Homegrown Hospitality

Whirling Dervish Surge

It always happens.  About 48 hours before any type of class or boutique I get this surge of " I MUST MAKE MORE THINGS"

Tomorrow is the 1st Annual Athlete's Choice Holiday Boutique where 10% (+10 more%) of all of the proceeds will go the the Jessie Rees Foundation.  I have told you about it on FB and here on the blog and I have been making things here and there along the way and then...

BAM

I got that "whirling dervish surge" and just started making things left and right, wasting what I thought was a TON of time, sewing, stopping...cutting & stitching and then stopping again, then painting and stopping and then more stitching...and stopping.  I finally made myself dizzy from the sporadic back and forth, I stacked it all up and put it away. (which is just 1 of 100 reasons why the Shead-Teau looks the way it does.)

I am not sure if it was the canvas, the hearts, the stitching or what, but something clicked and I drug it all back out, started completely over and created the 2012 version of my raviolis.  (In the past, the raviolis have been in felt, this year, canvas) and I kinda love them.

The nice thing, is they can be a gift tag, an ornament for the tree, a bottle hanger but best of all, just a cute little reminder of the important things...

Joy

Hope...
Peace and of course, LOVE, duh. so what I thought was wasted time was well spent time, because had I not taken all of the steps I had taken, I would not have these.

If you are in the area, be sure to come by Athlete's Choice tomorrow night from 7:00-9:00 pm.

23252 Arroyo Vista, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688

What Can I Do?

A storm, a diagnosis, a grieving heart...whatever it might be, unfortunately, we live in a broken world full of disasters, death, distress, disappointment and discontent and bad things happen to good people all around us.  (Thanks alot, Adam!)

There are so many circumstances surrounding us and when we are on the outside looking in, the "What can I do besides in addition to praying?" feelings are overwhelming.  It is the question I have been asking myself and others alot lately. There has got to be more I can do, whether I am 3 feet or 3,000 miles away.

Personally, I am tired of hearing people complain about gas prices. We are lucky to have gas..

and politics...

We are lucky, blessed, whatever you want to call it, to have a choice.

So, again.."What Can I Do in addition to praying?" start by working together with others towards a common goal because

"..Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed" Ecc 4:9

We can lend a helping hand and a prayerful heart to those who need assistance. 

It is our job.

".. we must work, doing something useful with our own hands, that we may have something to share with those in need." Eph. 4:28 NIV

With great optimism, resilience and faith, ultimately we can help in turning the bad into good by getting up and doing something....

• Offer Your Physical Presence - Be there. Be Close.
• Offer Security - Open your doors to offer safety and protection.
• Offer Practical Assistance - Offer to prepare meals, run errands & make appointments.
• Give Emotional Support - Pray for them and with them..out-loud.
• Love One Another - "We belong to each other and each of us needs all the others"Romans 12:5
• Demonstrate hope & remind others that giving up is not an option.
  

Thank You

..to Martha & Tony for having me come teach at Scrapbook Daises as I kicked off a new creative journey.. getting back to teaching with a purpose to "Teach & Inspire", being a positive creative influence and of course, to create a beautiful mess wherever the path leads.

Things like this make me happy and confirm to me that I am doing what I am supposed to be doing...Happy, smiling, non-stressed, creative inspired souls doing just that...

smiling

creating enjoying each others company and getting the "thumbs up" stamp of approval (no pun intended) Proof of a wildly creative and productive day filled with Heart...no pun intended!

Do What You Love

I have added a few new pieces to my ETSY shop including this one: "Do what you love" is an ingredient for everyday life.

This piece, like all of my work, is created to be a great reminder for you and for me, actually for everyone who sees it wherever it is displayed.  

"Do what you love" may not be something that you get to do all day everyday, but you must try to do what you love a little each day to fortify your life, strengthen your heart and work your purpose. When you do what you love, you feel better, you look better, you act better and people will notice and when notice, comment and/or compliment you...encourage them to do what they love.

Domino Effect

I know that I have posted this here and there..but it is a good reminder to do what you love to do because when you are doing something that you love, it shows and therefore, you can be a great influence on another...and together we can create a really good domino effect..

Pass it on.

Uncommon Courage

This past weekends message at church was all about "Standing Courageously For the Truth" and if you were there or watched it on-line then you know it was jammed packed with ALOT of things and it would take me 74 blog posts to cover it, so in a nut shell, here it is...

This is a hot topic right now in our little home sweet home because TODAY, Jack is going to be learning about "Conspiracy Theory's" in his "History Through Film" class.

Again, TRUTH MATTERS and as a parent I have to reinforce that.  Does an 11th grader with an open mind need to learn about conspiracy theory's?  Maybe, maybe not...but I am going to stop here because I could be walking into a can of worms..and I do not like worms, especially those big gross green disney-character looking ones that eat tomatoes.

So back to the message..just a little more...

it all takes courage.

Something I personally battle with DAILY, sometimes...HOURLY!

There it is...the Truth about me. (I suppose that was courage right there by admitting that to you..) You might not know it or think it if you are around me, but it is there, more than ever and I tell you, ever since I "FULLY SURRENDERED" that damn red suited guy likes to sprinkle my day with doubt, anxiety and anything else he can muster up to toss in my path.. Sometimes I can karate chop it away..and sometimes I can't and that is what I am working on. (It is okay, you can call me a "fraddy cat.")

The thing that helps me get through this crap (and it is crap) is prayer and art.  The more anxiety, the HARDER it is to get up, but I make myself do it...and the more powerful I create.   This is yesterdays harvest:

I am finding comfort, peace and meaning through my art and I want to suggest that if you are in a spot that is not comfortable..try creating.  Many times I just work on getting the base of a project down so that when I am inspired, I can go out and create HEart.

I am using old marquee letters as my base.  I start by layering on tissue wrap and dictionary paper using Glue-n-Seal. Make sure to dry....

Then I add swipes of crackle paint  and while those are set aside, I use color wash and distress stain to add color to dictionary paper so that I can tear out hearts and just those steps starts to take the crap away...then when I am ready to create, I have all of the pieces and parts I need to create a piece of HEart!

All is Forgiven

Grab some coffee....

I have been on a personal journey of faith for a several years now and have really started to share more of it with you here on my blog.  

Some of you embrace it and some don't .  

That is okay with me.  

Some of you are of the same faith as me, and some are not.  

That is okay with me too. 

It is more about the heart...

and we all have one.

More than we may realize, we are all in the same boat.  Some of us have paddles, some of us have life jackets and some of us don't.  A few stand at the head of the boat and scream "I am the king of the world" and some of us are hanging our heads over the railing throwing up from all of the waves.  Thing is, we are all in this together and we all go through similar things.

I hope that by me being authentic and transparent here, it will help someone elses boat ride along the way.  Just call me "Julie McCoy"...your cruise director because I am glad you are here.

Okay, so as you know, I am really sarcastic at times, and equally, if not more, dorkey.   Here is some good news I found out about that on page 137 of the book "Only You Can Be You"

I am self-conscience about many things (not as many as I used to be) and don't give a crap about other things (see, I told you)

I have always reminded you that I am open minded, share what I believe and create based on it.  I strive to walk the walk and talk the talk but I am human and dang it, I stumble and sometimes fall.

We all do.

THANKS ALOT ADAM (okay, and Eve!)

I have to admit, I have fallen hard.

No..not right now, in the past.

The thing is, I get back up, figure it out, confess it, ask for forgiveness (He will forgive you too, you just gotta ask) and then keep going.  I am continually and constantly learning who I am, what I am supposed to be doing and sharing it...through the creative abilities that God has given me..

and I am so glad you are still here.

With the completion of the "Only You Can Be You" study last week I was a little "okay, what is next..now what" and happily found the answer with the new series  Pastor Rick started this week called "Creating a Positive ID" 

whew.

So the big question was "Do you know who you are" and well, since I just finished learning and being reminded that "I am me" from "Only You Can Be You" (say that 5 times fast) I knew I was on the right track (or is it tract?)

and here was the phrase that stuck me like a thorn on a rose bush...10 words that reminded me of something.

"I am a product of my past..NOT a prisoner"

and it reminded me that I was holding my own self hostage.

Duh.

You see, I realized that I was unconsciously torturing myself because I had not fully forgiven myself. Maybe a little, but not completely and it does not work that way.

You either do or you don't...not kinda.

well, how can I not forgive myself when God has already done so..

done.

gone.

forgiven.

surrendered.

I think I am starting to mature.

and I am glad you are here with me on this journey.

Permission Granted

In the past month, I was granted "creative license" to just be me and create, and yesterday I was granted permission to share a little more of what I have been working on for CHA. Although I cannot go into great details for the projects, once the show has started, I will reveal more, share tips, introduce you to the products I am using and hopefully have a few class dates to share...

The other exciting gift I was given this week came from the first of four evenings with Erik Rees in the "Only You Can Be You" Women's Study at Saddleback...

wow.

wow.

wow.

I will give you a little re-cap of the lessons but want to also encourage you, should you live local, to come because it really is amazing.  

Erik was kind enough to give me his book ahead of time because I wanted to read it and create based on the thoughts, reminders and lessons.  Little did I know how filled I would be. You know, little things like...we must realize that we have ONE LIVE TO LIVE. No..not a soap opera, but a real life and that most of us, on a daily basis, take that single fact, for granted.  We need to start paying better attention, no FULL ATTENTION in order to discover the abundant life God designed for every single one of us....

and the way to achieve that only consists of doing TWO things...TWO SINGLE THINGS...

1. Love God

 2.  Love Others...

duh.

and the "ah ha" moment of the night came in the shape of a single question.  Ready to ask yourself?

Have I ever given myself permission to see myself the way God sees me?????? 

To Be Continued.... 

p.s. if you are not in the LA/OC area, you can log onto www.onlyyoucanbeyou.com to find about more about Erik's book and study...

p.s.s. Erik is Jessie's Daddy http://www.jessicajoyrees.com/

New Things

I am reading a few new books, one called "Soup" by Jon Gordon (author of  "The Seed") and the other book, "Only You Can Be You" written by Erik Rees, pastor at our church and Jessie's Daddy.

I am excited to share that there is going to be a new 4-week summer study in July at Saddleback and I would like to invite you to come.  Erik & Debbie Eaton will be teaching this summer study starting July 5th and I am excited, so excited that I got the book early to read up and create art based on it to inspire you here on the blog...which leads me to new art that I just created this morning:

Start off today by reminding yourself  that YOU are ONE OF A KIND and only YOU can be You!

 "..You are a Master-designed, handcrafted original"  Only You Can Be You,  Preface.

"Creating a life that reflects my dreams..Living a life that defines my Purpose"

The title of this post is part of my mission statement.

It is what I do. Create, Dream, Live (well, and laundry..) and is based around my purpose. Part of that purpose is that I share my creative passion and vision with others and in the process, I may be able to inspire others.

Today, I hope to inspire you to use what you have to create something else.  

Yesterday as I was cleaning up the flag block project, I lost focus (whoops) and happened to come across a project I had started creating a year ago (not kidding) and never finished (trying to work on that) 

This is a small file folder journal that was going to be a class once upon a time. The background of the file folders were painted using a baby wipe and paint and then a little neighborhood was created using many different patterned papers and Mod Podged on.  Poor little page sat like that for a whole year and never complained.

Yesterday, I grabbed my black Distress pen (that is really in distress because I have used it so much) and a blue Faber Castell chapstick looking paint thing (geez, I bet they would LOVE me for that amazing promo) and with in 10 minutes, my little neighborhood looked like it had been hit by Ty Pennington and the Extreme Home Make Over crew...

I am going to finish up this piece by adding these words:

²⁴ And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. ²⁵ Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another —and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:24-25 NIV

So now, go create something from things you already have and enjoy the process!