Subscribing, etc

 As you may or may not know, Google Connect will vanish come March 2012 for non-blogger blogs. If you are following us via Google Connect and you aren't with Blogger, we encourage you to subscribe via RSS, email or use the Redanyway option to follow us. We don't want any of you to disappear on us =)

Our first award =)

On January 30th, 2012, Inside an Insane Mind received it's very first award! The award was presented to us by Cure for Mondays and we are just so excited and appreciate it very much.

 We were asked to pass on the goodwill and award 15 other bloggers/blogs who deserve it so very much. These bloggers write from the heart. They share parts of their lives and make us a part of their family.

The Versatile Blogger Award 

goes to:

'Eb'ing a Mommy

Momto8blog

The Rebel Sweetheart

Before the Morning

Our Journey to love

The Planet Pink

Mama's Musing

3 Kids and a Minivan

Oddparent

The Twisted Muse

Joyce Rowley

Textbook Mommy

I'd Rather be changing diapers...

Where Nothing good comes easy

Smith Soup

Congratulations to each of you. You really deserve this award. And again, Inside an Insane Mind would like to thank Cure for Mondays for this award and the recognition. You have encouraged us and we want to encourage others. Strive to be that which you seek. =) 

Now it's your turn to pass on the Good Vibe!!!

Trippin' Tuesday

 It's Trippin' Tuesday again!!

  This Trippin' Tuesday is actually pretty boring for me around here. I am busy chasing after the kids, the dogs, the cats and I can't leave the chickens out of the equation. So link up and share your crazy insane Trippin' Tuesday happenings.

Moms

 I haven't always had a good relationship with my mama. There was a point in time when my mama and I were anything but close. Actually strike that, we were leagues apart. I went through the typical "I hate you" phase with my mama when I was younger. You see, my mama has a wicked temper (which I inherited) and she grew up in a very abusive home. Her father took a horse whip to her oldest brother when he was about 17 I think. Her parents used to chase each other with hammers and then hit each other with them. They used to shoot at each other, run each other over with vehicles. It was a living hell from what I have been told. We are all too aware that "A child lives what they've learned.". I won't say that my mama was abusive to me and my brothers. I will just state that she was tough with us. It was definitely not unusual to have a belt taken to our tails. I can remember being grounded. For thirty days at a time. Yes, thirty days. I grew up desperately wishing that I could be grounded for a week or two like other kids. I hated it. As a result of how I was raised and the situations I had faced, I promised myself that I would be a different kind of parent. A better parent. I vowed to not do the things my mother did. I grew to hate spankings, paddling or whatever else you want to call them. That was the one thing I knew I didn't want to do with my own kids.  Don't get me wrong, I am not against spanking. Not by any means. I just feel that it should be reserved for the severe issues. Spanking my child after they have hit someone or bitten them, is counter productive in my opinion. You are telling the child "We don't hit", "we don't bite" and then we turn around as a parent and spank them. Which is hitting. See what I am saying?  I will not sit here and say that I have never spanked any of my kids. I have. But it was done only after all other options were exhausted and the action that warranted a spanking was something serious. My kids can tell you exactly how many times I have spanked them. The number is few.  I am glad that i now have a good relationship with my own mama. She's chilled in her older age LOL

Just....(My Moody Monday)

 I have replayed a conversation in my head for the last two years, over and over. A conversation that has yet to take place simply because I respect my husband too much to have the conversation with his parents. Daniel has told me for a year now, that it is okay if I want to have this conversation. That he can no longer respect his parents for various reasons.We have discussed this so many times, late into the night.  I am a firm believer in giving people a chance. The benefit of the doubt. And I did that with his family, and I use the term family loosely when it comes to Daniel's family. But then, so does he. If you want his take on his family, venture over to his blog (www.hewhoiam.blogspot.com) and see for yourself. So until the time comes that I can have this conversation with his family, I am going to voice it in writing. Maybe then I can let go of some of the frustration that comes with dealing with his family. For safety reasons I am encrypting a portion of my post. If you would like to read it just leave a comment with your email and I will give you the password to decrypt the rest of this message. To unlock it after you have the key just click on the link below, enter the password and then  hit OK. It will automatically unlock it for you to see. I have chosen to password protect this because my husband's family is vindictive and spiteful. A family member of my husband's stalks my blog, business website, FB and anything else that she can. In all honesty I should not have to password protect my posts but alas, It is what it is.

Read More...

Sometimes...

Sometimes we meet people in life that have such a profound impact on us, our hearts, that we will never forget them, even if we tried. I have met so many people in my life, from all different walks of life. Each one has contributed something, in some way to how I live, how I view things. Some have contributed on an emotional level, others on a level that I can't explain. What I do know is that I have been very lucky in my life. I have come to know and meet people that mean so much to me. More than even they can fathom.

Daniel, my husband: He is my best friend. He has been there for me when I needed him the most. He has always encouraged me to pursue my dreams. He has encouraged me, pushed me to share my talents that he feels have so much emotion and passion within them. Daniel has given me something that very few find in life.....A heart that understands and knows me better than I know myself sometimes.

Lorenzo: Ahhh Lorenzo....a friend I met quite by surprise at a time in my life when I was falling and desperately grasping for a hand I could not see. He has listened to me rave and rant on bad days, gush on good days and he has listened to me cry when I thought no one else could hear me. He has been a solid hand of reason, pulling me back down to earth, smacking me into reality when I was blinded by emotions. He has picked me up when I have fallen and he has helped me thru some hard times.

Nicole, my "twin": You are probably saying, well duh that's her "twin", of course she will be important. What you don't know is Nicole has been the one to console me for hours and even weeks when things have gone wrong. She has always, always been the one to pick me up when I have fallen so far that no one else has been able to help. She has held me up and walked when I felt that I could no longer do so on my own. She has put my shattered heart back together when no one else could. I can't count the hours she has listened to me cry, all the while she has whispered, I Love you sis, you are safe in my arms, I am here to carry you, to help you, to love you. WE will make it thru this hard time together. She is by far the most important person in my life next to my kids and my husband. I would give my dying breath for her, and she knows it. With Nicole, when she is hurt, I can feel it even when I may be thousands of miles away. I can feel when something is wrong, just as she can feel when I am hurt, when something is wrong. We finish each others sentences, thoughts....Its hard to explain and it seems so cliche to refer to it as that "twin thing". The bond between me and my "twin" sister is unimaginable. It is unexplainable as we are closer than most. When she was pregnant with my niece, I felt her pains, her aches, her sicknesses. Its just a bond that is so very strong.

Ravin, my soul sister: Ravin is another who has made a huge impact on my life. One who knows my Native American Heritage. The dreams, the visions. She understands my Native American heritage better than most people. She doesn't shun me because of it. I may have red hair thanks to being 1/4 Irish but she can tell you as well as Nic, that my native american heritage is a very strong influence in my life. I am proud to be Sioux Indian and it shows in my eyes.

Those are but a few of the people who have impacted my life deeply. Forever in my heart, my soul. Sometimes we meet people that have a lasting impact on our lives. And sometimes, we meet people that we form life long bonds with. Bonds that don't fade with time and distance. Hold those people close.

Spotlight Sunday - featured blog for January 29,2012 is: Hope in Waiting

As part of a new series here at Inside an Insane mind, we are doing a theme for each day of the week. Sunday's theme is "Spotlight Sunday" where one blog will be featured each Sunday. This weeks Spotlight is on: Hope in Waiting. Grab a cup of coffee, or whatever your vice is and take a walk over to her blog. Sit and read a spell.




Looking forward to spending many themed weeks with you =)
Moody Monday - A great way to start the week off in a good way. Share your Moody Mondays
Trippin' Tuesday - Just another "Trippin' " day in a week filled with ups and downs
Wackazoodle Wednesday - Join us in celebrating getting 1/2 way through the week, with some wacky ideas and thoughts. Ever just really glad you made it half way thru the week? Let's get wacky. Share your wacky moments.
Thing 1 & Thing 2 Thursday - You ever have a "thing" happen during your week that drives you crazy? Yeah me too. Seriously? Really? Let's get together and share  our very own Thing 1 and thing 2 moments
Mad Hatter Friday- You're invited to a Tea party...No really. Well okay not a real one. But fun none the less. Amuse us with your own Mad Hatter tales on Mad Hatter Friday
Did I do that Saturday- Ok guys and gals, it's time to fess up to your most compromising and I can't believe I did that moments. You know, the moments that you would never let see the light of day if you could help it.
Spotlight Sunday - It's your moment to shine in the lime light, spotlight...whatever you call it. Let's support each other.

Grimm

  Grimm is by far one of my few addictions that I can't give up. I love the show. Few realize that the original Grimm Brothers Fairy tales, were originally very dark and macabre. They weren't the sweet, pretty and sunshine filled fairy tales that we were told as children. The original Grimm fairy tales, were often filled with macabre horror that was definitely blood and gore. They were told in an effort to keep children from misbehaving and to stay in bed at night. While I love the sunshine and rainbows versions, I like the dark and macabre versions too. The original versions were just as interesting and intriguing as the sweet and sparkling versions. Not everything in life is about roses and pretty. There are always dark and horrific tones lying underneath the surface of most everything in life. We just tend to overlook or bury those tones. Cover them up with a more appealing veneer. Honestly, I have what most would call a dark and morbid sense of humor. Does it make me bad? No, not at all. I just tend to find humor in things that others don't. Does it make me a screwed up and evil person? Nope, hardly. I am just different and don't fit within the "norm" of society. I don't fit within the confines of being a follower in society either. I firmly believe in being who you are. Not who and what you aren't. People will either accept you as you are, or they will try to change you into what THEY want you to be, who they want you to be. And to me, that's just....So not cool. My sense of humor doesn't fit within your ideas of what is normal? So what. My views and interpretations don't fit within your scope of what you think is acceptable? Tough snot. I'm not who and what you think I should be? I don't care. I'm not normal? Your point? Normal is over rated. Normal is for people who are too lazy to be themselves. My motto is "Create a path where there was none before. take the path that is less traveled. Don't be who you aren't. And don't be something that you aren't. Don't conform to what others think you should be and do. Be YOU. There is only one you. There will never be another YOU. Can you love me for who and what I am? If you can, then you just might be worth having in my life."  Seems simple enough right? You'd be surprised at how many people say they don't try to change the people in their life. Sad thing is, they do. They try to make others into what they think they should be.

Saying goodbye....to money

We all do it on a daily basis. Whether we like it or not. I take comfort in the knowledge that both Daniel and I put our bills and our children above all else. We try hard to make sure our bills (the few that we do have) are paid and that the kids have everything they need first. Today I paid the electric bill, which is the bane of my frustration these days. We have been researching solar panels for well over a year now because of it. Honestly it makes absolutely no sense, as to why our electric bill is so high in the WINTER months (we don't use Central Heat and Air btw) and so low in the summer months (we use window a/c units, 3 of them). You would think that the bill would be much higher in the warmer months given we live in the tropical state of Florida. We had the electric company come out and replace the meter. That didn't help. The bill has remained at a high rate. Given we use very few lights and very few appliances, it makes no sense what so ever. There is no good reason as to why it is high. I have been unable to wrap my brain around it all. We have sat down with professionals and went over the bills, the electric use and even the fuses and wiring in the house, with a fine tooth comb. No one has been able to explain why it is so high. Irregardless, I paid the electric today. I will make another payment on 2/9/2012 just to keep on top of the damn thing. I am a receipt hoarder for one reason....I got burned the ONE time I failed to keep a receipt. Looking at the receipts for the electric bill I noticed that on average we pay every TWO WEEKS. Sometimes we have paid 3 times in a 4 week time frame. I shouldn't have to pay it that often. I also noticed that the electric company has charged us 5 deposits. One of which was a 450.00 deposit and the other 4 were for 250.00 each! I called them about it and was told they have no record of 3 of those deposits. Thankfully I have the receipts from them. I told them that i am not paying any more deposits and that they can figure out where they went. I have given them copies of the receipts which bear their letterheads and specify that the amounts were for deposits. I am thankful that we own our home and our land. I am thankful that we only have FOUR bills. Electric, Water, Phone/Internet bundle and my cellphone (which is only 40.00 a month for total unlimited and I use it for business). That in itself is something to be very grateful for. There aren't many who can say "Hey, I only have 4 bills every month.".  But when you have an electric bill that averages 280.00 in the summer and 450.00 in the winter.....you tend to feel like you are drowning with just that one bill. Saying goodbye to money is never easy. And we do it on a daily basis. I have always been a "crunchy" or a "tree hugging" mama. Simply because i like natural things. When my kids were babies, I used cloth diapers, cloth wipes, home made baby food, breastfed and "wore" my babies, in addition to co-sleeping and other things. I still prefer cloth wipes over toilet paper (which is literally money down the toilet). -shrugs- Maybe I am strange.

Online Gaming World converges with the Real world

 I have always played "video" games. Whether it was Dungeons & dragons, Zork, and in recent years World of Warcraft, Rift, Guild Wars, and Lord of the Rings.  I started playing WoW & GW's back when I was doing art for a major company that deals with MMORPGs and other games. My whole reason for jumping into the MMORPG world online was at first, strictly because I wanted to know what the players wanted to see in terms of art and design for the characters and the ever evolving "world" in the game. I admit, I got sucked in. In a big way. Fairly early on I realized that the world inside the game...was more than just a game. I learned that lasting friendships and relationships were formed. I became a Guild Master or as I prefer to be called, a Guild Mistress back in 2004. I was somewhat unprepared for the fact that my guild would become an important part of not just my life, but those in the guild as well.  The stereo type that people who play games like WoW, GW, Rift and LoTRO are snot nosed little brats who live in their parents basement...is not necessarily true. My guild (and there were several before we created Immortalis Night and Dark) became close and like a second family. We don't just talk in the game world. We send each other birthday gifts, Christmas gifts. We call each other during the week. In most cases, we have met up several times and have went to family functions with each other. The relationships that developed became so much more than a game. They became long, lasting and meaningful relationships. It's not as odd as it may seem believe it or not. The game world has become another extension of our own world. One that has become increasingly more accepted and more widespread. It's not all about fantasy believe it or not. Yes we play a character in the game. Yes we tend to get very much into it. But we don't talk just about game issues. As I said before, through the course of playing the game, raiding, running dungeons, questing or doing randoms....we talk about our day, our week, month, year. We talk about how work went. We discuss what our children are doing and not doing. In some cases, like mine....our children also play the game. I met my husband Daniel in WoW originally. The story behind that one is amusing. To me anyhow.  I was playing my mage at the time. She was level 15 when we first met (Daniel thank you so much for killing Knucklerot and Luzran over and over for me. On multiple toons after that lol). But the most memorable moment was when I was doing a quest and this big honking Tauren (think BIG ugly COW) warrior kept stealing my kills. I was so ticked. I know, I know....it's just a game lol. So I started telling this big ugly cow off. I told him over and over, "Stop taking my kills! I have been trying to complete this damn quest for 4 hours. And i can't because YOU keep taking my kills!" Which of course somehow led to us discussing why I think cows are totally adorable in real life.  Thus a friendship was somehow formed. We became close friends, and then best friends. He was there when I went through my first divorce. I was there when he went through his divorce. We supported each other emotionally when it was needed the most. He eventually supported me through my second divorce and we started dating some time after that. For the first 5 years of our friendship and early on in our eventual couples relationship, I refused to let him see pictures of my kids. I wanted to keep them protected in case the relationship and friendship went sour. Finally when we both decided to become romantically involved, I finally let him see pictures of my kids. I even tried to run him off (that didn't work btw lol) and tried everything I could to keep from getting close and letting my "guard" and "walls" down. Obviously they came tumbling down, as we are married now.  But anyways, what i am saying is, don't be so quick to judge games like WoW, GWs, Rift and LoTRO. They may be games, but they have actually been vital in helping people. And in some cases, preventing harm to the person that plays them. There have been too many cases that I have personally witnessed and been a part of, where it was the online gaming community that alerted authorities that something was so very wrong with someone. I can personally vouch for my online "family". They were instrumental in helping me cope with my divorces, my daughter's death and most importantly some serious health issues and domestic abuse that I suffered from at one point. If it hadn't been for some of them, I would not be here today, talking to you. Don't judge the game or the people who play them, unfairly. Take the time to actually get to know the people that play the "toon". Give it a chance. Don't just sit back and make an assumption or judgement of the online gaming community. Because whether you like it or not, it branches into the real world and they are entwined with each other. My guild Immortalis Night may not be a big guild. And we sure as hell aren't a raiding guild. BUT, we are known for the simple act of going above and beyond to help our members in the game AND out of the game. We put our own needs in game, on hold to help others. We have even helped with charities in the real world. Not every gaming community is evil and bad. Don't judge an entire community of people because of what a handful of people have done. It's not fair to those of us who are far more than that.

Best Friends

Savitar & Kaelen

Best Friends ©2011 Elizabethe-Ane Photography

Pssst....couldn't resist sharing this

Okay, okay, i couldn't resist sharing this. I have to say I laughed my a** off

Ok NOW I am off to finish a few things....maybe....LOL

Artemis gained her wings

Artemis gained her wings and crossed the rainbow bridge at only 7 days old. She was the smallest of the litter and I knew in my heart that it would be a shock if she actually made it. Chey buried her and made sure she was given a proper grave.  Athena, Aerhys, Acheron and Apollo are all doing very well. They have become such chubby little teddy bears. For them to be yorkie they look more like these small fat little bears instead of their breed. Too freaking cute I tell you. Apollo has a white strip down the middle of his face lol. it's too cute. Athena does this cute little gremlin growl. Can't get any cuter than that LOL

Okay I am off to finish up a few things. I shall return with a more interesting post. I promise.

Pssst....Alice in Wonderland

I have always been a fan of Alice in Wonderland, so it was no surprise that I fell in love with Tim Burton's rendition of it. He puts a new "spin" on it that I love.  So I want to share with you some of the elements in the Wonderland theme i am trying to make for my blog.

Ok first up is the Alice card and the Key. I have many ideas for these two items. They are individual items that seemed to fit together pretty well. Which resulted in this image below. Just one of many.

Now these I like. These are copies of the original concept art that Tim Burton had done for the movie.

I can see so many ways to incorporate them into a theme. Can't you?

Now these little gems below were sent to me by a friend that knows I love Alice in Wonderland. It is a digital scrapbook set from what I understand.

Totally cute huh? I'll spare you the rest of the cuteness and not post the rest of the elements from the kit LOL

Taking a much needed break

 I would feel so much better if I wasn't so tired. Well that and if I didn't have a migraine. After spending more than 48 hours working on a new layout and theme for the blog....I have decided to take a break from it. I managed to get the layout the way I want it, for the most part. The theme on the other hand isn't where I want it to be yet. So as a result, it is not up on the blog yet.  Well, except for a few pieces here and there.  I will see how it comes along after I recuperate from the long nights this week.

 In the meantime...I am working on some projects that I will be doing here on IaIM.

Frustrated

 I am done with this theme design for now. I am too frustrated to finish it right now. I have sat and fiddled, and tweaked, and moved and dropped elements, so much in the last 48hrs, that I am seeing coding and design in my sleep. And yet, it still isn't the way I want it to be. -sigh-

Edited to add:

 I managed to get the layout almost where I want it. What I really want is to take the 2 sidebars on the right and converge them into ONE. So that the contents of both sidebars sit side by side inside one area. If anyone has any ideas on how I can do it without making my head explode....I'll gladly listen.  Now I remember exactly why I walked away from my old career in Web Design and multimedia.

I have...frustration

  After spending the last 48 hours writing coding and re-writting it. Creating and recreating backdrops and headers, and dividers and icons. I have conquered half the battle of creating a  Tim Burton inspired Alice and Wonderland blog set.  I am seriously frustrated from it all though. Now that I have the backdrop figured out and have it the way I want it, now to conquer the coding for a different layout.  This is reminding me fairly quick, why I stopped designing websites for a living. The frustration is overwhelming. Probably because I am a total perfectionist when it comes to design. And despite the fact that I have gotten thru most of this, I am still NOT satisfied with it. Chances are, I won't be...ever.  So tell me.....how can I keep it as a 3 column but add 2 smaller ones at the bottom of the page? Any help out there?

I ended up redoing the entire Theme set. And I am still not done implementing changes on the blog. Bear with me as I clean up the mess I have made so far. I apologize. It will be another 24hrs before it's in some sort of order.

Pssst...hey you. Yes you!!!

 ....I have a secret. I really and truly love Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland. I have searched and searched for a complete theme for my blog that fits the theme I love so much. But it has proven to be fruitless. I know what i want and I can see it so clearly in my head. You would think that as a photographer and artist by profession...that I'd be able to freaking design it right? Yeah, about that.....not happening. I am my own worst critic LOL

Did I take those?

I have an affinity for Black & Whites, and Vintage tones. Which may or may not be why I tend to take more B&W shots than anything. Or why I have the overwhelming desire to create Vintage images. But honestly, I never have figured out why. I just love them. In reality I prefer them over color prints any day. Like music, each photograph, each image I take or draw, has a story to tell. The world I see through my lens is astounding to me. It's almost magical. It's a world that is ever expanding. From capturing a newborn's first moments to catching a butterfly in mid flight...it's all just simply magical. With that said, I want to share some of my favorite images throughout the years. Granted they aren't my best work. But I save all my best shots for my portfolio.

This is my favorite shot of my now 17 year old son, Dakota. This image was one that I managed to capture of him unaware at Vilano Beach in 2010.

Now this shot was one I took when Cherokee was just a "wee one" in my eyes. I believe she was 6 here (She is 15 now, yikes). The location was Dawes Arboretum in Ohio.

This would have to be my 2nd favorite shot of my husband Daniel. This was taken in 2010 at Vilano Beach as well. 

As much as I think this particular shot is not my best work, It's one of the few I have of my daughter Tiffani when she was pregnant with my grandson. This was taken in my studio in 2009 before I relocated to where I currently reside now

And this is actually a soft color image that I grabbed when we were at Neptune Beach. Hunter and Cherokee were looking at a crawdad which was promptly beheaded (leave it to Hunter to behead a crawdad) after I got the shot

This is a vintage tone shot of Chenoa back in 2008-2009. Honestly I would have to dig my portfolio out to check the date. 

This one was when Liam was about 21 months old if I recall. It was part of a collection titled "Innocence" that I did.

Looking back at some of my older work makes me shudder to say the least. I look at some of my work and think what the heck was I thinking?  Thankfully my clients get only my absolute best work =)