rambling about change and babies and design
Thursday, March 21, 2013 by {darlene}

Hey dear sweet readers! I am warning you, this is going to be the ramblin’-est post you ever did see. I think I will have to put it in numbered format so your eyes don’t go crossed.

1. First things first

How in the world can I thank you for your LOVING, encouraging and sweet congratulatory comments that you left for me after announcing baby-bean #3? Each and every joyous word was a treasure. Thank you!!

2. Blissdom

  I am headed off this morning on a jet plane to go to the Blissdom conference in Dallas, Texas. I am feeling a little weepy because I am going to REALLY miss my 3 favorite people in the entire world {love you hubby and boys!}. But I am consoled by a suitcase full of cute, impractical clothing, a ton of chocolate, and bunch of brand new makeup.

Oh, and by the fact that I am getting to bunk-in with the WONDERFUL Edie, of Life in Grace.

Now, I am not sure if you all know this or not, but can you believe: Edie and I have NEVER met face to face. We have known each other for 3 years, laughed until our sides split on the telephone, collaborated on decorating 5 rooms in her home, and we were even in a national magazine together – for Pete’s sake!

So, as you can imagine: All of the girls in Texas cannot shrill as loudly as I am going to shrill when I get to hug that girl. Fair warning to everyone in the Dallas area.

3. Babies Change Things

As anyone who has embarked on motherhood knows, babies change things.

I will need to share more with you about my struggle over baby #3 vs. no baby #3, but I will at least share that, as you can imagine, I have very little margin in my life. I homeschool. I run a design business. I run a blog business. All the while, with God’s help and leading, I try to make sure those 3 things do not infringe on the things in life that matter most.

When I finally felt a sure calling to “get out of the way” and allow God to choose whether or not our family would grow, I knew that something would “have to give” – at least for a little while. So, for the time being, I will need to back off on my Vision Design Board Services. They will NOT be going away, but they will become even more exclusive. My dear friends, these boards take A LOT of my time. I resource each and every item on each board to make sure it meets the space, the vision, my client’s needs and loves, as well as my loves. So no lamp or pillow or rug comes without MUCH time spent on the hunt.

And time spent on the hunt means A LOT of time with my face in the computer.

I LOVE my design work, but my family does and will always come first. That is certainly a blessing afforded by owning your own business. I have had to have a little pep talk with myself that has gone something like this:

“Darlene, this is YOUR company. It is here to work for YOU, not the other way around. You need to find a way to add quality and beauty to your clients’ homes that won’t keep you on the computer for hours on end. At least while you nurture this littlest one…”

4. My New Design Service

One of my favorite design services is actually a local design service that I offer. It is a 2 hour consultation where I go into my client’s home, and I help them brainstorm and create ideas and solve problems and come up with a design plan. For several rooms in their home! All in 2 hours.

And they walk away feeling confident and inspired, and ready to tackle their home with a designer’s vision.

Recently, I Skyped with a friend of mine and she brought me around her house via computer, and we chatted about solutions for her decorating dilemmas. I realized that this would be a wonderful service for my clients all around the country!

So, I am now offering the Skype In-Home Consultation! There is less wait list time and I can give you instant answers to your home design challenges. You can immediately move forward with your home beautification and improvement.

Check out the new Skype In-Home Consultation Here. It may be the perfect way for you to tackle YOUR design dilemmas!

Finally,

have I told all of you recently how very VERY appreciative I am of you?

Well. I am.

You, my friend, my reader, my client…. you bless me every day!

 

 

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9 Comments

  • Darlene, so very, very, very happy and excited for you on #3! And change can be hard but it’ll all work out with juggling all the aspects of your full life. The moment my #3 came into this world I said to my husband, HOW did we ever live without him? Hands down the best turn-our-world-upside-down decision God ever made on our behalf. Wishing you a happy, healthy pregnancy!

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  • Sounds like a good path you are on. Skype-designing could be a lot of fun for you and definitely a service you can fit around your family. I take care of my 7 year old grandson, before and after school, so his mom can work full-time and that’s a win-win for everyone. That means I too had to make some adjustments after I retired from full-time teaching. What greater joy than sharing our lives with those we hold close to heart. And his mama is at peace knowing he’s relaxed and happy.

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  • Ack!! You get to bunk with Edie?!?! Nearly as dreamy as the thought of having another baby to me 🙂 Have a fabulous time!

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  • Have a wonderful trip, Darlene! You and Edie will probably never sleep!

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  • So great!!! Listening to Gods purpose and direction for your life is the most important for you and your family!! I’m glad you are still blogging and designing!! You are so talented!

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  • Congrats on your prize in the making! You have become my hero. I started working on my home, one-little-step-at-a-time, as you encouraged in the first post I read on your site not very long ago. I’m gradually loving my home more and more. NOW, you’ve inspired me in a completely different way. I am a school counselor and I painstakingly drop off my little 15 mo yr old at daycare every day while I go help other kids and families. For years I have dreamed of starting an online life/wellness/student coaching and blogging business. Skyping sessions would be great! AND we want to home school SOOOO bad! You’ve inspired me to perk up my dream again, but I am so chicken!! There seem to be so many online services. I don’t know how I could make mine unique and successful. Any ideas or resources would be greatly appreciated….from you or any followers. Sorry about such a long post…..I’m a rambler, too. Congrats again! I feel so blessed with my little guy….not sure when I’ll get the hankering to share the love with a 2nd or 3rd.

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  • We all have to make choices and give up some things for the sake of others. Nobody’s choices work for everybody or would make everybody happy, but when you know your own family’s needs, then you can make the ones that work for you. You are blessed!

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  • Girl, I cried for a week when I found out I was pregnant with the third. I wouldn’t trade her for the world, but at the time it was a hard pill to swallow after a year of deployment when #2 was a baby. We chose “Grace” as a middle name because of a verse God gave me during that pregnancy. When we looked up the meaning of her first name, it, too, meant grace: God generously pours out a double portion of it to His children and I never felt more sure that His Hand was all over our family. You’re an awesome mom. Hugs!

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  • I just stumbled on your blog and I’am so glad I did. It’s amazing.

    Reply

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