Homegrown Hospitality

Happy Father's Day

Take a Happy Journey

Our summer day one consisted of renting a boat for an hour on our local lake

grabbing a few pizza's and crazy bread for the kids

making a quick salad and cutting up some fruit for the "older" kids

gathering some good friends and family

and spending some time together.  

We took a little boat ride, got some fresh air, ate, laughed and grandpa let Ben take the wheel (just for a minute) with Grandma standing by....and it felt really good to do something different, even if it was for just a few hours.

We finished our happy journey together with a little bit of basketball and a moment to just sit on the grass and relax...

I created a little tag to document our happy journey together

and look forward to creating more happy journeys..together.

Hello Summer 2012

It is here...Summer 2012 and I am going to create something everyday...some days big things, most days just little things...but something, everyday.

Today I have planned a fun little adventure for the boys and I.  It will only be an hour and you'd think I was asking the kids to read a book and then write a report on it, just to spend an hour with me...but we are going to have fun..DANG IT!

I want to encourage you to do something different....and create fun, take an adventure and do something creative. 

New Growth

It is week three of the Homegrown Garden Project 2012 and everything has officially broken ground. This is what my sweet little cucumber looks like this morning:

It may seem corny to you, but sometimes I just like to sit a look at what is going on in this little garden we have created.  Although our hands placed the seeds in the soil and we have to water them to grow, it is awesome to really think about what is going on during the growth process.  My mind then wanders to how amazing (and hard, I know) it would be to live somewhere like this and experience new growth in a huge way.  I am going to totally dork out right now, but that makes my heart flutter....

told ya I was going to be a dork. I am SURE it is painfully hard to have and work on a farm and the amount of determination and faith along with blood, sweat and tears is huge, but the rewards would be so....abundant. 

The word ABUNDANT leads me to another piece I created based on words printed on the inside cover flap of the book "Only You Can Be You" which is an upcoming women's summer study that I would LOVE for you to come to with me...

and speaking of discovering the ABUNDANT life God designed for each one of us, I am so excited and proud of my dear friend Mel and all of the amazing things she and her posse are creating in Idaho at the new Brave Girls ranch. Mel and her entire family have truly found their purpose, planted the seeds that are part of their mission and their dreams are growing and living..ABUNDANTLY.  This also makes my heart flutter and I do not feel like a dork saying that! I look forward to making my way up there later this summer to spend some quiet time with Melody & Kathy to experience new growth for myself...creatively, mentally and spiritually (Oh, and PHYSICALLY as I told Mel this morning that I am a way better helper than guest, so I will be there to work...and rest)

Today, I want to encourage you to ask GOD to show you what HE has designed for you...it is good..it really is.

Wise Words

Wise words spoken from grandma in the book Soup, by Jon Gordon.

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.

Note To Self...

I created this canvas yesterday after watching/catching up on last weeks message at church and preparing to learn from this weeks message in a new on-going series called "You Make Me Crazy"   

Here are a few things we need to practice being..

and something we all NEED to practice doing... 

"It is better to be patient than powerful; it is better to have self-control than to conquer a city" Proverbs 16:32

Here are just a few things that I not only took notes on but then used all of the yellow ink from my highlighter on:

WISDOM and being WISE are not things you learn or acquire from a book (well, besides the Bible, duh) You don't become wise or full of wisdom from going to school and being wise does not mean you are intelligent, super smart or something you get after finishing a higher education.  Wisdom starts in the heart.  It is peace loving, gentle (at all times) is willing to yield to others, is full of mercy and good deeds, is impartial and is always sincere.

 

Brave

Continuing on from yesterdays post...I mentioned that I do not like to talk type about politics or religion here on the blog.  

Key word :RELIGION and while I do not talk type about that, I do talk type about faith and the RELATIONSHIP I am strengthening with Jesus. There is a HUGE difference.  The words Religion and Relationship are what get people so goofed up, but in talking, well, typing about my faith, it has taken a large about of bravery to not only put it out for you all to read, but also opens up cans of worms.

more to come..I have to take the kids to school and go to my "other job"...4 more days!

Freedom

Freedom.  

I am going to throw my self under the ol' bus again because I do not want to speak for my generation BUT when I see the word freedom, 4th of July instantly comes to mind and then, gulp, my thoughts continue on about our neighborhood block party, what we are going to bbq, whether or not we are going to walk to the lake or stay on the streets to watch the fireworks and whether or not I am going to go to Old Navy to get a new t-shirt to wear.

"Lah-who-sah-her" (the way Jim Carrey say's it)

 

Dang it!

Now, I am NOT a confrontational person, nor do I wish to discuss politics or religion here on my blog (nor in real life) BUT in searching through my journals and notes this morning, I was reminded of the 1st amendment and how amazingly important and BLESSED we are to have this freedom. A freedom we might have forgotten about or do not think about, but basically take for granted..

dang it, again.

To be continued.

Bloom

I created this earlier this morning

and it reminded me to show you that our onions have broken the surface...

as well as the cucumbers

and we are now awaiting the arrival of beets, peppers and squash to show their little sprouts.

We planted a little late this year, one because we wanted to strengthen the soil, two because we had some CRAZY rain and cold storms and three, because I kept saying.."I will do it this weekend."  I am looking forward to a flourishing Homegrown Garden 2012 (without ANY tomatoes because I cannot deal with the Disney character sized GROSS worms!!!)  and I will make a sidebar button for it soon!

Here are some posts from our Homegrown Garden Project in the past::

http://homegrownhospitality.typepad.com/homegrown_hospitality/homegrown-garden-2010/

http://homegrownhospitality.typepad.com/homegrown_hospitality/homegrown-garden-2011/

P.S. On my "Pearly Gates" list, I am going to ask WHY God created those gross worms...I suppose there is a good reason. I gag just thinking about them.  blllahhhkkkkk!