It never ceases to amaze me at how many wonderful, talented people live in my computer. You guys are amazing.

You inspire me, you make me laugh and cry, you teach me things. You make me think and rethink.

I am so thankful for you.

And especially for those of you who have a link on your blog to lifeingrace. Because of you, I’ve met the neatest people in the world and my life has been enriched and blessed.

And about the picture:
I love the new Lonny magazine online. I saw the {IOU} sign in that magazine a few months ago. I thought it was just perfect. So I bought the letters from Hobby Lobby, spray painted them black and then sat back and watched as people took long looks at the letters.

What does it mean? *Who* do you owe? My husband chuckled and thought, “Yeah, ya kinda do—now pay up.”
Everyone asks about it. It’s a conversation starter. It’s my little nod to gratitude. That we don’t live in a vacuum. And that everything we have, even a little ole blog, is possible because of so many others. Because they read it and support it and write the sweetest comments and emails.

So from the bottom of my heart, I O U.

I really do. And I thank you for meeting me here and for introducing me to your friends.

And a special thank you to the top ten referrers to Lifeingrace, all of whom, I am privileged to call friends.

Tara from Between You and Me.

Lindsey from The Pleated Poppy

The Nester

Emily from Chatting at the Sky

Melissa from 320 Sycamore

Kristi from Pink and Polka Dot

Amy from Playing Sublimely

Melissa from A Familiar Path

Donna from Funky Junk

Julie from Less Than Perfect Life of Bliss

Now when I look at my little letters above the bedroom, I’ll think of Stevie of course.   Cause I owe him lots.  And lots.

And I’ll think of my children, who’ve brought me countless joys.   And my sister and my mother.   To whom I could never repay my debt of love and gratitude.

And all the wonderful people who’ve touched and shaped my life.   And that includes you.

Whew, I owe a lot of people, don’t I?

Oh and for your weekend reading, try out this brilliant post from Rebekah, who is much smarter than I , and can so thoughtfully articulate what I would have said if I had said what I was thinking a few weeks ago.   She says it better.   And I am thankful for her too.

So, who do you owe?

I love this jewelry organizer she made. I NEED that pink fabric.

….and her kitchen is absolutely dreamy!

Her whole house is dreamy and she’s so lovely and down to earth. You’ll love her, I know you will.

She gave me this canvas as a gift and I just adore it!! Stevie asked me why the heads were cut off.
Artsy? Hello?
Thank you so much Julie.
We love them all.

P.S. I was so sad Amy, Julie’s sister couldn’t join us. I always LOVED her too and her brother David. They were ‘little’ when I was in youth group and I always wanted to babysit and play with them. Those were the good ‘ole days!

Anyhoo, back to the my girls and their math skillz.

They lost steam and the ability to count by eights after 96, which is when I took over.

But this was fun for us and I hope the winners will enjoy their prayer book as much as we do.   If you’ve been chosen as a winner and would like a  copy, please email me your address.

Here are the winners.

Emily from  IndustriousEmilyEndeavors who was just featured on ApartmentTherapy.  She has an adorable house!

Sarah Towne

Dee

Cate who had this quote on her blog

A man should hear a little music, read a little poetry, and see a fine picture every day of his life, in order that worldly cares may not obliterate the sense of the beautiful which God has implanted in the human soul. –Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

Anne W from Worthingtonwords whose trying to choose a name for her baby girl bun-in-the-oven.   I love Virginia Louise,by the way,  but I love your reasons for choosing the other names.

and you may think this little operation is rigged but my friend Patty  was also chosen!

she writes some beautiful words at her blog FindingSerendipity.com

If you didn’t get chosen and feel this process has been riddled with errors, please send your complaint to  thegirlswhowon’tstopdancing@hiphop.com

Ok, just kidding.

But they really won’t stop dancing.

Someone help me before I know the words to a modern pop song.

]]> http://www.lifeingraceblog.com/2010/08/lutheran-prayer-book-winners.html/feed 11 http://www.lifeingraceblog.com/2010/07/632.html http://www.lifeingraceblog.com/2010/07/632.html#comments Fri, 16 Jul 2010 23:58:25 +0000 edie http://www.lifeingraceblog.com/?p=632

Warning:  This post is supremely unimportant and should only be read if you’re bored, caught up on all your laundry  and have recently cleaned out your fridge.

Now proceed.
If you’re a regular reader then you’re likely confused. I’ve been playing around with my blog design today so don’t worry, you’re at the right spot. I made a new header and logo in photoshop and am trying to decide if I should have a sidebar or not. I think the heat in Houston is getting to me. I will likely choose to have one just because I don’t know where else I’d link to my favorite radio show Issues Etc. But tell me, do you really use the sidebar? What if I shuffled some of the sidebar items to the bottom of the blog? Do you like having certain posts right at your finger tips? Do you really care what books I happen to be reading? I really like the simplified look with no sidebar but I want this space to be functional too. It’s kinda like trying to decide if you should have a lazy boy with a cup holder in the living room. I usually vote no but in this case, I’m willing to hear you out.   To sidebar or not to sidebar?   That is the question.

BTW, I blame this all on my friend Darcy, who wrote a perfect post on blogging pet peeves.   And she struggles with the sidebar question too, although not in her recent pet peeve post.   I think for fun, I’ll add the sidebar randomly throughout the weekend.

Because I’m just that spontaneous.

I say that about everything, don’t I?   “The best beef stew ever.”   “The best chocolate chip cookies ever.”    Okay, so I’m a drama queen.   Maybe I just get a little excited about stuff.    Is that so wrong?   Anyways, my friend Lindsey from The Pleated Poppy, my long lost roommate from Blissdom,  has made some custom goodies using my favorite colors.    Aren’t they awesome?  I want one of everything.     And all the items you see below will be packed up and sent to one lucky reader today.    Here are the ways you can enter the giveaway:    1.  subscribe to lifeingrace if you haven’t already, or   2.  update your subscription with my new URL address lifeingraceblog.com or 3.  Add the lifeingrace button to your blog or  4.  Mail me some cupcakes with buttercream icing.

After you’ve updated or whathaveyou, then leave a comment on this post telling me you’ve faithfully complied with all rules and regulations and I’ll try my best to pick you to win this loot from Lindsey. {If your links to me are already updated, then just go ahead and comment away!}

Oh how  I LOVE these fabrics!

You have until midnight on Monday March 8th to enter.  And Lindsey is giving you 10% of anything in her shop if you use the code ‘grace’.   You’ll love her shop and her blog and after spending two nights with her in Nashville,  I can tell you she is just as precious as she seems on her blog.   Even more so.  And she’s the fastest typer I’ve ever seen.

Oh how I miss my roomies!

on Wednesday.   We ate at Nama Sushi—which is todiefor—- and then

sat numbstruck at the raw talent of Ms. Brandi.

She claims country western roots and is a self-proclaimed super-fan

of Elton John.  Her lyrics are timeless and her vocal performance

purposely leaves the listener feeling vulnerable and amazed.

I loved her already but when she covered Folsom Prison Blues by

Johnny Cash and then busted out Stand by Your Man by Tammy Wynette,

I seriously wasn’t sure if I could keep myself composed.

You must give her music a try.  She’s phenomenal.  Kinda reminds me of my sweet CAiti’s voice.

And now I have 267 photos from Blissdom to show you.  Go get coffee, I’ll wait.

Friday night, the (in)courage folks threw  a little party and it

was so much fun to meet Annie and many of the other

(in)courage team.

I also got to hug Sibi there.  She’s the author of the wonderful blog, Pearl and Grace.   And she’s about the sweetest thing

I’ve ever met.   She’s beautiful and gracious and genuine and funny.

And um,  love the necklace.

As we were walking to the (in)courage party, I snapped this photo of little miss sassy Nester girl

and her SHOES!   Stop.The.World.  Of course, I love

Kristi’s boots too so I asked her to show us a little, um —-boot.   You should go

to Blissdom if for no other reason than to shoe-watch.

On Saturday, we had a lovely full service lunch and I was lucky enough to sit with Kim

and Kris from YouCanMakeThis.   They’re launching a new website soon called

DIYdish which will be fantastic I’m sure.  I couldn’t take my eyes off them.

They’re so cheerful and friendly and funny

and they look just like Marie Osmond.  Only prettier and more interesting.

I love these girls and you will too.

I’ve loved Emily from Chatting at the Sky since I met her last year.

But let me reiterate;  she is so sweet and

authentic and lovely and gifted.  And she has a book deal.  I can’t

wait to say  ’I knew her back when…’

Then there’s my new BFF Melissa from  A Familiar Path.    There are no words.

And there were almost no pictures–because everytime I was with her,

I was laughing so hard that I forgot I even had a camera.

She is HI-Larry-us.  With a capital Larry.  I miss you dearie.

Let me just say that I should have stood on someones’ suitcase for this picture.

I’m quite vertically challenged—and I had on boots with heels!  And I’m 5’5″-ish. Sorta.

These are all bloggers that I have admired from afar and I’m so glad I finally got to meet them all.

Meet Lindsey from Living With Lindsay, Emily from Remodeling This Life and Kimm from Reinvented.

And Emily, we never did get to have that coffee?  Promise me, next year!

This picture makes me giddy.  I was overjoyed to meet Lisa Leonard. She and her twin sister Chrissy

are so wonderful.  Lisa led one of the sessions on social media–which was

one of my favorite sessions of the conference.   And since her beautiful necklaces are

by far my favorite accessory, I was so excited to win one of her ‘by grace alone’

necklaces  at the (in)courage party!  Aren’t they beautiful?

The Harry Connick Jr concert was Friday night and we swooned together with

this fun little clan of girls.   I feel so stupid because I  knew wanted to meet Mary from Giving Up On Perfect

before I left.   She was with Hillary, from The Other Mama, at the concert and I

didn’t even realize it was her.  I’m gonna go ahead and

blame it on Harry and on this tweet I got from my husband that night.

But I love all these girls.  Hillary, you are so funny!

And Sara, it was such a joy to spend time with you!

Meet Mary, Hillary, Sara, Lindsay, and Kristi.   It was such a pleasure

to meet you all and so inspiring to read/feast my eyes upon,  your work.

Last year at Blissdom, I was privileged to meet both the Nester and Sandy.

And what a blessing to renew these friendships in person.  I think of them

both as my mentors and admire them for

how they honor their families as they pursue their

own dreams.   They are both incredible women, strong and talented, yet humble

with servants’ hearts.

I’m so mad at myself for not getting better pictures of this motley crew.   Kristi, Lindsay and I

sat with these crazy girls for several sessions.  I consider them my peeps.

And they are completely to blame for my lack of photos.

Who can operate a complicated camera while rolling on the floor laughing?  Yeah, not me.

But go visit them and you’ll see why I love them so much.

Melissa, Ruthanne, Marsha and Karin.   Thank you girls for the abdominal

workout.  Laughter really is the best medicine!

And last but not least, let me introduce you to the wonderfully talented and brilliant woman

who keeps my blog from exploding every other day.   I love you Darcy and let me just

say that those Audrey Hepburn eyes—-are AMAZING!

I send Darcy a lot of emails (because I’m a little slow) and I often put interesting titles in the

‘subject’ of the email.   The last series of  (100) emails I sent her, I put “Edie is Annoying” as the subject.

My girls, who are always peering over my shoulder when I’m on the computer,

said,  ”Mom, why does she say you’re annoying?”

Because I am.   And she loves me anyway!

There were people I met that I didn’t get pictures of (or at least decent pictures of) and a few that I’ve started blog-stalking since I got home.
I love meeting Mishelle and Layla and Cate. It was so great to see Rhoda and Kimba and Melissa and Jen again. I’ve started blog-stalking Toni and Moosh-in-Indy and Heather and Meredith and Lizzie.
And I’m still completely wiped out. I think I need to paint something soon. I hope I haven’t completely lost my mo-jo in all this fun I’ve had.
Love to you all and thanks for reading this eclectic, often long-winded, sometimes opinionated blog. I have an awesome giveaway coming soon so stayed tuned. I will ask you to update your bookmarks to my new url address “lifeingraceblog.com” as a prerequisite to entering the giveaway, so go ahead and do it now and then you can enter right away. It’s gonna be a good one. Toodle-loo!

When I left Opryland Hotel on Saturday, I was full to the brim with emotion. I couldn’t speak and I fought back tears  for forty miles. It was much harder to leave my friends than I thought. This online community that I find myself in is incredible and Blissdom is the perfect chance to blur the lines between our online and offline lives. I learned some valuable  information but more than that, I strengthened invaluable relationships. And rumor has it they are not expanding Blissdom next year, so if you want to go, start saving and planning now. It’s unlike anything you’ll ever experience–it’s just…..bliss.

So, here’s the short list of things I learned.

1. Content is still king.

It’s so easy in blog world to get distracted by a million other things.   Headers, sidebars, platforms, SEO,  social media and on and on and on. It’s so easy to lose sight of the fact that we’re here to tell our stories. And how we tell those stories will always be the most important thing. You might tell your story with pictures or with poetry or with compelling original writing.   But tell your story. Tell the truth and they will come. Let your readers hear your voice and be authentic to that. If they meet you in real life, you want them to say, “You’re exactly like you sound on your blog.” Emily from Chatting at the Sky, who  spoke on this very topic—and who is an amazing truth-teller—gave this quote  by Howard Thurman that has become my new mantra,

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do that.

Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”

And that is so true with writing/blogging.  It’s tempting to try to decipher what it is that people want to hear.  But what they want to hear is a ‘you’ that is alive and passionate. So do your passion and it will be compelling.    And the best way to get better at writing is just to write.  The second most important thing is to read great authors that you’d like to emulate. I find that the more I read, the more  I have to say. And when I’m ‘fresh out’ of words and ideas, it’s usually because I haven’t been reading as much.
Quick tip: Read great books and tell your story with truth and passion.

2. Live then write.

Striking a balance between your online and offline life is difficult. But you first must live your life to be able to write about it.  I can only sit down on Monday morning and write about Blissdom if I’ve been to Blissdom. If you find yourself at a loss of things to write about, step away from blogging/writing and go live your life. Don’t be afraid to take blog breaks. I have always admired my sweet dear friend The Nester for this. Even though she has a jillion people who read her blog, she seldom posts on the weekend.  I’ve cursed her through my screen and said things like, “Come on Nester girl, it’s been four days, get to it, post something!”

But I do admire the boundary she draws for her family. And Megan from Velveteen Mind took a four month blogging hiatus  and didn’t really worry about what would happen to her blog in the interim. Develop of healthy detachment from your blog.  Don’t let it take over your life.  Blogs make perfect slaves but terrible masters.
Quick tip: Live a full, productive offline life and then tell us about it.

3. Find meaningful ways to connect with your readers.

I haven’t been very proactive with social media. I like interacting with my readers on my blog and their blogs but that can be very time consuming. It’s taken me awhile to figure out how to use Twitter and Facebook productively without them becoming  complete time wasters. Ironically, my husband, who was very hesistant to all social media at first, has taught me the power of Twitter.

{Just read this post if you want the scoop!}

So here’s my advice to you, get a Twitter account and spend some time figuring it out. It’s such an easy, quick way to interact with people–kinda like group texting— and it’s fun to use. If you have a smart phone, you can download a twitter application. I use tweetdeck but there are others. There’s a function called @replies where you can talk to specific people by using their twitter name (handle) with the @ sign in front of it. There’s also the powerful hashtag (ie #blissdom) which makes it possible to search any topic you’re interested in and it will bring up all the people on twitter who are talking about that topic.  The #blissdom hashtag was going crazy this weekend but it makes  it easy to follow people who have similiar interests as you. Once you figure it out, I think you’ll agree that it can be much more helpful and intuitive than facebook. And there won’t be old pictures of you with big hair and blue eye shadow from high school. You’ll still need FB for that! I still use Facebook some but Twitter is becoming my social media of preference. Steve says it’s the communication of the future. Follow me on Twitter (click the ‘follow me’ button in my sidebar) if you don’t already and send me an @reply to follow you!
Quick tip: Use Twitter regularly to interact with people you love/stalk. Use @replies liberally.

I miss my Blissdom girls already and had a wonderful weekend meeting them all. Alli and Barbara did an amazing job putting this event together. We were treated like royalty and the Opryland staff is impeccable! The sponsors were so generous to us and lavished treats and swag on us like crazy. Add this event to your calendar next year. You won’t be sorry!  I’ll be back with another post on all the amazing women I met. I’m still processing my photos!
Have a great Monday. See you on Twitter!

See other Blissdom recap posts at JoLynn’s blog Musings of a Housewife.

I’m going to Nashville for Blissdom…
which reminds me of my country music raising…..
which reminds me of how strange we southerners must seem to outsiders….
which brings me to butter cream icing.

For you see, butter cream icing breaks down all barriers—-and all arteries for that matter—–and buttercream icing seemed to be the most perfect way to welcome you to the south. That and Tim McGraw singing about cicadas, sweet tea and Hank Williams. Something about heading to Nashville makes me wanna put on my boots, make buttercream icing and listen to a little Tim McGraw.    I can hardly wait to get there.

I’ll see y’all tomorrow.

I made the bookmark as a pdf file so you can download it, print it off, laminate it and bedazzle it. Love to you all!  And don’t worry, if you’re not going to Nashville, I’ll take good notes and share everything I learn.  My partners in crime are Lindsey from The Pleated Poppy and Krist from Pink and Polka Dot.

{one of my favorite inner rings, forged by time and trial and good fortune}

It can be intimidating to go to a meeting of five hundred smart, opinionated, quite successful women.  Let alone women bloggers: that’s another category altogether.    And when 500 women gather at Blissdom this week, there’ll inevitably be 100 little groups of 4 or 5 women huddling and laughing and talking about all manner of topics, as it should be.      We seek out those with whom we have much in common and hope to make true connections.   But lurking closely is temptation to what C.S. Lewis, in his book The Weight of Glory,  calls the ‘inner ring’.   And we often perceive that we are somehow just ‘outside’ it.   You know the ‘inner ring’ well from high school;  the group of girls that are inseparable and exist for the sole purpose of excluding everyone else from their circle.   The group is usually not a natural, organic group that forges easily because of the like interests shared by the parties.   It’s a group that has the appearance of  including the ‘important people’ or the ‘people in the know’.   And it’s sole existence is exclusion.  The allure for the inner ring only works if there’s an imaginary line of admittance which is guarded tightly by those already inside.     Lewis points out what many of us already know;