It's been a while since I've posted my handlettered designs for the Encourage Huntsville Handlettering Challenge... so here we go!
I'll be posting the backstory behind Encourage Huntsville next week - eeek! I can't wait!!! Join us on Instagram for the May Letters challenge!
This past weekend was possibly the craziest weekend we've had in a while. The original plan was to drive down to Atlanta for the weekend to spend time with my family and to see Mae in concert (insert an infinity amount of !!!!'s here). But JD received a call Friday morning from our brother-in-law, Brandon, saying that Theresa (JD's sister) was going to the hospital with possible pregnancy complications (thankfully, everything was fine!). We waited until around 2 in the afternoon to fill up the car and head down to Georgia. As soon as JD finished filling up the car, Brandon called and said, "We're having a baby! Head on over!" So we changed sails and headed to Mississippi just in time to give Brandon and Theresa big hugs before this little precious little guy was born (insert another infinity amount of !!!!'s here)!
It's hard to believe we co-hosted his little baby shower only one month ago!
Arriving one week ahead of his due date, our sweet little nephew (James Levi Harris) was born Friday night at 8:16, weighing in at 7 lbs and 2 oz. Theresa and Levi (and Brandon) are all doing superbly well! She made labor and delivery look easy. We cannot get enough of this little bundle of joy and can't wait to see him again soon!
We left around noon Saturday to drive to Atlanta for the Mae concert.
Let's talk about Mae for a bit: You know that band that you grow up with? You follow their music from the beginning. You feel like you know them (even though you don't). And you feel like they know you (obviously, they don't know you either). That band was Mae for me. I played their music during celebrations, heartaches, transitions, rainy days, sunny days. Tisbury Lane was programmed as my alarm clock song in high school and college (I'm still not tired of it). The Everglow was my faithful companion during car rides back and forth from Auburn. Their music always has and will continue to resonate with every season of my life. It's beautiful.
When Mae was on the original Everglow tour, I was finishing up my senior year of high school. You have no idea how badly I wanted to see them in concert. But it didn't happen. (There is a very humorous story behind this, but just not a story I should share publicly on our blog. Email us if you're really hanging on the edge of your seat.)
When JD and I found out that they were having The Everglow tenth year anniversary tour, you better believe we snatched up those tickets and stood front row (ok, well we were in like the second or third row) center. Everything about the concert was ridiculously magical - the lights. the music. the entire crowd singing together. being there with my husband. sigh. perfection. It was worth the wait.
After the concert, we went to the GA Tech Waffle House with our friends from Huntsville then headed back to my parents' house outside of Atlanta. Side note: I'm not a GA Tech fan by any degree but their Waffle House was super cool. We'd recommend it. We woke up and had a charming breakfast with my parents on their back porch. Mom and dad went all-out on the cooking. Pancakes, quiche, bacon, fruit, potatoes and veggies. Also perfection. Dad and JD paddled out on the lake while mom and I hung out on the dock for a while then my sweet cousins Pam, Haley and Faith came over to hang out for a while. JD and I may or may not have taken a nap before we headed back to Huntsville because we were so stinkin' exhausted from the amazing weekend we had with family and friends. Every single minute of it was perfectly worth it. Hope you had a fantastic weekend and have been enjoying your week!
If you're following along with the Scripture Memory / Dwell Richly printable, here's the verse for week 19:
Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. Colossians 4:6 (ESV)
I've been taking Skillshare classes from Elizabeth Olwen and Bonnie Christine. If you haven't heard of Skillshare or looked into, go now. It is my, hands-down, most favorite learning site. If you click this link, you can get a free month membership.
A S S I G N M E N T
Via Bonnie Christine: The assignment for this course is to create a mini collection of 6 repeating patterns. Collections should be cohesive in style, theme and color. An excellent collection will tell a story through it's pieces and engage the viewer with a unique color story that provides depth and contrast. Patterns should vary in scale and include small, medium to large sized motfis, as well as vary in complexity with some patterns being simple and others being very complex.
M Y C L A S S P R O J E C T
Pattern Collection: A Fresh Beginning
Collection Story: A Fresh Beginning is the story of an artisian embarking on a unique creative journey, with each pattern expressing a step taken in discovering who she will become during this season of her life. This pattern has been inspired by the little ones she hopes to see running around in her garden in the years to come.
Pattern Names: Rest // Awakening // Growth // Refreshment // Forest // Garden Whimsy
I also incorporated a few designs I've done for the Handletter Huntsville challenge and past custom orders:
I cannot express how thankful I am for the Skillshare community and its teachers. If you're interested in design, photography, entrepreneurship / business, DIY, culinary or almost any type of creative skill, this is a great place to learn more about it. Enjoy!!!
You can see my entire Skillshare project on my Project page.
If you're following along with the Scripture Memory / Dwell Richly printable, here's the verse for week 18:
If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. 1 Peter 4:11 (NIV)
**Please note: If you have already inquired about or placed an order for a custom product, we will finish it before June.
I started following the @encouragehuntsville's daily handlettering challenge a couple of weeks ago and I'm LOVING it. The challenge has been super fun and I've loved getting to see other creatives in Huntsville put their skills to the test. Watch and follow the progress of the Jitney handlettering process on our Instagram account here.
If you're following along with the Scripture Memory / Dwell Richly printable, here's the verse for week 16:
Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. Colossians 2:7 (NLT)
We had the absolute JOY of celebrating the soon-to-arrive Baby Levi this past weekend! The shower was held in an old general store close to where Fran (one of Theresa's friends) lives. It was perfect!
Fun fact: This is actually the coffin that the owner of the property built for himself (don't worry, he's still living!).
We spent the rest of the weekend helping to organize Levi's little woodland nursery and spent some sweet time with Brandon, Theresa and old friends. We are so excited for our little nephew to make his big arrival in five weeks!
If you're following along with the Scripture Memory / Dwell Richly printable, here's the verse for week 15:
Since everything God created is good, we should not reject any of it but receive it with thanks. 1 Timothy 4:4 (NLT)
We are (surprisingly) only half-way into blogging about our Japan trip last November. So, back to the adventures...
Welcome to Nijo-jo, a magnificent shogun castle is Northwest Kyoto! I was swooning as we walked through these ancient buildings with worn wood and charming architecture. This was one of our favorite historic sites to visit, mainly because (1) it was a shogun castle so there were several displays of armor and descriptions of how warriors prepared for battle along the tour and (2) we were fascinated by the nightingale floors.
Built in 1603, the palace was created to demonstrate shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu's prestige and to demonstrate the demise of the emperor's power. He built in concealed chambers where bodyguards could keep watch and spring out at any moment's notice. Ieyasu also had the interior fitted with nightingale floors to detect any intruders, as the floors would 'squeak' or 'sing' like a nightingale.
You better believe JD and I were trying out our best ninja moves in that palace. But the floors just kept squeaking.
Some of you may recognize this photo (imagine it in black and white) as our Christmas card picture from this year.
We ran into another group of kids that wanted to practice their English with us.
Throughout all of our Kyoto sightseeing adventures, we followed the walking tours described in the Lonely Planet Kyoto travel guide (with a few detours, of course).
If you're following along with the Scripture Memory / Dwell Richly printable, here's the verse for week 11:
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13 (NIV)
This verse calls for a free print... seriously. In every study I'm going through, in every sermon or lecture JD and I have heard in the past four weeks, the Holy Spirit is the main focus. And yet the Holy Spirit immediately directs the attention right back to Jesus. I can't imagine that this topic is a coincidence. I'm embarrassed to say that I am constantly amazed by God - I mean, it's a good thing but shouldn't I know by now that God is God and He is consistently faithful in being great, just, merciful and loving? And yet He still shocks me by His goodness, His grace and His provision.
For those of you that don't know the backstory of the Dwell Richly printable: JD's sister (Theresa) and I were sitting at the dining room table at Christmas. I told her that I felt led to put together a supplemental tool for the 2015 Agendas. Within a few hours, the Spirit led us in creating the printable, without phones, apps or Google to help us find verses. It was such a sweet and beautiful time I will never forget with my sister-in-law, us depending solely on God and getting super excited about the verses to where the Lord would lead us.
The greatest thing has been to see the way God has orchestrated events in our lives to synchronize with the verses at the perfect timing. And by 'our,' I mean, all of the friends, myself included, who have texted or emailed me about the way God is speaking to them in the verses. This week has been no different.
The Holy Spirit is entirely infiltrating and transforming all of the knowledge I thought I knew about Him. Confession: For so long, I have thought of the Holy Spirit as a sidekick, a little brother who picked the short straw, the one in the Trinity who was least of the three. I referred to the Holy Spirit as an "it" because I failed to realize that the Holy Spirit is very much a person and very much relational. Even to talk about the Holy Spirit, it was a little 'too charismatic' for my southern baptist background. In John 16, Jesus says,
Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you. (John 16:7-15)
It blows my mind that Jesus says it is good for Him to go away, so that the Holy Spirit will come and dwell in us. But it was good. The Spirit teaches the truths of the bible to God's people (John 14:26), convicts people of their sinfulness and need for the Good News (John 16:8), gives believers power over sin (Galatians 5:16-21) and the power to live a fruitful life (Galatians 5:22-25), helps believers and prays for them in their human weakness (Romans 8:26-27), and affirms salvation and believers' identity as children of God (2 Thessalonians 2:13). My favorite is that the Holy Spirit, in all of His glory and responsibilities, His most important job is to bear witness to Jesus and to bring Him glory (John 15:16 and 16:14). God, the Holy Spirit, directs all of the glory straight back to God, the Son, who then directs the glory to God, the Father. I won't pretend to understand the mysteries (or even the non-mysteries, the actual things God lays out for us in scripture) of the Trinity but I'm deeply grateful for what the Spirit is revealing to me about Himself, and in return, what the Spirit is revealing to me about the Father and the Son. I pray that He is doing the same for you.
There are so many other amazing characteristics of the Holy Spirit. I encourage you to listen to the lesson given by Karen Burke about the characteristics of the Holy Spirit (all of the ones listed above came from this lesson): Journey Through John - The Holy Spirit
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13).
To download the free print, you can click here. The logo and desktop background are not included on the print. Please do not redistribute the actual file on Pinterest or professional / personal websites or blogs without permission. Thanks!
What else is happening in the life of Jitney? New projects. Not new products, per say, just projects. I'm smitten with this current handlettered / handpainted piece. My friend, Lindsey S., painted the board with about 10 layers of paint. It looks so awesome!!! The texture of the board ended up being a smooth surface, basically like tile, so it made it easy to paint, wipe away if I didn't like it, then paint some more. I can't wait to show you the finished product (and maybe even make one for myself)!
LARGE and in charge. That's been the theme of the past month's projects. Most of these pieces measure a minimum of 3 feet. I fell in love with one of the barnwood pieces requested by a husband for his wife's birthday present. Please excuse the backgrounds of all of these photos but I didn't have a blank, neutral space to hang the large pieces in my house (because I hate bare walls).
Once again, not the best photo but I hope it will suffice...
I'm LOVING this Grace Upon Grace skinny barnwood sign commissioned by Sarah Y. Her and her husband will hang this above their dresser.
The Ruth 1:6 pieces were requested by my friend, Pam W., who will be hanging these as a headboard. [swoon]
The big box? That's a custom cake riser, ordered by my sweet friend, Leah, who got married this past weekend!! She also requested the burlap table runner that fit in perfectly with her reception decor! (If you stare at it long enough, you'll realize the monogram is not centered... I noticed it an hour before she came to pick it up but was able to make a new one for her right before she arrived! Whew - close one!)
Photo taken by the lovely and talented Rebecca Bond Nichols of Shabby & Chic Events/Rentals. She did the majority of the decor for Leah's wedding and added SO MANY beautiful touches!!!! You can check out all of Leah's Wedding on the Shabby & Chic Events/Rental FB page!
Photo taken by Rebecca Bond Nichols of Shabby & Chic Events/Rentals. The gorgeous wedding cake was created by Jennifer Evans of Initially Cakes. There is a rich decadence to her cakes, my friends! My mouth is melting just thinking about it!
Photo taken by Rebecca Bond Nichols of Shabby & Chic Events/Rentals. Not gonna lie, I'm SO GLAD Rebecca got a shot of Leah's beautiful bouquet. I love the accent succulents tucked into the arrangement. Update: Rebecca is a superstar. She was the florist for the wedding too. That woman has a gift, folks.
Congratulations Beautiful Bride!!!
And the final big update for this series... Renovation on the garage has started. Water was coming in from the bottom of the garage wall and mold started to deteriorate the baseboard and drywall. Don't worry. We're leaving these renovations to the professionals. They've already added a french drain and water barrier to the exterior of the garage and will now replace the deteriorated wood and drywall.
If you aren't familiar with our renovation plans... the next step will be to replace the driveway and wrap it around to the back of the house. Build a carport out back then turn the garage into a full-blown living space (aka: my future studio). So far, so good.
If you're following along with the Scripture Memory / Dwell Richly printable, here's the verse for week 10:
The Lord will watch over your coming & going both now and forevermore. Psalm 121:8 (NIV)
It's been a while since I've written an update about our lives... so hold onto your seat. Here's the skinny on what's been happening around the Todd Nest the past three weeks (broken up into two posts).
We began constructing a massive chalkboard onto our dining room wall...
And we finished it just in time for JD's surprise birthday party! JD turned the big 3-0 in February. How did I pull off the surprise? I spoiled all of the little surprises I had for him leading up to the big surprise. I also had lots of friends helping out along the way (i.e. my neighbor Elizabeth who let / helped me cook everything at her house during the ice storm the day before, Julie for making sure the guys got together so that a group of friends could help me set up the party in the house)!
Unfortunately, the cake was pink but he LOVES Newk's strawberry cake. I couldn't resist. At least I could top it with a few black mustaches to give it some manlihood? We also had a few stacks of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle rub-on tats that the kids were loving (thanks for this recommendation, Katy Jo).
Then we had the snow storm one week later. Huntsville shut down, per the usual. Before you tell us that we're crazy, let me suggest that our town is simply not equipped with the types of machines, cars or tires to drive in the snow that then quickly turns into ice. It was easier to drive around in the 4 feet of snow in Japan than it is to drive in six inches of snow / ice in Huntsville. All that to say, JD and I put on our snow boots, trekked through the trails on the 'mountain' and came back home to hang out with the neighbors later that evening.
A few neighbors came over and sat with us by the fireplace, hot cocoas in hand, while the kids were secretly building us this snowman (this came after the boys threw snowballs at our windows - all in good fun, right?).
Then we woke up the next morning and hit the golf course slopes for some sledding...
A couple of weekends ago, JD and I had the opportunity to sell merchandise at the CORE15 youth conference at Summit Crossing. Casey Darnell led worship for the weekend then KB had a concert Saturday night.
Basically, the concert was super intense and so much fun. Imagine JD, myself, Katy Jo and Matt (all pictured above) jumping up and down, pumping our fists and having a great time... The day after, we learned that we just can't keep up with high schoolers anymore (at least KJ and me can't). We're old and walked around in pain for about three days after that.
Tune back in Thursday for the rest of the update...
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