To my friends that follow this blog. Thank you.

This blog has been such been a great creative outlet for me. 

It has given me space to share my love for parties, crafts, and DIY. 

But, lately, it has also become a source of stress, and guilt. 

I feel like I NEED to post a certain number of posts a week.

 I NEED to have events and DIY projects to post about. 

I NEED to stay up all hours, keep up with blogs, tweet, and socialize. 

When I don’t do those things I worry, stress, and often avoid other responsibilities in order to get something done for the blog.

I realize it is me that puts this type of pressure on myself. 

I usually flourish under creative pressure.

This has been a really tough year for me and my family though. 

The economy just isn’t getting better. 

Now we have an extra mouth to feed, body to clothe, and head for which to provide shelter. 

It was a choice I’d never go back on, but it hasn’t made life easier and it is time for something to give. 

I need just a little time to

and

So, I’m taking a break from blogging. 

I’ll still post photos on Instagram (I’m addicted).

 I’ll occasionally Tweet (also, addicted).

I plan to keep my Etsy store up and running.

I’m keeping this website open and might throw a post up now and again when I have time/desire to post something. I hope to come back to regular blogging after some time dedicating myself to pausing and breathing. I don’t know when that will be.

Again, Thank You for reading and I hope that I will see you when I get back.

My blogging buddy, Danica from GoodHeart asked me to blog a bit about Portland for her one-year anniversary in the Rose City. So, I sent her a list of my top five favorite things to do/places to visit here in Portland. Jump on over to her blog to check them out!

This weekend was a busy one! 

The Portland Blogger’s Meet-Up was scheduled to be a beautiful outdoor picnic this past weekend. And, then the forecast called for lots and lots of rain. 

After a lot of calls, and some great support from Portland Bloggers, we got an alternate venue that worked beautifully. The picnic baskets weren’t spread out on pretty blankets in the grass. But, we did get to chat about blogs and be surrounded by little glimpses of what summer has in store for us later.

The sun shined just long enough for us to get some fun photos. I’m excited to see the photos that Macey, from MotorMouth Studio, took of the event. 

After the event my little family got to go to dinner with Suzannah’s (Adventures in Dressmaking) family. It was fun to go over future ideas for events and just unwind after two-months of planning and one extra-stressful week of re-planning.

All in all it was a busy and good weekend. But, I am feeling a little bit sad about the lack of Summer right now. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and that you got to enjoy a little bit of summer. 

Professional photos from the {Real Party} and some {DIY} posts coming soon.