Friends Friday: Kelsey Bethune

Name: Kelsey Bethune 

Age: 25

Location: Norfolk, VA 

Occupation: Event Planner by day, blogging machine by night & photographer on the weekends ;)

How did you start doing what you do? 

The event planning as a career came about halfway through college - I was working for my church and realized that I really enjoyed planning large scale events from beginning to end. A lot of doors opened via internships and wedding gigs, and I'm now in the throes of starting my own company.

Blogging is really just a result of me having way too much to say and obsessively trying to capture memories to keep forever. I've always had some form of journal (written &/or online), and when we got married, I realized that these are The Days. The ones I'll want to bottle up & keep forever, because time is just going to keep flying! I tried a few blogs that never stuck, but Sitting In Our Tree feels like a little online home.

What does your average day look like?

My day doesn't start until there is coffee in my hand! Jared, being the wonderful creature he is, brings me coffee every morning. I work as a secretary part time right now, so I usually spend the first half of my morning at work. After work, I come home to respond to emails, write a blog post and work on the current wedding gigs I have on the books, followed by my workout session. Afternoons are usually freed up for photoshoots or meetings...and on a quiet day, I am blessed to consider pinning pretty things on Pinterest "work!" Jared and I love to cook together, so almost every evening is spent crafting up a dinner & sometimes dessert. We're just coming out of the winter months, in which most of our evenings were spent either watching Frasier or Doctor Who on Netflix. LAME, I know, but it gives both of us some time to wrap up work stuff, edit photos & sloooow down after our long days!

How did you meet your man, I mean, Jared?

Well! We lived about 10 minutes away from each other most of our lives, were both homeschooled and shared a lot of the same friends... But somehow never met until our Senior prom (homeschool prom, true story!). My best friend had known Jared years before, and introduced us when she saw him at prom. We didn't think much of it at the time, but over the next couple of weeks, we saw each other a couple more times, then ended up on the phone one night for 8 (EIGHT!) hours. Two weeks later, right before we graduated, we officially started dating. The rest is glorious history.

What do you like to do with your spare time? (read, knit, jog, etc)

I'm usually crafting at least one project for the blog in my downtime, reading a new book or (let's be honest) binge-watching something on Netflix. If Jared is home, we spend a lot of time walking around our neighborhood and visiting local shops/restaurants in our fair city. Of course, I'm also always up to hang out with my 1 yr. old niece, because she thinks I'm hilarious.

Where do you find inspiration? 

I pick up a lot of tangible inspiration from the people around me - Whether that's real life friends or artists on Instagram or an outfit on Pinterest. Every day, I can be inspired by florists, bakers, makeup artists, farmers or that blogger visiting China this week. Social media is great like that! I also have a mentor from my college internship and I basically want to be her "when I grow up." Having that idea pushing me through the day or week is inspiration to get up a little earlier or try a little harder tomorrow.

If you had to pick one meal, what is your favorite? 

Tacos. Tacos for days. Tacos forever.

Where do you imagine yourself five years from now? 

My biggest dream for five-years-from-now is to be in our forever city, with a dog, being paid to write. The "where" is still a big question mark, but the "who" is good looking and the "what" is definitely promising!

Favorite blogs that you follow?

Kendi Everyday is my go-to style blog, Spoon Fork Bacon is my go-to recipe blog & DesignLoveFest is my go-to inspiration blog!

What is your advice for aspiring photographers and bloggers?

Aspiring bloggers: Don't ever let your hobby become a chore! It is so important for me to constantly check myself that I'm not blogging out of obligation or keeping up with the Joneses. That being said, consistency is key to creating a little place in the internet world - Challenge yourself by finding writing prompts online or giving yourself a few once-a-month posts to share!
Aspiring photographers: Everything you need to know about using your camera is online (and there are certainly valuable resources!) but practice truly makes perfect. The more you use your camera, the more second nature using it will become. Challenge yourself to learn to shoot manual - You will never look back!

You can check out Kelsey's blog: Sitting in Our Tree , Instagram, and Pinterest.