Simply Dawn

Only 8 Days to (in)RL 2013

Only 8 days left!

I am super excited about this opportunity to connect with women in my community…

IN.  REAL.  LIFE.

 

I mean, I get to connect with you all every time I post on this blog.  Every time I post on Facebook, it’s my way of reaching out of the “busy”-ness and chaos and trying to connect.  When you see a tweet or and instagram from me, it’s my little way of saying…I am trying, however feebly, I am trying to connect to you.

In real life, though, I really have to step out of my comfort zone.  It’s easy to hide behind a keyboard or smartphone, but when we are face to face…oh my, that is scary.  In real life, I have to focus.  I have to maintain eye contact.  I have to share the conversation time.  I have to open up and share and let people in, risk.  It’s times like that that I wish we all had to wear t-shirts.  On them it would say each person’s individual rules of engagement.  Then I would know how to play and follow the rules and there would be no errors and we would all have a marvelous time.  But real life takes practice, and there are no quick fix t-shirts, and even if there were, would we wear them?

So the (in)RL meetup coming up at The Waters church on the 27th of April, at 9:30am, is a much more targeted attempt to connect.  I want to see your face and watch you speak and hear your voice even if we are sitting at different tables…well, the hearing part would work at separate tables…the seeing part, not so much.  I want to be in the same room with you and have a chance to rub shoulders with you and eat muffins and sip coffee and laugh and cry with you.  I want to learn more about that Savior who gave His life for you and I.  I always want to learn to love you the way He loves me, and set aside my selfishness and prejudice and pride and see you the way He sees you and connect to you and have community with you, even if it takes a few tries.

Well, if you are fence about coming next weekend, let me encourage you!  I know that I won’t be the only one excited to see you and connect with you.  Please consider joining us for the morning!  I hope to see you there! 

Lovies,
simplydawn

p.s. -- don't forget to checkout the giveaway going on -- click here.

Updated: Review: A Story of God and All of Us Young Readers Edition & a Giveaway

UPDATE Monday, April 22, 2012, 10:50a.m.: Comments are now closed.  Because there were no comments left, this book will not be given away.

 

The press release:

A Story of God and All of Us Young Readers Edition

Based on the Epic TV Miniseries “The Bible”

By Roma Downey and Mark Burnett

ISBN: 9780316227896

A STORY OF GOD AND ALL OF US is a sweeping narrative that dramatizes some of the most important events and characters in the Bible. The young reader’s edition of the novel contains abridged action-packed versions of the Bible’s most fascinating stories, featuring Moses, David, Daniel, John the Baptist and Jesus.

This edition includes an exclusive introduction by author Roma Downey and a photo insert including images from the companion epic TV miniseries “The Bible.”

The review:

The story line was entertaining and skimmed the surface of some of my favorite stories of the Bible.  Being a “young readers edition,” I advise it for children around the ages of 8-12, who would have little or no exposure to the Bible.  Children who are familiar with the Bible will have lots of questions as this book is a dramatization written by the writer’s of the movie to spark interest.  It is not the actual Bible itself, nor meant to be a replacement.

My criticism would be to have footnotes stating the scripture references for each story at the end of each chapter or at the end of the book.  But then, that would make this more of a Bible study instead of a novel.

The giveaway:

If you would like to have a copy of A Story of God and All of Us Young Readers Edition to share with your favorite young person, you are in luck!  All you have to do is:

1.  Leave a comment below stating your favorite story from the Bible (1 entry).

2.  Share this post on Facebook, and come back and leave a comment stating you did (1 entry)

3.  Tweet this post and come back and leave a comment stating you did (1 entry).

No entries will be accepted after 9:00pm CST, Sunday, April 21, 2013.

One entry will be randomly selected on Monday, April 22, 2013 and announced in a follow up post and at the top of this post.

The fine print:

“Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

(in)RL 2013 is Coming to Sartell

It's only two weeks from now!

What?  I thought I told you a little while ago...well, technically I did not post about it.  However, I DID update my Timeline header in Facebook...so I kinda told you!

Anyhow, what is (in)RL?  It is a meetup of women who want to build community with one another, hosted by the women of the (in)courage community.  Just click on the link above and browse around a bit to find out more.  If it speaks to your heart, then register to join us on Saturday, April 27th at The Waters church, at 9:30am for a time of fellowship and fun...remember, it's free!

I will post more details when I am back in Minnesota...which should be soon!

Lovies,
simplydawn

Travelling Brings Out the PrimaDonna In Me!

The trip so far has been just what travelling with small children would be, except, praise God I have kept my cool...most of the time.  Here is a list of interesting things to remember...

• don't give a toddler a bag of snacks...of anykind...my floor and the carseat will never be the same
• do take off shoes and socks everytime you get in the vehicle and stash them somewhere YOU know where to find them
• do remember to unplug all electronic devices when exiting the vehicle...everytime
• you really should not instagram while driving...I shall resist today...but there are MOUNTAINS...real mountains!!!!
• when you drive into a town, and you have a hotel reservation, and you get a creepy Bates Motel feeling about the place...and you decide to check in anyways, and the guy is nice, and you are soooo hungry and road weary, you just want a place to eat, so you ask and decide to walk because it is only 4 blocks away and you have been driving all day...and you go to have dinner and the table is sticky and the lighting is bad and the food is overpriced and the people next to you are tying one on and then another and another...so you walk back to actually check out your room...and you find the table sticky there...and the toilet seat...and the tub...Well.......
  Just praise God that you have modern technology and are married to a fellow who is a wiz at booking hotel reservations and that your car runs and the man at the hotel offers a refund (redeemed) and you high tail it to the nearest gas station...which won't accept your card at the pump...so you head to the next one and meet the nicest little old man who warns...
  Be careful out there, Sweetie!
  Well then you pray a quick prayer of peace and cleanliness over the strange little town and hit the highway.
• Always charge your phone at the hotel
• Do pack as you go...when you are done with clothes, pack them away...be organized!
• Stop at state information centers...free postcards and Wyoming has amazing indoor vignettes and photo props...and the views...amazing!
• Stay hydrated
• Talk to the Walmart pharmacist...they are so helpful
• drive safe!

Lovies,DJ

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Leaving in a White Van...

patience wrought

'Bates Motel' Premiere Recap: 'Psycho' Prequel Promises Murder, Mayhem

Leaving in a White Van…

It’s kind of a crazy time.  I am getting ready to go on a big trip.  With two children.  One is four.  The other is diving head first into the terrific two’s.

Yep.  I have to head out to Washington and take care of Mom and her estate.

Weird.

I am so at peace about Mom’s stuff.  I am more unsettled about leaving my hubby and kiddos for this extended trip.

Oh, I know he can handle taking care of the six olders, just like I know they can handle being good for him.  They did it before.  Last year, in fact.

That’s a cool thing about my peeps…they are good at pulling together when it really counts.  And when performance isn’t so mission critical?  Well, let’s just say we have done such a smashing job at creating a “safe” place to be, that they have no problem letting every little bit of themselves just be themselves.  Home, sweet home.

I am gonna miss it.

One thing I have been doing is preparing things so that when I leave, they can fly as close to auto pilot as possible.  For instance, this morning, I created a printed calendar for my hubby (never mind the fact that we have an app on our phones linking up all our calendars and he has access to all this information on his phone…but I think he only uses it for work calls…and angry birds…and words with friends…oh, yeah…definitely words with friends…and physics demonstrations on youtube.)

I also printed all the pictures and cut out all the die cuts and had the kids color all the cut outs for a “Star of the Week” poster for Emily so that all Dad will have to do is glue stuff down when Emily’s turn comes.

Plus I have been working on a travel/loss/important things journal.  My friend Heather (check out her blog…use the link to your left) gave me a little kraft binder from Papertrey Ink.  I have been slowly pulling it together.  It’s not as pretty as it will be, but I did make up some digi’s to go with it.  Here is a peak:

I figured I should track these travel expenses separate from my account since they are related to closing out an estate.  I found a vintage form online, and it was alright, but it wasn’t the right size for the little binder, which holds 6x8” rather nicely.  So I made up my own.  I don’t know if you can see, but it looks old.  I didn’t print it with the antiquing background I created because I am totally cheap and didn’t want to buy new ink.
I figured I needed some notebook paper and so I made up a small format.  I distressed the lines a bit to give it an old look, and am pretty happy with how it turned out.  I rounded the top and bottom right corners…love the way that turned out (I did that with the travel expense sheets too…love it!)
I also figured that I would be seeing some pretty cool stuff, but be limited on time.  How does one frame a moment in words when you really only have a few seconds?  Haiku, of course!  I know, what a nerd!  Anyhow, I love making up little haikus, no matter how corny or random, they just frame a moment in 17 syllables!  This worksheet is printed on the back of the lined paper.

I will post more as the journal evolves.  I plan to put pictures in and perhaps come up with a graph paper…love graph paper!  Would be awesome to paste pictures to or do something artsy journally with.

I don’t know exactly why, but doing this is so good for me…creating in the midst of the chaos.

Hopefully I will be able to keep posting during this trip.  Definitely follow up with me on Facebook.  I will be posting there for sure!  I will post here when I get back if I can’t get out to typepad.

Lovies,DJ

The Little House That Stood–The Winner!

I am so excited to let you all know about the winner!  It was such a fun morning here as we put the names in a hat.  Oh for those of you not familiar with how I do a blog giveaway winner selection, I tend to use the hat method if I have less than ten names.  If I have more, I use a random number generator and select the comment with the number corresponding to the one the generator selected.  Makes sense?  Questions?  Leave a comment below.

Oh and before I tell you who the winner is, I wanted to let you know that I may be able to do another giveaway very soon!  I don’t want to give too much information because I don’t have all the details finalized, but once I know, you’ll know!  Ya know?

Okay, so I have kept you all waiting long enough.

The winner of The Little House That Stood DVD is:

Sarah Gabrielson!

Sarah, send me your mailing address in an email (you can use the about button to your left) and I will have your DVD sent to you!

The rest of you who participated…THANK YOU!

THANK YOU!  THANK YOU!  THANK YOU!

You all are so wonderful and supportive!  I appreciate you telling your friends about the giveaway and entering and leaving comments!  It’s been a rough patch for me the last month or so and it is so nice to have your support.  Thank you!

Alright folks.  Keep watching this blog.  I am trying to be more consistent and I promise that future content will include more than just giveaways.  But who doesn’t love a chance at a giveaway!

Talk to you all soon!

Lovies,DJ

The Little House That Stood Craft Guide

For all you craft lovers or lovers of craft lovers, the folks at VeggieTales have a fun little project to build!  So grab your color crayons, scissors and glue sticks and get ready for some foundational fun!  Just click on the links below to access the PDF’s.

Craft-Characters
Craft-Layout

If you haven’t already, make sure you click back to the giveaway post and enter to win your own copy of The Little House That Stood! Don’t forget to share with your friends!  Today is the last day to enter the giveaway!

And don’t forget to come back tomorrow to congratulate the winner!

Lovies,DJ

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The Little House That Stood & a giveaway!

The Little House That Stood Coloring Pages

The folks at VeggieTales provided us bloggers with some coloring pages to share with you all.  I have four!  Just click on the links below to access the PDF’s

Coloring Page #1
Coloring Page #2
Coloring Page #3
Coloring Page #4

If you haven’t already, make sure you click back to the giveaway post and enter to win your own copy of The Little House That Stood!  Only two more days to enter!  Don’t forget to share with your friends!

 

And don’t forget to come back tomorrow for a little more VeggieTales fun!

Lovies,DJ

The Little House That Stood Discussion Guide

Today is release day!

Leave it to the folks at VeggieTales To make it easier for us to engage our little ones in discussion about building our spiritual “houses” on a firm foundation.  Just click on the link below to access the PDF

Parent Discussion Guide

If you haven’t already, make sure you click back to the giveaway post and enter to win your own copy of The Little House That Stood!  Don’t forget to share with your friends! 

And don’t forget to come back tomorrow for a little more VeggieTales fun!

Lovies,DJ

The Little House That Stood & a giveaway!

The winner of The Little House That Stood DVD is:

Sarah Gabrielson!

 

The nice folks over at Grace Hill Media sent me a copy of the latest Veggie Tales movie, The Little House That Stood, to review.  In true Veggie Tale fashion, we have been delighted again!  The DVD releases Tuesday!

 

The Little House That Stood is based on the parable of the wise and foolish builders.  Remember my Harry Belafonte post last week?  Well, I was just setting you all up for today!  The bible verse goes like this in the NIV:

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. ²⁶ But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. ²⁷ The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” Matthew 7:24-27

All our old friends are back:

Bob the Tomato plays the part of the Wise Builder and you would think he builds with bricks, but oh no my friends, he builds with wood (just like my hubby!)  Bob believes in building on a firm foundation and taking time to make sure his homes will stand.

Larry the Cucumber plays the part of one of the foolish builders.  He uses straw, doesn’t pay attention to the Master Builder’s book, and risks the homeowner’s safety.  Firm foundations are not necessary!

Mr. Lunt (we aren’t sure exactly what he is, here at our house) plays the other foolish builder.  He uses brick, is done with his work by noon and it looks good from the outside.  In regards to foundations, “Why worry about the stuff people won’t see!”

There are a few new friends too:

The three little pigs join the cast, looking for some new digs.

The silly song, “Happy ToothDay,” is sung by Larry and has a bossa nova beat.

The second story is a nursery rhyme mashup retelling of Humpty Dumpty called, “The Good Egg of Gooseville.”  The egg is crackin’ from stretching so thin helping others that he decides it is too much and focuses on himself for a change.  Chaos ensues and the town learns a lesson in helping others, as in the parable of the Good Samaritan (you can look that one up in Luke 10:27-37.)

So overall this is a great DVD and packed full of fun extra features we will talk about in this week’s upcoming posts.  Now, on to the giveaway.

Would you like to have your own copy of The Little House That Stood?  Just follow the rules below.  Make sure to post your entries before 9:00pm, Thursday, March 7th.  Winner will be announced on Friday, March 8th before 9:00pm.

Giveaway Rules:

1.  Leave a comment below stating your favorite nursery rhyme.
    (Facebook comments will not be accepted.)

For more chances to win:

2.  Share this giveaway on Facebook and leave a comment below that you shared for one entry.

3.  Share this giveaway on Twitter and leave a comment below that you tweeted for one entry.

So you have the chance for three entries!

Keep watching for more VeggieTales fun this week!  I have a few more tools to share to help you and your children build your house upon the Rock!

Good luck!

Lovies,DJ