Making It Work.

photo cred; alteredbyamber

Now, lately I have been struggling to come up with creative ideas. I seem to go in phases of creativity & love for blogging, and it quickly seems to deplete and here I am again... Struggling.

So I decided, instead of publishing posts I am not too thrilled with or just not posting at all, I am going to post a photo (or photo set) a day throughout the entire month of May.

May is one of my favorite months of the year, so I figured it would be a good month to publish some photos i am proud of without having to feel obligated into writing. This is kind of my way of "making it work," the wise words of Tim Gunn.  I am also hoping this will spark some idea fire like the last time I started the "photo-a-day" project. So everybody, fingers, toes, arms & everything crossed! 

until next time, 

mckenna k. xx

Sending Love. xx

                   

My mother & I made this video to show our support & love towards the victims, families, and survivors of the tragedies that happened, both in Boston and Waco, TX. This video was incredibly fun to make, all while sending love to those who were greatly affected.

I have always wanted to make a stop-motion video, so I was more than happy to help my mom in her project for a digital art class. The Boston Marathon bombing also showed me just how quick your life could go from exciting to terrifying. It's pretty eye-opening when it's closer to home. 

sending all my love your way, Boston & Texas <3

mckenna k. xx

Photoshoot Sundays: Behind the Scenes.

great derp face McKenna, just great.

If you have been following me or checking my blog at any length of time, you most likely know I love photoshoots. I am constantly planning them out in my head and even though I sometimes get slightly impatient  my mother is always willing to be my photographer. ;)

my sneaky, swtiched-roles pic ;)

         We have just recently made it tradition for us to have one big photoshoot/adventure day on any major holiday or any Sunday for that matter. This Easter, we decided to pack up my mum's new tripod & funky umbrella to hit the road in search for a good backdrop for that day's photoshoot.

Now, this is just the behind the scenes post so you will be seeing the real shots soon :)

After a day filled with laughs & great photos, we decided to have a late lunch at one of our favorite restaurants on the coast (it helped that it was the only restaurant open...). We laughed, made fun of each other, took some more fabulous photos, had some great food, and enjoyed each other's company until it was time to return to reality. 

queen of the derp faces today I guess

These days are some I will never forget. 

Be on the lookout for the offspring of this photoshoot soon! 

until next time lovelies,

mckenna k. xx

Let's Get Re-Acquainted!

So I may or may not have completely neglected my blog for the past few months... I could give the old, cliched lame excuses of business or just plain laziness, but I figure if Justin Timberlake can take a break after N'SYNC and still have a major career comeback, so can I, so here's a currently post to get us re-acquainted.

What's New; My life has been pretty much a whirlwind of good news & exciting stuff. New car and new phone (granted, I had to completely shatter my iPhone & sob in a parking lot over it to get this new said iPhone 5 buuut), good news for the summer, and making ridiculous (but fun) plans for the future. I am literally very excited as I type this.
And running. Running is new (again), but this time it is going to stick ;)

Reading; I have been in one of those major reading funks where I can get through about 3 chapters (or half of the way) through a novel and I cannot (and I mean CANNOT) finish it for the life of me. These times completely annoy me, especially when I just want to chill out & read. But oh well, fingers crossed I abort this non-reading mission soon.

Watching; I have been watching many, many movies lately. And I mean many. Everything from Les Mis (which is one of the most genius movies I've seen in a while) to the finale in the Twilight Saga (also quite amazing). I have also been watching countless YouTube videos and I am currently being persuaded to start watching the Supernatural series by a new friend, which I will mostly likely fall in love with more non-existent people and become obsessed with yet another series. But hey! Why else do they give us great TV shows?

Thinking about; SUMMER. My summer plans are getting ridiculous, but it the best possible way. Many road trips, many days planned to be at the beach, many good times I can see ahead, and I literally can not wait.

Eating; Lately, I have been *attempting to eat more healthy than normal. Salads, greek yogurt, cutting out sweets as much as possible. However, I have had quite a few "cheats" lately. Thanks Five Guys, Easter, and friend's with birthdays!

Wishing for; An English Bulldog puppy. Yes, you read that right. I want a puppy soooo bad, it's awful. Well, actually, I want two. I even have their names picked out. I have a problem.

Listening to; Ed Sheeran. Ed Sheeran. and oh yeah, Ed Sheeran. I was going through  my old posts and I obviously will never get over this boy because he's all I've been listening to for the past 10 months.. But on the rare moment I haven't been listening to him, I've been listening to Mumford & Sons, Sleeping with Sirens, Lana del Rey, Hoodie Allen, Phillip Phillips, The Wombats, Nevershoutnever (oldie, but a goodie), Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, and MCR just to name a few. (I literally just looked at my Top 25 Most Played list on my iPhone.. lol)

enjoy this month lovelies!
mckenna k. xx

Headed into 2013~ Bravely.

Well this post is slightly late, but we will just have to overlook that. :)

I started picking out a "word" for the year (and last year was the beginning of that tradition). Almost as a theme for the coming year, and something to ensure what I wanted to achieve that year would come true.
     Last year, I chose the word "yes." In the sense, that I was going to "say yes to myself," that I was good enough. This weirdly, played out very well this year. I became more confident (with some slight rough patches) and returned to the land of loving yourself.
     This year, however, was slightly hard for me to choose a word. I was unsure what I expected to get out of the coming year, but in the end, I decided that I wanted to be brave, confident, and BOLD.
     So, this year is going to be bold. :)

be ready for my "bold" journey!
mckenna k. xx

Best Reads of 2k12.

Unfortunately, I haven't really mentioned what I have been reading lately, so I figured I would wrap up the year with a list of my top ten favorite books of this year :) Enjoy!

9; Divergent by Veronica Roth
      Now, I started out skeptical about this book. I mean, the plot line is becoming quite cliche in the book world (boy loves girl, girl loves boy, for some reason they can't be together, throw in a few things supernatural, and voila!) However, after a friend of mine talked my ear off about how great this one was, I gave.
      In the end, the book was quite good. To me it still followed a very similar plot line to the Matched series, but all in all, I loved it.

8; The Fortunes of Indigo Skye by Deb Caletti

     Now this author drives me up a wall. Even though her books have the right idea, and good plot lines, she (almost) always bores you to death until you just can't keep reading. 

      However, this book broke the model and was one of the great books to bring me joy this year. The story line was cute, the characters were great, and you definitely wished you had the fortunate luck of Indigo Skye :) 

7; The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks
    I don realize I am quite late reading this one, but whatever.
    I absolutely love the movie and most of Nicholas Sparks other books, so I got thinking to myself, why exactly haven't I read this one yet?! And it was just as good as I thought it would going to be :)

6; The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodrin

    This one I actually just finished last week, and let me be the first to tell you, this. book. is. amazing. 

     I was slightly leery at first, but after the first chapter, I swear you're hooked. This book has its fair share of suspense (even the ending was a cliffhanger), amazing characters that you learn to love/hate, and actually has a unique story line (a rare find these days).

The only thing that is stopping me to literally run to get the sequel is the wall of books, I have yet to finish...  

5; Beautiful Creatures series by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
      This book I completely picked up on a whim. I was in Barnes & Noble with no book list on my phone (shocking, I know!), so I text a friend of mine (also a crazy reader) if she had any recommendations and she sent this back to me with many exclamation points.
        You will absolutely, without a single doubt, fall in love with the characters in the book. The authors make it so incredibly easy to love them, so much to the point where you don't want to put the book down and separated from their world. So. Good.

4; Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult & Samantha Van Leer

      From the beginning, this book has intrigued me. As soon as a I found out that Jodi Picoult wrote this with her 17 year old daughter, I knew I had to read it. 

       The plot was so out-of-this-world imaginative, it was just down-right genius. We never quite seem to think, what happens when we shut the book, and let me tell you, I so wish this was real life. :) 

3; Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
    These last three spots were about the hardest decision I've had to make in a while. However, this book got pushed down to third, while it just as easily could have been number one in any previous year.
     I finished this book way back in late summer, and I still have moments when I think back to it. It is one of those books that kind of changes your outlook on power, greed and anger and how they can effect one person. Seriously, it is a must-read.

 2; Life of Pi by Yann Martel 

     I honestly have no words on how great this book is. It is magnificently written and so well crafted. I have read this twice in the last two months, and I can honestly say, I would read it again in a heart beat.

I also, unfortunately missed the movie when it was at my local movie theater.. *silently sobs in background*

 1; The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

         This one was really the no-brainer choice for me. I have raved over this book for ages. (I am pretty sure I mentioned this in not one, but four previous blog posts) 

          It is so cheesy, and worn-out to say this, but it will literally change your life. I view things differently and still think about that world. I wish to be Hazel, I want a boyfriend like Augustus, and I swear, they will never leave my heart. 

         John Green is quite the genius. :) 

until next time lovelies, 

mckenna k. xx

New Traditions.

photo cred; Amber Walker

This past year has been pretty much a roller coaster  In October, my family went through a huge change that basically turned everything in my life, upside down. And since the holidays are sort-of, kind-of the worst times of the year when you have experience a massive change, my mother & I were determined to make a good, new tradition.

We needed something to symbolize letting go and something to hope for. So, we bought five red balloons and five green. Each of the red symbolize something we planned to let go off in the new year, and each of the  green stood for everything we hoped to see in the future. We then released them over the ocean.
        For myself, it was incredibly emotional and healing. The idea of sending them away, and looking forward to something was just what I needed.

However, one thing we may have looked over was the fact that it was only 30 degrees out and there was almost no sun... We froze, but it was kind of worth it. 

So, the holidays turned to not be so bad after all. We created new tradition let go of awful feelings and are moving in a good direction for the new year. 

I would absolutely recommend this to anyone who has been through a time of loss and bleakness. It helps greatly, and you start to feel yourself again :)

 So, I will leave you with what has become my moral over this year: Sometimes you just need to twirl :)

mckenna k. xx