I’m just writing. [for (in)courage....]
And holiday-ing.
And spending time with family.
And partying.
And dancing.
And writing. [some new stuff....]
And resting.
And writing. [That leader's guide is killin' me.]
And hanging with friends.
And enjoying all the musicians being home from their tours.
And running. [ugh.]
And laughing.
So all that to say…
I’m here.
I’m just living.
See y’all soon.
What an amazing night. It was cool that so many of our friends gathered together at Daily Grind and hugged and chatted and laughed and talked about things like, “Hey, remember that time you moved to Nashville to write a book? I didn’t think you’d do it. You did. See you later.”
I'm a dork.
Bookmarks!
Close your eyes if you are the cutest girl in the world.
College besties.
Home friends are awesome.
MARIE!
I love Mere.
Grateful for my teacher friends!
Stacks o books.
So sweet.
TONS more pictures are on my FACEBOOK AUTHOR PAGE. Check ‘em out. And while you are there, click the little “LIKE” button, so you don’t miss out on things like brand new recipes [coming in 2 weeks!], some secret book sales, and you know, other life-changing stuff. 
If you missed the party and still need to grab a copy of the book- head to AMAZON!
[If you've finished the book, would you mind writing a REVIEW ON AMAZON?]
I’m gonna take a little holiday break, like the rest of you fine folks out there.
So have a Merry Christmas, my friends.
In exactly 30 days, I land in Scotland for a four week adventure that I have anticipated, on some deep-in-my-knower levels, since 2000.
I don’t even know how to talk about it.
I have so many questions for God. I hope Scotland holds those answers. Maybe not the place itself, but the time. The distance. The lonely moments without any of my friends. The quiet moments. The conversations with my Scottish friends. Conversations with my God.
So I’ll pack my things in one suitcase [or two] and I’ll stuff my questions in side pockets, shoes, and other tiny spaces.
I have questions about my art. What is next? What does that look like? How soon can I start and how soon will I be done? Is it another book? It is something else?
I have questions about art in general. And creating. And worship. And how my life is art and how I want to grow in that.
I have questions about my future. Is it Nashville? I hope so. Is it Scotland? I hope so. [And 2 "I hope so" statements aren't a good thing.] It is some weird hybrid of the two + more? Is this trip about clarity or deeper longings? I want to know what’s next.
I have questions about God. And me and God. And who we are as a unit, if that makes any sense at all. I want to know Him and I want to know what our next adventure will be.
I have questions about this little book. About God’s plan for it. About where God’s plan for it meets and takes over my plan for it. And what the next steps are.
I have questions about relationships. [Oh here she goes.] About why some work, about why some don’t, about why some have to be sacrificed on the altar of God Knows Best. About how to have healthy boundaries and healthy honesty and how to cultivate the kind of community that breathes those things.
I have questions about how all these things work together. What does this puzzle look like when all the pieces are finally laid down? How do my desires to be a speaker and my desire to live overseas coexist? I feel like my dreams are an overflowing toy chest and I can’t decide which toys to play with first.
I have questions about my dreams. The ones that I shout from the rooftops and the ones that I barely can whisper to my closest friends. And I have questions about your dreams. And how we keep talking about them until they are real.
I have a lot of questions. Many of them I am almost too afraid to ask.
It is not that Scotland is to be a Magic8 Ball that I turn upside down for answers. Instead, I want Scotland to stir up those bubbling questions so fiercely that I can’t help but seek out the answers.
I feel the bubbles even now. I can’t tell you how many times a day they simmer and pop and float to my mind. I don’t know what it is, I don’t know what God is doing, but I know the times, they are a changin’. In the words of CS Lewis, “Aslan is on the move.”
So a month from today, when I am a weary but happy traveler, I hope I don’t have all the answers. I hope I am not looking for answers.
I hope, instead, that I can no longer contain the questions.
I grabbed lunch this week with Mandy and her two boys and Alison and her two girls.
It was a full table at Chick-fil-A.
It was a fun table at Chick-fil-A.
And one time, when Alison was telling me a story, she was talking so loud and excitedly that another patron at the restaurant shushed us.
In public.
Someone shushed us.
That’s funny.
It was a great lunch. While the two girls and Mandy’s eldest son played in the indoor playground, the three of us sat at the table and talked and maybe I cried and Amos sat quietly with us.
Look how cute he is! Bless his heart, the other children were able to escape my desire to photograph cute kids, but Amos has no shoes. He also isn’t able to walk, so he couldn’t get away. So there he sat. In a onesie with grey fleece pants.
I said, “wait a minute, Mandy. I actually have that same outfit.”
And whether this is the most embarrassing blog moment in my life or not, it is pretty funny that I can imitate a one year-old’s clothing in my own closet. So I’m going for it.
Yep. I own a onesie. Yep. I own grey fleece pants. Nope. This is not the most flattering portrait ever taken of me, but I’m not trying to get you to marry me. I’m just trying to show you my infant pajama collection.
[By the way, of course I own grey fleece pants. You could dress me in fleece from head to toe (From Head to Foot?) for three days straight and not repeat a piece of clothing. I'm not saying that to brag. I'm asking for a fleece intervention.]
And yep, it is totally cool to wear pants over a onesie.
I sense you judging me.
I can’t blame you. This whole fleece confession may have been a mistake.
. . . . . . . . . .
Today my dear friend Emily is giving away FOUR AUTOGRAPHED COPIES! of my book. [And her post made me cry because sometimes God gives you friends that you totally don't deserve, who fight in your corner no matter what, and who let you stay in their house until your heart feels better. Emily is one of those friends for me.]
Anyways, if you haven’t gotten the book yet, go try to win. I mean, I know you are a winner. Now go prove it, my friend.
…but not as much as you, you see.
But I still love technology.
Always and forever.
[Name that movie, people.]
Here are three reasons why I love technology:
#1. My book is available on your Kindle!
Here is the link :: http://tinyurl.com/anniesebook
[yes, it looks very similar to the tiny url to the regular book- but that one is "anniesbook". This one is "anniesEbook". It's the small nuances that really make life worth living, isn't it?]
[A "small nuance" is a bit redundant. Like an "added bonus" or a "free gift" or an "ATM machine" or writing "dollars" on your checks when the check clearly has the word "dollars" printed at the end of that second line.]
[I learned that in 7th grade business class.]
[Weird rabbit trail ends here. I promise.]
Anyways. If you, like me, have a deep love for your Kindle (mine is actually named Kindlella), then this might be a good option for you.
. . . . .
#2. Ann’s book is available on your Kindle!
If you don’t know my friend Ann Voskamp, well, you should. Her blog, A Holy Experience, is absolutely that every.single.day. And it is the only blog that has music that doesn’t make me insanely crazy. Instead, I can’t imagine reading Ann’s poetic prose without piano in the background.
She’s written a book. And it’s gorgie-poo.
And it is available in e-reader format here: One Thousand Gifts
I’ve already started it and it makes me want to cry tears of pure enjoyment. It’s like Jane Austen meets Amy Carmichael.
Yeah. You need her book.
. . . . .
3. When kids make videos.
Here is Rock. He’s awesome. And he says my name in a melt-my-heart kind of way. For sure.
Rock’s mom Sonnie is one of my BFFs and she’s become quite the beautiful blogger as of late. So hop/skip/jump/click if you wanna.
. . . . .
So, there is three-fold proof that I love technology.
I feel like I am awkwardly ending this post, like I’m walking backwards out of a party because I peed my pants and don’t want anyone to know.
I have not literally peed my pants.
Now I have made things terribly awkward.
[Also. I can't believe I talked about peeing my pants in the same post I talked about Ann Voskamp. Somewhere, a tiny bird just fell out of its nest in disgust.]
I’m just gonna leave now.
See y’all tomorrow.
[I'm not done talking about our dreams. But give me a few days....]
There are a few moments I want to share with you from our trip to Hawaii.
Do you recall this moment when our family rode in a big canoe?
Here we are.
So fun, right?
Then, our canoe sank. And because my mother had purchased a waterproof camera and she was facing me and was not required to paddle, she started snapping. And this moment happened that we must discuss.
Begin laughing now….
1. Look at the water. It is up to my waist. I mean, seriously. I’m smiling because I’m thinking, “This is going to be A.W.E.S.O.M.E. on my blog.”
2. Sally, on the other hand, is not even a little bit entertained. Girl is paddling like her life depends on it. She is mad and she is pushing water.
3. The Hawaiian? He is laughing. Rude.
About five minutes later, when they realized that HELLO WE ARE COMPLETELY SUNK they made us evacuate. In the ocean. Awful.
But it makes for a good story and a WAY better picture. I mean, that thing is funny.
Here’s another favorite:
Ok. This was the MOST DELICIOUS sweet potato recipe I have ever put into my mouth. And I want to share it with you. Tatum’s dear friend Audrey [who I also would like to call my friend, if you don't mind] made them and truly, they are delish.
Directions: Put the sweet potatoes, cranberries, and pecans in a casserole dish. Mix the cinnamon, ground cloves, maple syrup, brown sugar, and melted butter. Then toss the potatoes etc with the sauce. Squeeze the juice of an orange over the dish. Then slice it and drop the slices into the casserole. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or so, just until the potatoes are cooked through.
Sounds good, right? IT. IS. Times a billion.
Also. I can’t tell you how or where to get these, but I think they are the sweetest salt and pepper shakers I have ever known. They live now in Hawaii, but they will live on in my heart forever.
Please, please tell me that you have read the comments from the “My Dream Is” post. They are gorgeous and real and I can’t quit reading them.
Have you left your dream yet? Cause I want you to. For realz. It feels so good. [It hurts so good? Maybe.]
I don’t know how to process those dreams. I just keep reading them and loving them and thinking about all the ways you are going to change the world.
So read them and add yours.
. . . . . . . . . .
Today my elves [read: sweet friends] shipped out the AnnieBlogs Christmas packages and when they left the workshop, there were 14 packages left.
So grab one if you want one. They are cute and have some great surprises. So you should probs grab one for yourself or the young lay-deez in your life.
. . . . . . . . . .
That’s all I have today. I. Am. Spent.
But what a beautiful week.
Well, these last two days have certainly been a whirlwind. Not the scary tornado type, but the awesome warm windy Oz kind.
We have no clue how many copies of From Head to Foot have been sold in the first 48 hours, and that doesn’t totally matter. What was awesome was that social media was all.a.buzz.
It was really fun.
So thank ya kindly for your time and tweets. It really means more than you could ever know.
. . . . . . . . . .
And here’s how it started.
In my heart, I dreamed of someday writing a book.
In 2003, I went over to Drew & Natalie’s house. I took my laptop. I sat down beside Drew and said, “I think I want to write a book.” I then had him read a few practice chapters that were literally horrible.
But that was the first time I said it.
That was the start. I had a huge chunky laptop and I wondered if two page chapters would be acceptable. I wrote stupid things that really no one should ever have to read. I wrote a chapter titled “Valentine’s Day” and all it said was “I hate it.” IN THE WHOLE CHAPTER.
Yeah, good stuff.
I kept it 100% to myself until the day I told Drew and Natalie.
It’s been a seven year journey. There were multiple times that I wanted to quit. Heck. There were multiple times [including, but not limited to, April 2010] when I actually did quit and say, “nope, I’ll never get to be an author.”
[God made the whole thing happen and that's a much longer story than we have space for.]
But it would have never started if I didn’t say it outloud that day in Athens, Georgia sitting on the couch with Drew and Natalie.
And because you and I have been friends for a while, you’ve seen this whole thing unfold. [If you haven't, here is the Westbow Self Pub story.] So you know the end of the story.
But for things to even start, I had to say it.
It was a scary moment, to tell them. But I don’t regret it at all. Because, y’all, I have a copy of my own book on my bedside table. How could I regret that first moment when the end of the story is so stinkin’ cool?
I don’t even care if anyone else buys it. I have a copy of my own. That’s the real win. Right?
So I’m going to push you a little today. I’m not a major feather ruffler [huh?], but I’m going to make you molt today. You’ve got this whole comment section and nothing to be afraid of. Saying your dream doesn’t force you to act on it [I'm not the boss of you], it is just the first step.
And I have to wonder if you are here because you are dying for someone to give you permission to be brave.
And I have to wonder if we have the hugest collection of awesome dreams and I wonder if more people will dream if we say our dreams first.
You have permission to tell us.
Be brave.
Just say it.
My dream is __________________.
I’ll go first. A girl’s gotta dream….
First of all, the book comes out today. Yay yay yay!
Here is the link :: http://tinyurl.com/anniesbook
[By the way, that's the link that I implore you to share with your social media world. Thanks.]
Thanks again to Westbow Press. I could not have done this without them. Literally.
Now.
Let’s talk about Seattle.
It was marvelous. It started out Wednesday night with my emotional gas tank on totes empty- which is quite inconvenient when you are meeting tons of new people early Thursday and are supposed to be super helpful to your boss, Jeremy Cowart.
Which. By the way. Jeremy taught photography classes for 2 full days at creativeLIVE and he. nailed. it. I mean, I’m telling y’all, I’ve never been more proud to be his friend / employee / adopted family member / nanny / catch-all.
But I was exhausted- more than I have ever been. I prayed to God, saying “please help me. Really. I think I’m in big trouble here.”
Then I slept for 12 hours. So that was nice. A true answer to prayer. And it made Friday and Saturday way more awesome.
Help Portrait was also a super super great time. The only embarrassing moment, I now present to you. Let’s call it “When Annie Didn’t Know She Was Talking To A Famous Girl”.
Sheesh. Right? Sheesh.
And you won’t be surprised to know these things:
1. I cried. Twice. First when I was talking with our coordinator from Florida and the second time at the very end of the day, when I had just a minute to look in the camera and tell the crew in the booth, the producer, and the cameraman that I think they are some of the most wonderful humans I know. [More on that in a minute.] I mean, I had an in-ear monitor where they talked to me all day- talk in my ear for nine hours and I’m gonna be loyal to you for the rest of my days.
2. I loved every.minute.of.it. The skyping with Help Portrait peeps that I already knew via email, working with the creativeLIVE team, talking into a camera all the livelong day. I had the best seat in the Help Portrait house for sure. Anybody wanna give me a TV hosting job? Cause I might love it.
It was a great time.
The weather in Seattle was perfect- actually warmer there than in Nashville!
But the real win, the over-the-moon part, was for sure the people. Chase Jarvis, the photographer who runs this creativeLIVE thang, is a great guy and I loved spending time with him, his wife, and his team. I can’t start naming them, I would leave someone out and feel just awful. But from the top guys, to the crew, to the producer, to the chat hosts, I was blown away by the kindness and friendship that bloomed in such a short amount of time.
Seriously. Here’s what. Seattle was a total last minute thing [as in, decided Monday night, ticket purchased Tuesday morning, flight Wednesday afternoon]. I went because Jeremy needed help. I didn’t go to make new friends. I didn’t go expecting to enjoy the company or feel inspired as an artist. I just went.
And it ended up being beautiful.
I can’t adequately express what Seattle meant. For some reason, it hit every key on my emotional keyboard. And maybe I still don’t get it.
But I know that I was lucky to be there.
So because you always win, you get first dibs on buying my book.
I wanted to do something special for my blog friends to celebrate the release of the book, so I made some calls and this is what me and my buddies pulled together.
Here are the details:
- Autographed [by me!!!] copy of FROM HEAD TO FOOT (uh, that’s my book).
*if you do not live in Nashville or Atlanta, this is the only way I can get you a signed copy for now. I’m trying to come up with a way, but for now, this is it.*
- A copy of the Dave Barnes Christmas CD [He wrote the forward to the book, except he called it the "Disclaimer". Rude.]
- A unique ring handmade by my friend Jamie at Owl Really Etsy Store. [they are each different and SUPER cute]
- Some other surprises that I’m gonna throw in there… mainly stuff I find around my house. [Kidding. Sorta. I mean, there are surprises. Just not junk from my house.]
The package is $25- and that includes shipping.
Cause y’all are worth it.
I have 200 christmas packages ready. That’s it.
200.
And you only have until 9pm CST.
So we either close it at 9pm or sell out before that.
If you don’t want the package, I’ll give you the link, etc. to buy just the book tomorrow. [Also, I'm gonna beg you to tweet, blog, facebook, and pimp it all over the place tomorrow. Forgive me in advance, but I need your help.]
Proof that my elves and I have the 200 packages ready to go. Bless their hearts.
