Dear friend, When I was a child, I had the best teacher ever. My mother. One of the things that she did was allow us to explore in our free time some of the educational things. For example, sometimes we got to play with the blocks we used for visualizing math problems outside of school time. Sometimes we got to read an extra chapter of our historically educational chapter book that was teaching us about famous Christian heroes through the years outside of school time. And we even got to play...
12 days ago • 4 min read
Dear friend, In 2018 my whole life seemed to flip upside down. After living my whole life from 4 years old and up in Africa, our family was moving back to the USA. It seemed like a process for us to admit that's the direction the Lord was moving us. But then it finally happened. I remember a lot of it that I don't love to remember. So many good byes. So many tears. So many times I looked outside and my whole chest felt a pang of realizing I'd never see this town, this country, probably not...
19 days ago • 5 min read
Dear friend, Happy Friday! I've hit a huge milestone in my art business this week, y'all. I have 101 people (you lovely people!) signed up to get my emails. That may seem like a simple thing, but 101 pairs of eyes who want to see my art, hear my story, support my art journey, and be encouraged in their faith is a huge deal! I would be quite overwhelmed if all 101 of you came and stood in the back of our living room where my art studio takes up space along the back wall. Your print club...
just now • 4 min read
Dear friend, Have you ever noticed that when you stub your toe you seem to stub that same toe more often than normal after the original stub? Sometimes I think our thoughts are that way too. The more we think about something, the more we notice that something. Like to do lists. The more I think about all the things I need to do, and should do, and haven't done yet, the more my mind starts coming up with more things I need to add to the list. And in another way, the more I think about the...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Dear friend, Have you ever come across a song that you just can't stop listening to? Well, I did this week. It's called "Let Nothing Disturb You" by Paul Zach. When it came on, I was driving home from church. My phone connected to my car and played the next thing by the musical artist that I had been listening to and this song popped up. It immediately caught my attention. It felt like a deep breath, a lullaby, and I had to start it over again. I think one day this week I listened to it at...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Dear friend, There's something so freeing about painting and drawing for no reason other than to create. So often, when I get out my paints and sit down to create something, I wonder (and worry) if it will sell, how much people will like it, how amazing I can make it... and the magic of creating dulls a little bit. And I just got a chance to paint without any pressure of selling whatsoever. No pressure of recording it for social media, no pressure of making it within a timeline, no pressure...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Dear friend, When I was learning to drive, I was really frustrated with my Dad. He just made driving look so easy! He seems to be able to drive in reverse like Tow Mater, is somehow calm and has quick reflexes even amid crazy big city traffic, and even driving in different countries on other sides of the road doesn’t phase him. And yet if I said something about it he’d tell me “Well I’ve been driving for a few years.” Now I realize what he was saying was that I didn’t see him when he was...
about 2 months ago • 1 min read
Dear friend, What's something you saw outside as a kid that you thought was just so cool?? I loved exploring outside as a kid. I'd lay in the grass and watch the little ants working together. I'd look for the little beetles and bugs, and get excited with each butterfly that I saw fly past me. I've been thinking about inspiration lately, and the things that inspire me. And I've realized that most of the time, the things that inspire me again and again are things that inspired me as a child....
2 months ago • 3 min read
Dear friend, So I gotta be super honest. This has been an insane week. And it's almost 9pm Thursday night right now as I write this (normally I have it written before 3pm). February's Flower One of the things that comes with my decision to make each and every email newsletter fresh and the day before it goes out so that it's genuine and real is that sometimes I'm exhausted and I've had crazy weeks and I don't have any words left. Sneak peak at the other months flowers! I was going to write...
3 months ago • 1 min read