what you guys never knew you always wanted-custom mermaid rocks are here! it was only a matter of time before my mermaids found their way to some magic rocks. i am trying to come up with some really fun gift items for my shop this season. i am going to be taking custom rock orders as well-you all have been asking and i finally figured out a system to get them to you a bit quicker. (hey painting rocks is harder than it looks, i swear)

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speaking of mermaids, i was walking ellie a few weeks ago and was approached by two good-looking young mormon men. (so cute, i think they were 19-is that bad?) anyway, poor dudes did not know what they were getting themselves into by asking about my faith. after explaining that i was not religious and accidentally laughing when asked if i went to church-the blonder, quieter boy asked me what i believe in.

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“oh, i am a mermaid. i believe in the sea.”

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the more aggressive boy opened his mouth to say something, and then stopped himself short once he digested what i said.

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the three of us sat there staring at each other for a solid 5 seconds before i mumbled something about the weather and then ran down the street with a confused ellie.
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do you guys have these moments or is it just me?

this is part of a collage i just finished about creating joy.

so, what little thing are you celebrating today?

i am in the process of getting the names and emails of the peeps that coming to my art journaling workshop on november 9th in wilmington, nc. my rockstar honey put a button on my sidebar with all the information. i want to meet some of you! if you are interested in attending, please send me an email (mccabe@dancingmermaid.com) so i can keep you updated. thank you, and hope to see you soon.

kristen! (imagine little girls cheering in the background…) email me with your mailing address kristen so the love rock can come live with you.

and in the spirit of loving today, i want to remind you that YOU are loved.

yes you!

you who thinks you need to lose 10 pounds who is beautiful now too.

you who forgot someone important’s birthday.

you who is having a bad hair-day.

you who said hello to a stranger and made their day with your bright smile.
you who said the wrong thing at the wrong time.

you who gave flowers just because you felt like it.

you with all your hard work that no one seemed to notice.

you who decided to forgive instead of staying angry.

you who took that brave leap and are making things happen.

you who did it even though you were scared.

you who decided not to rely on a bad habit today.

you who were gentle with yourself when you could have been hard.

you who picked up a friend when she was feeling unloved.

you who finished that art project.

you who thought about starting an art project.

you who pet that cute dog on your walk.

you who let yourself be where you are at.

you who messed up but decided to try again.

you who makes people happy just by showing up.
you who felt hurt but gave compassionate anyway.

you who took that beautiful photo.

you who wrote that soulful blog post.

you who took a chance.

you who gave a little extra.

you who did that really kind thing and did not tell anybody.

you who keep leaving uplifting messages on people’s blogs.

you who admitted you were wrong.

you who giggled with your children instead of cooking a fancy dinner.

you who did all your laundry today.

you who decided to listen to a friend instead.

you who give so effortlessly, i see you.

you are loved unconditionally, here and everywhere….

i have decided to have a little sale this weekend! buy any item from my etsy shop this weekend (today included) and receive a free LOVE rock. also, buy one set of postcards and get another one free. (this is a three day sale, prices go back to original pricing on monday)

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and just for fun, tell me what you are loving today, and i will put your name in a hat for a drawing for a mermaid love rock. winners name will be announced on monday.

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edited to add what i am loving today…

i am loving your responses to this post.
i am loving that it is putting me in a much needed lighter space.
i am loving that i have such a patient boyfriend/partner who is easy on the eyes too.
i am loving that it is cooler today and feels almost like fall.
i am loving that i got to attend swirly’s and stacy’s art show this past weekend and spend time with six people i love dearly. (and met a new one, hi kristen!)
i am loving that i have this space here to share with you.

over the summer, i did a few of my camps at different people’s houses. there was one family that hosted where the little mermaid-girl had already done a camp a few weeks before at another house. she was very excited to have it at her house, to say the least, and took her hostess job very seriously.

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upon arriving my first day, i was waved down by her, two other girls, and a black lab as i pulled up to the curb. “MA-CABE!!!! you’re HERRRRRRE!!!!!!” honestly, no one is that excited to see me. not even my own mother, and she lives on the other side of the country.

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the second day i came i got the same greeting, with the same enthusiasm. my gracious 8 year old hostess informed me that she had already put out my art blanket, filled the bucket where we wash our hands with soapy water, and set out all the art journals….and wanted to know what else she could do to help-all this before i even got out of my car.

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about mid-class though she started melting down. first it was the wrong color, and then someone was mean, and then there were big, alligator tears falling down her freckled and oh so kissable round cheeks. i scooped her up, gave her a snack and a talk, and she joined the rest of the group when she felt put back together. but not soon after, another meltdown was to follow.

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i talked to her mom about it…maybe she did not eat enough for breakfast? not enough sleep? too much pressure having all her friends over at the same time? i decided to come extra early the next day, to save her the energy of wanting to set everything up, as sweet as it was.

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i rolled up over an hour beforehand the next day, and there she was in the driveway, eating her breakfast, on the look-out for a mermaid. “”don’t worry i set up the art camp!!!” she yelled as i parked the car.

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it was then that it hit me. this girl loves big. way big. she is a kindred. her laugh is big, her stories are big, her movement is big. she loves wide and deep and full. i get this.

but with this kind of big love there can be a big crash, too. the other side of loving big, if you will. because when the dream is big, and the vision is bigger, the disappointment, well, that can be the biggest thing of all. because us big dreamers and do-ers and cheerleaders-we tend to put a lot of pressure on ourselves. we are full motion and straight ahead, often forgetting to slow down, take a moment, and just breathe.

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(and for the record, if you came to my house, i would probably greet you in a similar manner)

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i tell you this story because this is what i am reminding myself of today. to be gentle. to leave room for mistakes. because i have had a couple of crashes lately, and it is not pretty. this may be the hardest part of the path…where you embrace the journey even when your vision isn’t quite looking as shiny and big as it did in your mind. but loving it anyway-with that same passion that planted the seed to begin with. to be patient enough to hang out and see what sprouts up.

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there is more i want to share on that subject, but this is all i am able to muster for the time being. so i will leave you with this: if you love big too-lets support each other. lets keep each other from crashing before we even get the ball rolling.

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is anyone in?

i read a mind-blowing blog post this morning that i wanted to share with you guys, written by trisha. she is such a beautiful being, go visit her and read these words. it will change your day. and make sure you leave her some love too, cause you can never have too much.

a little late with friday photos. i had a headache last night. above is my attempt at eating more healthy. i did not photograph the half pound of m&ms i consumed 30 minutes later. baby steps.

since the best pics are the ones i take while walking ellie, i will bring you all along again. (&hagan i know you want to pet this honey honey, so just tell your mom you want to go visit auntie mermaid for your 12th birthday. wink wink)

this car drives by my house sometimes, and the kids this summer and i named it the happy car. because really, who could not be happy buzzing around in that?

i just found out these great folks are our neighbors. tee met justin first and asked, “is your girlfriend the one painting all the rocks?” ellie and i went up there to introduce ourselves one day, and since then she wants to go in every time we pass it. her and max are buds. well, they are working on being buds. there are some kinks to work out still.

my old roommate and i used to walk by here and want to move in, just to say we live at red roof apartments. i don’t know why. it just sounds cool.

really good smoothies.

swamis. i remember guys back home talking about this place. i did not know then i would end up here.

101 highway.

entrance at the mediation gardens.  i am pretty sure dogs are not allowed there, even though ellie really wanted to go in. must be all that good energy she was attracted to. i am convinced that our town is magical because of these gardens.

i like overcast days, although not too many in a row.

alright, if i can’t live in a cottage by the sea, or a treehouse, i want to live in one of these boats. how cool are they? one day i am gonna be bold and go ask if i can look inside. maybe i can butter them up with a few painted stones.

thank you for spending the week with me! this was really fun, and made me happy in so many ways.

maybe i will do a few more this week….

yep, that pretty much sums up my day. short and sweet, just the way i like it.

i saw my friend dawn at target today, which prompted an afternoon visit with all my favorite girls! another good friend of ours stopped by with her girls too. such a nice way to spend my day off.

it was so funny, within minutes of my arrival, everyone had their art journal out and got busy creating. i had nothing to do with it.

kitty paw is slowly healing…she lets us touch it now.

justin saw her jump off the couch, and when she looked up and noticed he had chicken-did a little sad cry and held up her paw. the girl knows how to work it. don’t know where she got that from.

j had a rough day at work, so i got some fish tacos and we walked down to d street to watch the sunset.

our friends were there too, with plastic cups filled with red wine.

thanks for spending another day with me…