Last year Jesse was asked to be the best man for his best friend, who was the best man in our wedding. If you’re feeling brave you can find a mini-recap of our wedding here, but it’s from the very beginning of this blog and I just discovered how to round the edges of photos, so consider yourself warned :)

We were so excited for our friend, and got even ore excited when it was decided that the wedding was in Mexico! I’ve been working long weeks for the past year and couldn’t wait for the getaway. At the start January we slipped into a plane at the crack of dawn – with my SPF 110 carefully packed – and made a break for Puerto Vallarta…

Trip highlights: $2 Coronas at a local bar and new Havaianas- the best sandals ever!

The all inclusive resort that we stayed at was beautiful, and the people in the wedding party and attending the ceremony were so much fun! We all adopted each other and spent time playing in the ocean and lying on the beach (and then lying on the beach some more). There was a great gym at the hotel, though I will say that travelling as a vegetarian hasn’t changed much in the past ten years, it’s still hard to get food that isn’t carbs or cheese! It reminded me to be thankful that North American menus have changed so much as I’ve grown up.

Every morning I would wake up, go to breakfast for French Press coffee, and then read or work while the waves crashed in the background. It was a heavenly change of pace.

One of the highlights of the first days was getting a chance to release baby sea turtles into the ocean! Our hotel’s beach has sea turtles that return to lay eggs every season, and if you’re there at the right time a local conservation group gathers the babies after they hatch, and saves them for a supervised evening release so predators are less likely to get them. Before you handled them, everyone had to coat their hands in sand and they need to crawl along the beach and enter the water on their own so they remember the smell of the sand and return. The most amazing part was holding the baby turtles- they would do a swimming motion in mid-air for a while, and then take a rest by dropping their heads and legs and going completely limp as you held their shell. When they had napped for a little while, they would start up with the swimming motion again! It was the cutest thing.

Watching the baby sea turtles go to the water was so dramatic, the turtles would start moving and then get washed back toward you by the waves- it was hard not to jump in and help! Everyone was cheerleading “their turtle” on, and I even broke the rules and hopped in to flip my turtle over when she was upside down. I got shouted at, and felt like a bit of a hero for helping her out.

There was a big group of fast friends, guacamole served at almost every meal, fresh mint in the mojitos, late nights on the beach, free room service and tiny turtle prints in the sand at night. It’s hard to get better than that!

And in case you’re wondering, yes- of course I managed to get a sun burn ;)

28 comments



Coffee Cup Chats

by Kyla Roma on January 23, 2012

in Being In Business, Stories About:

Today I’m over at my friend Becka’s blog, Life as an Artistpreneur talking about making your online world work for your business, and getting comfortable with putting a little bit of your personality on display for your clients or customers. It’s a scary thing for lots of small business owners, but I think the pay off is completely worth facing your fears :)

Want to read more? You can find the post here!

5 comments



I have a not-so-secret to share with you: for the first part of this month I’ve been away from the prairies! You might have guessed because my twitter was quiet while I was gone (aside from sharing posts) but earlier this month Jesse and I slipped away down south to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. We had an amazing time in the sun and it was the perfect break- and I have so many pictures to share next week!


Mexican embroidered bag Flor…
$148.00

Muertos Skull Rosary with La…
$48.00

Peace White vtg Ethnic embro…
$120.00

60s Mexican Dress Hippie Vin…
$36.00

Turquoise coral bracelet, be…
$108.00

Vintage Mexican Circle Skirt…
$96.00

patchwork skirt
$68.00

Red Sugar Skull Mug – hand p…
$19.95

amor y flores vintage chaqui…
$350.00

VINTAGE mexican poncho.
$65.00

Owl- Embroidered Felt- Mexic…
$115.00

FIRE FOR LUNA block print wr…
$75.00

Mexican Blanket Poncho Vinta…
$40.00

Santuario Chimayo Shrine – V…
$25.00

Mexican VVARRIORHOOD cloak w…
$75.00

Hurry back on Monday to see the sights with me, okay?

5 comments



Q & A Wednesday – Personality

by Kyla Roma on January 18, 2012

in Indie Business, My Passions

In support of the Indie Business: Compass e-Course launch on January 26th, Indie Business’ authors are doing Q & A Wednesdays to explore how the experience of every entrepreneur is so unique. 

Q: What unique personality traits are most present in how you do business?

 

 The traits that best describe me, especially in business, are perceptive, determined & sassy. My perceptiveness means that I naturally want to explore all sides of any issues that present themselves so I can understand exactly what’s happening & find a solution. I can easily see things from other people’s perspectives, and can imagine how they’re feeling based on their writing or how they’re speaking, which makes me a good problem solver who can find solutions in hard situations- and I can usually to get to the heart of the matter quickly. I really like to make sure that Freckled Nest’s clients always feel heard and feel that someone understands them- and I love being one of those people.

My determined personality means that I love making plans and following through on them. Once I have an idea I want to get all the details figured out and then stick with the plan! Making decisions based on the information that’s available and taking immediate action charges up my batteries and gets me excited! I’m adding sassy to the mix because I have a big personality and like making sure the people around me are having a good time. I have a nearly unshakable sense of humour and don’t take myself too seriously, which I think is really helpful in making my clients feel comfortable and it makes the long days that go into having an indie business much easier to work through.

 

I am a Dreamer. The free form way I run Lune supports my tendency to constantly dream up different ways of doing things. There was a time that I felt this impulse to act on my list of new ideas was a negative, but I have come to embrace it. Because of that, I continue to have passion for my business. Taking Lune mobile two years ago is a good example of how I craft my business to suit my nature. Lune is an organic, true reflection of me as an individual.

I am Devoted. I have been through my share of trial and heartbreak with Lune. There were times when I considered hanging up my keys and taking the more trodden path. But, I am devoted by nature. When I dedicate myself to someone or something, it is near impossible to break that bond. It isn’t easy for me to form these solid connections, but when they are forged – to the end of the earth I will go! This attitude has allowed me to move forward past heartache and misstep without seemingly skipping a beat. It is what drives me to remain positive and forward thinking in my business, which turns 9 years old this winter!

 

I love people and socializing but because I’m an introvert, I get shy, anxious and drained in large groups and I need retreat physically and mentally to recharge. Aware of this, I built my business model focusing on individual experiences in the online marketplace and I work from home or the office. I’ve found that one of the coolest luxuries of building your own business is that you can customize it to suit all of your strengths and adapt around your weaknesses!

Another personality trait I use in business is my keen intuition! My instincts are based upon past lessons & success and I use them to plan, design, make decisions, explore options, direct our business and determine how I treat others. I love that I have an internal compass that guides me and I nurture it by learning from everything around me and trusting my gut.

I love how you can take something foundational about who you are and build it into your business, so you have as much working for you as possible.  Do you see this in how you approach your work?
 Visit www.indie-business.com for more information on how the Indie Business: Compass can help kick start your business for 2012!

1 comment



Mod Tarot

by Kyla Roma on January 17, 2012

in Faves, Recurring Posts



Jordan Clarke is “A mish-mash of artist, illustrator and designer. Fascinated by all things dark, whimsical and vintage her work is characterized by a collision of Victorian vignettes, rockabilly pin-ups, religious iconography, tattooing, 20th century circus and fairground lore, and a slight obsession with El Dia De Los Muertos.”  and  I love her modern, mixed media take on tarot cards.

I’ve had one (sadly underwhelming) tarot card reading but I love the idea that there’s meaning and hidden symbols in every day life, just waiting to be uncovered. No matter what you think about tarot, I think that any deck of cards would be improved if it was designed by Jordan, don’t you?

10 comments



A few weeks ago I posted about giving myself a washi tape manicure, and I was surprised to hear from readers that when you google that phrase google has no idea what you’re talking about! I’m happy to shed some light…

Nail trends have been fascinating to me this year- there have been amazing ideas from the runway and fashion bloggers making the rounds everywhere I go online. Sometime in the spring the ombre trend jumped off of our clothes and onto our hair and nails- and I stumbled into the parallel universe of girls who blog their nail art.

These are some less traditional, really gorgeous manicures I’ve been admiring recently:

Clockwise: Ombre Nails on Fashionologie, Geninne manicure on Geninne’s Art Blog,
Dot Mani on Kiki9988, Tinsel Mani on Seablanket

One of the ways that you can have a beautiful manicure at home is by painting a base colour, and then using tape to block off areas of your nail and adding a second colour. You have to wait until your first coat is completely & totally dry or the tape will ruin your work, but if you just wait for a while you’ll be set.

You can use normal scotch tape for this too, but I love using washi tape (Japanese masking tape used in paper crafts). Washi tape is available in many widths, including some that are small enough to use for wide stripes in manicures. I love using washi tape because I find that it’s less sticky than the invisible tape I have, which makes for less nail disasters!

How To Do Your Own:

Grab: Two colours of nail polish, top coat, washi tape & scissors (if you’re feeling ambitious & want to cut out shapes from the tape)

1. Paint your nails a base colour, and let the coat dry completely. If your nails are even the least bit wet adding tape will wreck them, so consider yourself warned! Add a piece of washi tape to your nail and press it down firmly, leaving the area that you’ll be painting a second colour exposed.

2. Paint your nails the second colour, up to & over the edge of the washi tape.

3. Pull back the tape immediately, and let your manicure dry before adding a top coat.

Using this as a jumping off point you can easily create lots of different effects, from triangles to stripes and diagonals.

One tip that’s been helpful for me to make sure you have mostly one colour at the tips of your nails so you can easily touch up any chips :)

8 comments



Weekly Weak Knees no.19

by Kyla Roma on January 13, 2012

in Recurring Posts, Weekly Weak Knees

Weekly Weak Knees is a round up post of the “currently loving” section in my sidebar, where every day I pop in an image and link to something I lovely that I can’t help but share. It’s a pretty feature that feels like I’m passing notes to friends & reader who check my blog every day, and I hope you enjoy it enough to make it part of your routine!

These are some of my favourite links from past little while, click on the pictures to explore…

Did you find something beautiful online this week?

Share a link with me in the comments!

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6 comments