:: The Two Became One ::

I will start the story here, but this is not where the story begins.

I was recently talking with my older son Noah about why he carries two different small notebooks in his back pocket.

He said, “It’s because I may have one thought that goes in this notebook and another that goes in this one.”

I then ask, “Why don’t you just keep one and write all your thoughts in one book?”

He said, “I don’t know, I haven’t figure myself out yet.”

I left it at that. But I should have told him I understand because I have two blogs I write in. I guess I haven’t figured myself out yet either.

I have one blog called Love and Wonder. It is where I write about the things God is teaching through Motherhood, being married and owning an Art gallery with my husband in Downtown Fullerton. It is where I discovery through Art and Everyday Life.

Then I have another called Story and Wonder. It is where I write about things God is teaching me as I make my way as the Kids Director. It is where I discovery through the wonder of kids and faith.

Recently I felt the struggle of the two. I was writing in one more than the other and feeling frustrated. Which then I ended up not writing at all.

So I took sometime to see what was the commonality of the two. The one thing that was in common was that God was using all these things to teach me. God is using motherhood, married life, owning an art gallery, finding my way as an artist and working with kids to teach me more about His Love, other people, and myself.

So I  have decided to combine the two blogs into one. I will continue to write about things whether it be learning from my boys, learning what it means to live in a marriage, learning from an artist who may or may not have a different world view than me or sitting close enough to a child to catch the wonder of it all. Here is where I can be open to hear God through all the parts of my life.

This is where the two roads come together.

This is where the two become one.

Love, Story and Wonder is the new blog.

:: Potluck Love ::

Photo By Hiron.

:: Right Up My Alley ::

I am lucky enough to live in Fullerton. But what I love the most is when I find out there will be a Poetry night behind the alley of my house.

Come out to Monkey Business, Friday February 25th 7pm . $5 donations  to support Hart Community Homes.

video found from the Spit in the Mud Ministry

:: My Purpose ::

Artwork by: Wayne Forte

What is my purpose? What is my mission?

Hypothetically speaking, let’s just say I was the teacher in a child’s sunday school class and I was talking about one thing, but the kids decided to ask their own questions.

Let’s just say.

Let’s just say that I was talking about Noah’s Ark and how God told Noah to go build an Ark because soon there would be so much rain that the whole world would be flooded.

Then out of the blue, one of the kids says, “What’s my purpose on earth and what’s my mission?”

That’s a loaded question for a teacher. One that might make me cringe at the thought of not knowing myself and therefore fear that I would lead them with wrong direction. I suppose I would first need to know what it is that’s God asking of me or at least know enough to say I don’t know. But can you imagine the sadness in the eyes of a child when you tell them you don’t know.

Children make you think. They make you dig deeper into your own soul.

These days I find myself more like Jacob wrestling with God through the night. I, too, am like a child asking God, “what is my purpose, what’s my mission on Earth?”

So after much thought and searching this is what I found for my own life.

If a child asked me what’s my purpose on earth and what’s my mission I would look them in the eye and say, “Did you know that God has so much Joy in loving you, and you bring God so much joy by letting him love you. Your purpose on earth is to be loved by God, your creator, Your heavenly Father. And your mission is to give to others with this love. And how you go about doing that, is to find that Joy that only God can give.”

So now when I walk on my journey with God I may have a limp, so to speak, but it’s because I know now that God’s love is so big that it may change you forever. And if a child in the class wants to keep asking questions,  I suppose I will have to keep on digging deeper. Even if the child who asks all the random questions is me.

:: Blog Love ::

This is my new favorite photo blog.

:: Reflections ::

When I first set out to do the photo blog challenge it was because I was inspired by Mark’s Blog and his awesome pictures. Then I started and on about day 2 it started getting hard and I almost stopped.

Then I found out that Kevin started the challenge too. And then it got easier, or at least I knew that I wasn’t alone. Then I found out that Daryl started taking pictures and then I knew that I could make the whole 7 days.

So the question with the photo challenge was to ask the world, “Show me something I haven’t seen.”

I did see some new things and some cool things. But the thing that made it the most worth it was when I knew that others were on the same journey. I knew that even when it got hard and I wanted to quit, I could look at the inspiration of the other blogs and keep going. The thing I learned is that inspiration breeds inspiration and encouragement sometimes looks like stepping into your friends boat.

:: Day 7 ::

*memory maker

Do you know how sometimes when you look back at your past and you have a vision of something concrete to help you remember a time? Then when you sit with your friends or family talking about the good ole days, you bring up an event or memory that you were all a part of.

And then someone in the group says, “Do you remember when we were in the park and it was raining and we were in a little room painting and there was a random pink stove there. Then all at once your friends or family look at you and say, “we don’t remember the pink stove!”

Then you think to yourself that either you were the only one who remembers, or you were making it all up.

Well just in case this happens to any of our kids. Yes, there was a random pink stove.

:: Day 6 ::

* A park in Fullerton.

:: Day 5 ::

There is two ways to bring family and communities together. One is destruction like the floods in Australia and the other way is to come together to create.

One way we could wait for it to happen to us and the other way we could make it happen for us.

Raymond Family Art night is a night when family and community come together to create. It is a night when we get to paint, draw, dream, and Yes, make a mess!

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As I look at these photos I am reminded,  that through community we all get to call each other Family.

:: Day 4 ::

This is not a picture of Fullerton. We found oursleves at the Santa Ana Artist Village this week.

If Jesus had a car, this would be His bumper sticker.