Recently, I went to hear my friend, Brene Brown, speak at the launch for her new book. I love hearing her speak and, every time I do, it reaffirms a few key things for me. The first is that we have to make room in our lives for personal, restorative time. She emphasizes creative time and play time- time spent just to fill your heart and soul with new energy. You might think that, because of what I do, I spent time being creative every day. I do, but, often I am trying to do specific work for a specific person. I am working after all and I have a sense of responsibility to make a certain thing happen for my client. So, in that way, it's not completely free play and creative time.

Before I started this business I was an art student making work for work's sake. I made things simply for the sake of the doing, because it filled me up and made me happy. As life gets busier and my business grows, it becomes more of a challenge to carve out special time just for me. Whenever I am planning time like this, I get the guilt anxiety whispers in my head. Let me explain...recently I took a trip to Marfa with 2 girlfriends. It was just for fun and spur of the moment. I didn't have to be there and, in order for me to go, I had to call in a favor from my husband and take time away from work during a busy time. So, naturally, as I am packing my bags to go, the "itty bitty shitty committee" (as my friend Kristen so eloquently calls them) aka the anxious whispers start working their way into my head. It sounds like this...have fun on your trip because, while you're away, something terrible is going to happen to the kids and then you'll get plenty of "alone time" and "creative time" when your children are gone. Or it may go like this, how convenient that YOU get some alone time while Steven has to stay home and man the fort. Have fun with all your alone time while he struggles at home. I know I am not alone in this. I think the itty bitty shitty committee visits everyone in some way. They are the voice of fear and doubt and they know just what to say to get us anxious.

You will be happy to know that I ignored them. I packed my bags and headed out and had an amazing time too. I came home and everyone was fine, no one was hurt and life was just as it was when I left. While we were away, we stayed out late, drank lots of wine, listened to great music and slept in. For three glorious days, we stopped watching our clocks and there was no one to pick up and no one to cook for. We only dressed ourselves and we even went to see some cool art. Best of all, I took photographs just because...photos with no purpose but to be beautiful and interesting to me. I just did what I love to do, study the things around me, take a moment to stop and really see.

 I even shot film! I forgot how much I love the sound of my Mamiya as it captures the shot and advances the film. It feels substantial and satisfying. I forgot how much fun it is to not be immediately gratified by looking at the back of the camera. It's fun to wonder if you "got it" and it's like a present when you get the film back from the lab.

These flowers say it all. This is exactly how I felt on our trip.

So, thank you Brene, for being there the night before I left to go to Marfa and for reassuring me that no one would die while I was away. I promise to return that favor whenever you call.

It's like the flight attendants say when they give the safety speech, you have to put the oxygen mask on yourself before you help others. I encourage you all to go get some oxygen too. Tell the itty bitty shitty committee to take a hike, or even better you can use my very favorite four letter word and make a real impression on them. Go have fun for fun's sake and play! Happy weekend!

If you have any favorite shots this Friday, I'd love to see them! Leave links to your images, blogs, etc. in the comments below or add them to my Favorite Shot Friday Flickr pool. Don't be shy!

It was very, very difficult to pick a single shot as my favorite for today's post. Marfa was just too special for one image to be chosen. I could have picked the shot of my traveling companions or maybe one of the shots of the buildings...In the end, I chose this one. I chose it because the thing that impressed me to most about west Texas was the enormous sky.