’s culture and so we wonder — if our opinions are already that strong, shouldn’t our awareness and sense of protectiveness only increase when we actually get to hold this little bundle of joy we want so much?

I tend to think it probably will.

Do you notice gender stereotypes in today’s baby obsessed culture? What about the sexualization? Does any of it bother you or do you think Adam and I are nutters?

May 13, 2015

Things I Wish I had Believed During High School

Sometime this Fall, right around the time that Baby “Florken” (or the “Blorken” as many of you have been referring to it) makes its appearance, I’ll likely get an invite to my 10 year high school reunion. I’ll be honest, I don’t think I’ll go. It’s not that high school was a bad time for me or that the place is filled with bad memories. Neither of those are really the truth. I enjoyed parts of high school. I had friends, hobbies, and some memories I cherish dearly. But overall, high school simply reminds me of a person I no longer am and that reminder is something I think I’d just rather do without.

So in honor of high school reunions everywhere, I thought I’d put together a list of things I wished I had believed in high school:

I know I look a little “depressed” in this high school picture, but I swear I won “Most Spirited” and “Peppiest” awards throughout high school. Contrary to photographic evidence, I was sometimes a very happy teen.

1) I wish I had believed that different wasn’t bad: I remember spending so much time focused on why I thought differently, acted differently, and felt differently. It never crossed my mind that being different was truly a gift. Now, I see that being different led me to a life much different than those of many of my classmates. And truly, I love my life now so much that I realize that “so different”, in the long run, pays off.

2) I wish I had believed that my mom wasn’t out to get me: My mom had my best interest at heart. It is true that even looking back I feel she over reacted at time to certain things. But, in large part, I can see now that she was trying to raise me to be a woman of principle and to have values for myself I wouldn’t later regret. Thank you Mom. I didn’t make it easy on you, but you never gave up.

3) I wish I had believed in true friendship: Honestly, forget having “best friends” because I don’t even have many “high school” friends I still communicate with regularly. In high school, I seemed to think that friendships would last forever based solely on the gossip we shared, the rules we broke, or the number of times we could roll our eyes at what adults said to us. Those things do not build lasting friendships. Now that I’m an adult, I’ve learned that friendships are built on being there when times get tough and putting another before yourself. I value my “true” friendships now so much and wish desperately I had understood that concept in high school and built more lasting relationships.

4) I wish I had believed I was worth it: In high school, I didn’t truly value myself. On occasion I would dress cheap and act in ways that didn’t tell the world that I was worth anything more than a passing glance. Even more, I would date complete and total asshats just because I didn’t believe I was worth anything better than that. I often wonder how different life would have been if I would have just put my foot down and demanded to be treated how I truly deserved. My relationship with Adam has been eye-opening in every way and I can’t imagine a future child ever settling for less than the person absolutely meant for them. Asshats beware — don’t try to date my kid. I will end you!

5) I wish I had believed that life is so much bigger than who you are in high school: I knew that there was life beyond high school and I did look forward to it. I often dreamed about college and careers. Still, I was always so wrapped up in trying to be liked and being seen as a “cool” kid. It never truly hit me that 10 years later, “who” I was or wasn’t in high school would be far, far from my thoughts and cares. While I believe those four years are important, I don’t believe for a second that they truly define anyone. We each are collectively stitched together from the whole of our experiences and I wish I had known how many more things would happen to create the pattern that is me.

Alright, there’s my list. Tell me — what do you wish you would have believed during your high school experience?

May 4, 2015

Word Vomit at 18 Weeks Pregnant

I don’t think I am your “typical” pregnant lady. Honestly, I’m okay with this fact but the more pregnant I get, the more I wonder if society isn’t okay with it. Let me explain —

When people find out that you’re pregnant, they suddenly want to know every single, sometimes personal, detail. They want to know when you conceived and demand to know if you were trying. The common question is, “Are you happy about it?” My normal response, “Yes. Still scared shitless, but happy.”

Somehow, I’m not sure this is what people expect expect of me.

They probably also don’t expect for me to say that we aren’t finding out the sex, or that we aren’t sharing names. They probably don’t understand why I’m not head over heels excited to help plan a shower or talk nonstop about our upcoming bundle of joy. I’ve been accused (more than once) of “sucking the fun” out of this pregnancy for other people.

It might be counterintuitive because I have a blog, but deep down, I am really a private person. I can count my closest friends on a single hand and I don’t love being the center of attention. Instead, I like being the person in the corner, sipping on a glass of wine, and making sarcastic, yet witty and insightful remarks, about the day’s events. But when people know that you’re pregnant, suddenly, sarcasm is looked at like a disease and standing quietly in the corner is simply not allowed. You are “supposed” to be comfortable having people fawn over you and ask about everything you’ve eaten and the last time you puked.

But damn it — I will not change my personality. I just can’t.

I know that motherhood will deeply change me. It will be eye-opening. But, can it change who I am at my very core? I don’t think so. At least, I hope it doesn’t. I really like who I am as a person. I didn’t for years honestly. I used to hate my nose or my short legs. I used to hate my voice and my stringy hair. Beyond the physical, I used to wonder if I was smart enough, charming enough, and compassionate enough to make anything of myself. I used to wonder if I had enough friends or whether I had too many. I would spend way too much time and effort trying to “measure up” against some perceived notion of who I should be.

Now, I know who I am. I’m me. I’m flawed but I’m happy. I take on too many projects for someone who likes napping at such a high propensity. I enjoy making people laugh, but I enjoy sitting at home with a good book more. I am not the prom queen type, or even the homecoming court type. I am the drama nerd who likes to soak up sunshine in her own backyard more than on some luxury yacht.

While I know that I already love this Little “Florken” more than anything, I am equally sure that it cannot undo nearly 29 years of self-discovery. There are a lot of things I don’t want to be; I don’t want to be the person who posts monthly updates on their kid. I don’t want to be the person who suddenly can’t carry on a conversation about anything other than cloth diapering or pacifier preferences. I don’t want everyone to suddenly call me “mom” just because one person has that right. I don’t want to be forced into the limelight when I’d rather stay home. I don’t want to force my child into the limelight of social media before they are old enough to really have a choice. I don’t want to criticize your parenting, but please respect my right to do things differently. I don’t want to become a “mommy blogger.” I just want to continue to be me… with a blog. That sometimes will include things about pregnancy or our kid.

In short, I just want to be me… but with a baby. Personally, I don’t think that’s too much to ask for. But truly I suppose that only time will tell.

April 29, 2015
A Spring Surprise

Every year, my mom presses for family pictures. Well, every year since my niece has been born at least. That technically makes this Year 2 for pictures, but something tells me this is a tradition that will stick. (Here’s a few of the pictures from last time.)

A few weeks ago, while Adam and I were visiting my family in Texas, we woke up on a dreary Sunday morning and hustled out the door to meet the photographer on time. It was cold. It was wet. Obviously my hair didn’t cooperate. In the long run though, we got a few good shots… and decided it was the perfect time to share a surprise…

That’s right! There is officially a Baby “Florken” on the way. We are due September 30th (that makes me almost 16 weeks along for any of who are trying to count backwards on your fingers). We are very, very excited obviously and quite frankly, also scared shitless.

This hasn’t been an easy pregnancy for me so far. My doctor diagnosed me as borderline hyperemesis gravidarum which is code for severe morning sickness. (You’ll probably know this as the stuff that kept Kate Middleton in the hospital with both of her pregnancies.) Essentially, ever since Week 6, I’ve been puking anywhere from 2-5 times a day. Sometimes I went days at a time keeping absolutely nothing down but water. And nothing helped. No amount of ginger ale, soda crackers, or other old wives tales made a dent in how sick I was. Heck — I would even vomit up prescription medication. I have been vomiting so much that despite being nearly 16 weeks along, I’m actually below my pre-pregnancy weight. So yes, it has been rough.

In a way, that has been reassuring because it means that something is really in there growing. But, it has also been miserable because I’ve had to continue to pretend to be a functioning member of society. I’ve been a lawyer by day and a miserable, crying, puking pregnant woman by night for about 10 weeks now.

I think I’m starting to see the other side of the sickness though and am starting to enjoy parts of this pregnancy. Before you ask — we are NOT finding out the sex of the baby. I’m sure I’ll post more on that decision later in case you are curious.

Anyways — thanks for sticking with the little ol’ blog of ours during the last months. I know posting has been sporadic and our responses to emails and comments has been waaaaayyyy slow. I guess that’s what happens when you spend half of your day hunched over a toilet huh? As soon as this little one let’s me feel better, I promise to get back on the horse properly.

Here’s to September 30th right?

April 13, 2015
Why I’m Just Not Good at Showers (Err…not that kind)

If I sat down and wrote a list of all the things I am not good at, well… let’s just say it would be long. However, I know without a doubt what would be at the very tip, top of that list: Throwing/Attending Showers of any sort.

As a female, and more importantly as a female of the American South, people just assume that I live for showers where I get to sit around with other women and “ohh” and “ahh” over gifts. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, when I got married, I flat out refused to have any bridal showers hosted in my honor. Refused. Why? Well, Adam and I were already living together. We had all the essentials we needed. Could I have registered for better place settings and cookware? Yeah. Did I? Absolutely not. The mere thought of sitting in a room full of women and opening up tupperware almost caused me physical pain so I opted out. Of course, I’ve attended the bridal showers for friends and family members over the years, but I can say with certainty that I never look forward to these events. They are brutal necessities required to maintain favor with society — kind of like going to the dentist.

I’m slightly better at attending baby showers… especially for someone’s first kid. Granted, I still get slightly uncomfortable. (Psst! I mean, the kid is “technically” in the room. How awkward!) But, I do see the value of a group of people coming together to shower a family with all the things they might need to raise their newest addition. After all, it makes a lot more sense for a lot of people to spend $50 rather than for one couple to spend thousands. Perhaps that’s why, even though I still find them to be somewhat awkward and forced, I don’t necessarily dread baby showers in quite the same way as bridal showers.

As you might remember from this post, I’m actually hosting a baby shower soon for a friend — as in, THIS weekend. To say that I’m flipping out a bit might be an understatement. Technically, I’m just in charge of providing the location (#florkenfirsthome) and the food. Thankfully, someone else is in charge of decorations and games. Still, as I put my list together this week of all the things that need to be done by 1 p.m. on Saturday, I feel like a fish out of water. I’m just not sure I have the “hosting” gene that most Southern women seem born with.

So I’m planning my cucumber sandwiches, fresh hummus dip, and vegetarian pinwheels, and keeping my fingers crossed that I don’t completely screw this entire thing up. I feel like there is a LOT of pressure because the mom-to-be always takes a picture in front of the food table. Eek! That means that what I manage to piece together between now and Saturday will live on forever in photographs in some kid’s baby book. Geesh! That is pressure I just don’t need.

So please excuse me while I go figure out what you call those serving pitchers with little spouts at the bottom. I think I’ll need a few to serve drinks to serve in those. Water perhaps? Maybe lemonade? Are these acceptable baby shower drinks!? Man, they really should offer crash courses on these things at some point in life… especially for the non-shower savvy gals like myself.

April 7, 2015
The Power of Spring

I’m a sucker for Spring.

After a long, cold winter there is something magical about Daylight Savings Time and 70 degree weather. I will fully admit that I prefer the slightly warmer Summer, but Spring has been a saving grace for Adam and I over the last week or two.

Instead of spending 30 minutes in traffic driving home in the dark, I drive home with my windows down and NPR blasting (Oh yeah — I’m THAT girl.). When I get home, instead of immediately putting on my pajamas, I throw on a pair of shorts and join Adam outside for catch with the pups. Last week we even went out for fro-yo and ate it on an outdoor bench while people watching. It was divine.

There is something about Spring that makes me feel… rejuvenated. For instance, this past weekend I spent $40 on some colorful annual flowers at Home Depot and a little over 3 hours outside with Adam racking up the last bit of fallen leaves, picking up broken tree branches, and planting colorful flowers. By the end of those 3 hours, I felt like #FlorkenFirstHome was a brand new place and in a weird way, like I was a brand new person. Several times this week, I’ve caught myself several times just driving past the front of our house admiring the view…. admitting those small bits of color; those specks of hope for a warmer, happier time to come. And I’ve caught myself smiling more often… and wider.

I think after months of cold and dark, we all crave a little time and space to come out, shake off the grogginess that is Winter, and rejoice in a new season. For me, Spring is a time to realize that I have a whole new year to get things accomplished — just think of how different life could look next Spring!

Maybe we’ll have grass in the backyard. Maybe we’ll have refinished the decks. Maybe we’ll have a wider circle of friends. Maybe we’ll host a family party or two. Maybe our family will be bigger. Maybe our house will be stuffed to the brim with love and laughter. Maybe life will be even more grand than it is now.

My Spring is full of possibilities and cheer… and maybe just a tad more sneezing. How about yours?

April 1, 2015

We made the News…. in Ohio?

Yesterday started off as a pretty uneventful day. I woke up… late. I went to work… maybe a tad late. I checked email and began working on a few projects due Thursday. Then, I took a small break to cruise through the regular apps on my phone. Facebook. Twitter. Instagram.

Facebook. Normal.

Twitter. Normal.

Instagram… WHOA!

What’s reaallly creepy is that THIS isn’t one of the collages WE put together. Meaning, they went through our site and pulled together their OWN collage! Eeek! Not sure I like that at all….

As soon as I logged into my Instagram, I learned that a news station in Cleveland, Ohio was sharing photos from our New Home Photoshoot (Part I and Part II) and asking their viewers whether the craze of photoshoots for first time buyers was a neat idea, or whether it was overkill.

My first reaction was… well, mixed. For nearly a year now, the images from our photoshoot remain my Top Pinned images on Pinterest. Each day I see new people pinning them and I’m always flattered. I assume that the people pinning them are folks who have been inspired by them (much like I was by other First Home Photoshoot pictures) and want to make their own one day. The idea that these images are “out there” wasn’t really surprising to me. What was surprising, I suppose, was that a news organization would simply pluck them up (yes, they linked back to our Instagram handle) and start a dialogue on whether they were cool or overkill. It was a strange sensation.

I sent screenshots of the Instagram posts to Adam, who immediately responded, “Do we get paid for that?” and “Is that even legal?”

I assured him the answers were most likely “No” and “Yes” respectively. Still, for hours, as I put my phone aside and tried to get back to work, there was a bug in the back on my brain that kept making me return to those images and how I felt about them.

I love blogging. I do. That might be hard to believe considering that I’ve recently taken a very long hiatus from it. At the end of the day though, I love being able to make connections with people I don’t know and learn from others. I’ve loved sharing #FlorkenFirstHome on this blog and I was deeply appreciative of all the reader support when I shared heartbreaking things. In a weird way though, I don’t think I ever truly expected our posts to reach beyond those few people who show up at this blog everyday.

So, it struck me as super weird that a news station in Ohio not only ran across our pictures, but created their own collage of them and then shared them with 12.5K followers! Eek! So while a small part of me was flattered, a larger part of me felt violated. But when you think about it, how can I feel violated by something that I put out there into the world?

Blogging is strange. This particular incident makes me think more about privacy and what I want to share online. In a way, I think that makes me smart and informed. But in another way, it makes me sad because as cheesy as it sounds, I feel like this space is small and only shared with those I love most. Of course, that isn’t true as it’s a public blog and I haven’t even met most of our readers. In short, I don’t know where exactly to draw the line. I don’t know how to perfectly share while still maintaining certain privacies. I don’t have all the answers. I wish I did, but I don’t.

I suppose I’m still learning. After over a year and a half of blogging, I’m still learning.

March 17, 2015