I love technology...

and that I can watch sermons I've missed on TV!

I've been catching up on some of the Jeremiah sermons

that our pastor finished up while we were out of town. - 

Also been completing my sermon notes in my Bible Journaling as well - 

Here are a few of those - 

I plan to do a complete [LONG] post once it's all done -- 

I'm trying to get the things that stood out to me written down in my Bible -

 As you can see - some pages are more artsy than others - 

And I'm okay with that, because what's important is that I'm recording how the 

Lord has spoken to me through these sermons  --- 

 I'd love to see how y'all journal your sermon notes -

If you post on instagram - tag me 

@faithbasedpages

#faithbasedpages

Tagging along

on my sweetheart's trip and saw a little snow in the mountains!

Also ate way too much green sauce today.

And LOVED the Navajo Taco at Carlitos

 just as much as the last time we were here!

100 Day Challenge update!

Remember - no judging!

LOL - 

Because --

How cna I go from this:

To THIS - ha!

 I really do need to take a class on animal drawing!!

 And I love this one, inspired by an on-line class; it reminds me of the she-art girls that got me started on my little art journey...

This one is reflective of how I feel as summer is upon us 

and I've been to the beach twice already -

And these are some that reflect our days near Dauphin Island - 

This one has a base of a catalog beach scene that I painted over a bit [and added waves] before using die-cut numbers and alpha stickers.

And this on is my attempt to draw the seagulls that are always a 

welcomed sight when we go to The Gulf - 

I printed the chip bag on the computer and glued it in - ]

Still loving the 100 day challenge as 

I use my art journal to document our lives a bit - 

More to come!

Recap of the weekend -

Oh,  goodness - 

It's probably been 8 - 10 years since we've been to Panama City Beach -

We went down for a quick trip to be with the oldest and dau-law as 

she competed in the Iron Man - 

[she's awesome, I tell ya!]

She had told us we'd have plenty of time to enjoy the beach while she was competing,

so I loved seeing these shirts that another family wore - 

And. That's pretty much what we did - lol

We enjoyed the beautiful view from our room at the Edgewater Resort

The beach [and water!] are beautiful!

 And the water was calm enough to get in for a bit. 

We had good food all weekend [of course] and the meal at 

Captain Anderson's was as good as Craig and his mom remembered.

It was wonderful to have time late in the afternoon [Golden Hour!] on the beach - 

and sunset was the perfect ending to a great day!

PCB really is beautiful once you're on the beach!

Problem, is there's just no easy way to get there - lol

We headed back down to The Gulf

to see our dau-law complete in the 

Iron Man event in Panama City Beach - 

[She's awesome!]

It was good to have Craig's mother join on us on the trip!

Like us, they spent many family vacations at PCB - 

And boy has it changed a lot since we were kids - lol!

I'm pretty sure I've shared

this on instagram already - BUT.

I'm attempting to have a little garden this year - 

I'll try and post some photos along the way [win or lose - ha] 

Craig has done a great job setting up the timer on the sprinkler 

so they can stay hydrated while we're 

in and out 

town these next weeks - 

[See what I did there? - LOL] 

Anyways - I'm hoping having it inside our little fence 
and in pots will deter the critters in our yard - 
Time will tell - 
I'll keep you updated!

So, we both had

some work things to do down in South Alabama last week - 

 And y'all know if I'm that close to The Gulf

I can't resist sticking my toes in the sand, if only for a couple of hours...

We took the time to go to Dauphin Island late one afternoon - 

Since we lived out that way, this is probably the first beach 

we really shared together as young marrieds...

 

Love the walk out to the beach...

[We always think about our little dog getting tons of sand burs  on this walk...]

And of course we love that there's never a crowd on this part of the island - 

Our car is parked on the other side of those buildings, there...

Can you see them? 

LOL

 

And y'all know I love the seagull welcome we get each time we're at The Gulf - 

But alas, we didn't bring them a thing to eat this time 'round -  

[We're pretty sure they found someone's bag of potato chips though - ]

And of course - we love the seafood we enjoy when we're down in that part of the state - 

Our new favorite place is Neighbors in Tillman's Corner -  

Some of the best sefood EVAH - 

And we make a point to stop by whenever we're in that neck of the woods...

 

One afternoon as I was driving back across the bay thought - 

Mobile, I love you - 

But I'm glad I didn't raise my kids there -  

[no offense, really - 

I'm just glad they were closer to family up this way - ] 

It's ALWAYS good to visit though!!

I am LOVING the 100 Day Challenge!

Google it if you want to know more - 

Basically a challenge to CREATE something 

-- ANYTHING --

ev.er.y.day. for 100 days - 

[Above inspired by Deb Weirs Art

- I may end up having one every few weeks - ]

 Y'all know I'm working in  a little art journal - 

and much of what I'm putting in there represents

what is going on in my life at the time - 

 

[This is actually a computer print-out of a picture Home Depot sells - 

it kept popping up in my feed and I LOVED it - 

so I used it. 

Google Home Depot prints nad you'll find it if you'd like to have it for your home.]

A lot of what I'm sharing today is a reflection of my time at the 

Becoming Conference in North Caroline last month -  

Prior to going to #BecomingConf I searched out some quotes on becoming

and printed my favorites for this page - 

[You'll see that I like to include maps if I'm travelin']

Then after I got home I wanted to remember some of the things that Christy Jordan [@SouthernPlate[ shared with us; so I did this page - 

Just some of my notes from one of her sessions -

And one to reflect the beautiful mountains I saw - 

Remember! this is MY interpretation - lol

[And my art journal is MY place to PLAY - 

I don't worry about imperfections -]

This is also a print available at Home Depot - but it reminded me of the flower decorations on the walls of one of the session rooms so I knew I wanted to include it in my art journal - 

Again, with a quote from KariAnn of Thistlewood Farms...

And this last one? 

Well, I'm feeling a little piggy since I've gained some weight and while I think this one is adorable - it's really in there to remind me to eat right and take better care of myself - 

There you have it. 

I'm continuing to number them to 

old myself accountable to the one hundred days ...

And I'll admit to working ahead sometimes... 

or maybe catching up...

But what's important is that I'm intnetinally taking the tim

to be creative in some way most every day - 

I encourage you to give it a go!

jjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj

So - I didn't even realize I'd

read four books this month - 

But yay! 

I'm glad I met my [personal] goal!

Here you go -- 

These are the reviews I left onGoodreads 

[and maybe some other places too - ]

 The Cafe at Seashell Cove - Karen Clarke

 A great quick read with a sweet ending [of course!] One of the best parts of the book for me was the way old friends picked up right where they were when they last saw each other - and that enduring friendship cares enough to speak frankly with those they love -

How to Get Unstuck - Matt Perman 

This is a good book with strategies and tips on how to move forward 

in many, if not all, areas in your life. 

I particularly liked what Matt Perman says about the ethic of a true professional – His five points [Passion – Joyfully Doing Hard Things – Remarkability – Recognizing Centrality of Good Design – and Generosity]  will be helpful to me as I train policy to new professionals. He shares about how we should care about our work and not do it half-heartedly… and about how we should balance the enjoyable tasks with the difficult ones, as well show how a professional strives to provide services that stand out above the rest. 

I love that he shares that professionals need to have a caring attitude from start to finish and that a true professional is uplifting and encouraging to others so that we can all work as a team in serving those around us -  

I was on the launch team for this book and received a free copy - and honestly, it was a difficult book for me to get into - it was like reading a doctoral thesis or college course on moving forward in our lives.

 Hurricane Season - Linda K Denton

I loved her first book and this second one is equally as good -  Maybe it's because I KNOW the landscape that she writes in, but there's a wonderful familiarity of her characters as they grow, and reminisce, and share together. It's an easy read that will keep you intrigued as you maneuver through family ties of two sisters who appear very different, 

but maybe aren't so much after all.

The Light of the Fireflies - Paul Pen

Spanish author - recenlty translated to English

"For his whole life, the boy has lived underground, in a basement with his parents, grandmother, sister, and brother. Before he was born, his family was disfigured by a fire. "  
This family has more dysfunction than the Royal Tenenbaums - 

They twist and pull you through all kinds of attachments as you read through the book...

 As a social worker [who has SEEN dysfunction] it kept me guessing all the way through - such great writing as it shows how we all live with masks, both literally and figuratively, as we navigate through life as we know it - and how we all [hopefully] get to the point that our "desire to know is greater than the fear of the unknown,"

Happy reading, friends!