Why Not?

This one I did with Pencil Crayons, it is the word Heart.

Why is it that when we get older the colouring books go away and we replace them with things like bank statements, hydro bills, emails, movies, computers, iPads, etc.

I love to colour, probably one of the main reasons I have a creative lifestyle. I take time to colour things in, I colour code my calendar, I colour in the squares for birthdays. I have all of the markers, crayons, pencil crayons, paints, and pastels you could ever imagine. I love when my nieces come over because if I can convince them, we get to colour! YAY! Although sometimes they would rather watch a movie, and that always boggles my mind. We can do both! I try to convince them... what ends up happening is I end up colouring while they watch a movie...

We've all gone the way of high-tech, I get it, Me too, sometimes it is easier just to pull something together in illustrator rather than actually sit down and write it out.

But sometimes we need to take a minute and colour, it frees our minds and our hearts.

I've been creating words lately and colouring them in, so I thought I'd share a few with you.
These ones are Hope and Gratitude. It's just a scribbled word, but when you colour in each section it becomes a kaleidoscope of colour, almost stained glass... it's a wonderful activity to do while you meditate and pray...

It's definitely different than my usual printable, these ones are DIY, you get to be creative, you get to make them beautiful...

Print them off on your printer at home, Colour them in and see how it feels... I hope you enjoy!
Share the love,
M.

>> More GROWN UP Colouring pages here :) <<

>> EVEN MORE GROWN UP Colouring Pages << 

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My hope all coloured in :) I used makers for this one

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Sunday. Like A Runaway Freight Train.

Sunday is coming like a runaway freight train. I've been asked to share about our Living Life On Purpose Journey 2015 with our church. I have 10 minutes. YAY! oh man, I'm kinda freaking out. I mean... What do I tell them?

Do I tell them everything? Do I tell them how this came about? how much detail do I give? Do I tell them to read my blog? do they know I have a blog? maybe I should tell them I have a blog. It's kinda an untapped group of people who know me and love me and support me... but do they really know me? Do you guys know more about me than some of the people at church? I hate to even say this, but yes.

Now of course the people at church know we desire to have babies, after you've been married for 13 years and there are no babies, people start to wonder and ask questions...  I know they pray for us, and hope with us... but I'm not sure they know the extent of our journey. Do I want to share that? Is it easier to share with you guys than it is with people who see my face weekly? In all honesty, yes.

and in the midst of my mini (because I have had much bigger) freak out, this is what I hear... "be still & know.... be still. Be still and know that I am God... just be still..."

Is this the moment He turns my mess into a message? Is this the moment that I step out? That I become ... alive? real? I've shared my heart one on one with people I know, I've shared face to face with people I fully trust, and I've shared with people whose hearts are also broken, or mending...  Maybe Sunday is the day things change. Maybe Sunday is the day my church family will really see my heart, truly unveiled for the first time... Maybe Sunday my mess of a message will help someone else's hurts... maybe... but until then I am going to try to live in these words... Be still and know that I am God.
Share the love,
M.

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It's ParTEA Time!

It's Partea Time!
See what I did there. I know, I'm so sneaky!

This little print was suppose to go up on my Etsy shop, but I just loved it so much I wanted to share! I will be putting larger sizes up on Etsy for download... but for you guys- I love how much you are supporting us and sharing in our journey, I wanted you to know how much I appreciate you, so here you go!

Now it's Partea TIME...
I am officially getting off my computer and going to make supper... I'm just about cross eyed- it's been long day of work! Happy Monday!

Share the love,
M.

PS. I know, I know, sometimes we parté and sometimes we party, but tonight it's parTEA time :)

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Chocolate.

Sometimes the only answer to any question asked is chocolate. Would you like to go out? Chocolate.
Should I clean the basement or go for a walk? Chocolate. You catch my drift.
I'm reading through the book, "One Word that will change your life"*  by Jon Gordon, Dan Britton and Jimmy Page (yup, three guys to write one teeny tiny little book-) with my hubby (well he's reading it to me- cause that's my favourite). We just started. It has been a crazy beginning to the year, and I feel like I'm behind already and we've barely just begun. But today I plan to take some time to look inward and quiet myself. If I had to guess at this exact moment what my word would be, I'm going to go with Chocolate.  It's just that kind of day :)

So in honour of Chocolate that magical concoction unearthed by the Mayans and perfected by the Swiss, this one's for you!

Share the love,
M.

*embedded link to amazon.com up there :) 

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Z is for Zebra Speed Painting Video

Are we connected on Facebook? If not, you can click >>  here << and we can hang out there too. I tend to post a few thing there that don't ever make it to the blog... one of my favourite things to post, are little sneak peeks into how I create my graphics.

This little "Z is for Zebra" Print is up on my Etsy Shop, but I wanted to share how he got created :) 

Hope you enjoy!

Share the love,

M.

(PS. it has music, so you might want to turn your speakers down a little...)

Body Break! Take A Break from Society.

Do you remember Hal and Johanne, who used to do Body Break! in the 80's. If you aren't sure what Body Break is, i'm sure you can youtube it, but it was a minute or so commercial on tv that taught you something healthy, this was just at the beginning of the health craze that has since taken over every aspect of our lives. Oh my goodness... it is crazy.

Anyway this year the hubby and I decided to make changes that makes our body's happy, for me, that means playing squash, throw in some weight lifting and the elliptical/treadmill, about 4-6 times a week (when I am not injured from falling off said treadmill). Now, let's be clear here, this body is made for comfort not for speed... I'm  built more like a Cadillac than a F1 race car, and I'm ok with that. But I also know that air plane seats are getting smaller as they try to pack more of us on a flight than every before. So on that note, I want to make sure I fit nicely into a seat for our long (long, long, long) flight to Uganda this fall. Duy and I also talked a lot about living a long time, apparently I feel like I'm going to live forever and Duy, well he is happy with his biblical allotment 70 years or so. Me- I scream and balk at the idea of only having 70 years. I have way too much to do, and so much to give that I just don't think one lifetime will be enough- but I digress...

We are soul/spirit beings that are housed in beautiful bodies that come in all shapes, sizes and colours... Make sure you don't judge yourself on your package... the gift lies within. In our society it is hard not to be hard on ourselves. I just want to remind you- be kind to you, take care of you, and love you. You are a miracle and you are here for a purpose, whatever that may be... you are awesome. 

Share the love,
M.

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Fat Tuesday or Cat Tuesday?

Is today Fat Tuesday? or Cat Tuesday? the cat totally won.

I don't have a cat, but for those of you who do, I know you love them as much if not more than I love my Timothy the Dog. Also I believe If I were an animal, my preferred lifestyle is that of a cat, or a bear. Cats always find the sunniest spots for napping... and bears, well they eat all summer and sleep all winter... So Maybe I'm a CatBear.  :)

Anyway Happy Shrove Tuesday!
If you haven't seen my Lent Calendars, perfect to start tomorrow!
Check them out here >> LENT CALENDAR <<

Share the love,
M.

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All Good Things...

All good things are wild + free.

Sometimes I feel the only thing about me that is wild and free is the peach fuzz that may or may not be residing on my upper lip. Oh but I do dream. But is Wild and Free actually a reality? Can we ever be truly free? free to just up and go, and if so, where?

I don't really think we can ever be truly free... but can our spirits be wild and free? Can we have our head in the clouds and our feet on the ground? We are bound by family ties, monetary ties, jobs, memories, dreams, goals, life in general, and for me- Timothy the Dog. Is that a bad thing? No... being tied to things in life is not bad- those are the things, I feel, will be most important in our lives - I mean not my mortgage payment, but my home, the place we laughed, loved and grew.

So what are some of the things that keep you from being totally wild and free and you are so grateful for? I definitely have a a few...

Share the love,
M.

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How Much Wood, Would a Woodchuck... donate. Just $1!

I am in full force up and running with my new "Dollar Donate to Download" campaign. I've always had a donate button, and I really appreciate those who have donated... I also know that donating maybe just a buck, feels insignificant sometimes- but it is not, every dollar counts.  So in order for everyone to feel at ease, (and me too, because sometimes when people ask for a donation, I give nothing instead of just giving a dollar,  because I feel like it's not big enough- But it is. I am asking for a dollar a download, no more... just 1 dollar. And I myself have made a commitment from now on, if I can only give a dollar when someone asks me for a donation, I will give that dollar, because every dollar counts. I didn't realize the truth behind that until I started this journey of Living Life On Purpose. 

And yes I am shamelessly promoting this, because the funds do not go to me... they go to children whose smiling faces flood my dreams at night. They are going to children I cannot wait to meet, to play with, to hear their stories, to share my art, and to open my heart too. I am overwhelmed with love for these little people I have never met.

We are working on our wish list for larger donations, at the moment we would love to take soccer balls and air pumps, as well as some badminton equipment and a few more things. I might also looking for a sponsor who would like to join with me to create t-shirts for all of the children (I know I will be working up until the day we leave) there are 73 children (!).

Along this journey or preparing, my commitment to you, is that I will continue to create great quality art and prints that I would be proud to display in my own home, and I would be proud for you to display in your home as well. If you have any scriptures, or sayings, that you'd like to see in a print, please let me know! I'd love to see what I can come up with... Let's Create Together!

But for now, I will leave you with another sweet Woodchuck, because I think I love them! and how much wood, would he chuck? that is always the question, and my response remains the same- no idea.

Share the love,
M.

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Wood You Be Mine?

"WOOD you be mine?" said the woodchuck.
"I wood, I wood, I wood!" said I.

Share the love,
M.

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I like you a latte.

I'm in the middle of drinking my coffee, and I'm so excited that Starbucks (I know, not the best coffee in the world, but not the worst either... trust me, I've had a lot of coffee... in a lot of different places...) will be adding Coconut Milk to their line up of non-dairy milk substitutes, which means I'll be able to have a latte - which means I'm extra excited. Which means this happened.

And to think, just in time for Valentine's Day.
Oh, I do like you a Latte!
From me to you!
Share the love,
M.

Remember if you like these prints, please Donate to our Living Life On Purpose 2015 Journey. We are super excited and honoured that you would help us give to this orphanage. Our tickets are bought and we are now raising funds to leave directly at the orphanage to build more buildings, buy more books, plant more food, make/buy clothing etc. Share the love. Every dollar counts. 

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My Happimess.

Welcome to my Happimess... NESS, Happiness, I meant happiness. Um, ya-  that's what I meant. If you could see my studio/office you would totally understand :)  (scroll down to see a sneak peek)

My life is full of happimess. I know I ought to coin this word. Life is messy. Very very messy. No matter how hard we work to keep it running smoothly it gets messy. Relationships are messy, children are messy. Not having children is messy. My eating habits (I blame it on not having children- I eat in my favourite chair, I eat watching tv, I eat standing in the kitchen, I eat at my desk) my eating habits are messy.  My work habits, my cleaning habits, my friendships, my goals. Pretty much everything is one big Happy Mess. And that suits me just fine.

Do I wish I had it all together? Yup.
Will I ever have it all together? Nope.
Is that ok? Yupers.

The question is, what will I do about my happimess? Will I try to hide it? Or will I share it. I choose to share it. I want you to know that life is messy. In the world we live in today, where photoshop and instagram (don't get me wrong, I love love love instagram, and the instagram filters- they make my skin look flawless... you can find me using LostBumblebee- but I digress) Nothing is as it seems.  Do I love that? No. Can I deal with it? Yes. Because I know everyone is running their own race. I know that what I choose to share is exactly that- what I've chosen to share.  So don't believe all you see... don't believe that everyone has it all together except you... they don't... trust me :)

I hope you are ok that I share my messy life...
Share the mess. We're in this thing together!
Share the love,
M.

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Timothy The Dog + I share a studio :) 

YOU ARE WONDERFUL :: LIVING LIFE ON PURPOSE 2015 UPDATE.

I just wanted to give you all an update on our Living Life On Purpose 2015 Journey.

We are in fundraising full throttle! We are raising money like crazy people, (at least I feel like I am going crazy!) I am constantly trying to come up with new ideas for the blog, Etsy and basically anything I can do to help raise these funds.  It feels awesome and very scary all at the same time!

I want to thank you - each and every one of you- who has clicked that donate button. Every bit counts, 1 dollar or 100 dollars... big or small, it all adds up and it is making this journey a reality. You have heard my heart and you are sharing the love and you are inspiring me to keep on going.

Just think... even a little nobody Canadian girl can do something so wildly out of her comfort zone because I have your support, not just financially, but emotionally. I appreciate all of your kind words, and you sharing your stories. You are making this a reality. I cannot thank you enough. 

Our main sources of raising money are, selling my art work (family portraits + paintings), creating and selling Journal Cards, Illustrations and Prints on Etsy. That along with all donations that have come in via the blog, we have raised just under half of what we need.

With that half, we have bought our tickets. We will be working at a Children's Village in Uganda for what accidentally turned out to be 5 weeks, instead of 4...ooops ? or YAY! Either way, it is what it is.  We leave our cozy little home and head off to the great unknown on the 27th of September and we will be back on November 3rd. I am freaking out. I am excited, and I am scared, and nervous and well, freaking out.

Please connect with me, share your stories, let me hear your heart. You hear mine every day. I love to hear from you. Your encouragement is undoubtedly one of the highest honours you can give me and I thank you for that.

Please Pray for us as we continue to work our butts off, creating revenue and income to help in this journey and we'd like to leave the orphanage a financial gift to continue to help in paying for the children's education, healthcare, and love care. It takes a village to raise a child... and it takes a BIG village to raise an orphan... we are that village.

I cannot say thank you enough, you have grown my heart so big it is popping out of my chest. I am so honoured by each and every one of you. YOU ARE WONDERFUL !

Share the love,
Missie + Duy

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Simple.

Sometimes simple is best.
Be Mine.

Share the love,
M.

If you are into Project Life Journaling, be sure to check out my new JUMBO LOVE collection on Etsy.

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Firework.

It's crazy how a few words in one song can really change your perspective.

You're a Firework.

You are a one of a kind spark of energy and light that can do anything. 
Anything. Period. 
If you think it, and believe it, you can achieve it. 
You're a Firework. 
And don't you forget it!

So what are you doing?
Share the love,
M.

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