This Big Deep Place Where We Reside

{Construction of a Nebula via Elisemahanfineart}

Back from vacation and up to our elbows in work. It feels wonderful and scary at the same time, but I am so happy we took a few days to rest and visit with good friends and get rejuvenated for work. I miss being surrounded by babies and the sound of the waves breaking and drinking cranberry sprite and not wearing shoes for 4 days. I did really, REALLY miss my dogs, in a ridiculous way, so it's good to be home. However, Doug's family came for impromptu visit for the weekend which makes working the kind of hours I am used to impossible. It's good to have family here though. 

{via Chraisia}

It has kind of been a whirlwind kind of week. The etsy feature was a dream come true and almost impossible to keep a secret. Thank you all for all of you support and kind words. It meant the world to us. Our business wouldn't exist if not for the blogging community and for that, we are eternally grateful. We get to do what we love, and pay the bills, and support a charity and live the life we always dreamed of. It's amazing. I feel blesses and lucky and happy. I thank my lucky stars, every single day.

{via Girl and Parrot}

{via GracieChai}

It's easy to get overwhelmed, so I'm making sure that this summer is all about being pleasant, even when we're running a few days behind schedule, take deep breaths, pilates and archery (the only two forms of exercise I like, besides bike riding and hiking, which I will only tolerate if it isn't humid...) hugs and kisses and lots of I love yous to the one who makes my world a better place, phone calls to my Dad, splurging on new shoes and summer dresses and NOT feeling guilty about it. I want to have the strength to complete everything I say I will, take on more than I think is possible and still get it done, keep our house clean and get enough sleep. I want to take long drives, stay in hotels and visit friends way more often. I need to make a 27 things I need to do the summer before I turn 27 list, maybe I'll climb into bed and work on that tonight. I can't use power tools, everyone is asleep, so there isn't much work I can do until the morning. I know this blog post is disjointed, but I felt a need to play catch up. It's been such a crazy week, and will keep being crazy for the next few months! 

{via cabindreams}

I feel so disconnected, so please tell me what's happening in your lives! I hope life is really good for each and every one of you. I really, truly do. And I promise to come around these parts more now that we're back.

xo,

Beca

Etsy Featured Seller!!!!

We can finally share out exciting news!! We are the featured sellers on Etsy right now and it's pretty incredible! It feels like a dream come true. After a short year of running our business, this is all we could ask for. We're about to hit the road home, but I wanted to share this real quick. We have so much love for everything right now. Thanks for a great year, yall.

xo
Beca & Doug

The Beginning of the End

Being on vacation has been tremendous. I am finally getting excited about getting back to work. I miss the dogs and I am ready to get busy for the rest of the month of may as a few exciting deadlines approach. I have been working on some portraits and updating our shop for a very special day tomorrow, so my vacation hasn't been completely workless. 

It has been storming like crazy, and this morning we woke up to the rain and wind against the van, it felt like we were inside an aquarium. I sleep so great in the van, and cant wait until Doug and I can take off across country, maybe this fall, for an adventure. I'm already planning our next vacation! I just wanted to share a little photo of the ocean by where we are staying, and say hello. How has your week been so far?

xo,

Beca

Covet VIII

{via Camelliatune}

{via Calamari Studio}

{via Lotta from Stockholm}

{via the book fair}

 {via Little Bright Studio}

{via BaliELF}

Girl and Parrot Giveaway winner

We are on vacation right now, so I'm going to make this short, but here are the winners for the Girl and Parrot custom pet portrait giveaway. Also, how cute is this new print in Danielle's shop? SO GOOD!

Congrats HT! And the winner of the special surprise from Danielle's shop is Kerry! Congrats.

Could you both email me so I can put you in touch with Danielle for your prizes, tumbleweeds.shop@gmail.com

I need to get back to vacationing. I am burned, exhausted and I miss my boys like crazy. They're in good hands, and I know I will appreciate them so much more when I get to snuggle with them in a few days.

And I wanted to touch upon a subject I brought up earlier, about feeling guilty about taking a vacation. I have to be totally honest. If we wouldn't have taken this vacation, we would have had a total and absolute meltdown. We were so incredible stressed out before we left, and are finally starting to feel a bit better about it. Thanks for all of your kind words.

xo,

Beca 

Battling Guilt and Other Good Reads

I have what I like to call Small Business Guilt. It means that I have a really, really hard time taking time off. An hour here or there I can do, a healthy 5 hours of sleep a night, I can do. Going to the movies, or the grocery store, sometimes but I still get anxious. Now, taking a full on vacation, that makes my chest feel like it is going to cave in. But, since our summer is completely and totally shot, it's now or never for us to take 4 days off work. We're going to Frisco, North Carolina to sleep with ponies on the beach with some of Doug's very best friends and their families. 

I haven't always been like this. Before I owned my own business, I took time off all the time. Probably too much, because let's be real here, I hate working 9-5, or in my case it was 4am-2pm. I hate clocking in, and feeling like my whole day is blown because I have to work late or whatever. I didn't care about requesting a week off for a road trip, or a stay-cation in my house eating pizza, sleeping in and reading on the porch until my eyes hurt. I guess because it was always just "a job" but now it's more than that. We love what we do, and it's really difficult to take time off. BUT, we just finished up a pretty hefty wholesale order for our Japanese distributor that will be on its way tomorrow, and for the most part are caught up on orders in our Etsy shop. I have about 15 more sunglasses to ship out on Friday, and then there is no turning back. I have three bathing suits I plan on living in, blog posts scheduled, a dog/house sitter who hilariously responded to my inquiry about what food I can buy her, that she only eats "lobster, caviar and smart water," a new camera, my watercolors and these four books I plan on starting and finishing during our trip.

Do you feel small biz owners guilt for taking time off? How do you counter it? Any tips on battling the guilt?

I picked up all of these used, but I will leave links to each book, in case you want to join along in my reading adventure and also forego responsibility for a few days. The first book I got is The Way the Crow Flies by Anne Marie MacDonald. I love books told from a kids perspective, and books set in the 50s, 60s or 70s. That time frame seems to be kind of magical. This book has both, so I'm sure I'll love it.

The next is The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea by Yukio Mishima. A band of savage thirteen year old boys in post world war 2 Japan. That's all I have to say to know it's good. 

The next is a collection of short stories. I am pretty on the fence when it comes to shorts, because they are either really good, or really terrible, and I can't say I like them more when they're good because then they end. I, like most of the world, hates when a good thing ends. The Vintage Book of Contemporary Short stories seems like a really pretentious title, but I'm going with it because I like the cover. Also, I may have already read this, we'll soon find out. 

I do that often, by the way. Read a book I have already read, and sometimes I don't remember I've read it until the end. I told you, my brain is fried. Damn you, early twenties. And lastly, Little Bee by Chris Cleave. I guess after reading more reviews, it's slightly political, which I didn't get from the back sleeve or the cover. I am going to be open to it, and see where it goes, but it seems mysterious and the reviews call it brutal. Yikes!

I have a mountain of a to-do list but I feel achy and stressed, so I thought I would sit and share my beach books with you. Have you read any good books lately? I'd love to know!

xo,

Beca

Dont forget to enter the giveaway for a custom pet protrait by Danielle of Girl and Parrot! Only two days left!

Giveaway : Custom Pet Portrait from Girl and Parrot

To kick off our awesome birthday week, not only do we have some incredible deals and discounts happening in our shop right now, but I am so so excited to announce this awesome giveaway from my sweet friend Danielle, the genius behind Girl and Parrot. I have been watching Danielle begin to build her painting/art shop these past few weeks, and you probably know I'm her biggest fan. I have a portrait done by her of my family, including my sweet boys, and it is one of my most cherished possessions.  

Jill of Lune Vintage recently tweeted that Danielle's paintings are like coffee stains left on a napkin, and I think that's a great description. They are pretty unique and I am stoked to able to offer a special giveaway like this!  

So, for this giveaway you can win a custom, one of a kind pet (or animal of your choice if you don't have a pet, or wish you had a pet tiger, or want a custom portrait of your spirit animal.) portrait on 9 x12 watercolor paper in your choice of color (or colors...I think an ombre portrait would be really pretty!) Here are the rules:


1. Follow Danielles blog and leave me a comment on this post saying you follow her blog.
2. Visit Girl and Parrot shop and leave a little heart on your favorite listing and leave a separate comment telling me your favorite listing in her shop.
3. Tweet "I want to win a custom pet portrait from Girl and Parrot on the @tumbleweedsshop blog www.talesofatumbleweed.com"
3. Like the Girl and Parrot facebook page and leave a separate comment below.
4. Pin a Girl and Parrot painting to a pin board on Pinterest and leave me a link to the pin in the comments below.
5. Extra entry if comment telling me who or what you want painted and what color you want your portrait in. Let's get creative here people!


This giveaway is open until Thursday night at midnight! I will announce the winner on Friday morning! DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE ME AN EMAIL ADDRESS THAT I CAN GET A HOLD OF YOU AT!


*And also, as an added bonus, I will pick a runner up winner who comes up with the most creative color/portrait combo. Get out your crayon box and dust off your design books. Crabapple Reds and key lime greens will win you a very special prize from the Girl and Parrot shop!*


Good luck, yall! And remember, the more entries to make, the better chance you have to win! Make it count!


xo,
Beca

Testing out the Canon EOS 1DS Mark II

We have been learning our new camera {Canon EOS 1DS Mark II} like crazy since we got it, and today an adapter for our Olympus lenses came in the mail. It was the wrong one, but it did fit our old 50mm Zuiko lens, so we got a chance to finally test out some shots. I am totally in love. I just wanted to share a few of the photos

Hope you're having a great Monday. We have to run a few errands before getting back to work. I am hoping Doug wants to get Mexican food, too!


xo,
Beca

Chattanooga Lookouts Game

Sunday evening we took 2 hours off work to go support the Chattanooga Lookouts with, our local minor league baseball team. They didn't do so great, but we had a blast and it was fun getting out of the house for a bit.

Do yall ever go to baseball games? What's your favorite part? I like the pretzels and the sunshine! I could live without the baseball, but it was fun rooting on our team! Happy Monday!

xo,

Beca

Homecooked // Doug's Shrimp Eggrolls

Let me tell you a little about my boyfriend. He's probably the best cook, ever. Like, puts me to shame, which isn't hard, but he probably puts a lot of people to shame. The other day I was craving egg rolls something fierce but we haven't been much for eating out lately. We went to the grocery yesterday, and got all the necessary ingredients for him to make the best, hands down, best eggrolls I have ever had.

What you need. Egg wrappers. Cabbage, carrots and broccoli. Shrimp (or tofu) Salt, pepper, soy sauce, agave. frying oil. Sweet and sour sauce for dipping. Shred your cabbage, carrots and broccoli stems really finely and chop your shrimp or tofu. Mix it all together with soy sauce, agave and salt and pepper in a bowl  and cook it in light oil until its your shrimp is cooked thoroughly. Lay out your rice paper, scoop in your cooked ingredients, roll and fry in very very hot oil only flipping once to get each side evenly crispy. EASY PEASY! Enjoy the best egg rolls of your life.

Have you ever made egg rolls? What ingredients do you use? Now that I am full of egg rolls, I have some work to finish up before we head over to the Tennessee Lookouts game. I'm not a huge fan of baseball, or sports in general, but this week is going to be insane, so we're taking a little break to hang out with friends before we disappear into the world of sunglasses.


xo,
Beca