I got a really nice surprise in the mail this morning, my book. I have been working on it for well over a year. I received the subscription to write this book as a gift from a dear friend for painting three bookmarks for her daughters and I did a special one as a gift for her as well. In return a chance to write my own book.

The book was written through a company call Storyworth.com. They send you an email every Monday with a specific question which you answer by writing a chapter in the book. Its pretty cool. I had a lot of fun doing it. You could also write your own personal chapters outside the questions they send to you. Beside is a photo of the book as well as a sample of my opening chapter below. There are two pages that follow the one below which I didn't include due to spacing in the blog itself.

I will say it definitely makes for a nice gift. I'm not sure of the actual cost, you'll have to check that out for yourself with Storyworth.com.

 Wow it's almost fall, where does time go when you're living life? It has been a beautiful summer here in Tennessee, a little overboard on the humidity, but still nice. We did struggle for a while with no rain and our lawn and gardens didn't fair so well. Hopefully next year watering will be easier on the purse.

I took a break from painting this summer and got some much needed work done around our home. You know the usual gardening, cleaning and purging unwanted items of clothing or books and sharing them with local charities or neighbors. So now I'm getting my watercolors and paper out to dive into painting again. Not sure what I will be inspired to do. I may do some with pen added in or just pen with a touch of color here and there.

I have also been working on a book of my own. It will be mostly about my walk with the Lord and the paintings I have done. I don't have any intentions of publishing the book, it is more for me personally and I will pass it along to a family member. I have had lots of fun putting it together, and enjoying going over all the fun memories of growing up. The book is just about finished and ready to package up for a special family member.

The Bible study in my home has been growing over the past year and a half as well as us ladies. We will be finishing up "Respectable Sins" by Jerry Bridges in a couple of weeks. I'm in the process of looking for a new study. One in particular looks promising; Brave and Beloved: A Bible Study for Women Exploring the Wisdom and Diversity of Women in the Bible. It's a beautiful 20-lesson Bible study surveying 30 key women in the bible, from the more widely known Eve and Ruth to the less often studied Deborah and Jael. This fresh bible study truly illuminates how God’s design for womanhood welcomes women from all walks of life. We will be inspired to dig deeper into God’s word and see His heart for us women and our roles in His amazing plans for redemption in a brand new light.

Okay I've shared quite a bit of news for now. Next month I hope I have some new paintings share with you! Have a great September!

 

 

 

 Wow time sure flies when you're retired. I haven't posted to my blog since February 2024. I have been rather busy, working on paintings, maintaining our landscaping, and working on the interior of our home.

One of the paintings I've recently finished is of a stone farmhouse taken from a photograph I took ten years ago in Southwestern Ohio at an old village from the early 1800s. Daryl and I were walking in between the farmhouse and another older building and loved the look and took a photo of the side of the house.