Sunday, Sunday, Sunday!

Congrats to Pastor Jes on her first HUMC sermon- that was fantastic (though I am still feeling a bit dehydrated)!
I'm really quite tired and want to go veg and watch a movie while working on a basket, but, since I just took a short blogging tutorial, i want to show-off what I've just learned.  So, I learned how to put in a link. This is a link to the FaceBook page created by Brent for the Harvest Festival of the Arts event that we will be putting on in the Fall.
 http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1121980240&v=app_2309869772&ref=notif#!/pages/Harvest-Festival-of-the-Arts/117951921585682

 I also learned how to insert a photo into my blog! (and you all thought I couldn't learn).  So, I finally changed my FaceBook profile photo tonight to this one that Chuck took back in early May- or was it late April.  Anyway, it was chilly and there were few people around.  I'm feeling better now just remembering how really cold the water was this day!

 So, that's my big news for today- worked on my brain and my blog. Added stuff to the Etsy store, bugged everybody on FaceBook.  Ya know, the usual. 

so hot it could cook pancakes in here

Last night was another great night out at the Haddon Heights Fourth Friday Event.  The fourth Friday of every month, the good people of Haddon Heights, New Jersey put on a community event on their main street, Station Avenue.  I really enjoy being a part of this event, and they make things extra interesting by coming up with a different theme every month.  Last month's theme was a Chili Cook-off (soooooo yummy. I got lucky and was set up near the chili table); Last night's theme was "Christmas in July."  It's also really cool that they involve the younger crowd by having a skateboarding exhibition in the nearby park area- an inspired idea. 

So, the foot traffic was kinda light- since it's so obscenely hot here, but we managed to make some sales and meet some great people.  I must admit that I was a little cranky, at least starting out (my apologies to my brother Ryan).  I had slept overnight at the Church with the Youth Group the night before and grossly misjudged my energy and personal "youth" level.  It took me a while to get my second wind- though I guess it was really more like my third or fourth wind by that time. 

This morning Chuck and I got up early to go make pancakes for the Youth as a nice end to the first week of "Blitz."  The kids had been eating cereal all week and we decided that kids, especially our awesome ones, deserve pancakes on a Saturday morning.  Then everybody did an amazing job of cleaning the kitchen.  Later we all met up again for a generous lunch hosted by a wonderful family in our congregation. I think I gained back 5 pounds this week: there are some really talented cooks at HUMC!

Have I ever mentioned that I live in a house with NO airconditioning?  Well, I do.  I've been leaving the fan on in the living room all the time- but I'm still feeling guilty about abandoning the guinea pig here in this sauna while I go take refuge in Chuck's air conditioned oasis.  Snowy the Guinea Pig is pretty bright though, he has figured out to lay under his water bottle and cool-off in the constant drip.  I think I will make my escape now before I melt!

When I say "Camp" you say "Peace"

Yesterday was a seriously awesome day of service and fun.  Tuesday I had gone with our Youth Group to help out at "Camp Peace" at Fellowship House in Camden.  Those of you who saw my FaceBook posts know that we had a  diligent couple of hours of fund-raising when we got back from camp to help get those kids out on a swimming trip.  We ended up raising ALL of the money for their trip this week and putting some towards their trip for next week too! So I returned to Camp Peace yesterday, Thursday, with Rory in tow along with the Youth and others.  Rory and her buddy Aidan totally joined in with the other kids in the camp activities.  Then the kids all continued their service (even though we were hot and tired) and cleared out an over-grown area of the yard so that the kids had more room to run and play.  Our Youth are fantastic!  Then, we were given the grandest reward: a loving couple in our Church opened up their home to us all for dinner and swimming (and the most insanely good ginger-sugar cookies).  Rory was a total trooper through the whole day and even continued her part as "honorary youth" and slept over night at Church with the big kids. Her only disappointment of the day was that she fell asleep before Chuck's Story-Time.  He may have to repeat the story of the "Hippopotamus on the Golden Iceberg"  for her majesty's private audience.

So now, I really have to get to work on my art and such.  Tonight is Fourth Friday in Haddon Heights, so I'm hoping that people are in a spending mood this evening.  Gotta pack the car and get the merchandise ready to go.  I am in the middle of making a coiled basket in willow and linen.  Wish I had had the time to finish it before tonight, but I weighed that time against going back to help at Camp Peace and well, hanging out with the kids won out. 

When I say "Camp" you say "Peace"
Camp PEACE !
Camp PEACE !

Exciting Meeting and Reading

I attended an exciting meeting of the Floral Arts Guild at my Church (Haddonfield United Methodist) the other night.  We are planning to produce a weekend highlighting the various Artforms that have been gifted to the congregation and the community in the service and glory of God.  We are calling the event "Harvest Festival of the Arts." and we are thrilled to be working together to produce this event and kick-off an Arts Ministry in the Church. 

I've been doing a lot of reading and research lately concerning Christianity and the Arts and would like to recommend some books I'm finding particularly beneficial: Art for God's Sake is a book that is a quick read and gets to the point of why we need The Arts in the Church and specific instances when God has graced people with gifts of creativity for his glory.  

I am also in the midst of reading It was Good: Making Art to the Glory of God.  This is a weightier piece of work- but it is so far a wonderfully edited collection of essays by many people in the Christian Arts Movement.  I'll be writing more about this one as I wade through it.

All in all, a productive meeting with lots of ideas still developing.  Date of the Harvest Festival of the Arts will be October 16th and 17th.

Now, to get some work done on RoryRoo22 today! Must post a couple of new pieces to etsy.

pilot

well, i don't think that this officially could count as a pilot episode of this blog: i mean, not much is going to happen to progress the plot. basically, i've got a serious ton of stuff to learn about blogging and internet business- but here i am, nevertheless! starting this business and raising my daughter is the most exciting time of my life so far and i'm so glad to have so many kind and supportive people along with me on this ride. my theory is: if i just keep making things, praying, loving, reaching out, and supporting the arts- everything will turn out alright and there will never be an end.

someday, waaaaaayyy off in the future, i plan on creating a "real" gallery/boutique space and studio; mostly because it's very difficult to serve wine and cheese over the internet.