Personal

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Thankful

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Thankful

Thanksgiving.

It's that time of the year when people seem to become a bit more intentional about counting their blessings and naming things they're thankful for. A time when people gather together from near and far to share a special meal around the table. A time when people google things like "how to cook a turkey" and "watch macy's parade online" (No? Am I the only one?).

Maybe it's the time of year, or maybe it's a response to the chaos of life the past few months, but I find myself needing to take a step back, needing to create space for thankfulness. Eugene Peterson said it best:

"We stop, whether by choice or through circumstance, so that we can be alert and attentive and receptive to what God is doing in and for us, in and for others, on the way. We wait for our souls to catch up with our bodies." -Eugene Peterson, The Jesus Way

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Navigating the Home-Buying Process as a Freelancer: An Inside Look

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Navigating the Home-Buying Process as a Freelancer: An Inside Look

Buying a home is a huge step in life, and though they make it look so simple on TV, it is no easy feat. Especially if you're a freelancer. Since SD and I are both freelancers, this meant our home-buying process was a little more complicated and drawn out than "normal." For those of you who are thinking about and planning for buying a home at some point, here is an inside look at our process, with a few helpful tips thrown in for good measure!

Gather Financial Documents

The first step in our mortgage application process was to pull together several documents:

- Tax returns (last two years)
- W-2s (last year)
- Pay stubs (current year)
- All bank statements
- checking, savings (last two months)
- Investment accounts
- Roth, IRAs (last quarter)

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A Day in the Life

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A Day in the Life

A few years ago, I wrote a "Day in the Life" post. Lots of things have changed since then, so I thought it might be nice to share an updated version with y'all. Come see what a typical day in my life looks like! My desk, in a corner of our cozy living room

9:05 a.m. - I carry my coffee (half espresso, half hot chocolate) to my desk in the living room and turn on my laptop. I check my email to make sure there's nothing urgent, but I don't normally respond to things right away. I prefer to take a little time in the morning to read (articles and a few of my favorite blogs) and check in on social media and our websites. After this, I respond to a few quick emails, proof my newsletter one last time in MailChimp, and schedule it to send.

10 Things You Probably Don't Know About Me

10 Things You Probably Don't Know About Me

You know those ice-breaker games when someone asks you to share something unique about yourself? Something most people don't know? I can never come up with something. Last time I was asked this question, I said, "I eat my candy by color - and I always save the green ones for last." (Come on, I know I'm not the only one!) For today's post, I challenged myself to come up with a few other fun facts, and I thought it might be fun to share them with you! Here are 10 things you probably don't know about me (even if we've been friends for a while!). Enjoy!

When Jesus Comes As a Stranger in the Snow

When Jesus Comes As a Stranger in the Snow

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in." - Matthew 25:35

Last night, SD and I decided to walk down to our local coffee shop after dinner to get some work done (and take advantage of the "warmer" 20-something degree weather - ha).

We trudged through the snow drifts, reminiscing about the day. We were almost to the coffee shop when we saw a woman crouched down in the snow up ahead. "Did she fall?" SD asked. I made out her shadow against the snow in the light of the street lamps and we watched her try to stand, falter, and fall.

Top 10 Posts of 2014

Top 10 Posts of 2014

Happy New Year, y'all! I love this time of the year - looking back, reflecting, dreaming about what the New Year will hold, and making plans to make it happen.

I always love looking back and seeing what your favorite posts were, so this year, I decided to put together a little recap post. Without further ado, here are the top 10 posts of 2014:

The Beauty of Christmas

The Beauty of Christmas

This year, December comes with a bit of nostalgia for me.

Last year, the weekend after Thanksgiving was the last time I saw my Grammy. In February, the day before she passed away, she told me she had reluctantly taken down the last of her feather trees. In her words, "Christmas was beautiful, and it will be beautiful again."

Last weekend, we picked out our little tree and strung it with white lights. As we stood back to admire its warm, cozy glow in our dimly-lit living room, I leaned my head against SD's chest and whispered, "Christmas is beautiful again."

Welcoming a New Season

Ecclesiastes 3 has been on my heart and mind lately. "To everything there is a season; a time for every purpose under heaven..." Maybe it's the hint of fall in the air (after all, the Pumpkin Spice Latte did come out this week) or the promise of structure that the school year provides. Whatever the reason, I've been thinking back on the "seasons" I've had so far this year:

In February, I entered into a season of grieving after losing my Grammy very suddenly. Everything changed, and yet, I stocked up on colorful Clare cardigans at J.Crew Factory because I craved more change - I didn't know how to keep living with the way things were.

Then, in May, I wrote this post about the season of waiting. I still craved change - We almost bought a house, y'all. And got a new job. But, those things I thought we were waiting for (in reality, hoping for) did not happen. In the restless moments of this busy summer, waiting for tangible, visible change, I thought about contentment. This moment, our lives as they are right now - am I content?

Goals for 2014: July Update

Goals for 2014: July Update

Can you believe we're more than halfway through 2014?! It's been a crazy year so far but a lot of good has come from it! Here is an update on the goals I set at the beginning of this year:

SMARTER BUSINESS
Schedule more emails - Boomerang is the best. I schedule all my invoices at once each month - huge time-saver!

No checking email after dinner - I did pretty well with this during the semester, but I've slacked off this summer. Time to get back to better boundaries!

Streamline the workflow of my business - I did some research at the beginning of the year on invoice management programs, but I'm not sure it's the right time to introduce something like this into my studio. Working on a few new plans for billing and payments to implement in September.

Start a new mini blog series - Yes! I created a Taxes for Freelancers series this spring - see posts here, here, here, and here.

Read The $100 Startup - Started it this month!

Follow along with my creative work and daily adventures: @ashleydanyew

Halloween 2024… …The Lion King 🦁 Swipe to see the outtakes, including lion-wrangling and the 20th photo we took before we realized Rafiki had his mask on upside-down. 😂
The October Musician & Co. Book Club pick is… 📘 Hidden Genius: The Secret Ways of Thinking That Power the World’s Most Successful People This book is a collection of stories, insights, and lessons learned from top performers, entr
Meet Jessie Ning - pianist, graphic designer, and founder of @opushaus, a lifestyle brand for musicians. A former Creative Director at TikTok, Jessie combines her extensive background in graphic design and scenic design with her musical talents. I