chat with the chickadees

Join Kelly and me next Tuesday, July 16 at 6:30 PM PST/9:30 PM EST for a live video chat all about creative practices (what are they and our current practices), self-care, and other good things. We will also share a bit more and answer questions about the Summer Chickadee Road :: Studio Sessions and the Fall Story Excavation Retreat.

We'd love to have you join us for this first of many Chickadee Road Chats! To join in, you'll need a Spreecast account so you can ask questions and connect with the other chickadees who join in (more info here). 

And then on Tuesday evening, join us by clicking right here. Note that just Kelly and I will be on video, so feel free to just come in your pajamas.

Can't wait to chat!!

re-entry

Indie Kindred panel . photo by Lori Portka

The last few weeks have felt like re-entry on top of another re-entry or two.

Home from the Your Story Retreat to Jon and Ellie and me home all day every single day together to Portland for WDS to home again.

And it has been so good. And so overwhelming. And so fantastic and inspiring. And so "whoa."

But as I sit here alone in the quiet for the first time in days, this is what I know: My heart feels more open and ready than ever before. I feel more supported and understood than I have in a long time. And this combination is creating a groundedness that is going to serve me and the work I'm doing in the world and my family in a way that feels, well, kind of amazing.

I'm ready to begin to have conversations around some big topics (friendship, collaboration, telling the true stories, mamahood, not really "doing it all," grief, and a few others) and I can't wait to have them with YOU! 

I'm ready to step into the truth that I want to gather with women more for conversation and connection. I want to teach more. I want to travel more. And I want to stand on a stage and talk about how we feel less alone when we are brave enough to show up as ourselves. Yes.

I'm ready to let go of a few of the old stories that just aren't serving me anymore. I see them. I know them. And it is time to put them back into the compost pile to fertilize all that is to come.

Yes.

Oh and Indie Kindred. Wow. I'm so proud of my friend Jen Lee for creating such a gorgeous film. Her first film. And I'm so honored to be in it. Being on stage with such incredible women and talking about the real stuff...a big yes to doing this more.

More on the retreat + a few favorite things from WDS soon! (And check out when Indie Kindred will be showing near you.)

indie kindred

I'm heading to Portland today for WDS. And oh my goodness I am so excited that I'll get to see the final version of Jen Lee's Indie Kindred movie on Sunday. And since I'm in it, I'll also get to take part in a panel afterward with other ladies in the film. So that will be awesome.*

This topic of collaborations is very near and dear to my heart. From working with Jen on The Gift of This Moment and my poetry collection to Chickadee Road and my retreats to deeply connecting with kindreds who get my work, collaborating has been a vital part of my world these last few years. 

I look forward to talking more about it here and hopefully even in some live online chats soon (Kelly and I are planning to host some live online conversations very very soon!)

Hope your weekend is full of light and moments to soak in the beauty around you.

Blessings,
Liz 

*Of course figuring out what to wear is a whole other topic. 

the chickadee road::studio sessions are back!

While driving home from the Oregon Coast, Kelly and I decided to bring back the Studio Sessions!!

Join us this August for a four-week adventure that will be full of inspiration, connection, peeks into our friendship and our creative worlds, laughter, and a whole lot of love as we support one another in nurturing a creative practice.

Now what does nurturing a creative practice really mean?

Many of us dream of having a week or two or even a whole month where we could travel to a beautiful corner of the world and spend that time creating a new body of work or writing a memoir or actually using the mixed media techniques we’ve learned in the workshops we’ve taken. And then, we’d love to circle in community with other creatives who would say, “How are you doing over there? How did it go?”

This is what the Chickadee Road :: Studio Sessions are about: Creating a virtual space where we can support one another as we take a few minutes or even an hour or two a day to practice and make small moves and big leaps toward the creative dreams that wait within us.

The creative practice you work with will be up to you.

You might want to:

• Journal each day
• Begin a meditation practice
• Tell your story through photography adventures
• Paint, paint, and paint some more
• Draw in your sketchbook four times a week
• Make one small self-care move every day
• Start a blog
• Create an ecourse
• Play with self-portraits
• Have fun with color in your studio/creative corner every day

And each day, Kelly and I will be here to guide you, celebrate you, and inspire you, and your circle of kindreds will be here to catch you as you play and work and find your way.

Details

Dates: August 5-August 31

Where and How: The "lessons" + inspiration will be emailed to you, and we will gather in community in a private Facebook group and in a private Flickr group. 

Four weeks of emails include:

• Videos that take you into our own creative spaces and invite you to be present to self-care and fun
• Lessons about ways to invite in ritual and sacredness to your daily creative practice
• Creativity exercises to support your practice and keep your creative juices flowing
• Writing and photography prompts to keep you grounded
• Stories of our own journeys to reconnect with our creative joy
• Opportunities to share your stories through photos, daily check-ins, and other surprises along the way
• When you sign up, you will also receive an email with information about how to prepare for Studio Sessions, suggestions about how to choose your practice, and other good things
• Note that there won't be emails on Sundays to give you a day to simply catch-up and rest

Supplies needed:
Camera (Camera phone is fine)
Journal or notebook to write in
Simple art supplies that you enjoy working with like markers, colored pencils, crayons, and so on
A Flickr account (optional)
A Facebook account (optional) 

Register:

Registration has begun!

Cost: $69

Questions? Just email us at chickadeeroad @ gmail [dot] com (or through our email form)

Read even more about the course including our FAQ over here.

a moment

Because sometimes when the day starts out upside down, I have to force myself to notice the good. And this happened one day last week.

Instead of just pushing through, I admitted I was having a hard day. And suddenly we were all getting back in bed with graham crackers + peanut butter + the whole family (with the dog snoring on the floor beside us) and I was reminded that I really am loved.

(Sometimes you have to ask for that support to remember. And that is okay. In fact, I think it can save your life.)

I hope you remember you are loved today. Yes.

SoulSisters in October

I'm delighted to share that I'll be teaching at SoulSisters this fall!

This will be a weekend in one of my favorite cities, Portland, Oregon, and it is all about how we can create lives filled with beauty, kindness, and genuine connection. As the organizer of the event, Rachelle Mee Chapman, says, "When you feed your soul with wisdom and bathe your heart in laughter, you’ll feel less alone, more companioned, and full of energy as your return to your (beautiful) everyday world." A big yes to this. 

If you've been thinking about attending a longer retreat but want to dip your toe in before committing to the cost and time of a five-day experience, consider coming along and connecting with the creative kindreds you've been longing to meet in person.

Other teachers and presenters include:

• Kelly Rae Roberts (Wisdom Jam Session)
• Molly Mahar (Personifying Your Inner Guide - How to Trust Yourself)
• Jenna McGuiggan (Story Carnival)
• Bridget Pilloud (Chakra Love)
• Vivienne McMaster (Invite Yourself into the Visual Story of Your Life)
• Rachel Cole (Becoming a Well-Fed Woman: Finding & Feasting on Your Truest Hungers)
• Kate Swoboda (of Your Courageous Life)
• Rachelle Mee-Chapman (Where Soulcare and Worldcare Meet)

I'll be teaching my Poem It Out workshop, which is a unique approach to self-care through the lens of reading and writing poetry. We will explore the world of poetry from a place of wonder and healing. We will read poems that invite us to nod our heads and say, “Me too…me too.” We will unearth our inner poet, face the blank page, and say, “Bring it” and write the words that are ready to burst out of us. We will stop everything to Poem It Out. This will be a workshop for people from all experiences with writing and poetry, including those who think "I don't really get poetry." I can't wait to share this workshop with you!

The details:

Find out more about SoulSisters here.

If you do decide to join us, I would be grateful if you would use this affiliate link to register or if you register through the main site, it would be awesome if you could tell Rachelle you heard about the event through me. Thank you!

Hope to see you there!

pinned it. did it. {with meg}

Meg is back with another edition of "Pinned It. Did It." I think this just might be the post that gets me to start entertaining again. (Want to come over?)

Enjoy!

*****

Any time I plan a party or event, I get asked the same question: will there be Party Popcorn? It has become a bit of a signature item for me. And to be honest, it’s almost embarrassing because it is possibly the easiest snack dish I’ve ever made. But sometimes the easy things are the ones we go to over and over again. That is the case with Party Popcorn. 

The ingredient list is short: microwave popcorn (I like lightly salted best), candy melts or white chocolate chips, and sprinkles. It has been my experience that the candy melts do the best job melting smoothly and coating the popcorn so I use them exclusively. I find them at Michaels but I’m sure they are available anywhere that sells Wilton cake decorating supplies. 

Start by popping your microwave popcorn. I used three bags of popcorn for our gathering of about 15 people this past weekend (and by the time the party was over, the popcorn was gone). Pop it and lay it out flat to cool. Once cool, separate out all of the un-popped kernels. This is a very important step. You don’t want anyone biting into those kernels. When the popcorn is cool, melt the candy coating. Once it is smooth, pour it over the popcorn and stir it so that the popcorn is coated. Add the sprinkles before it begins to cool so that they will stick. Allow the candy coating to solidify again once it cools and then transfer the popcorn to bowls. 

It is delicious served on the day made or can be stored in an air tight container and served the next day. This snack is so versatile and can be adapted with colors, flavors, or decorative sprinkles to go along with any holiday or theme. I saw where someone used pink and purple candy melts for a Valentine treat. I also had a friend make this using butterscotch chips instead of the white chocolate. The possibilities are endless and I can’t wait to try more of them myself.

Snack Ideas that Go Well Alongside Party Popcorn:

Donut Hole Pops
Chocolate Dipped Tangerines
Birthday Party Pretzels
Chocolate Dipped Tea Cookies 
Cake Batter Chocolate Chip Cookies

It’s so fun to have such an easy go-to item that is quick to whip up in a pinch or adds a festive touch in a hurry. And I am such a (recent) big fan of the sweet-salty combo - this hits the spot for that combo. 

Meg Brothers is an artist, photographer, mama, and dreamer. She loves cooking, tattoos, and sporadic dance parties in the kitchen. She prefers dark chocolate, black coffee, and flip flops when weather permits. She is a lover of Pinterest and truly believes in integrating ideas and inspiration - big or small - into normal life. Meg lives in Denver, Colorado with her husband, Dustin and son, Julian. Meg writes about photography, family, and creative inspiration at megbrothers.com. Find her on Pinterest here and on Twitter here. 

***

Note from Liz: Over here in my corner, I'm trying to "use Pinterest for good." I really see it as a community of people trying to see the beauty and possibility in their lives. I'm adding a few new features here on my blog inspired by or directly about Pinterest as a way to invite others to look for this beauty within a social media community. I look forward to seeing how it all unfolds. Connect with me on Pinterest here. Read other "Pinned it. Did it." columns here.

make a list

Thank you blue sky.
Thank you rumbling waves.
Thank you sand between my toes.
Thank you laughter drifting through the air.
Thank you new friendships.
Thank you bravery that surrounds us all.
Thank you trusting what I know.
Thank you stories.
Thank you food that nourishes.
Thank you breath.
Thank you.

Yes.

***

Over here I'm beginning to navigate that unique time that is re-entry after one of my retreats. The Your Story Retreat was truly incredible. I suppose I say some form of that after each one, but this one, yes, this one, it was some kind of magical. 

Sending light and love to your corner of the world. Tell me what is happening over in your corner. I'd love to know.

Blessings,

Liz

PS If you're feeling disconnected today, make a list of "Thank you." It gets you back in touch with what you know.