So I had this idea. Brilliant or crazy...I'm passionate about it. We woman are all insanely hard on ourselves. "My lips are too big. My breasts are too small. My toes curve in. My hair grows too fast. My hair grows too slow". You see how ridiculous this sounds from an outside perspective but we all go there on a daily basis. So my idea: Create a blog that shows the beauty in imperfection and in what we classify as "ugly". I'm a model, I've been told I seem extremely put together.... but I am %100 imperfect. It's time we start loving EVERYTHING about ourselves...even the things we think are unlovable because this is how our creator loves us. Lets embrace a new way of thinking together.

First of all let me say, yes, I wear a mouth guard. After years of grinding, my dad's teeth became so thin and brittle they started breaking off. Grinding runs in my family (and not the kind of grinding you are thinking about eww). I honor my body over vanity any day of the week.

Ladies, you don't ALWAYS need to have a perfect mani/pedi. Lets face it, sometimes there just isn't enough money on the tree. For me, there never is. If you have a steady hand to paint your nails and sand to exfoliate your toes, you'll get by.

GUILTY: I am a nail biter. It is an icky habit but I must admit, it still paints a pretty portrait, right? How we perceive ourselves is NOT how others perceive us.

This is the hardest one for me as it is the most personal. Just like anyone, sometimes I get really really sad. Divorce, illness, feeling alone, you name it, I have been there. Don't allow anyone to make you feel bad about your emotions. They are YOUR emotions to have. Embrace who you are, follow your instincts and love yourself for even the dark parts about YOU. They will allow you to recognize the light. This is what I look like when I get depressed. And it is OK. It happens. Life can be hard and We do the best we can. Just keep loving yourself through it and trust in your guiding light.

Just a little slogan I found. I can't tell you how true this has been for me. Allow the good to work through the bad if you can. If you can't, just be patient until you can!

 TRUE STORY. Not all marriages have a happy ending. For Christians especially, it is very VERY hard to not punish ourselves for that. You do all you can do but sometimes, you just have to accept the cards that life has dealt you...and roll with it. Look at what you have instead of what you don't have. Focus on what you can do for others instead of what YOU need to feel better.

I went into my first Catholic Penance Ceremony this year. For those of you who don't know what penance is, it is an annual service just before Easter where you confess your sins to a priest and shake off the "rust around the edges" your soul may have accumulated throughout the year. It is a time for you to realize you are forgiven and to forgive yourself.

I went into that little booth expecting the worst. I'm divorced on paper, but my marriage has not been annulled by the Catholic church. I've fallen in love since my divorce with men who are not my husband. You know what? I went in and gave the priest the whole dirty business. This man who I expected to condemn me, to be horrified by my ugly actions, spoke to me with love and understanding. He encouraged me to date. He was human. He had empathy. We are SO hard on ourselves in yet others are never even half as critical! Here is a perfect example:

I love the person I am but there are stretches where I can honestly say that "I do not feel attractive".
Those are the times I like to pull up Pinterest.
I LOVE to see people still getting excited about my work years after it's created.
I LOVE to see women get excited about the clothes and hair.
I LOVE to imagine a character and bring it to life through photography
It makes me feel important. We need to continue to do the things that remind us we are valuable.