"Enjoy your place in my story. The beauty of it means you matter, and you can create in my story, even as I have created you." Donald Miller

Dear Y'all,

My apologies for the infrequency of my posting lately. After our amazing vacay in the Land of Plenty and the Rapture I think I had a hard time getting back into the swing of things. But I've also been in the midst of something a little different. On our holiday, I read Donald Miller's "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years", which centres around 'living a good story'. It applies some of the theories about writing a good story and applies that to life. It was beautiful and for a writer made a ton of sense. So I looked at my story.
I have entered a period which I have deemed the "Age of Intentionality". One thing that truly frightens me when I look around at my generation is the tendency of people my age to be voyeurs in life, to not truly engage who and what is happening in their lives. When you ask people what they are about, they don't know what to say and when you ask them who they want to become and how they are going to get there, they are similarly at a loss of words. They do not invent and create community, or even engage it. They stand around in groups and assume that in doing that they are a part of people's lives.  I will not do that. But I have definitely slumped in that direction.
I have seen a tendency in my life to settle into what is easy, and what is accessible. I have let the creative pieces of my mind collect dust while I try and escape into that which is gratifying and does not require concentration, like food blogs. I let the creative outlets that I love, like baking, sewing, crafting, photography or reading, all fall into dormancy. Do you realize that this past year this blog was the only regular writing I did? I was in a friggin' writing program!!
As a wife, I want to inspire and empower my husband in his creative pursuits. He's a beautifully creative man! I want to create a space and a model for that for my children one day. And wanting that starts now. One of Moozh's courses that he took in the summer was on Vocation Work and Ministry. It really focussed on being obedient to the things that you want
Basically this is all to explain a recent absence in my posting. I definitely want to keep a record of what I am accomplishing in posting about them. If anything, that may motivate me to actually do new things because if I don't post anything, you'll think I've given up. Peer pressure has it's bonuses.

So here are my goals:

~ I will be writing a TON more. Not just for my program, but for me too. In the past week I have given myself full days worth of time where I create a space and an opportunity to write and I totally forgot how much I love it! Donald Miller writes about how there are some authors who like to be special and successful  and talk about their books to people but they actually don't enjoy the act of writing. I'm the opposite. I love to write. I don't want to talk about it, how it's going, etc. Some of this writing I hope to post here, but not all of it.
~ Craft Night! Craft nights are so fun. A cafe I worked at in Cowtown started it all. The girls who worked there would get together and crochet or knit. Then Bubby's in Victoria we did the same thing. A different person would host every couple weeks and would pick a different craft to teach to everybody. I know so many wonderful, inspiring, creative women in Bankybear that would make a craft so freakin' fun. And one of them is pregnant which puts a whole different purpose behind crafting, am I right?
~ 100 Books to Read Before you Die: Being in a literature class and a history class this summer reminded me how much I love to read, both fiction and non-fiction. To be a good writer, you have to be a good reader. It also makes you a good speller. (Speller? Spellist? I think 'speller' is kind of like 'funnest'. It doesn't sound right but it technically is.) I have tentatively decided on this list. It's not exhaustive by any means and there are a lot of classics that I want to read that aren't on there. I may have to create my own list. Any suggestions?
~ I posted a while ago about wanting to work my way through the ReBar Cookbook and the Joy of Cooking. Nothing really happened with that hey? Well I have begun. Yesterday I made bread from the JOC, which malfunctioned slightly, so I don't have a picture and last Friday I made pie crust from the JOC, which also didn't' turn out. Hmm. I will make something that will turn out :) I have a zucchini on my counter that is almost a foot and a half long so something will become of that. Maybe I'll take a break from the JOC for a few recipes. It's a gooder but my track record thus far is disappointing.
Plus: Moozh is going to culinary school so as he works through that there will definitely be pictures of his process and his yummy creations!
~ Photography: Bankybear is a physically breathtaking city and there is so much to see. I don't want to leave after three years here and not have anything to show for it. And there is nothing I love more than looking through old pictures. Friends of ours Marcus and Megs moved back to Winnipeg this spring but they really inspired us in photography. Megs does photography and Marcus is a web designer but they have the coolest creative partnership and gave us some really great ideas for getting started.
~ 12 Project: I already do this with my bestie Lacey but I've wanted to do it with Moozh for a long time and just never got around to it. (You seeing a theme?) So at least, once a month I want to have a picture of Moozh and I, ya know, for posterity. When we're grumpy and old, we can look back on our blithely happy faces and tight bodies and reminisce. So can our kids ;)

And in the midst of all of this I will be in school at the same time. So balance is key. But I didn't have any balance this past year and goals are fun. Here's to the Age of Intentionality. Kind of sounds like I should be wearing a hoop skirt.

Blue Bird Creative