Naming Newsletter Help (WITH a Contest!)

Here we are, 15 days into September.

I have done it -- I have written a blog post every single day (with one of them posting a day late due to a disabling migraine).

Lemme confess this: I am tired. Not of writing. (Oh, I'm about to lay a bombshell on you that will cause you to roll your eyes and say, "But I am tired of your writing. Enough...!")

I'm just tired. Maybe it's the cloud cover. Maybe it's the fact that my alarm goes off at 4:45a so that I can meet my running partner at 5:15. Maybe it's that we keep having weekends-o-fun (that I think I pinky-promised you I would tell you all about and I haven't) and I need a weekend-o-rest. Super Bad. I think I have one penciled in for the weekend before Thanksgiving, but I see band directors eyeing it for something that will keep my children out until ridonkulous hours.

So. Today I'm a little bit at a lack of writing material, because heaven knows you don't want me detailing how tired I am. Instead of doing tons of writing I'm planning and working on ministry stuff, planning for the spring, and working on things I should have done a long time ago. One of those things is looking at my calendar to see which dates I have available for speaking in the spring. If your group (conference/ club/ small group/ retreat/ ladies class/ church gathering/ etc.) needs a speaker, I would be honored to visit with you to see if I would be a good fit for your group. (P.S. -- I just looked at my speaking topics. Evidently I could stand to be practicing what I preach -- or something like that...)

One of the things I'm working on today is to create a(n email) newsletter. Yes, this is where you, faithful blog reader, think, "Why in heaven's name would I need to read your newsletter? Pretty sure when I'm reading about how tired you are, we have scraped the bottom of the subject-matter barrel and you have nothing left to say to me..." EXCELLENT point, dear and lovely blog reader...

And while I will be thrilled for you to read my newsletter, it's really not for you, you see. Because you are my faithful. You show up over here when I lament about my dog losing hair, losing my dog, or just generally losing my mind. You rock that way.

Once I get my newsletter up and running (target date: Oct. 1.  Feel free to ask me about it!) it will be for folks that have heard me speak and/ or may be interested in having me speak, but what exactly am I about anyway? It will probably be a once per quarter newsletter, so just 4 times per year in your email inbox.

Here is where you come in. I do articles and words and loquaciousness. Brief and succinct are not my strong points. Can you help me name a newsletter for my speaking ministry? It can be a play on words based on my name: "Sarah's ... Stubborn... Stumping.." (see? I told you I shouldn't do this...) or it can be based on the title of my ministry: "Thoughts from The Cleft of the Rock"

To encourage you to put your thinking caps on, I would like to offer a $10 Amazon gift card to a random entrant/ commenter that gives me an idea. Here's how this will work: Leave one comment on the blog  with your BEST entry for a newsletter title. Only one newsletter title entry per person, please. However, for an additional entry, you can click on my facebook link over there and follow me on facebook. Comment and tell me that you did, or leave me a comment to tell me that you already do. So there should be a maximum of two entries per person.

I will accept entries for a week -- through midnight, September 22. I will choose a winner by a random number generator, so even if you think the best you can come up with is cheesy, toss it out there! For those of you that read my blog on Facebook and generally comment over there, you're going to have to add your comment here ('lest I get REALLY confused). 

So get thinking, and be clever. Ready.... GO!

Ask the Bloggy Friends: Moving Tips and Tricks

So... if you haven't heard... I'M MOVING! Yay! We are beginning the packing-in-earnest process and looking to the move ahead. It has been a while since I moved and I am not what one would call a pro at this.

So... let's play a game of "Ask the Bloggy Friends," 'kay?
I have received a lot of helpful advice from this post (including the part about hiring professional movers if at all possible)!

Do you have a great tip or trick about packing for a move? (Not packing the truck -- SOOOOoooo not my job!) Most of you have moved more recently or more often than me! Let me know any great thoughts you have!

Asking the Bloggy Friends: What Smells Make You Happy?

This is one of those questions that floats around on some of those blog memes occasionally, but it's just a drive-by, along with what is in your purse, the middle name of your dog, and the last song played on your iPod.

You know smells trigger memories and emotions more than any other of our senses. Which, if you are my husband, an allergy sufferer, is unfortunate. Wait a minute. I am just now drawing this correlation. Seriously -- the man smells NOTHING. Seriously -- the man remembers NOTHING. Coincidence? I think not...

I was telling a friend that I don't like a particular food because of the way it initially smells. Odd, I know, but if it smells weird, I don't want to taste it, right? Oh -- and if you give me new food to try: I WILL sniff it. (and now, so will my daughter). Rude? Yes. Me? Yes.

So...? Friend asks, What smells DO you like? I honestly couldn't think of any, going through my Scentsy arsenal in my head. Much later the smell I LOVE came to me (it is VERY odd, because it is actually associated with meat, which I'm not a huge fan of, which sparked the initial conversation).

My father and my husband are both what they would call "grilling purists": only grill with charcoal. The way Jesus did, you know? No propane. I remember as a little girl when my dad would grill out I would go outside and play and hang out with him (I also broke my arm once, but I guess I can overlook that) and we frequently had my grandparents over. I would bask in the smell of the charcoal grill with the relaxed evening and family gathering 'round.

Now, we grill out at least twice a month as the weather allows, usually more when it's warmer. Those are my favorite days. A)it's less wear and tear on my kitchen, but the kids are thrilled with the menu selection, even the dog perks up to have Troy outside with her. It is always a precious family time. I truly LOVE to nuzzle into Troy's neck when he has been standing outside next to the grill. Totally whacko? Probably.

So I want to know about you. What smells make you happy? What smells call to mind fun family gatherings or fun times with friends? Whatever you think of... I would love to hear from you!