Forty Eighteen Coffee Table Archives

by Melanie

Possibly losing my mind…

April 22, 2017 in Coffee Table by Melanie

I woke up at 6:30 this morning and had a mini panic attack. I was laying in a hotel room an hour away from home with my husband next to me, and couldn’t figure out how my kids were getting to school. If neither of us were home and the only other driver in the family had to leave for school an hour before the rest of the kids, who was taking them to school???

I started beating myself up for being so forgetful, even as I couldn’t believe I would forget something like that! I started making a list of people I could call to pick up my kids on such short notice and so early in the morning. It was a very, very short list: exactly 3 people.

I had just dropped off one friend at the airport a few days earlier, so she was out of town and crossed off the list. My mother-in-law is not a morning person, and it was still dark outside with small numbers on the clock, so I didn’t want to call her if I could help it. And let’s be honest here… I’m tired of looking like a last-second emergency person in front of her.

I had just decided on an amazing friend whose kids actually go to the same school as mine – she would be at the gym this early, so I wasn’t waking her up. I was just about to call her when I finally realized it was Saturday – so I definitely would be waking her up – and my kids didn’t need a ride to school! Convinced I had completely lost my mind, I relaxed and tried to go back to sleep.

Does your brain play tricks on you like that? I feel like it happens to me all the time lately! I can’t even blame it on pregnancy brain!! Although I’m convinced what they don’t tell you when you’re birthing the placenta is that it’s really full of your brain cells and you should wave goodbye because you’ll NEVER get them back.

I feel like Toodles on Hook

But he eventually found his marbles, so maybe there’s still hope for me!

Tags: mom brain
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by Melanie

How I’m making this year the best one yet!

January 4, 2016 in Coffee Table by Melanie

It’s Monday morning, and after weeks of not normal, being out of our routine, and having minimal responsibilities, we’re back to real life. The kids are all at school, the house is still, Christmas music is wafting in from the other room {and I’m not sorry}, and I have time to think – think about this new year and all of its possibility. How exciting!

Fresh starts – new beginnings – are my favorite! I even love Monday mornings because it’s like a fresh start every single week! {And let’s be real here – parents don’t really get a weekend break. Amiright?} But a brand new year is the best. So many goals and ideas of what this year can become if only I make it so.

Are you ready 2016? We’re going to be amazing!

See how I tossed a little Christmas in there? I’m just not quite ready to let it go. As I sit here in my post-Christmas break reverie, I am mostly thinking about three ways I’m going to make this new year the best one yet.

• one •
FOCUS

My focus for 2016, my one word, is PRIORITY.

I have a habit of trying to do too much and not doing any of it as well as I would like because I’m stretching myself too thin. {That’s the only time you’ll hear me say I’m too thin.} Too often my time isn’t spent on the things I claim as priorities. But if they were really my priorities, wouldn’t that be where I actually dedicate the most of my time and energy? This year I will focus on spending the most time on the things that matter most.

spend-time

• two •
GOALS MY WAY

I’m a huge fan of setting goals and make resolutions. I do it a little differently than most people. I tend to make my own rules. My rules are what most experts would tell you NOT to do. But I whole heartedly believe in finding your own way, doing what works for you. I won’t let the experts decide what I should do. I will be my own expert on what works for me.

• three •
IN MY FACE

While I was searching through old posts for my version of making resolutions, I found my resolutions from 2015. I love them. They are exactly what I needed to focus on last year. They made me smile, but reading through that list of perfect goals for my year also made me a little sad. Because how many of them did I actually do? Not one. And do you know why? Because I never looked at them again after January!

I need a lot of reminders in my day-to-day life, and for big, year-long goals I need even more. So this year I will keep my focus and my goals in plain sight, in my face, so I am constantly reminded of these ways I want to improve my life and keep myself on track.

What are you looking forward to in 2016? Here’s to a fabulous year!

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by Melanie

How I am finally learning to use my fancy camera

May 5, 2014 in Coffee Table by Melanie

I took a photography class in a summer rec program when I was about 10 years old. I loved learning to use the old cameras, developing the film, and the red glow of the dark room. I was totally hooked. And then this creepy kid in my class told me he could see through my shirt, and I didn’t want to go back. I hadn’t developed my thick skin yet at that age, and staying far away from creepy kids was high on my list of priorities.

That sad introduction to photography was the only formal instruction I ever had, but that didn’t stop me from thinking I could take amazing pictures. I admit, I was one of those misguided souls who thought the camera made the photo, so all I needed was a fancy camera to take fancy pictures. I had all these cute little kiddos and wanted to have awesome pictures of them throughout their lives.

Mr. 4018 and I weren’t exactly rich, but we saved up our nickels and dimes (and gifts from our parents) until we could finally afford a DSLR. I was so totally in love! When the girls got home from school that day, I had them start jumping in the air so I could take fun shots of them flying, messy room and all.

Why was that our first photo session? I have no idea. But we thought we were so cool. Every once in awhile I would accidentally take a picture I really loved.

But mostly it was like having a really expensive point & shoot camera. I didn’t know what I was doing, and it was always on auto. That’s when I learned the fancy camera doesn’t auto-matically create fancy pictures – the photographer does! And I was not a fancy photographer.

I kept reading that I needed to take more photos to improve my photography, but I quickly learned that just shooting more didn’t equate to improving unless you really worked on it. You actually have to figure out some things to change before your photography improves!

It took me way too many years to learn these lessons, and I finally decided it was time to really learn how to use my fancy camera. I’m still using the same DSLR we saved up for and bought all those years ago. (I decided I have to learn how to use it before I’m allowed to upgrade.) I bought myself a new 50 mm prime lens that came highly recommended but didn’t break the bank. And I begged my blogging/photographer idol, Kristen Duke, to save me from my auto woes.

Kristen Duke to the rescue! I had heard all about ISO, aperture, and shutter speed. I knew those were the keys. I pinned all sorts of charts and tips to my Photography Pinterest board, but I never really understood what to do with them.

Kristen took pity on me and generously sent me her Say NO to Auto e-book for beginners. She has it organized as 4×6 photos so it’s easy to print and carry around with you, and I ran straight to Costco to print it out so I could do just that.

And you guys… I finally get it!

Kristen makes it so simple and easy to understand. I started looking at the photos I was taking and actually having an idea of what I needed to tweak to make them better. I went from always shooting in auto, to {almost} always shooting in manual and getting good results!

I was able to get really cute photos of my daughter on stage in her school play in a dark auditorium with no flash (and no tripod).

I was able to preserve this beautiful Spring scene in my front yard

and capture the Easter fun with my cuties.

And this sweet girl who NEVER lets me take her picture, sat and told me story after story while I shot away.

Her older sister is not camera shy, but she is ALWAYS making a crazy face or awkward pose in every single photo – except this one.

I am even more hooked on my fancy camera now! I still have plenty of practicing to do and more to learn, but I now I have a grasp of the basics and actually have an idea of what to fix and how to make my photos better! I can’t even tell you how exciting that is for me.

I can’t wait to get started on Kristen’s next e-book, Get Focused, to take my photos up another notch, and I’m excited to see how my photography improves even more! These books are worth every penny!

If you have your fancy camera but you’re still on auto like I was for so long, do yourself a favor and let Kristen Duke save you from your auto woes. She makes it so easy to use and simple for any level photographer to understand. She even has a video workshop where she walks you through the whole book and explains every step in more detail. It’s like having your own personal tutor.

I still have so far to go, but thanks to Kristen Duke and her Say NO to Auto book, I finally know how to get there!

Do you need to learn how to use your fancy camera, too?

Tags: photography, reviews
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by Melanie

40 Favorite Free Fonts

February 18, 2014 in Coffee Table by Melanie

This month’s installment of 40 Things is all about my obsession with fonts. I have wayyy too many, but I keep hoarding them like water in the desert.

It’s about time I learn to share, so here are 40 of my favorite free fonts.

1. Xiorama 2. Upper East Side 3. Return to Sender 4. Marker Felt 5. Ostrich Sans Rounded 6. In-House Edition 7. Pineapple Delight 8. Pupcat 9. Superstar 10. Pacifico 11. Sunshine Poppy 12. Love Ya Like a Sister 13. Making Lettering Tall 14. Little Days 15. AC Big Serif 16. Handwriting Draft 17. Blake 18. November Sky 19. Alex Brush 20. EcuyerDAX 21. Fontdinerdotcom (and sparkly) 22. Janda Safe and Sound 23. KG A Little Swag 24. KG All Things New 25. KG Be Still and Know 26. KG Hard Candy Stripes 27. KG Lego House 28. KG Strawberry Limeade 29. Bobby Corwin 30. Marbre 31. Little Bird 32. KG Melonheadz 33. Giraffe 34. Entia 35. Dolce Vita 36. Champagne & Limousines 37. Fearing Madness 38. Cursif 39. CF Font Shading 40. Drop Your Anchor

I probably don’t need anymore, but that never stops me. What are your favorite fonts?

Tags: 40 things, fonts, free stuff
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by Melanie

How to Set Resolutions You Can Keep – It’s Not Too Late!

January 23, 2014 in Coffee Table by Melanie

I’m a planner. I love to make lists and set goals. I do it all year long, and I look forward to making my resolutions every January. One year I set 83 New Year’s Resolutions. And do you know what is even crazier? I was successful!

Not perfect. But successful.

It’s still January, so it’s not too late to jump on the bandwagon and set some resolutions. Which is a good thing, because I haven’t actually set any yet…

So to help us all catch up before January is over, I want to share my 3 most important tips for success with your New Year’s Resolutions.

1. Don’t listen to the “experts.”

Let me set the record straight once and for all: I am not an expert. You might call me a fanatic, but I just love to make goals. So what’s my secret to success? I do what works for me!

Earlier this month I read an article by an *expert* on successful resolutions, and I disagreed with the entire article. So am I going to change my ways because the experts say I should? No way! I have never believed in the idea that there is one right way to do things. I firmly believe there are a million right ways to do something, and it is up to YOU to find your own way.

So if I don’t think you should change what you do because of what an expert says, what is so different about me shelling out all of this advice? I want to show you my way to do it because every time you gather a new idea, it brings you one step closer to finding your own right way.

Find your own right way – no matter what the experts say – and do it.

2. There is no magic switch.

I want to share a little secret with you that took me years to learn. When the ball drops on New Years’ Eve, it doesn’t flip a magic switch that makes us suddenly perfect at things we have never been able to do before.

We start out the year totally jazzed and set resolutions that look something like this: “This year I am going to run 10 miles every morning.” or “This year I will take an amazing-award-winning-photo every single day without fail.”

We do great for a few days, but then January 5th rolls around and we just can’t drag ourselves out of bed for that morning run. Or we realize as we’re drifting off to sleep that night that we’re not even sure where the camera is.

Seriously, there is no magic switch.

Instead of expecting perfection to magically happen because the last number on the calendar changed, make your resolution a goal of where you will be by the *end* of the year. Let yourself work up to perfection instead of abandoning the whole idea when you expect too much too soon and end up falling short.

3. Redefine success.

In that same “expert” article this month, I read that in order to set yourself up for success, you MUST set a specific, measurable goal. So “improve my health” would be a poor goal, while “work out 3 times a week for 45 minutes each session” would be a fabulous goal.

Pure crap.

Seriously.

I know exactly which one of these goals sets me for complete failure.

Here is the key to my success: Set yourself up to succeed. I make up what my own success looks like! In other words, I set my resolutions in a way that is practically impossible to fail.

Of those two example resolutions, I would go with “improve my health.” ANY improvement in my health makes me successful! Whether I improve my diet, lose a dress size, start sleeping better, exercise more, or just feel better, I win!

The reason I make resolutions each year is to improve myself. Slowly I’m becoming a better person. Some years it seems a lot slower than others, but any little bit gets me toward my ultimate goal of awesomeness.

Are you ready to make some resolutions you can keep? Here are a few of mine this year:

♦ read to my kids more
♦ get ahead of deadlines so I don’t feel like I’m doing everything at the last minute
♦ listen to the *little things* now so they’ll want to tell me the *big things* later
♦ have more dancing days and sing loudly and often
♦ get up and move! exercise doesn’t have to be torture, right?

I’m pretty sure these break every rule the experts advise, but I am going to keep doing things my own way. If you are setting resolutions this year (and it’s not too late), do you know what *your own way* looks like yet?

Have you ever been successful with your resolutions? If you have, what is your secret???

Tags: goals
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Forty Eighteen

You are browsing the Blog for Coffee Table Archives - Forty Eighteen.

Possibly losing my mind…

How I’m making this year the best one yet!

How I am finally learning to use my fancy camera

40 Favorite Free Fonts

How to Set Resolutions You Can Keep – It’s Not Too Late!

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