creative community

Piper and I met Trevor in Madison!! We are home! What a sweet homecoming this has been...



The pictures above actually have nothing to do with this post. I just thought it would be nice to include some pretty photographs of Piper. I think I'll do an update on her in my next post... I haven't done that in a while.


I have been wanting to write about this for some time. I have realized lately that when I have the urge to write about something but delay, it never comes out as poetically or cohesively as it could have had I written it when I was first passionate about it. This is definitely one of those. So here I go... I'll try to get it out the way it was at first.


I have been so inspired by the craft/design/photography blogs that I frequent. Since becoming involved with Indie Craft Parade, I've had the immense gift of 'meeting' some wonderful creative people who have in many ways embraced me as a friend. And I am thankful for them... I appreciate what they are doing and writing about. Those that have impacted me most are believers. I am relatively new to all of this, but being surrounded by these people has helped me so much to let go of the narrow way of thinking that I used to fearfully cling to... I have been encouraged to be free to create, use my gifts, and take joy in that process. I know that may not make sense to some of you... but it's like stepping out from under the weight of the heavy, never-satisfied burden of legalism and into abundant life through Christ. In my life, and in the life of these people, that manifests through art and creativity.


I just want to include some links to their blogs and shops.


Barb of knack studios had been wonderful all around...  from her beautiful redeemed furniture, to her lovely blog, and then there's her encouraging comments... she's great. We hope to get together at ICP.


Her sister has been a delight as well... so sweet and kind. You can find her etsy shop here. She has such charming things in there.. I love the bunting. And everything else too. She actually moved out to Oregon from Virginia around the time that Trevor and I moved to Athens from Portland. 


I must mention Our Little Love Nest. Dee and I have become recently acquainted, but just reading the text on her sidebar about her faith was so honest and courageous in the gospel. Plus her art is beautiful. They will be at ICP as well. You can find her husband's blog here. 


In fact, it may be best to direct you to the list of sellers. Check them out. Lots of them say that what they do is all about their relationship with Jesus.


There are lots more, but only so much time to write. I'll include other links as I come across them. For now, I am relaxing in my sweet home with my sweet husby while my sweet baby sleeps upstairs. Can't wait to worship with our church family tomorrow! Hope you all have a wonderful day of TRUE rest, knowing that Christ IS our sabbath day rest.

little rock summer

Our time here in Little Rock has been sweet. Something about having a newborn baby around makes life so much more tender. M.E. is a fragile, tiny, pink little bundle of warmth and light. She is a joy.


I really miss my husband, too, though, and so does Piper. We have skyped with him a couple of times but it's no substitute for being together. I eagerly look forward to our reunion. Our plan is to travel home on Saturday.


Today we took Piper and the twins to The Wonder Place -- they had so much fun! It was fascinating to see their individual personalities come out. Ben was fixated on the network of pipes that blow scarves and balls out into the air, while McLean would not leave the sand table. Piper mostly watched other kids, shyly tried to play with them in her own quiet way, and played with the balls. She loves balls, especially since she can say 'ball'. She points out every ball in her near vicinity. It is wonderful. I love her.


I also want to give a brief update on our church plant: our first Sunday morning meeting in our own location will be this Sunday! I can't believe that we've already come this far. God is building our lives together with this group of people ... and we love it. Our pastor, Don Aldin, had colon surgery last week and is recovering. We hope to move ahead as planned anyway. Our first open service is planned for August 15th. Trevor and I will be hosting a community group, which we're stoked over. We want to be involved with mercy ministry as well. I am also on the tech team... taking photos and such.


God has brought some beautiful people into our life as of late... but you'll have to wait for my next post to hear about them :)

hello hello

Welcome to the world Mary Elizabeth Pierce!
Born 10:28 am on July 23, 2010


My sister's baby came earlier than anticipated, so my mom and dad left with Piper and me for Little Rock, Arkansas on Friday morning. M.E. couldn't be more perfect. She is such a pretty newborn. I won't post any pictures yet. My sister is recovering from her c-section, and we are here at home playing with Ben and McLean, her two-and-a-half year old twin boys. They are such a trip, and I love them to pieces. Very cute kids. They really like Piper now that she can walk around with them.


It has been a welcome break from sewing to be here and do this. It is good to be with my sister during this special time in her life. I love her so much. She brings tons of humor and joy into my life. My husband, however, is not with me. Boo. He is home alone, working and caring for the homestead. I miss him, and so does sweet Piper. It can be difficult to be apart.


I have lots to share, but may not be able to until I get back home. I just wanted to send a quick update to all my lovely readers and let you know that I miss you so, I really do. I'll be back soon.

date night

My mom came into town this week! We had a fun time playing with Piper and a couple of her friends, buying cute little girl clothes from Old Navy, and visiting some amazing antique shops in lovely Madison, GA. She also sent Trevor and I out on a date Thursday night... so special! We ate a delicious dinner at Trappeze pub and then went to Cine (the pictures are from the lobby of Cine... I love the artwork). We saw a marvelous Argentinian film, The Secret in Their Eyes. We loved it... it was so different than a Hollywood movie. The actors and actresses have imperfections. The story raised profound questions without giving the audience easy answers. It was authentically humorous. We hope to go back to Cine again soon-- we really want to see Winter's Bone, Mic Macs, and Get Low.

Now it's back to business as usual... lots to do!

random news with pretty pictures

Hi readers :)

I decided when I started this blog that I would never apologize for not blogging enough.... mostly because I do this for me and our family. Instead of a bunch of more frequent little posts, here is a mix of random things going on in our life.

The first few pictures are more things I am sewing for ICP. The creative process can become a bit strained at times when I am trying to do alot... I end up rushing and sometimes make mistakes. A big part of what makes my work unique are the details that go into every piece, and these details take patience and consistency. However-- I must say that I LOVE doing this all day, and I am so thankful that instead of someone calling me back about the numerous job applications I put in, I was accepted as a seller. This is such a gift from God... I get to do all this with my girl by my side. I don't have to leave her to go to work.

Some of the struggles that I deal with as a creative person have been part of this as well... the usual things for me, like insecurity, comparing myself to others, being a little too perfectionistic. These are the issues of my heart. I need to press into Jesus and hope in him when these things come. The security that he gives me makes me free to create and not fear rejection. (I know I said I would post soon about some thoughts in the post before last, and I will. I haven't forgotten.)

I included a couple pictures of me and my baby girl. I don't normally post pictures of me, because I take the pictures. Trevor took these, and they were sweet. They remind me of this part of our life because Piper is *so* into books right now. She loves to sit and pretend to read, she always wants me to read stories to her, and she tries really hard to pronounce the words that I say, even though she doesn't quite have the phonetics down. She is doing so many funny things these days... when she is finished eating, she doesn't just say 'all done', she says, "aaaaaaaaaaaaalll DONE!" So cute.

Our church plant is going really well-- we haven't met for the past two weeks because of some scheduling issues, but we have been growing in relationship with the other folks involved at it is wonderful. I really like these people. Some of them have a strong heart to reach artists and musicians in our community and I think that is so great. I really wish some of my friends would move here and be a part of this-- Bryce and Emily, Allie and Drew, you know who you are :)

The next couple of shots are a before and after of a lamp I bought at the thrift. It cleaned up quite nicely. I also got two end tables. They are still in process.

In other news, our friends the Cunninghams just had baby #4, Nathan Tyler Cunningham. These are special people who are incredibly blessed. We love them so much and miss them. (They're in Portland). My sister is having a little girl, Mary Elizabeth Pierce, and they expect her to be born on July 29th. I will be traveling out there with my mom and dad to meet her and photograph everything (yay!) I can't wait to meet her and see my nephews. I miss them so much since they have moved... but Anne and I have been pretty good about keeping in touch (actually Anne keeps us afloat, because I am horrible about calling regularly).

Lastly, I just have to say that God has been SO FAITHFUL to our family. He always provides for us, but especially recently, Trevor has been given so much work... he got a job working for the public defender's office until school starts back, he'll be doing secretarial work for one of the law prof's, he's teaching the LSAT in the fall... It's amazing to see God meet our needs so specifically and perfectly. Next semester is going to be so busy. But it will be wonderful.

Oh, and both of our cars are fixed :)

I have to share this...

Cardboard Stories from The Austin Stone on Vimeo.

My friend Ashlie passed this on to me....

so beautiful.

I worshiped.

pictures

Just a quick post with some pictures from the 4th. My mom made some of her wonderful marinara... she makes it from fresh tomatoes and herbs, and it simmers for days. It has a lovely taste. She also put together a cookout, and Trevor's parents joined us.

The other pictures are from dinner at my friend's house. She is an amazing person and I am so glad to have reconnected with her. God definitely brought her back into my life. We have a similar life story :)

It was special to talk about our lives together, see our kids play together, and hang out with our husbands. I hope to do some portraits of them sometime soon. Her home is beautiful. I hope to share more time together in the future.

I'll be back soon with some thoughts to share on our life. A lot has happened lately that has given me pause... we ran into a person we knew and hung out with before our relationship with God began, and it was such a profound reminder of how God has changed us. A friend and mentor of mine, Sono Harris, went to be with the Lord. Trevor's work with prisoners has been eye opening. I guess all these things have combined to cause me to think about all that God has done for me... and I'll return with some conclusions.

zoo

While we were in Columbia this weekend, Piper and I went to the zoo with my mom. These are some of the pictures I took while we were there. Columbia has a beautiful zoo-- it is super clean, the animals seem healthy and well taken care of, it wasn't crowded, and they have cool animals (I didn't include pictures of the elephants, giraffes, tigers, lions, monkeys, etc.)

You know, I used to hate the zoo because they kept animals there that seemed miserable. I always thought that it was a tragedy to have such majestic creatures caged. I guess now I realize that many of them can't be in the wild on their own. They are being cared for (hopefully) and given a new life, even though it may be not nearly as exciting. I still have mixed feelings about it, but Riverbanks Zoo put my heart at rest, if only temporarily.

Piper had a blast. She rode the carousel for the first time with her Nonna. She also got to wear a safari hat with her vintage pillowcase dress that my mom made by hand. So cute.

I'll post the rest of our pictures soon from our cookout and dinner with friends. Take care readers :)