Faith Raider Photography

Library Park Session

2017-11-03T08:20:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow I have my first photography session of the season. And as I was looking through my blog archive to share these pictures I realized that I never blogged them! Which is crazy because this was one of my favorite sessions last season. So I'm blogging them now, a year later. These are friends of ours and it was just so fun capturing this spunky sweet pair.

These pictures were taken at the Columbia County Library in Evans, GA and the park behind it.

bathroom renovation part 1

2017-04-12T14:26:00.000-04:00

The other day Daniel was putting in some low energy bulbs and I asked if we were going to ask our landlord to reimburse us for the bulbs since they are the kind that are supposed to last years and years and the ones we had previously hadn't burned out or anything - Daniel said something about how he didn't really care one way or the other because of the energy savings we would get in the meantime. I feel like something clicked with me when he said that.

The rental house we are living in now has been driving me crazy basically from week one. It has a lot of potential to be cute but a lot of the work that was done to renovate the house was done really carelessly, especially the latest paint job. It's awful.There are holes all over the walls and paint roller fuzziers everywhere. But I've been hesitant to do anything about it because I'm not confident about how long we'll be staying here and I hate putting in the work to fix rooms when I won't get any credit for it. Except for the satisfaction of having it look nice while we live here and that has finally started to mean something.

At the same time I've been dreaming of buying a fixer-upper some day, and to be honest I'm kind of practicing now.

So my very first project at our house is to replace the truly awful popcorn ceiling that has been falling down on us in pieces ever since we moved in nearly two years ago. I'm really not much of a handyman or a DIY queen. It took me several months to paint my girl's bedroom in the last home we owned. Their furniture stayed in the center of the room for weeks waiting for me to put on the second coat of paint. So this is kind of a big deal.

I read this tutorial which I thought was super helpful and I'll be referencing it several times.

Our ceiling has been flaking a little bit at a time for nearly two years. It's been seriously driving me crazy!!

Step 1: Spray

The tutorial I linked above suggested spraying the whole room down first. I couldn't imagine doing that and just worked one small section at a time spraying a most of just plain water. It worked great for me.

Step 2: Scrape

This is my daughter helping me scrape the popcorn ceiling off with a plastic spatula. It worked fantastically well. You can get these for at the dollar store. I have several so I used this one. I thought it might be ruined from this but not at all. Also including my bigger kiddos on this project was awesome. I'd highly recommend it. This felt like a no-fail step to the project and it gave me time to bond with them.

Step 3: Wipe

Next I wiped the area off with an old kitchen rag. This helped get off anything that the spatula had missed. I repeated these steps in little sections of the ceiling until all of the popcorn plaster was off.

The tutorial had suggested protective eye wear and I agree. That would have been a really good thing. I tried to keep the plaster wet so that there was minimal dust but it was a crazy messy job.

I tried to use a sheet to contain the mess but I'm not sure that it helped. I can not overstate the fact that this made a HUGE mess. I think it took me about an hour to scrape the ceiling and about two hours to clean up the mess that I'd made.

Also, it goes without saying, yet I didn't do this - be sure to clean out your area completely before starting this. I thought I would do this a little bit at a time and didn't really love things out of the bathroom until stuff started to get crazy messy in there. Next time I'll know better and just clean the space out first so there is less to clean later.

Also we made a mess on our carpet. It vacuumed up fine but like I said - this project is so messy. If you are having your kiddos help out make sure that they know not to track plaster into the carpet or lay down some sheets/old towels to try to help contain the mess.

If you're thinking about a bathroom renovation and are considering scraping off your popcorn ceiling I'd say go for it! It was very do-able and now I'm more motivated than ever to get the rest of the bathroom painted etc. since I spent so much time cleaning it and was close enough to notice all of the little things that drive me crazy about this bathroom.

This is what the ceiling looks like now!! I really love that there is no more popcorn ceiling hanging down. Can't wait to get this finished.

It only took me over a year but my bathroom ceiling is finally painted! You can read about it here.

Spring Family Session: Savannah Rapids

2017-03-20T10:44:00.000-04:00

This sweet mom reached out to me over Facebook a couple of weeks ago asking if I could do a quick session so that she would have some good photos to bring to the son they are adopting from overseas. I was so happy we could work something out between both of our busy schedules because they were an absolute delight to photograph and I am so super happy with how their pictures turned out.

Are you thinking about maybe one day in the not too distant future that you might like to be able to photograph a session like this? Well I've written a series of classes just for you which I will be launching in the summer and fall. Interested? Click here to fill out a super-quick survey.

Family Sessions: Bolyards

2017-03-06T22:31:00.002-05:00

One of God's sweetest blessings in my life at the moment is the new friends I've made at our new church and at the top of that list is this sweet lady right here. Jessica writes a blog full of encouragement for the weary soul. When I mentioned on Facebook that I was offering to take some family photographs this sweet lady was quick to ask me to photograph her family. They were so easy to work with - their love for each other shines through in these images.

Recognize this location? It's the same one that I used for this session here.
Are you thinking about maybe one day in the not too distant future that you might like to be able to photograph a session like this? Well I've written a series of classes just for you which I will be launching in the summer and fall. Interested? Click here to fill out a super-quick survey.

Photography classes - online and in person

2017-03-01T21:45:00.001-05:00

This moment - it was an amazing moment for me. It was my very first in person photography class at my best friend's house. I'd been teaching online classes for a few years but after awhile it just didn't fit into my life. I thought that maybe this was something I would never do again. Life has been crazy insane this past year. Growing our family has been a beautiful difficult season. Homeschooling has been the best, hardest thing I have ever done. But the seasons are changing...

Que a drumroll and all of the glitter cannons.

I am teaching photography classes again!!!

I am taking the rest of the school year to re-write my materials then I'll be offering classes to mamas and I'll also be launching a series of classes for kids. I will be hosting classes online and also in-person here in the Augusta, Georgia area in the summer.

In order to best serve you I have put together a quick little survey to find out what would be the most helpful to you. Here is the link to the survey. Thanks so much!! I can't wait to meet you soon.

Digital Christmas Cards!

2016-12-22T00:23:00.001-05:00

I don't know about you but I am terrible at sending Christmas cards. Every year I think I am going to do it and every year, about this time of the year, I realize that it's just not going to happen. This year maybe I'll get around to sending out some holiday cards after all now that I know about with Greenvelope, an online design store that is changing the way families everywhere send holiday invitations, greeting cards and notes.

Each design is customizable to fit your personality. Once you’re finished, send your holiday greetings or party invite with one click, instantly delivering your season’s greetings. Also, because it is all online it is a more frugal option and better for the environment. But who am I kidding, I just like this because it's perfect for procrastinators!

One of the things I was impressed with about Greenvelope are the gorgeous professional designs. As a photographer there is nothing more annoying to me than to see beautiful family photos in a poorly designed card. No worries with this site. All of the designs are terrific.

Here are just a few of my favorite card designs.

Can’t settle on just one holiday photo? (I never can.) The Very Merry grid design template is perfect for you. Feature up to 4 pictures with this photo collage design.

If you’re hosting a holiday party, Greenvelope has many design templates for you to choose from. The Ugly Sweater Party Invitation is especially cute.

And in case you want to cover all of your bases here is the Happy Everything design - perfect for families that celebrate or don't celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah or another holiday. There are also greeting cards that would be perfect for sending to business contacts.

One of the things you might be wondering about is price - you can send cards to up to 10 people for free in Trial Mode if you want to send more just purchase a monthly or yearly subscription based on how many invitations, announcements and digital greeting cards you think you'll be sending. Packages start at about $20.

HOLIDAY BONUS! Set up an online photo gallery that recaps the meaningful moments that made up your year to be included with your greeting at no additional cost.

Start designing your seasonal cards here, or browse all holiday designs here.

This post contains affiliate links. Thanks for supporting my blog!

Fall Family sessions: Maxwells

2016-12-01T05:00:00.000-05:00

When your best friend asks you to take pictures of her family - there is just nothing better. These beautiful people feel practically like family. This was a new location for me to do a "real" session and I am in love with this spot! It is so beautiful. We also took some shots at a nearby church - because a beautiful brick wall is worth the drive!

Mini-Session: November

2016-11-28T23:26:00.003-05:00

This month I have learned something about myself, or maybe re-learned something I had forgotten - I love photography. Especially family sessions. This session was especially fun. Their sweet baby was at the perfect age to make a session a little tricky but we got a few smiles! This beautiful family was super easy and made me remember how much I love doing these sessions.

Book Review: Celebrations - with Against All Grain

2016-11-06T22:54:00.000-05:00

Danielle Walker's Against All Grain

Celebrations

a year of gluten-free, dairy-free, and Paleo recipes for every occasion.

If your family has food allergies like my family does, or you have adopted a special diet for the sake of your health like Danielle Walker, well then you know how difficult it can be around this time of year - Thanksgiving & Christmas are the hardest time of year for any family who has chosen a special diet or is dealing with food allergies.

Around the holidays it often feels like there are only two options, either you have to cheat on your diet (and face the consequences) or you have to deprive yourself. If I'm honest I've done both. I've sat in the corner with a cup of coffee and my resolve to not cheat, and I've also said "whatever, it's just one day." and tried the foods I shouldn't eat, only to wish I hadn't.

There is a third option though, if you are willing to do the extra work, you can modify your recipes to accommodate your dietary restrictions. However if you have ever tried alternative baking you know it can be hit or miss. We have all learned the hard way - not every recipe on Pinterest actually works. Celebrations is the cookbook I've needed all along - so I can enjoy my holidays and good health.

If I could sum up this cookbook in one word it would be satisfying. Every recipe is beautifully photographed. There are a variety of recipes from easy, no-brainer recipes like sun butter buckeyes, and chicken wings to more complicated dishes like spiralized butternut squash noodles, from-scratch marshmallows, grain-free gingerbread houses and absolutely everything in between.

This cookbook is organized with menus for special occasions throughout the year, from New Year's & Valentines Day to Thanksgiving and Christmas and everything in between including a menu for a backyard barbecue and one for a baby or bridal shower. But just because the recipes are organized into menus for special occasions doesn't mean that there aren't plenty of recipes I'd make just for our family on an ordinary weeknight.

Best of all - all of the recipes are made with an eye to food allergies and dietary restrictions of pretty much every kind. There is even a chart at the back of the book that shows which recipes are compliant with which food allergies. So in this cookbook there is absolutely no wheat, oats, corn, soy, yeast or potato, not in a single recipe. Also all of the recipes are dairy-free (but have substitutions if that's not an issue), most of the recipes are refined sugar-free, egg free, nut free, and nightshade free, comply with the SPD/GAPS diets and all of the recipes are compliant with the Paleo diet. So if you, your family, or someone you love falls into one of those categories then I highly recommend you get this cookbook, either for yourself - to cook for your nephew, granddaughter, best friend or whoever it is who happens to need some extra care when it comes to food or to give to them so that they can enjoy the holidays both happily and healthfully.

When I was trying to pick which recipes to try for this review it was almost impossible to narrow it down to just a few - there is beautiful asparagus soup (which I will for sure be trying out in the spring when fresh asparagus is in season) and chicken verde soup. There are a bunch of cakes (which can be tricky when you are baking grain-free), cinnamon rolls and sticky buns. She has kid-friendly dishes, and adult beverages. There are traditional family recipes re-worked and classic favorites. I ended up making the curried pumpkin soup which she said was a traditional family favorite that they enjoyed on Halloween and I ended up making our soup on Halloween too. Which was super cool. My whole family was pretty not-sure about the whole pumpkin as soup thing and if I'm honest not all of my kids were a fan but I loved it and I especially loved that there were leftovers for lunch the next day! Next recipe I plan to try is her gingerbread cake. It looks amazing.

So however ready (or not) you might be for this upcoming holiday season do yourself a favor and pick up this beautiful cookbook and get ready to try some amazing seasonal recipes! Let me know which ones you try first.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

A photo posted by faith raider (@faithrphotog) on Oct 14, 2016 at 12:43pm PDT

Fall Family mini-sessions

2016-10-26T23:42:00.000-04:00

Every session is different. Some kids are more or less easy to work with. These kids and this sweet sweet mama were a photographer's dream. These cuties were silly and giggly and chatty and made my job easy-peasy. Then they gave me my favorite group shot of the season so far. I love this job! There are a lot of beautiful places to do a family session around Augusta. One of my favorites is the Savannah Rapids where I shot this session. It's a very popular spot for photographers!

I'm shooting mini-sessions this Saturday (the 29th)

and I still have a couple of spots open for the 19th of November.

mini sessions part 2

2016-10-16T01:53:00.000-04:00

This was seriously the cutest, sweetest family I have had the privilege to photograph in awhile. All of the kids were just off the charts photogenic and well behaved. Yes, the group shots took a bit of photoshop but it was so worth it.

I will be doing min-shoots again on October 29 & November 19 at this location so please let me know if you'd like to reserve a spot!

mini sessions

2016-10-15T01:45:00.001-04:00

I am currently booking for the Augusta area. Send me an email for information and to reserve your spot!

Here are a few favorites from my last session:

There's nothing better than photographing my beautiful in-real-life friends!!

You might recognize this cutie from my post the other day.

I also got a few shots of this adorable girl on her 10th birthday.

She was just the sweetest girl. As you can see - also very shy.

I'll be shooting again on the 22nd at this location. So please let me know if you'd like for me to save a spot for you!

a day at the park with friends

2016-10-06T14:05:00.001-04:00

Today was a great morning. The weather could not have been more perfect. We met some friends at the park and while we were there I took some pictures.

An invitation

2016-10-01T09:54:00.003-04:00

This is an invitation.

An invitation to something that is maybe new. An invitation to be free, to walk lightly and to live openly in this broken, messy world. An invitation to choose brave. In the middle of the hard. In the middle of weakness.

Can we sit here together for just a moment and try to imagine what it might look like to live a life that is not ruled by insecurity? What if you and I learned to stand stronger in our faith and choose love over fear? Close your eyes. Take a deep breath. Can you see it? What does it look like?

It's okay if you can't even imagine it. I'm right here with you. If I'm honest, on a clear day, I can only vaguely make out the shape of it in the distance. It can be hard to see.

Brave.

It's not just David facing Goliath, or Moses at the Red Sea, it's not only Peter or Paul leading the way for the early church. It's not only Esther before the king, saving her nation from certain death. They were all amazing men and women and obviously brave characters in the unfolding story of God's redemption of His people. But during the next 31 days we're going to look at some of the more unexpected characters of the Bible who showed bravery in smaller, quieter ways. In Hannah, getting up out of her grief and surrendering her desires to God. It's Ruth in the fields choosing love in the mundane day after day after weary day.

Brave - it's bold and beautiful, it's breathtaking, but it's not necessarily big, or up front or in a spotlight (though maybe it is, it's just not about being the only one up there). Lately I have been learning that the best kind of brave is vulnerability, it's embracing the reality of needing others and being honest about my weakness. It's about surrendering every last one of my expectations and trusting God, no matter what I'm seeing or how I'm feeling. (By the way, I have learned this is so much easier said than done.)

Writing this series has felt nothing like what I thought it was supposed to feel like. It hasn't been written at a pretty desk in the rays of a rising golden sun, with a nice little stack of commentaries at my side, washed over by peace and joy.

No way.

These post feel like scribbled notes from the bomb shelter. These posts have been tapped out on my cell phone as I empty the clothes dryer and as I make dinner or wash dishes, while sitting in the parking lot of the Library or wrapped in a towel sitting on the edge of the tub. I'm a mess. Honestly, my life feels like two steps away from total, epic disaster, but maybe you can relate to that.

Read the rest of this post on my new blog www.faithraider.com

Emily is headed to the capital!!

2016-09-13T22:47:00.001-04:00

My middle daughter Emily is headed to the State Capitol with a few friends from her class to participate in the YMCA Youth Assembly. When she first told me about this opportunity I felt like this was an important opportunity for her. I am pretty sure that all of my kids will make a positive impact on the world, but Emily is the most vocal about it. She is the one who worked with her student council to implement recycling systems in her school, and she is the one who I expect will do more to help people than she can even imagine right now. I am thrilled for her to have this opportunity, but she can't get there without some help. Here is what she says about it:

I am an 8th grade student and I am looking for opportunities to further contribute to the growth of my education. The Georgia Youth Assembly is a three day seminar in which students my age can meet lawmakers and go to workshops where we would learn how laws affect citizens. To participate, I have to come up with my own bill to be viewed and possibly voted on by the House of Representatives of GA. I set out to draw lawmaker's attention to the problems within the education system we currently have now and, as I grow older, I hope to be able to use this experience to inform my passion for human rights and justice. I need to raise $200, so please donate!

Pendalton King Park

2016-09-10T09:34:00.000-04:00

We went to Pendelton King Park on the 7th to meet up with some friends and it was such a fun adventure!! There is a tank. Need I say more? The boys scrambled up onto it in a blink.

Happy 1st Birthday Grayson!!< br />
It was such a fun day with the boys that I dragged the family there the following weekend.

When I find a pretty brick wall I take pictures. period.
when you have six kids the chances of all of them cooperating for a family picture are slim to none.

Fruit cocktail

2016-09-07T13:46:00.001-04:00

It's funny how a thing as simple as a can of fruit cocktail can stir up so many memories as I spoon out a few pieces of fruit onto Grayson's tray.

I grew up eating this stuff at least every week. My kids don't eat it very often at all. I don't really have an answer as to why. I bought a can on sale to go in some jello that I never got around to making.

My mom used to say that the grapes were gross. I used to think she was crazy but said "yay, more for me" now I agree with her and I have a moment of silent solidarity across the span of years and miles.

My parents grew up in the age of canned food. I think about this as I pour out what the baby won't eat for his brothers. I think about how my kids are growing up in an age of instant food. Pouches, microwaves, the drive-thru. Good for sometimes but not for always.

I have been really stressed-out lately. I have noticed how the first thing to go for me is healthy eating habits. I'm over here with my coffee and my Reece's pieces, trying to decide between hot dogs and frozen chicken fingers for dinner.

I was talking to a friend about this today. We pushed our babies in swings and talked about our eating habits. About how imperfect we are and how far from our ideal. I told her that my newest motto has been "how can I make this 1% better?" She reminded me not to focus on what I'm taking out of my diet but what we are adding into it and I think she is wiser than she gives herself credit for.

procrastination

2016-09-03T09:08:00.000-04:00

I am supposed to be writing a post for my upcoming series for the #write31days blogging challenge, but I took these pictures for this guest-blog post on my friend Sarah's blog. And I thought that there were so many cute pictures of my boys being cute that I had to share ~~a few~~ some.

Someone looks happy to be allowed to use the camera remote!

Just a little bit of silliness.

I think Grayson is ready to be done.

You can always count on Eli for a little bit of silliness during a photoshoot.

Grayson is really really done with this.

Hmmmm, what does this white powder taste like?

Thumbs up.

Touchdown

Brave when I am angry

2016-06-17T23:48:00.001-04:00

This is not something I particularly want to admit but I have been feeling angry lately. A lot. Frustrated, burned out, defeated, ready to give up, angry.

Brave when I feel angry means admitting it, even when I feel a little bit ashamed of myself for responding to my so-very-good life like this.

Brave when I feel angry means dropping the defenses, letting my hands fall weakly to my lap and admitting that I'm struggling right now. That I totally lost it with my son and was strait up harsh with my daughter.

I feel a little bit like I'm drowning in kids and what I feel is rage. I'm super-frustrated by how quickly the days are going by and how little is getting done. I'm exhausted by the 24x7x6 parenting that I am doing by myself because my husband is working long hours right now.

I keep asking God "What does it mean to be brave in this moment?" For me, right now, it means to go to God, openly honestly and allow myself to be comforted. I expected Him to be mad at me for being mad at my kids, but instead the Holy Spirit offered comfort.

Now I need to turn around and offer that comfort to my kiddos.

Brave when I'm overwhelmed

2016-06-13T22:31:00.001-04:00

I am strait-up, flat-out overwhelmed right now. I have got SO much going on these days just trying to keep up with my kiddos. Some days I feel like I'm a human pinball machine and I am just so done right now.

So here I crawl under my covers and I'm asking myself "what does it mean to be brave in this moment? what does it mean to be brave when I'm just so overwhelmed I can't stand it.

For one thing - it means doing exactly what I'm doing now. Go to bed. Like now. When I'm overwhelmed I try to make sure I'm getting enough sleep, which means getting to bed on time. And actually going to sleep, not scrolling through Facebook or Pinterest till 1am.

It means I have to set some boundaries, saying "no" even to good things because I am a mess if there is too much going on all at the same time. It means leaving and guarding the margin in my days and in my mind and heart and bank account, so that I'm not totally maxed out.

It might mean that I need to ask for help I'm truly terrible at asking for help, but sometimes I at least text my friends and ask them to pray for me and this helps more than you'd think.

But I think the bravest thing we can do when we are feeling overwhelmed is to stay open to others. Open to other people's pain and needs. Yes, I may be feeling at the end of my rope but that doesn't mean that I should roll myself up into a little ball.

So that's what I'm thinking about tonight. How about you?

When I ought to be happy... but I'm not

2016-06-06T09:52:00.001-04:00

Summer is sunshine and long days and late nights. Summer is celebration and happy colors and friends. Summer is freedom from the demands of a schedule, it's sitting poolside and popsicles and isn't it supposed to be fun? This week I've been over here like "this is supposed to be fun! I'm supposed to be happy! What's wrong with me? Why am I not happy?!"

This week I've had to embrace the grace for this transition. I've been able to look at myself and say "I'm not happy. This is hard for me. I sometimes struggle with transitions, but I'm confident that before long I'll hit a new stride and we'll be okay. It's okay that I'm not loving every minute of this. It won't be like this forever".

So right now I'm here offering the sympathetic hugs and the metaphorical fist bump as we transition to the summer.

For better or worse here are a couple of things I'm trying to do during this transition, aside from letting myself off the hook:

Adjust expectations

My husband works in HVAC. He literally got home from work last night at ten o'clock and he had to turn away work in order to get home that early. He came home, took a shower and went to bed. After a long day of full-contact parenting yes, I would have liked for him to be home earlier eaten dinner with us and taken over for a little while. But during this busy season of work that's an unrealistic expectation. If my expectation is that he's going to be working long hours this summer then resentment won't have a chance to rob me of my joy.

I also choose to lay down the expectation that my kids are going to get along every single moment of every single day and that my teenagers are going to have good attitudes - we're all humans here and we're all going to have bad days and grumpy moments. It's okay.

Gather moments of gratitude

It is important for me to keep some kind of gratitude journal when I'm stressed out. I sometimes find my internal monologue becoming a list of everything that went wrong today. Choosing to try to notice the good things that happens during the day helps me change that inner monologue to one of gratitude instead of disappointment or exasperation or STRESS.

Plan for joy

I am guilty of going in auto-pilot during busy times. I sometimes find that I've spent all day at home with my kids but I haven't really spent any quality time with my kids. I've talked at them all day but there wasn't a lot of time for hugs or smiles or encouraging words. I've been trying to ask myself "how can I plan for joy" for example one night I got out some balloons and turned on some happy music. Other times it's been pancakes for dinner and a dance party in the kitchen. It's not something that comes naturally for me but it's something I'm trying to get better at.

Create rhythms in the day

for example: for better or worse we have been watching Kung Fu Panda: legends of awesomeness the cartoon on Hulu almost every night before bed. It gives me a moment with the kids to just sit before the bedtime debacle. It also gets the kids calm(er) at the end of the day and it brings us together. It would be awesome if we were gathering around something more meaningful but this is my real life.

I am also attempting to keep meal times at about the same time, our moments of going out and staying home and being quiet at around the same time every day. Not all days follow the pattern but I try to keep a simple block schedule even during the summer. I feel better, and I think so do the kids.

Get outside

it might seem like a no-brainier but here in the Deep South it is sometimes easy to choose air conditioning over sunshine - but getting outside every day always makes everyone a little bit more cheerful. The boys are less hyper and the girls are less grumpy. Sometimes when I'm just totally Loosing My Mind this is my go-to move.

Here are a couple of resources that have fallen into my lap this week that I thought I'd share.

Emily P Freeman is offering 7 days of still moments of pause. I highly recommend them.

Jess Connolly is offering some worksheets "Summer Guide to THRIVE"

What filter am I using?

2016-06-02T19:15:00.001-04:00

I had one of those lightbulb moments earlier today as I was posting a picture to Instagram - I chose a filter and posted it and in that moment I felt the Holy Spirit ask me - what filter am I choosing for my life?! For better or worse Instagram is a big part of my life - maybe not in minutes or dollars but for sure in happiness. I get a lot of enjoyment from sharing my life in pictures and a sense of satisfaction from seeing what others share about their lives.

The other week I was watching the Hope Writers series, and something that Ruth from Grace Laced said to Myquillyn aka The Nester during one of the interviews has stuck with me. She said she edits her images similarly and usually uses the same filters for her images to give her feed a sense of continuity. Since then I've found myself using the same filter on almost every image, even images I would usually leave unfiltered because of this little tip that she suggested.

And I wonder how I do that in my real life? Do I see my life through the filter of someone who is blessed and dearly loved or am I too stressed out by what is in front of my face to notice that my filter had turned dark? Am I filtering my daily life through the truth of God's word or am I allowing the enemy of my soul to rob me of perspective?

I have been thinking more and more about the importance of living life LOVED. How it will change what I expect of my husband, how I respond to my kids, and how I react to the stress, the frustrations and disappointment of life. I am loved by my good good Father - that is the filter through which I want to be viewing my life.

New blog post!

2016-05-25T12:09:00.003-04:00

In my last blog post I mentioned that I was expanding my blogging platform to include fiction. Today I hit publish on my first fiction book recommendation at FaithRaiderFiction.blogspot.com. So if fiction reading is something you're interested in and you can never get enough book recommendations and reveiws then be sure to jump over there and subscribe to future blog posts!

Changing...

2016-05-20T00:08:00.001-04:00

I don't know if you noticed that I changed my header for the blog? I changed from Sweet Violet to my name: Faith Raider. It has been a HUGE hurdle for me to get over using my name as my anything online but it was time. I reached out, asked the question to someone I trusted and got some super loving feedback saying, basically "yes. Use your name. It's lovely." So here I am - as me.

One more thing that I did was set up a new blog that is just my name that will become my devotional/Bible Study blog so that Faith R Photog can go back to being a photography blog and my writing can all be in one place. I also created a blog for fiction writing, because it's okay to be more than just one thing. Maybe this is all a terrible idea. But it's how I'm compartmentalizing this for now so that you can subscribe to the piece of my writing that you like. The subscription option should be in the sidebar. If you're viewing on mobile you may need to scroll to the bottom of the page and tap "view web version" to see the desktop version of my design.

I wrote my first post for my new blog and it is here: http://faithraider.blogspot.com/2016/05/faithful-steward.html It would mean a lot to me if you could let me know you saw it either on the blog or on social media :)

Thank you - because if you are still reading here it means that you're probably one of the handfuls of people who have been encouraging me and have been reading what I've been writing, even when I've been quiet for awhile and/or not currently making a lot of sense. Love you.

Delight and Duty

2016-05-18T08:24:00.002-04:00

I wrote yesterday about the sermon I that had me feeling like my spirit had been twisted into pretzel. Duty to delight in and pursue joy God? A delight to pursue my duty? What? And what does this really mean on an ordinary Wedesday morning. The other day at lunch I felt like a little piece of my puzzle snapped into place.

Sometimes I say to myself "I am going to eat whatever makes me feel happy" and I eat donuts and yet pizza and those foods don't love me back because I have a wheat intolerance. Other times I tell myself "I'm going to eat whatever makes me feel happy" and I eat salads because salads make me happy and they make my body happy.

When I was pregnant with Grayson I was super sick. In an attempt salvage what was left of my life I decided to be more strict with my diet and gave up all things wheat. I decided that the headaches and the tummy problems I had accepted as normal were really not worth it. I had finally hit a point where enjoying the doughnut wasn't worth the headache and enduring the stomach problems weren't worth giving into the craving. At first I felt like I could not survive without it but gradually I found solutions that worked for me and my body started to heal itself. The surprising thing was that after a while I even stopped craving the things that had made me feel sick.

Maybe duty and delight are a little bit like that. Sometimes I say I'm going to pursue God but it feels almost exactly like going on one of those awful diets where I hate every minute of it. Sometimes I say "forget this I'm going to do what makes me happy" but I end up paying for it later.

Maybe life in Christ is like making my body happy with a salad. I'm eating what I should and I'm happy about it. I'm not always happy about it, like as I pull all the ingredients out to make my salad, when what I'm craving is the pizza, but I'm usually happy with the salad by the time the plate is empty. I am not living by my feelings because I'm not always eating what I feel like in the moment but I am making the choice that I know will make me happiest in the long run. I am choosing happiness. I'm just not choosing immediate gratification. Does that make sense?

What I am pretty certain of is that God isn't asking us to live a life of self-deprivation. He doesn't want to deprive us of anything except for the things that are making us sick - physically, emotionally, spiritually... He wants us to deprive ourselves of the things that are making us sick so we can be filled by the things that bring life to our souls. His "no" is for the sake of a better "yes". Duty is, I guess, the beat between when we say no to the things that make us sick and yes to things that bring us life. It's all of the minutes between when we say yes to tithing and then watching God provide. It's all the heartbeats between when we begin to pray and when the Holy Spirit is drawing near.

I guess duty is kind of like lacing up your running shoes or grabbing the gym bag or driving past the drive through (without stopping!) - because we have confidence in the delight we'll eventually get from making the better choice. It's dragging yourself to small group, even when the morning has already been a disaster, it's showing up for the coffee date wholeheartedly even when you'd rather hide behind "sure, I'm fine. How are you?" It's sending that message, engaging with that friend. Sitting down with your Bible, lifting up your heart in prayer.