Three More…

Hey, everybody! I forgot to list these great artists…you should really go check them out –

•  Anthony Skinner (www.myspace.com/anthonyskinner or on ITunes)
• Derek Webb – The Ringing Bell (www.myspace.com/derekwebb or on ITunes)
• Mute Math – My friend Paul Meaney’s band (www.myspace.com/mutemath or www.mutemath.com or on ITunes) You can check them out on David Letterman on July 17th and you can vote for them to open up the Virgin Music Festival at www.virginfestival.com/mutemath.

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My House Is A Mess

So, Don and I are trying to get our house ready to sell – we are having a “For Sale By Owner” open house this Saturday from 10-4 (for those of you who may be in the market to buy a new home). The getting ready process is nuts – my house is a mess. I’ve never understood why cleaning up required things to get so un-clean first. We’re having our front yard ripped up and re-sodded today. Our carpet is being replaced Friday morning. We had the entire house pressure washed yesterday and the air conditioner serviced. It takes money to make money… (I’m telling myself that over and over)

Anyway – we would appreciate your prayers that the house sells quickly – an offer this Saturday would be great. God is doing some new things in the Printy household – we have never been able to say that life was boring around here. I don’t think I have any friends or family members who could say that either.

Introducing…

One of my favorite writer’s ever has her own blog – finally! Welcome, Angela, to the blogosphere!

www.agentlejoy.wordpress.com

On My IPOD

So – a lot of people ask me about new artists that they should check out…so here are a few I’ve found recently that I love.

• Brian and Jenn Johnson (www.brianandjennjohnson.com)
• Jackson Waters (www.myspace.com/jacksonwaters.com)
• Copeland – Eat, Sleep and Repeat (www.myspace.com/copeland)
• Leeland – Sound of Melodies (www.myspace.com/leelandmusic.com)
• Mindy Smith – Long Island Shores (www.mindysmith.net)
• Rick Pino – Angel of Awakening (www.rickpino.com)

You can find all of these on ITunes or on their respective websites. Leave me some comments and let me know what you have been listening to…I’m a new music junkie. 🙂

Coffee Withdrawals…

After just one day – my head is about to explode….

Bed Head

I just couldn’t resist….

Some Things I Think Are True…

Most of you that read my blog are creative types. That’s just the way it is….creativity draws creativity. I LOVE that – I love to be surrounded by imaginative people – people who don’t live with limits or boundaries of what can’t be done. In my years of directing a creative arts ministry, I have learned a few things – all of which I am still trying to implement in a more effective way. I don’t care who you are or what line of work you are in, none of us have perfected the implementation of known truths.

Anyway, here are a few Monday morning creativity rants –

1. Creativity doesn’t take a lot of money. Carolyn and I balk at this one all the time. How can it NOT take a lot of money? Everything costs money, right? Well – I think we’ve proven over this past year that we can do a lot with nothing. That’s the fun of being creative, isn’t it? I love it when we can figure out a way when there is no way.
2. Creativity needs friends. – Friends who never say “can’t” or “impossible” – friends who ALWAYS say, “that’s a great idea, how about this….?” We have creative team meetings often around here. It’s hard not to be negative, but it doesn’t accomplish anything. I want to get better at encouraging my team members and giving them ROOM to think outside the box.
3. Creativity needs quiet. I have learned that I rarely come up with creative ideas when I’m in my office with the phones ringing, people chatting outside my door and e-mails to answer. I’m trying to learn how to be a better steward of my schedule so I can get OUT of the office and let God give me some awesome ideas….songs….poetry….leadership inspiration…
4. Creativity requires discipline. Sometimes I would rather sit on the couch and watch HGTV than get out my journal and be productive. Honestly, sometimes I NEED to just sit on the couch – but I don’t need to do it nearly as much as I do. Turn off the TV…the computer…the IPOD…the game system and practice being creative.
5. Creativity needs editing. My first idea is never a complete idea. You would never write a book one week and send it off to a publisher the next week. They would send you a quick rejection letter…count on it. Ideas need time to simmer and boil down to the good stuff – you need to set things aside and come back to them a week later and see if you still think it’s a good idea. Haste is never a friend to well executed ideas.

So – feel free to leave some comments on what you’ve figured out – or not figured out….

Stinky Things

I went to get Reagan out of bed this morning and found him sitting in a big stinky pile of puke….I know that’s gross….but it made me proud of myself. I didn’t get sick, I didn’t get grossed out – I just went into mommy mode and took care of it. I would do anything for my little man, including cleaning up his bodily fluids.

I know, I know – TMI… but this gets me thinking about how we approach other stinky things in our lives. The past couple of years have been one big stinky pile of mess after another – and while the easy thing would be to just walk away and let someone else clean up the crap, that’s not what I was raised to do. God would never allow more to get dumped on me than I could handle, so He must think I’m a pretty strong person. I can do all things through Christ because He has made me stronger than I give myself credit for. I can handle any situation that comes my way because He is in me and we’re working together on this thing. If I doubt my ability to handle a situation, then I doubt HIS ability to handle it, too.  -Selah-

The Deep Places

This is my favorite place of all time….

Seasonal Reflections

I am such a proud mama right now. The Glory Academy Production, “Seasons” was a fabulous event – I hope that you were all able to attend! If not, DVD’s are on sale now at www.gloryfinearts.com. You can also view some of the pictures on Bryan’s website at www.sublimephotos.com – They aren’t all up yet, but he has posted a few. Thank you to all of the fabulous volunteers, parents, my staff and most of all – the wonderful group of students who did an amazing job with the show. I am so proud of you! Let’s do it all again next season! 🙂

Leave me some comments and let me know what you thought of the show this year – I would appreciate it!