Dear friends,
Earlier this summer, I started working on a fun new business venture. I am so excited to finally introduce to you, Doxology Press! This shop is a little piece of my heart - it combines my love of hymns and hymn texts with my love of paper and calligraphy. I designed these prints so that the sweet words of these beautiful old hymns can live on in our hearts and homes.
Can you believe we're more than halfway through 2014?! It's been a crazy year so far but a lot of good has come from it! Here is an update on the goals I set at the beginning of this year:
SMARTER BUSINESS
Schedule more emails - Boomerang is the best. I schedule all my invoices at once each month - huge time-saver!
No checking email after dinner - I did pretty well with this during the semester, but I've slacked off this summer. Time to get back to better boundaries!
Streamline the workflow of my business - I did some research at the beginning of the year on invoice management programs, but I'm not sure it's the right time to introduce something like this into my studio. Working on a few new plans for billing and payments to implement in September.
Start a new mini blog series - Yes! I created a Taxes for Freelancers series this spring - see posts here, here, here, and here.
Read The $100 Startup - Started it this month!
Last week, I shared some of my favorite (new!) anthems for adult choir. Today, I'm sharing my reading session picks for children's choir!
*Disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.
Guide Us, Lord (Mark Patterson)
Unison/two-part Choir with Piano and optional Viola
The text for this anthem is the well-known Prayer of St. Richard of Chichester. Wonderful, reflective piece - would be great for Lent.
Sing for Joy, Sing Together (Mark Patterson)
Unison/two-part Choir with Piano and optional Flute and Finger Cymbals
Fun! Great song of praise for young singers any time of the year.
How Far Is It to Bethlehem? (arr. David Music)
Unison Choir with Piano
Beautiful setting of this lovely tune, interwoven with "Away in a Manger."
I See You, God (Mark Burrows)
Unison/two-part Choir with Piano
Great text and lovely melody - "Who says you're invisible? I see you all around..." Perfect for young, inquisitive choristers!
What Child Is This? (arr. Melissa Malvar-Keylock and Jill Friedersdorf)
Unison, two-part, or three-part Choir with Piano
Simple, but beautiful setting of this classic carol.
What are your favorite children's choir anthems?
Last month, SD and I spent 24 hours in Asheville, NC before heading to Lake Junaluska for Music Week. Neither of us had ever been to Asheville for any length of time and were grateful to have an extra day during our trip to explore the city a bit. Here is a little recap: When we got off the plane in Charlotte, it was hot and the air was thick with that familiar Southern humidity. We were a little weary after our early-morning flight, but eager to begin the "road trip" part of our journey from Charlotte to Asheville. Unfortunately, we had a slight fiasco with our first rental car (a worrisome wheel noise as soon as we pulled out of the parking lot), but the second car was fine. Before we knew it, we were on our way up and over the mountains!
We arrived at our destination - the Rankin House Inn - just a few blocks from center-city. The house sits up on a hill, shrouded by lush green trees. We climbed the stone steps up to the wide, welcoming front porch with painted turquoise floor, potted ferns, and of course, a white wooden swing at one end.
The innkeeper, dressed casually in a white T-shirt and khakis, greeted us warmly with that characteristic North Carolina drawl and made us feel right at home. We sat on the porch swing for a while, rocking our cares away and getting lost in the late afternoon breeze as it swept across the front porch. Heaven!
We ventured out on foot a little while later to explore downtown and peruse menus of the local eateries. The city was alive with buskers, street entertainers, and folks out enjoying the evening. Fun!
When we finally decided that yes, we really did want Southern cuisine, we stepped off the street into the Early Girl Eatery, a small but quaint restaurant with the kitchen in the front and dining room in the back. We couldn't resist the Skillet Fried Chicken and Gravy with sides of Collard Greens and Macaroni and Cheese and the Pimiento Grilled Cheese sounded almost too good to be true. Everything was delicious - a perfect first meal. Oh, and if they ask you if you want jam with your biscuit, the answer is yes. Locally made and the best we've ever tasted! We were a little too full for dessert, but we took a slice of Buttermilk Cake to go (because, Buttermilk Cake).
In the morning, over a breakfast of muffins and fruit salad, we asked the innkeeper more about the story behind the old Rankin house. He was happy to share its history and his part in preserving its legacy.
He showed us around the rest of the house, pointing out trim here and floors there. He even pulled out a few old photographs from an old yellowed envelope from when he first bought the place 20 years ago. What a transformation!
We walked downtown around 11:30 a.m. to stroll a bit more and grab a bite to eat before leaving town. We settled on crepes from Twisted Crepe and were not disappointed! Already looking forward to our next visit to this vibrant city!
Have you visited Asheville? What are some of your favorite things to see or do?
Photo Credit: Images of Early Girl Eatery by Meredith Perdue of Map and Menu
It's July 9, which can only mean one thing—it's time to start listening to Christmas music!
As a church musician, I do a lot of planning in the summer, especially for Advent and Christmas.
We attended a number of reading sessions at Lake Junaluska a few weeks ago and came home with a stack of our favorites.
Here are my top 5 (new!) anthems for adult choir:
*Disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.
Sweetest Music, Softly Stealing (Elaine Hagenberg) SATB Choir with some divisi with Piano
Lovely text and gorgeous setting by a new name in church music—Elaine Hagenberg.
The Work of Christmas (Dan Forrest) SATB Choir with some divisi, a cappella
Beautiful text by Howard Thurman and lovely setting by Dan Forrest. Great for the Sunday after Christmas or during Epiphany.
Pilgrim Song (arr. Lloyd Larson) SATB Choir with optional Flute
The adult choir at the Lake did an arrangement of this American folk hymn that was gorgeous but beyond the capabilities of most church choirs. Looking for something a little simpler? Here is a very nice, accessible arrangement by Lloyd Larson.
The Wexford Carol (arr. Howard Helvey) SATB Choir with Piano
This is a great setting of a classic, beloved carol. I love Howard Helvey's arrangements! Check out his arrangement of Ride on King Jesus, if you don't know it.
Thou Who Wast Rich (arr. Molly Ijames) SATB Choir with Piano
A lovely setting of a lesser-known Christmas carol, with text by Frank Houghton (based on 2 Corinthians 8). Beautiful!
Would you use any of these anthems with your choir? Which one is your favorite?
Next up: my favorite new anthems for children's choirs!
*Disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.
Happy July!
One of my favorite things about this month is the opportunity to display our patriotism and celebrate the gift of freedom.
In years past, this has meant lining up along Main Street, waving a flag and cheering the parade along its hilly route; sprawling out on a quilt under the stars, savoring a dish of ice cream, and admiring the fireworks display with appropriate "oohs" and "ahs"; and listening to John Philip Sousa marches on repeat.
This year, I think we'll cook some of our favorite all-American (i.e. Southern) food and watch the fireworks from the roof as we munch on chocolate chip cookie ice cream sandwiches.
Here are my goals for the month:
Walk every day and do 30 minutes of bike exercise each week
Go berry-picking (or cherry-picking)!
Review a few sight-reading series to recommend to students this summer/in the fall*
Clean up files from the school year – save/organize on hard drive*
Organize Lake J trip receipts, update records, and file
Start reading The $100 Startup
Schedule brunch on the roof with friends
Spend some time reassessing my annual goals and adjusting as needed
Complete final component of PhD qualifying exam
*carryover from last month
Have a happy 4th of July, y'all!
The air is fresh, sweet with the smell of roses. We've had fried chicken, collards, buttermilk cake (with chocolate frosting), and several tall glasses of sweet tea and my southern accent is already starting to come back. This can only mean one thing - it's Music Week!
If you've been reading this blog for a while, you know that Music Week (held at the beautiful Lake Junaluska in NC) holds a special place in my heart (read more here and here). This year, I'm honored to be presenting a session and accompanying one of the choirs!
In my session this week, I spoke about ways to share music and ministry beyond the four walls of the church, with the people of your community. I'll post a full recap soon, but for now, here's a sneak peek!
I love this quote - such a great reminder of what matters and why we do what we do.
Hope y'all are having a wonderful week!
It was March of this year — that's when I first felt the small tug on my heart.
SD and I had a heart-to-heart about where God might be leading us as we rode up the ski lift that next week, sun beaming down on the snow-covered slopes below us.
It was one of those conversations that stays with you, one I still cherish. It was a time and place in which we bared our souls in honesty and openness, unsure about what was ahead but willing to trust that God would make it clear in his time.
Change is never easy, especially when it's uncertain.
Certain change is almost easier, in a way. You know it's coming. You know what will change and how. You can prepare for it, or at least feel like you're preparing for it. But uncertain change requires a level of trust and surrender, believing that God will prepare you for whatever is in store.
Last month, we marked the beginning of summer with the sudden influx of several new and exciting prospects. Could this be the change God has been preparing us for? Are we witnessing his hands at work? The message was clear: Wait on me. Trust in me. Surrender to me.
Truth be told, I've never been very good at waiting. Waiting for that email to pop up in my inbox, waiting for that letter in the mail, waiting for the cake to cool before frosting. You know.
Sometimes, it feels as if nothing is happening. Waiting is stillness. All the while, I feel like I should be doing something — preparing, getting ready, making pros and cons lists (I am so Rory Gilmore). Tell me: How is waiting productive?
But I'm beginning to realize that in our waiting — our stillness — God moves.
So, we wait.
I'm learning to accept it, this season. I want to live a life of contentment, to rest in the unsettledness of life right now. I want to live in hope, not fear, and dwell in the security of God's grace and faithfulness rather than the insecurity of my actions and dreams.
Maybe you're there, too, in that place of waiting. Maybe you, too, struggle with the stillness. If so, I hope these words are as comforting to you as they were to me when I stumbled upon them while flipping through the hymnal last week:
"Only be still, and wait God's leisure in cheerful hope, with heart content to take whate'er thy Maker's pleasure and all-discerning love hath sent; we know our inmost wants are known, for we are called to be God's own."
- Georg Neumark (1657), translated into English by Catherine Winkworth (1863)
Be still, and wait on the Lord.
It's a cool summer morning, the rain just beginning to let up. The city noise below drifts in through an open window. And I'm thinking about adventure.
There's something to be said about having adventures - vacations, new jobs, ordering something "adventurous" off the menu (like that time we ordered bone marrow, right, SD?). Sometimes, we like to call these "Weekend Adventures."
Adventures do not have to be fancy or expensive. They don't have to be epic (no Fear Factor here, please and thank you). In fact, it's often the little things - the small, simple everyday adventures - that make us feel like we're living life to its fullest.
So, what's stopping you? Go have an adventure!
Here are a few ideas:
- go berry-picking at a local farm - pick out a new bottle of wine to enjoy with friends or your significant other - go for a hike - take a day (or an afternoon, or a weekend!) to go explore a new town or city nearby - visit your local farmer's market and make something new for dinner! - explore a second-hand bookstore and pick out a new summer read (or two!) - host brunch for a few close friends
What adventures will you have this summer? Leave a comment below!
*Disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.
May was a wonderful month of rest and rejuvenation. I finished my last semester of formal classes as a PhD student (hooray!) and we did lots to celebrate the return of warm, summery weather:
- took walks almost every day
- visited our neighborhood bakery (on a few occasions)
- had happy hour on the roof
- tried a new-to-us recipe for homemade donut holes
- visited with family (and played a few mini concerts!)
- played tennis
- celebrated Memorial Day with a visit to a little farm vineyard for a wine-tasting and picnic lunch
I am looking forward to the fun things we have planned for June!
- my year-end studio recital
- our annual Lake week (see here and here)
- house-sitting with three sweet pups!
Walk every day and do 30 minutes of bike exercise each week
Finish reading A Million Little Ways
Continue intentional time off of social media - daily after dinner and time on weekends
Take steps to organize finances
Look up berry-picking schedules for local farms
Review a few sight-reading series to recommend to students this summer/in the fall
Clean up files from the school year - save/organize on hard drive
Finalize workshop materials for June conference
Happy June!
