my absence, part 3

November:

heart: started off with my 30th birthday, which we celebrated up in the mountains, in the lovely fall beauty. ahhhhh... jason gave me time to sit & rest & read & process out on the front porch of a cabin in the woods. lovely. and as a continuation of my "dreaming" from the october section... i have this desire to be a part of people's healing, making a safe place for them, being present with them, maybe incorporating art somehow... especially women... so the "big dream" is to somehow open a retreat center that can be a place of healing. so while we were in the mountains, we wandered around looking at possible properties to buy (which we canNOT ;) - but it was just good to nurture that dream (so facilitated by jason).

art: also on my birthday, i decided to stop actively promoting trying to sell my art, and just make it - to take a "break" for a year. my intention was to work in my art journal every day of that year... yeah, that lasted like a week.








April tells me that if i post a commitment like that on my blog, it keeps me accountable to do it, plus i can get feedback on my work, etc... so i'll let you know if i do ;) i do still have my items listed on etsy, and did sell some bangle bracelets this month... AND super-exciting... dun-dun-dunnn... i got one of my pendants featured in Cloth Paper Scissors! (the same magazine that i wasn't a finalist in that contest) i had no idea - just flipped it open, and there it was, on the table of contents! and then it was the biggest photo in the actual article (it was about a Christmas Art Swap :)

family: Jason got a bunch more photo gigs this month!

WHBC date night: the Eason family: the Marriotts:
and joey had his first birthday!!!! all growed up. ;)

my absence (part2)

October:

heart: started the month off on a 4-day/3-night retreat in Colorado - the Captivating Woment's Retreat. jason stayed home with joey, letting me take off for so long! which was amazing. i got to take days and days of just focusing on God and his heart and my heart. lots of little healings and baby steps towards him and toward the abundant life he has for me... heard him speak again there and just really enjoyed being in the beauty of the colorado rockies. began to have a growing desire to dream... to really think big in what God could do with my life if i lived surrendered to Him, just with the specific passions & gifts unique to me... more on that next month ;) oh! and really began to discover the power of worship music for my soul. fell in love with Kari Jobe music on the retreat, and haven't stopped listening to it every day since ;)

lost my journal :( this is also very sad for my art soul because i used it to write down all my ideas for things to try... jason got me a new one, so i'm starting over!

art: sold a piece on etsy :)

family: jason continued his photo class got some awesome shots of joey :)

took a vacation to Hawai'i! to visit my parents who live on the Big Island, and for a marriage conference they were hosting (but mostly so they could see joey ;)

hiking to pololu beach

got to go to my absolute favorite place in the world. it doesn't really have a name... but my parents have named it Upolu Point, so that's what i call it, too. such crazy untamed wild beauty there in the sandstone and black lava cliffs, windswept gorgeous blue ocean below. but MY favorite part is all the rusty stuff! the entire area of the bluffs is covered in old milling equipment, car parts, etc. actually, it would be more accurate to say they are PART of the bluffs. it's all been there for so long that the rusty things have been buried, and look more like texture than recognizable objects. you might be able to guess that I of all people would love that! and paired with that wild ocean... amazing.

jason gets his first photo "gig" (at least recently), being the official photographer at a school, shooting "harvest" shots at Halloween time. oh, and i made joey's "joey" costume, and my "mama kangaroo" one just in time for the chick-fil-a contest http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=462250538813&set=a.462250043813.252600.131184493813

my absence...

"wait", you say! what about the last 5 months? what's been going on with your art and heart and family during that time?? okay, okay, i'll try to recap :)

rest of august:

art: came back from those art workshops totally inspired and made a bunch of mixed-media, encaustic art & jewelry

family: jason's birthday drive down the coast, joey turned 9 months, jason starts taking a photo class at Biola that took up 6 hours/week of class time plus the projects (maybe this was part of why i felt like i had less time for things like blogging last semester ;)

heart: i had been reading the book Captivating all year, little by little, and came to a part about spiritual warfare, and it made me want to stand up and FIGHT! the last seven years have been so doubt-filled and hopeless... but the idea that there is an ENEMY of my soul trying to derail me, my marriage, my journey to really get to the depths... inspired me to stand up to him! we went to Biola & met with Dr. Arnold who prayed for us & against spiritual forces in our lives... and for the first time in years (maybe ever) i sensed God's presence with me, within me. suddenly, the ever-lingering doubt was gone - the fog of confusion dissipated. wow. major turning point in my spiritual life.

September:

heart: as i continued to work through the Captivating book & accompanying journal, i began to sense God speaking to me. telling me i was his, his bride, his beauty... things i so long doubted. at this point, i feel like there can never really be turning back to the doubt from before - i really KNOW he spoke to me. so he HAS to be real. and he loves me. really. not because he "has to" 'cause he's God. not "tolerates" me. delights in me! he still has to remind me daily, but it's truth... that i can hold onto. amazing.

art: this was a hard time for my art & soul... my favorite magazine had a contest for "artisan of the year 2011", which i thought i had a chance for... submitted some of my favorite pieces in a couple different categories, and waited...

hmm this one is sideways and i couldn't figure out how to rotate it...

and was not one of the finalists :( i was a little crushed. i put a few creative things on hold then because of my sorrow... but never completely. jason kept encouraging me that i had to be brave and keep making art - that it was a part of my soul that had to be nourished (he's so great ;) so i chose to be brave and keep going... after a bit... i even stopped hosting artsycrafty club for a couple months because of it (and busyness)! back on now, though ;)

family: we had quite a busy month with lots of trips and camping! we went camping with our sunday school class at San Clemente, and then did a whirlwind tour of northern california, where joey got to meet his great-grandparents (my dad's parents) for the first time, and finally ending up in Yosemite for another camping trip! jason lost his wedding ring there :( joey learned to pull up & "cruise" which he was quite happy about, and turned 10 months!

sentinel dome

you'll have to wait for the next installment... joey's nap is over! :)