Lifestyle

Year One – Starting A Photography Business

Wow! I can’t believe it’s been a year since I decided to jump in with both feet and take my photography serious. The last year of my life has transformed and blossomed into something beyond my wildest dreams. I never set out to be a photographer, but I QUICKLY fell in love with it and wanted to run full speed into creating this beautiful business that is Kaylin Lindsey Photography. Is it perfect? No. Do I still have room to grow? Always. Am I proud of the work I have created over the last year? Damn right!

So let’s look back on the past year…I had taken a few photos here and there, like this maternity session, and was super proud of what I was creating. But it wasn’t until one certain shoot that I knew I wanted to take photography seriously. My sweet nephew was born June 29th, 2019. I was lucky enough to be able to take some Fresh 48 pictures for my brother and sister in law and Y’ALL! Those pictures. Those pictures changed everything for me. They were so good. I loved them SO much. And I was SO damn proud of them. I cried. I felt confident. I felt….proud. And I hadn’t felt that way in a LONG time. (And actually, these photos went viral for me on Pinterest so that was fun, too!) Although I feel proud of our BEAUTIFUL wedding films we put out, I always felt like Michael was the big shot on that because he is the one who does the editing. So for the first time, I felt like I had something to be proud of that was mine.

After this photoshoot I knew I was on to something and I could run as fast and as far with photography as I wanted to. And that excited me.

Over the past year I have met amazing families, captured breathtaking weddings, and created memories for people that will last them forever. I have shot pictures all over the state. I have shot pictures for people I’ve known for years, and people that I met the day of the photoshoot. I have travelled hours and hours in a day for shoots and I have spent hours and hours editing portraits that I pray people will enjoy.

The last year of my life has been a complete transformation.
I know my business is only starting out and that is the most beautiful thing to me.

THANK YOU for allowing me to dream this dream. THANK YOU for trusting me with your pictures needs. THANK YOU for supporting this by sharing me with your friends and family.

GIBERT, ARIZONA TEMPLE SEALING
ARIZONA ENGAGEMENT SESSION – PHOENIX
SNOWFLAKE, ARIZONA TEMPLE WEDDING
SEDONA, ARIZONA WEDDING
ARIZONA ENGAGEMENT SESSION – GREENS PEAK

All my love,
Kaylin Lindsey

TO BOOK: me@kaylinlindsey.com
INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/kaylin.lindsey
FACEBOOK: Kaylin Lindsey Photography

A look at the last year in photos:

Behind The Small Business – Peachy Sweet Cookie Shoppe

It’s no secret that we live in a tiny small town located in the White Mountains of Arizona. No, we do not have fast food here. No, we do not have stop lights here. But YES! we DO have delicious and beautifully done custom decorated sugar cookies! This is such a fun thing that our town gets to enjoy and I wanted to share a little bit about this amazing woman who is such an amazing and beautiful addition to our town. Not only does she create beautiful (AND DELICIOUS) cookies, but her family also owns and operates a local pizza restaurant in town! So fun, right?!

I asked Heather from Peachy Sweet Cookie Shoppe
some questions about her amazing cookie business and this is what she had to say:

What inspired you to start a cookie business?
“Didn’t do it on purpose. I had watched several of the cookie decorating videos as I scrolled through FB and decided to give it a try on Christmas Eve one year. I had no idea what I was doing and they looked terrible but were so good.
I am a pretty determined person and it was something I thought I would enjoy so I tried again and again. Still practicing but looking back and seeing how far I’ve come is rewarding.”

Have you always been a baker?
“Not really…I mean I would bake treats for my family but never to this extent.”

What has been the best part about making cookies?
“The best part about making cookies has seriously been meeting so many people! If I didn’t make cookies I would stay in my own little box and not know so many sweet and kind people around the mountain.” (When Heather does orders, she does pickup options for all of our surrounding towns. How amazing is that?!)

What are the pros and cons of a business in a small town?
“Pros and cons of running a business in a small town?? Pros again just meeting so many people from here that I probably don’t run into regularly. I love being asked to do cookies for occasions year after year for the same customer. I have a few I’ve done cookies for birthdays for 3 years now. It’s been fun to watch the kids likes change from year to year.
I don’t really have any cons. I just love what I get to do.”

These cookies are the real deal, y’all. I wish every single one of you lived in our town so you could try them! Haha. Heather is a wonderful person, inside and out, and it shows in her cookies! I am so grateful she let me brag a little bit about her on my blog! It is so fun to learn things about new people and I hope people in our little town enjoyed this post! 🙂

Peachy Sweet Cookie Shoppe – Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Peachy-Sweet-Cookie-Shoppe-331876290625608/

Different Strokes for Different Folks | Kaylin Lindsey

Different strokes for different folks.

If you’ve been my friend for any amount of time, you’ve probably heard me say that by now. Really, I say it at least once a day. But it’s SO. DARN. TRUE. You may like something that I hate, and that’s cool! You might live your life totally different than me, and that’s cool! You might be a stay at home mom while others work, and that’s cool! DIFFERENT STROKES FOR DIFFERENT FOLKS!

We as humans spend SO much time comparing, over thinking, downright judging and just wondering how people are perceiving us. Social media is so fun, right?!

If you’re not that person, then great. Really. You’re a better person than me and you can click off this post. If you’re one of those people who is super confident in who you are and don’t give a rats ass about what people think of you, come back another day for another post. This isn’t it for you, sis.

Right before we got married we moved to the town we currently live in. I love this town. It has my heart and it is where I see us growing old. It’s a wonderful town filled with wonderful people. HOWEVER!

This was a hard place to move to. Like…REALLY HARD. I am not from here. I didn’t grow up here and my friends don’t live here. For the first few years we lived here I was convinced I would never find a friend and I felt like I was constantly sticking out like a black sheep.

I mean….I still do….hell, I’m at the liquor store buying Bud Light more than I’m at the gas station getting gas. And guess what? That’s okay. You water your grass while I water mine. Mine might just have a little beer in it. Hahaha.

I really thought at this point in my life I would have the whole “friends” thing figured out. I thought that I would be so confident in who I was. I thought I would never care in a million years what people thought of me. And although that is true on most days, some days I really struggle. And I struggle HARD. We all want to be liked and accepted, right? Isn’t that just….human nature??

And wanting to be liked and accepted in a small town that has friend groups that have been established since the womb, its hard to find your tribe. And when you want to sit and have a glass of wine with a friend but you literally don’t know one person who you could call to do that with, its hard.

I think you’re allowed to feel this way as an adult in life. Especially if you are someone who craves friendship and relationships the way I do. I think you can live anywhere, be a stay at home mom, be a working mom, be a single girl, have lots of money, or be stressing about bills and you can still feel this way.

I want to tell you that it’s okay. It’s allowed. You are validated. I think the biggest thing for me to remember is there are seasons of life. Ebb and flow. Somedays you’re up and some days you’re down. THIS IS NORMAL. YOU ARE NORMAL.

If you do one thing today, I hope that thing is giving yourself a little grace. Give yourself grace for the moment of life you are in and give yourself grace for how your heart might be feeling about things right now. You are wonderful.

We Bought A Camper Van!

You know when you see something in someone’s yard that you like so you walk up to their house and ask if you can buy it? No?? That’s not normal? Well….that’s exactly how we scored the newest addition to our family. And no, I am not kidding. HAHA! Small town life. Small town living. We are not all crazy here, I promise. Just….friendly.

We are SO beyond excited have have this new (to us, obviously) camper van in our lives. We LOVE camping as a family and this is going to make trips so much easier. Just load up in the van and hit the road!

She (or he? We haven’t decided it’s vibe yet) is obviously nothing brand spanking new, but that’s kind of our vibe if you haven’t caught on. We don’t need fancy around here. Heck, we met at an Uncle Kracker concert….I am off track now….

We are going to put a little work into it but for the most part, she (he?!) is solid and sound. We are excited to add some color and personal touches to the van. It is going to be perfect for our little family. Many of memories are about to be made!!

Do you like camping? If you live in Arizona, where is your favorite place to camp??

Living In A SMALL Town

Often times I have NO clue what to write about as a “blogger”. I’ve never really considered myself that because well….there are MONTHS that go by that I don’t post on here. 100% of the time, I feel like I don’t have anything to share when it comes to my boring little life. But damn it, I want to blog. I want to write. I want to share things with you. So this year, that’s what I’m doing.

If you know us, you know we live in a tiny town. Growing up, I thought my hometown of Flagstaff, Arizona was “tiny”. But no. I’m talking TINY. Like….no stop lights, no fast food, I drive 45 mins each way for groceries, etc….

I will never forget when we were moving here and one of my sisters said…”What happens if you have an event and you need a red blouse?! Where do you go?!” Hahaha. We still laugh about that. Thanks, Jen!

So…what exactly do we do in small towns like this to keep ourselves sane? Well friend, I’m going to tell you!

– We drive to the “big city” a lot. And by big city…I mean the next town that has a Walmart. We like going out to eat as a family in Show Low and sometimes just walking around said Walmart or Home Depot because well, there’s nothing else to do! We’ve been known to order a pizza from Dominos and drive the 45 mins each way just to pick it up and bring it home. Sometimes you’re desperate, okay?!

– Bunco Group. If you have never been apart of a bunco group, you should totally start one with your friends!! When I was playing bunco, we would meet up once a month at someone’s house and play. It was good to get out of the house, be with other moms, and just laugh and usually eat yummy treats!! You can find a ton of fun ideas on Pinterest and if you’ve never played bunco, you can find rules and such there, too!

– Gas stations and drives. If you live in a small town, you have probably gone to the gas station to get a drink or some kind and then just driven around town. It’s something we really like doing. We’re old and boring. Don’t judge us. Also, I’m pretty sure towns are the #1 sellers of soda pop cups at gas stations. It’s crazy how many drinks people get a day!!! HAHA!

– For “date night” we like to do puzzles or play each other in cards. Pretty wild, huh?!

– Fires. In the summer we love having fires in our backyard. Sometimes we invite people over, sometimes we don’t. Either way it breaks up the “every day” and gives us something to do other than watch Netflix.

– Summer. We live for summers around here. Our town does SO many fun things and we truly live for it!!! If you’ve never been to a small town for any type of holiday, find a friend and go! (cough, me, cough)

One thing I DON’T do a lot of, and it tends to surprise people, is order a lot from Amazon. I never really got on that train and I just….don’t use it? I actually just learned about grocery DELIVERY over Christmas with my family. Like….people actually have groceries delivered to their HOUSE! What a concept! HAHAHA!

If you like hearing about our “small town life”, let me know what you’re interested in reading about and I can write about anything you are curious about!!!

To The Friend Who Has No Friends

If you have clicked on this post, chances are you are in the same boat as a lot of other women I know. You fall into a category of people who feel like they do not have friends. Specifically, I am talking about myself. I fall into this category.

And I will start by saying….my heart goes out to you. I SEE YOU. And I love you.

We see it all the time….”Find your tribe and love them hard”. What happens if we don’t have a “tribe”? There are posts about “Why girls trips are GREAT!” But what if you don’t even have a group of friends to go on one of those trips with? We see girls, or couples, on constant trips together. But what if you just DON’T do that? You are still normal, I promise. Pinky promise.

Why is it that as an adult, it almost seems damn near impossible to make good, SOLID friendships? Is it our busy schedules? Or is it judgment and intimidation from other women/people?

I said this earlier, but if anything I have said earlier in this post resonates with you, please know that YOU are on my heart right now. I have been thinking about you and I have been praying for you. Guys…it sucks to feel like you don’t have friends. It hurts your heart. It can keep you up at night and some days move you to tears. It can be so frustrating to just want ONE FRIEND who you call and vent to….or someone who talk to each day…..but the truth is….some of us just DON’T have that.

There is nothing worse than questioning what type of friend you might be….I mean, if you don’t have a ton of friends, something must be wrong, right? If you don’t have a “close knit group”, you must be missing out on something, right?

Ready for the brutal and honest truth? NOTHING IS WRONG! Nothing is wrong with you, nothing is wrong with the type of friend you are, and at the end of the day, you don’t need girls trips to make your world go round.

Your tribe might be your husband. And that’s okay. Your tribe might be your kids. And that’s okay. Hell your tribe might be your babysitter or your mother in law…..that’s okay!

We live in a society right now where I think some of us have a false reality of what real life friendships look like. It doesn’t have to be going to brunch every Sunday. It doesn’t have to be luxury trips out of state together. It can simply be driving around town with a coke because your kids were driving you crazy that day. It can be watching Bachelorette in your pajamas together and eating pints of ice cream. (Okay, does anyone want to start doing this with me?!) It can be texting someone during the week saying “Thinking of you this week!”

Please, please, PLEASE do not ever question the kind of friend you are. Please do not ever question your truth or your authenticity. If you are the friend who has no friends, please know that I am with you. I stand with you. And I love you so big. You are wonderful.

Cheers to friendships, or lack thereof.

They Tell You Not To Blog About This

If you’ve ever looked into blogging, almost everyone will tell you the same thing….don’t blog about personal stuff. People don’t want to read about your personal life. You need to be TEACHING them something! Well…if you want to learn a new kitchen hack or five new lunch ideas, this post isn’t for you….if you want to hear a life update on yours truly….continue reading!

Woahza! Life has been a CRAZY whirlwind for us over the last few months. If you didn’t know, I left a job that I was at for 4 1/2 years and started a new job at our local middle school! It has been an amazing change of pace and quiet honestly it was exactly what I needed. Sometimes in life there comes a point when you just need to step back, re-evaluate things, and do what’s best for YOU. I am a people pleaser through and through, so this was REALLY hard for me. Huge shout out to my husband who talked me through far too many emotional meltdowns. But I am so beyond happy right now. And I am loving the new job I am doing!

With the change in jobs, I am hoping this gives me more time and freedom to pursue writing and my whole blog in general. I really do love connecting with you guys and just like this post, I like writing and sharing about our lives. It is fun and therapeutic for me. Sometimes (okay, most of the time) I feel like my writing or things I want to talk about aren’t important enough to be shared. I see everyone sharing expensive fashion and trendy things to buy and honestly that just isn’t me. So I sit here and just don’t post….but I’m trying to change that! If there’s anything specific you want to see on my blog or you have questions, shoot me an email!

If you solely read my blog and don’t follow me on any other social media, you might be wondering what we’ve been up to….(okay, you probably haven’t thought twice about what we’re up to, but for the sake of this post, I am going to tell you!)

I recently have taken up photography. Yes, like….real pictures! We have been in the videography business for quite a few years now and I decided to take a stab at pictures and yup, I’m in love! So if you’re in Arizona and are looking for someone to do a fun shoot with, hit me up!! Here is some of my work:

Over the summer we also rescued a dog, got two kittens, still have chickens, and are just living a fun and crazy life with our totally awesome pets. Never in a MILLION years did I think we would 1) get another dog or 2) get kittens but 3) LET ALONE GET THEM IN THE SAME SUMMER! I know, madness!

Like I said, if you have any ideas for what you want to see on here, let me know! I am hoping to do a lot more around these parts and excited for whats to come! Thanks for sticking around and thanks for reading.

XOXO.

What To Say To Someone Who Has Had A Miscarriage

If you are clicking on this post, you most likely know someone who has had a miscarriage. Or perhaps that person is you. Let me start by saying miscarriage is SO hard. It is hard and it is beyond crappy and it is heartbreaking. I am hoping this post can bring a little insight for you and/or bring a little bit of healing to your hurting heart.

If you know anything about us or our story, you know we have had our fair share of miscarriages and I feel that I can talk confidently about this topic. I will say with each time we have miscarried, it never gets easier and the pain doesn’t just “stop” or “go away”. I have always been VERY open about our struggle through infertility and our constant battles with recurrent miscarriages. With being open on the internet comes a LOT of questions from people (which I so appreciate), and my NUMBER ONE asked question is “what do you say to someone who has lost their baby?!”

Such a good question!!

I know not everyone is the same. I know not every grieves the same. I know not everyone processes loss the same way. AND THAT IS OKAY! But I do believe, with everything in me, each person needs to feel love and support during such a hard time in their life, whether they admit it or not. Sometimes we just need community and sometimes we just need to feel LOVED.

Before I get into “what to say”, I want to share WHAT NOT TO SAY. And yes, these are real things that people say to someone after they have miscarried…I don’t write these things down to be mean, but I genuinely think some people just DON’T realize what they are saying is a little…rude.
“It just wasn’t meant to be right now!”
“Probably for the better that it happened before more complications came”
“But you’re like….okay….right?”
“You’re young! You can just get pregnant again!”

I want to share a story from the first time I miscarried. I don’t think this person even knows the impact she had on my life, but I wanted to share this special moment that I hold so close and dear to my heart.
After I miscarried for the first time I didn’t leave my bed for DAYS. I literally just laid in bed and sobbed. (Two years later I realized I had PPD and it ALL made sense but that is another story for another day). I had a few people stop by our house with flowers, candy, and hugs and it was SO appreciated. But one girl stopped by and it changed everything for me. I was in my pajamas, looking like a complete wreck, and heard someone knocking. I went to answer it and opened the door to this special girl holding a plate of cupcakes and she said “I know we don’t know each other, but I heard what happened and I wanted to bring something by for you and tell you that I love you!” Guys, I cried. A lot. And I cry every time I share that story and I’m crying now as I type this out. You can’t even imagine the impact that had on my life. It was so simple. “We don’t know each other….BUT I LOVE YOU!” Wow. So huge. And such a testament as to how we should really be treating people, right?! (Side note: if you were that girl, and you are reading this post, I want you to know what a HUGE and monumental impact you have had on my life. You probably never thought twice about your sweet gesture, but on my hardest days I think of you and I try to be a better person because of you.)

Miscarriage is hard. It is hard emotionally and it is hard physically. With that being said, I think there is so much you could say to someone who has experienced a miscarriage.

– It’s okay to not be okay. I needed to hear this more times than I can count.
– How is your husband doing? And your other kid(s)? (It is a loss for the WHOLE family, not just mama)
– Can I bring you dinner? (Like I said, miscarriage is PHYSICALLY hard and sometimes it’s nice not to have to cook!)
– What’s your favorite dessert? I will bring it over! (Even just ding dong ditch it at their door if they aren’t up for visitors)
– I love you. So little. But oh so important.
– We are heartbroken, too. We are rooting for you guys to get your baby here.
– I can’t imagine the pain, but when you’re ready to talk, I am here to listen.
– I have been there, and I know how bad this hurts. You are validated in your feelings.
– Do you want to go for a drive and get a soda?
– You are brave and strong and one hell of a woman!
– Even just a simple text that says “I am thinking of you.”

Like I said earlier, I know each woman is different in how they process or grieve. I don’t think these suggestions are “one size fits all” type of suggestions. If you have a friend who has miscarried, I encourage you to find out what her love language is and maybe try something that fits within those. You could pick up her kids from school one day, you could see if she needs help with dishes, you could just come sit on the couch and chit chat about life if she’s up for it.

There are a million things you could say or do for someone who has miscarried. I think 90% of the time people just don’t know “WHAT” to say. AND I TOTALLY GET THAT! It is a hard topic. It is a hard thing in life to go through. But I promise if you know someone who has miscarried, reaching out to them in some way is always going have a positive impact on them.

If YOU have gone through a miscarriage yourself, please know that my heart goes out to. I know the pain all too well. Our family has experienced loss like I never thought imaginable. I know sometimes the pain of losing a baby seems like it will never heal. I want you to know that you are NOT alone. You are loved. You are important and you are VALUED.

Service Trip With Village Book Builders

Woah! Where do I start?

We just got back from an 11 day trip with Village Book Builders and my cup runneth over. This trip was one of those trips that just fills you to the deepest parts of your soul and you can’t help but be grateful for all you got to experience! It was challenging at times, but I wouldn’t have traded this experience for the world.

Village Book Builders in a non-profit organization that heads to villages and provides libraries to kids. On this specific trip we went on, we brought TWO libraries to two different villages, Chican and Kinil. Libraries that were packed with books, computers, and a safe place to LEARN and GAIN KNOWLEDGE! I mean really, what is better? I wish I could explain the overwhelming JOY it brought to my heart to see these kids EXCITED about books and reading. You guys…it was unexplainable…

Some of these kids have only ever seen and read text books for school. No children’s book, no story books, no chapter books…

It was a truly humbling experience to be able to love on these kids and bring them something that will stay with them far beyond the week that we were there. We were leaving them with tools to grow as a person, books to grow as KIDS, and inspiration to use their imagination.

Village Book Builders is big on bringing knowledge and education to children but also having fun in the area you’re going to! We were in Yucatan, Mexico and visited Chichen Itza, Tulum, rode a boat to the reef and snorkeled, and immersed ourselves in the culture in such fun ways. We were there on New Years Eve and it was AMAZING to experience a new culture and see how they do things on holidays. We had multiple invites to different events around the village and spent a large chunk of our night at a house that invited us into their home. They cooked for us, laughed with us, danced with us, and showed so much love to us. I will always remember that night and I will forever be grateful for that hospitality.

Some of my favorite and most memorable things on this trip were the following:
-Not knowing any Spanish and still falling in love and creating relationships with these children
-Teaching photography classes to the kids and showing them how this is our JOB. Taking pictures of each of them will hold a special place in my heart.
-Trying new foods! (Best tamales of my life)
-Creating friendships with people I never thought possible
-Trying new ‘Agua Fresca’ each day
-The “burning man” on New Years Eve
-“Dennis the Menace” (There was this ADORBALE kid who was just a TERROR. We all loved him fiercely and he almost locked us ALL in a room)

Guys, this trip brought me SO out of my comfort zone. I hated going into this with people I didn’t know. It terrified me. I am really bad at “making friends” but I came out meeting some of the best people in my entire life. We didn’t have access to a shower any time we wanted, we didn’t have a flushing toilet, no on-demand air conditioning….and somehow, this turned into my favorite trip we’ve ever taken.

If you ever have a desire to serve, please look into a trip with VBB. You won’t find better people. In 2019 they are doing trips to Nepal, Peru, and Africa! You will thank me later, promise.

Have you ever done a service trip before?! What was your experience? I would love to hear about it!

Post 2: 10 years from now…

I’ve thought about this question a lot the past few days. Where do I want to be in ten years? Most people could give you a direct answer to this question. “Graduated from school, living in such and such place”, etc. The only things I know for certain about ten years from now are this:
I will have a 13 year old. Wait, WHAT?! THIRTEEN?
I will also have been married to my best friend for almost ten years.
Ten years from now? Ten years from now we hope to be financially supported by our own businesses. I like to think M and I are both entrepreneurial, but M is more so than me. We are always talking about new business ideas or how we could do things better. Also in ten years, I would like to hope baby girl would have a brother or sister, or two. 😉
I’m not one of those people who have a checklist of so many things I want to have happen over time. Do I have hopes and dreams? Absolutely. But being with M, making a family of our own, raising baby girl…right now, this is enough for me. It wouldn’t matter where we are living, or how we are living, in ten years I want our family to still be US. There will be a lot of growth and change over the next ten years and I think it is going to be such an adventure figuring out things together.

What do you imagine your life to look like in 10 years?
Do you have any major goals?

FOLLOW ME